Kid Icarus first came out on the Famicom Disk System in Japan on 19 December 1986 as Hikari Shinwa: Parutena no Kagami. It was made by Nintendo R&D1, directed by Satoru Okada and produced by Gunpei Yokoi, with music by Hirokazu “Hip” Tanaka. Toru Osawa made his debut as designer, drawing the pixel art and writing the technical specifications.
The NES cartridge reached Europe in February 1987 and North America that July. Because cartridges could not save like the disk, the Western release uses passwords, and its endings, sound and shop haggling were reworked as well. The game has five endings: depending on how well the player does, Palutena may give Pit headgear or turn him into a full-grown angel. Odd touches include a wizard who turns Pit into an eggplant.
In Japan the disk version sold 550,000 copies. After the 1991 Game Boy sequel, the series went more than 20 years without a new game until Kid Icarus: Uprising in 2012.12
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | Kid IcarusCartridge with password system | NES | July 1987 | Nintendo | 2 |
| NA | NES Classic EditionIncluded on the NES Classic Edition (NA and PAL) | NES | 2016 | Nintendo | 2 |
| JP | 光神話 パルテナの鏡Hikari Shinwa: Parutena no KagamiFamicom Disk System; saves to the disk | Famicom Disk System | Dec 19, 1986 | Nintendo | 1 |
| EU | Kid IcarusCartridge with password system | NES | February 1987 | Nintendo | 2 |
| JP | 光神話 パルテナの鏡Famicom Mini Disk System Selection | Game Boy Advance | Aug 10, 2004 | Nintendo | 1 |
| JP | 光神話 パルテナの鏡Virtual Console; NA 12 Feb 2007, EU/AU 23 Feb 2007 | Wii | Jan 23, 2007 | Nintendo | 2 |
| JP | 3Dクラシックス 光神話 パルテナの鏡3D Classics remake, first given free in a campaign; English Wikipedia gives 18 Jan 2012 for the Japanese eShop sale; EU 2 Feb 2012, NA 19 Apr 2012 | Nintendo 3DS | Dec 19, 2011 | Nintendo | 1 |
| EU | Kid IcarusVirtual Console; NA 25 Jul 2013, JP 14 Aug 2013 | Wii U | Jul 11, 2013 | Nintendo | 2 |
| WW | Kid IcarusNintendo Switch Online (NES); an SP version followed on 10 April 2019 | Switch | Mar 13, 2019 | Nintendo | 3 |
Also known as: Hikari Shinwa: Parutena no Kagami JP1Light Myth: Palutena's Mirror JP43D Classics: Kid Icarus WW2
Box art by region
NA Kid Icarus 
EU Kid Icarus
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.
Version differences
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GameplayFDS (JP)NES
The Disk System original has three save files that keep score and hearts, plus a high-score table; the NES cartridge uses passwords instead.4
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AudioFDS (JP)NES
The Disk System version uses the FDS's extra wavetable sound channel, so its music has more instruments; the English game-over tune is also simpler.4
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ContentFDS (JP)NES
The NES version reworks the endings: the FDS “worst ending” is gone, a new best ending and a staff roll are added, and the result depends on hearts, strength, endurance and weapons rather than continues.4
Translations
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English Official
Nintendo1987NES · Japanese FDS versionReleased · complete
The English NES cartridge came out first in Europe (February 1987) and then in North America.2
Where to play legally today
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Nintendo Switch Online Subscription
Kid Icarus (NES)
NES version, plus an 'SP' variant added 10 April 2019
Checked: 2026-10-133en.wikipedia.org
Reception
About 1.76 million copies were sold worldwide by late 2003. Reviews were mixed: critics liked the music and the mix of genres but faulted the graphics and difficulty. The game still built a cult following.2
Sources
- 1ja.wikipedia.org
- 2en.wikipedia.org
- 3en.wikipedia.org
- 4tcrf.net
- 5ja.wikipedia.org
- 6ja.wikipedia.org
- 7ja.wikipedia.org
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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