Kid Icarus (Nintendo 1987)

In Kid Icarus, you take control of the angel Pit who has to save to goddess of light. It would appear that her evil sister Medusa has taken over Angel Land. Armed with only a bow, you have to make your way up from the underworld where you have been imprisoned, over the surface, through the clouds and finally onto Angel Land for the final showdown. Kid Icarus (together with Metroid) was one of the first games to use the then "new" password system and this made for a much longer quest through larger levels.

The game is pretty old so don't expect great graphics, but it does have lots of enemy sprites and enough variety to keep you interested. Some levels have you making your way upwards through platforms, while other features the more traditional left to right scrolling. You also get to fly in a side scrolling shooter like level in one part and each boss stage is set up like a maze where you have to explore lots of rooms to reach the boss. As I've said the game is pretty long, not to mention tough and you won't be completing it in a hurry. There is a large variety of enemies out to stop you not to mention traps and natural hazards like falling off platforms.

Controls are responsive enough and your character can shoot upwards as well as crouch. There are some doors scattered about that lead to shops where you can buy health and maps. The former which is essential, seeing as your health does not get replenished after each level. Kid Icarus also feature some bizarre elements like being turned into an eggplant by certain enemies which means you can't attack until you've found a hospital to restore you. The sound in the game is pretty average and far from the best that the NES has to offer but I guess it is not surprising for such an early title. Kid Icarus does offer enough variety and innovation to make it worth the effort though and the tough levels will test your skills. It is in my opinion one of the better games of the era.

[8]

Felix The Cat (Hudson Soft 1992)

Besides being one of the scariest wall mounted clocks ever made, Felix The Cat is also the star of his own children's cartoon series. This appears to be the market Hudson is aiming at with this platform release as anyone over the age of ten will most likely breeze through the game on their first try. Just because it's a short and easy children's title doesn't mean it's bad though. Hudson has obviously taken a look at all the best platform titles out there and borrowed some ideas while incorporating a bit of originality into the mix as well.

The game starts off with Felix being harassed over the phone by some evil professor who has taken Felix's girlfriend Kitty hostage. From there it's ten levels of platform action as you battle your way through hordes of strange creatures with the aid of your magic bag. As usual you are collecting tokens (Felix icons in this case) which are scattered all over the place. The twist is that these are actually handier than the usual points and 1-ups usually bestowed by such trinkets. While Felix starts out with a meagre boxing glove, he will undergo a magical transformation for every ten tokens he collects. Some of these forms are quite cool (a big tank for example) and the best part is that they can change from stage to stage. Since some levels take place in the air or underwater, Felix will be able to fly in a hot air balloon or even ride on the back of a dolphin.

The levels themselves are bright and colourful but apart from a brief trip into space not that original. Strangely for a kiddies' title, it only takes one hit to kill Felix although if you have transformed into something else you merely go back to your previous form. It's still very easy though as levels are packed with tokens and you usually respawn very close to where you died. Enemies are easily dealt with and the bosses do little to slow down your progress. The inclusion of a time limit to each level is a bit puzzling for a children's title though.

I'm not that familiar with the cartoon series but the music in the game does a good job of capturing that cartoon spirit. A few more tunes would have spiced things up a bit but what's here isn't too bad. Controls are very responsive and even while rampaging about in a mini-tank you feel in control.

It's easy to dismiss Felix the Cat as just another children's game but compared to other titles in this category ( the abysmal Barbie games for example ) it's actually quite good. Hudson actually put some effort into this release and it shows. It's a pity that they didn't include a difficulty setting so more experienced players could have a challenge as well. The bottom line is if you are too young or don't have the skills to complete titles like Super Mario Brothers this is a great place to start and hone your skills.

  [7]