Pit (Kid Icarus)

Pit (ピット, Pitto) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Kid Icarus series, first appearing in Kid Icarus for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1986 and later appearing in Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters for the Game Boy in 1991. Pit is the protagonist of the 2012 video game Kid Icarus: Uprising, with director Masahiro Sakurai claiming that Pit would feel like a brand new character for Uprising, with various new weapons and abilities.^[1]

Pit has appeared in various media, as well as making various cameo appearances in many other Nintendo games. He appeared as one of the playable fighters in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and returned in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U. He was also one of the recurring characters in the Captain N: The Game Master cartoon series, though in the latter he was known as Kid Icarus. Since his introduction, Pit's character has been generally well received by video game critics.

Characteristics

Pit's character takes elements from three of Nintendo's biggest franchises; he can jump like Mario, uses ability-enhancing objects like Link, and shoot enemies like Samus.^[2] IGN's Lucas M. Thomas, in a feature about Pit, commented that Pit's inspiration in Greek mythology was more prominent than Sony's God of War series and that Pit could be viewed as a combination between Eros and Icarus. Thomas noted Pit's speech, saying it could become a distinguishing difference between him and other Nintendo characters such as Link. Thomas said that both his bow and his wings were his most iconic characteristics.^[3] The series contains several references to Icarus, Eros, and Eros' Roman equivalent Cupid, including currency depicted as "hearts", heart-motifs used in Pit's early character art, and his Japanese name, "Pitto" (ピット) as a reference to the Japanese katakana for Cupid (キューピット "Kyūpitto"). In addition to Eros and Icarus, Pit shares several characteristics with Perseus, the hero sent by Athena (who Palutena is thought to be based on) to slay Medusa.

Pit design was vastly changed for his inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, which was also retained for Kid Icarus: Uprising. As part of his updated design, Pit now appears around 13 years old^[4] and stands around 5'3" (160 cm) tall.^[5]

Pit's signature weapons are a bow and arrow. Initially unnamed in Kid Icarus, the bow received an overhauled design, a name and an origin to coincide with Pit's inclusion as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In Brawl, it was known as "Pit's Bow" "Pit's Bow" (パルテナの神弓, Parutena no Kamiyumi) and was stated as having been discovered by Pit in the Underworld and being capable of firing "arrows of light".^[6] Palutena gave Pit the bow so he could defeat Medusa (メデューサ, Medyūsa), the Goddess of Darkness (闇の女神, Yami no Megami).^[6][7] Aside from functioning as a bow, it can also split into two short swords that Pit holds in each hand.^[6][7]

However, as the Super Smash Bros. games sometimes differ slightly from the canon of the series that it represents, the bow's name and origin were changed in Kid Icarus: Uprising. In Uprising, it retains its updated design from Brawl, but is now known as the "Palutena Bow" and is revealed to have been crafted by its namesake, the Goddess of Light Palutena.^[8] Aside from the Palutena Bow, Pit can use various other bows, as well as new types of weapons that provide vastly different effects.

Appearances

In Kid Icarus games

In Kid Icarus, Pit is a young angel trapped in the Underworld (冥府, Meifu) who Palutena contacts in order to send him on a quest to escape the Underworld and defeat Medusa. Pit is given a magical bow and sets out to reclaim the Three Sacred Treasures (神器, Shinki) in order to restore peace to the Overworld.

In Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, Pit is once again summoned by Palutena and sent out to protect the Overworld from the demon Orcus. Pit once again searches for the Three Sacred Treasures, which are being protected by the forest guardians, in order to defeat the demon.

Pit appears in his next major game, Kid Icarus: Uprising, where he faces off against Medusa after she is resurrected, heeding advice from Palutena along the way. This is Pit's first major appearance and the first Kid Icarus game since Of Myths and Monsters. In Uprising, unlike in most Nintendo titles, Pit, Palutena and other major characters have actual dialogue, rather than textboxes showing their dialogue.

In other video games

Pit made a cameo in Tetris for the NES; he plays a violin when the player completes the game in a certain way. Pit appeared in F-1 Race before Course 8, where he appears to cheer the player on. He also appears during the ending sequence.^[3] In WarioWare: Twisted!, the player directs Pit left or right to dodge snakes and eggplants thrown at the player from above. In WarioWare: Smooth Moves for the Wii, Pit appears in the conducting game where he is playing a cello. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, Pit is one of the trophies that can be earned in the game, resembling how he originally appeared in the NES game, as opposed to his new design. The words imprinted in the trophy's description were "Will Pit ever fight again?," which foreshadowed to his eventual inclusion in the next game.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, a fighting game for the Wii released in 2008 and the sequel to Melee, Pit appears as a playable character. Pit's main weapon in the game is a bow called the "Sacred Bow of Palutena".^[9] In Brawl, the bow can be split in two to form dual swords,^[9] a feature missing from the original Kid Icarus games. In the Subspace Emissary, Pit witnesses the invasion of the Subspace Army and is granted permission by Palutena to attack the army. After reviving Mario, he teams up with him and they chase after the Ancient Minister. Depending on whether the player makes Kirby rescue Princess Peach or Princess Zelda at the beginning of the game, Mario and Pit will either attack or be attacked by Link and Yoshi when a hostile clone of the princess the defenders destroyed is mistaken for the real thing. Pit and Mario (or Link and Yoshi) are later kidnapped by King Dedede (who was mistaken as a Subspace Army member), but are rescued by Kirby soon after. Pit later, along with most of the other Brawl fighters, faces Tabuu at the end of the Great Maze. Pit's appearance in Uprising is modeled after his revamp in this game, as well as all other elements brought over from the series. Pit was also one of the first confirmed characters for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and has been shown to have references to Uprising in his moveset.

In other media

In Captain N: The Game Master, Pit is named Kid Icarus and is voiced by Alessandro Juliani. He is one of the main characters and a member of the N-Team, having the habit of adding '-icus' to the end of some of his words. He also appears in the Captain N Valiant Comics.^[3] Pit also appears in three animated 3D shorts created by Production I.G, Studio 4°C and Shaft to promote Kid Icarus: Uprising via Nintendo Video.

Pit, along with his doppelgänger Dark Pit, have their own Amiibo figures as part of the Super Smash Bros. series.

Reception

Pit was chosen as one of the 11 more powerful archers in popular culture by UGO Networks' T J Dietsch.^[10] Jesse Schedeen, from IGN, said the character was one of those he most wanted to see on the Wii^[11] and Phil Pirrello, Bozon and Richard George said that the character was one of their favorite brawlers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.^[12] Jesse Schedeen selected the character as one of those most likely to get a shot on the Wii^[13] and regretted the character not appearing at the Game Developers Conference.^[14] GameDaily said that Pit was the 19th top Nintendo character of all time,^[15] and ranked him seventh in their "Top 10 Super Smash Bros. Characters".^[16] In 2012, GamesRadar ranked him as the 69th best hero in video games.^[17]

Game Informer's Dan Ryckert included Pit, as he appeared in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, on a comedic list entitled "Characters Who Don't Deserve Their Own Games." Rickert opined that Pit had been an obscure choice for Nintendo, and stated that he hoped Nintendo did not hope to follow up his appearance with a new Kid Icarus title.^[18]

References

External links

• Pit on the Smash Bros. DOJO!!.
• Pit at the Internet Movie Database