Impressions from Day Two at E3 – Full Text Overview
After reviewing those past games, I really wanted to play something I didn’t get the chance to demo yesterday. The first game that popped in my head was Kid Icarus: Uprising, since rail shooters represent just about the coolest genre of gaming there is. I hopped in line for the single player demo, and after about fifteen minutes of waiting, I got the chance to sit down and try out Pit’s first adventure since 1987. The demo included a flying level (on-rails), an on-foot level (not on-rails), and a grounded boss battle (also not on-rails). Upon starting up the game, I was presented with seven weapons for Pit to wield, each having distinct advantages and disadvantages. I ended up choosing the cannon, which was one of the more powerful ranged weapons, but made Pit a little less agile. The camera was controlled with the stylus, while the control stick moved Pit around the screen. Pressing L fired cannon blasts, and holding the button down unleashed a rapid-fire assault. Holding your fire for a second or two built up a charge shot. Moving rapidly from right to left on the control stick made Pit do a dodge move. Just like in Mario Kart, the 3D effect made everything feel much more exhilarating.
After gliding through the excellent air level, I proceeded onward to the ground level. The biggest change was camera control; instead of constantly moving your stylus around the touch screen, a quick flick of it changed perspectives. Also, doing a brisk move in one direction on the control stick made Pit do a dodge strafe, instead of from one direction to the other like in the air. Pressing L next to an adjacent enemy unleashed a melee attack. The third-person ground level wasn’t as fun or as eye-popping as the on-rails air segment, but was still a quality level. The boss battle was of the standard shoot, dodge the opposing charge attack, shoot some more variety, and featured some nice visuals. Overall, my experience with Uprising was similar to Super Mario: it didn’t completely blow me away, but looks like a lot of fun (especially the on-rails segments) and would be a quality purchase for any 3DS owner this holiday season.
Right next to the single player demo was the multiplayer one, so I decided to tackle that next. Just like in the campaign, you are given the option of one of multiple weapons; I went with the bow this time, which was the standard ranged weapon with no apparent advantages or disadvantages. The multiplayer game was three-on-three, light vs. dark. Control was the exact same as the ground level in the single player, with a flick of the stylus guiding the camera; it felt comfortable enough, but a little slow for the fast-paced action of multiplayer. Each side was given a team health bar that would drop further and further with each death. Once depleted, the team’s hero, Pit for the light team or Darth Pit for the dark team, would emerge in place of someone’s character and be the only one that could take damage that would affect each respective health bar; think Juggernaut from the Halo series, if you will. Take down the Juggernaut, and the game is yours. Gameplay felt incredibly smooth, with no apparent lag or delay whatsoever. The multiplayer wouldn’t sell the game on its own, but is a nice addition to an already solid game.
