The fervent demand for a new Kid Icarus game has always seemed a little unnecessary from this vantage point. Just what is it about the NES platform game that makes it so suited to a modern day revival? It can’t be the gameplay. As a platformer, it lacked the kinetic fun of a Mario game. And as an adventure it lacked the sense of exploration and accomplishment that defined both Zelda and Metroid. Is it the character? A winged boy that cannot fly? Doubtful.

I believe I can fly

Whatever the reason, demand has undoubtedly existed for many years now, and was only elevated by the appearance of lead-character Pit in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Now Nintendo has finally relented and brought Pit back in his own game – one that’s not just a franchise comeback but also a key launch title for the publisher’s latest handheld, the 3DS.

Under the guiding hand of Kirby/Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai, Kid Icarus will return in a rather unfamiliar guise. Wisely noting, though not outright admitting, that the original gameplay might not stack up today, Sakurai has reinvented Kid Icarus as a 3D action game, more focussed on combat and shooting than jumping or exploring.

Specific details are unclear but the third-person action game currently appears to be an on-rails experience, similar to Sin & Punishment or Star Fox. This would make perfect sense, given the unique features of the 3D display. Miyamoto himself has stated that Star Fox was the first game he thought of making when 3DS production began, and it seems like Sakurai is thinking along the same lines. Early footage, demoed at this summer’s E3, showed Pit constantly moving forward, whether in the air or on land, dodging enemy attacks and either firing back with his bow and arrow or striking out with his sword. The into-the-screen perspective is perfect for 3D gaming, because of the enhanced sense of depth it creates. And though we’re sure everyone will be sick of such games by around this time in 2013, Kid Icarus’s status as a launch title ensures that it will be able to ride the 3D novelty wave.

Hot dog

Much like Treasure’s Sin & Punishment series, the controls of Uprising separate out movement and aiming so that each can be manipulated independently. The analogue Slide Pad will be used to move Pit around the 3D screen, while the stylus and touch screen will be used to aim his reticule. Such controls are only necessary if the lead character is going to need to dodge just as much as he needs to shoot, so it’s encouraging to see footage of Pit taking on huge screen-filling bosses and weaving through webs of laser death and tight canyon walls in nail-biting style.

Nintendo has always, for some reason, packed its on-rails shooters with more cinematic story than most of its other action games, and Kid Icarus looks to be no different. Though a typically simple tale, Uprising’s basic premise is at least fitting for a game-world that deals in epic themes of mythology. Palutena, the Goddess of Light, and Medusa, the Queen of Darkness, both return from the original game and once again find themselves locked in eternal struggle.

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