 Kid Icarus
(C) 1986 Nintendo |
 光神話 パルテナの鏡
Hikari Shinwa - Parutena no Kagami "Myth of Light - Parutena's Mirror" (C) 1986 Nintendo |
| Kid Icarus is one of those
forgotten NES classics. Nobody really thinks of it as their
favorite NES game, but it has a certain charm to it that's hard to
deny. Sure, the first three levels are difficult for newcomers to
pass, but after clearing those the game opens up and leads you through
a compelling adventure. There are a variety of both horizontal
and vertically scrolling stages for you to conquer, and the
labryinthine dungeons are fun to explore and eventually defeat. Many American fans have played Kid Icarus, but few have tried its Japanese Famicom Disk System release, 光神話 パルテナの鏡. The main difference between the two games is that the Japanese version lets you save your game to a disk, while the American release requires you to write down convoluted passwords. There are a few audio changes as well, the most noticiable being that the reapers now scream at you when you shoot them. Probably the strangest feature of the disk system version is that you can talk into the Famicom's microphone to try and convince some shopkeepers to lower their price. Here's a gallery of screenshots showing the most obvious graphical changes... I really haven't played through this version of the game much being that I've just recently completed the domestic release, but if you feel I've missed anything major you can let me know. |
| Kid Icarus |
光神話 パルテナの鏡 |
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 All of the text
translates to its equivalent in Kid Icarus except for Doropie, which
is the name I input for this save!
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 The reapers look the same in both games, though they sound completely different in the FDS version. |
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| Different sound effects: Level End - Check out the different level ending theme, which is a bit heavier on the synth than in the USA release. Reaper - In Hikari Shinwa, the reaper lets out a weird wail when he sees you. Pit vs. the reaper and his mini reapers - If you've ever been to the beach, this sound clip from fighting the reaper and his reaperettes will probably remind you of squawking seagulls. Pit hurt - The sound effect of Pit being damaged is a bit different and creepier in Hikari Shinwa. |
| Other changes: In Japan, the Famicom came with a microphone which you could speak into. In Hikari Shinwa, if you spoke into the microphone while you were in the shop it'd let you haggle with the shopkeeper, which could either raise or lower prices. The Kid Icarus equivalent is to press A+B on the second controller while in a shop -- they both accomplish the same thing. |
| Extra goodies: Advertisement for Hikari Shinwa - This is a neat anime-styled ad for Hikari Shinwa. Advertisement for Hikari Shinwa, with bestiary - Here's another ad for Hikari Shinwa, featuring illustrations of various monsters found within the game! Both of these ads were taken from 1UP Games with permission. Check 'em out if you can read French, they have a Kid Icarus writeup there too! |
