A lighthearted adventure with mythical challenges. The "8-bit Summer" series continues with this classic action game from 1991. Angel Land is up to its halos in woes as mythical monsters are running rampant. Pit, the original Kid Icarus, must save the realm again. Armed with his trusty bow, he'll zap the bad guys and find the Three Sacred Treasures hidden by Palutena. Only after this grueling training will he be strong enough to take on the dark forces behind Angel Land's troubles. Pit will encounter old friends and new enemies - from helpful Centurions to the dreaded Eggplant Wizard - as he journeys from the depths of the underworld to the towers of the sky palace. Find hammers to shatter special walls and reveal helpful items. Collect hearts by fighting off Pit's foes. Train hard and battle harder. Pit's challenges make the labors of Hercules look like a walk in the park.
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Pit moves better, and most of the levels aren't too bad, but my main complaint goes to the dungeons and bosses. A lot of the rooms in dungeons are the same 3 or 4 layouts repeating again and again which makes navigation tricky as you can't really make landmarks for yourself. The bosses meanwhile are massive damage sponges that take a gorillion hits to die, even once you figure out their patterns. I'm also not fond of Pit powering down as you take damage, it's very discouraging and would make me choose to lose a life rather than fight with my slow limited range arrows.
It's better than the NES version in some respects, but worse in more obtuse and frustrating ways.
Pit's control is tighter, the game is a lot more balanced and powerups can be used in dungeons, which are way less painful than last time. The levels are more rewarding to explore and you can go back the way you came without it killing you unlike last time.
In game mechanics are clearer for the most part, and combat is still fun. I appreciate the better level design, but I still used a guide for dungeons, I just don't like this format, especially when the bosses absolutely suck this time. They take way too long to kill, do loads of damage and are just generally not fun fights. You can't even summon angels anymore to help. Powerups are also lost when you drop below a certain amount of health, so when you need them most you can't use them... great.
The final stretch is annoying, as the treasures you spend the game finding may not even be useable if you haven't got enough points. I still managed to survive, but this was very stupid.
Honestly this game is an improvement overall, helping this formula reach its potential. It's just that I don't think this alone makes for that great of a game. It still clashes with itself, not as badly, but it's a tricky recommend - 5.5/10