Alex Kidd

Alex Kidd[lower-alpha 1] is a video game character whose popularity peaked during the late 1980s and who was the protagonist of both a series of video games released by Sega and their fictional universe, as well as in numerous spin-offs such as novelizations and comics.

Alex Kidd
Alex Kidd character
Alex Kidd as seen in the Enchanted Castle
First appearanceAlex Kidd in Miracle World (1986)
Created byKotaro Hayashida
Voiced byIzuho Numata (Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars and Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle) (Japanese)
Kikuko Inoue (Segagaga and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed) (Japanese)
Julissa Aguirre (Sega All-Stars series) (English)

Alex Kidd is the protagonist of several video games, spanning various platforms, and appeared in the arcade and on the Master System and Mega Drive/Genesis home consoles. Alex Kidd's popularity was at a peak with the release of the first game in the series, Alex Kidd in Miracle World in 1986. However, Sega wished to have a mascot to rival Nintendo's flagship character Mario, a task which Alex Kidd was not considered up to. In 1991, Sega introduced Sonic the Hedgehog. After this, Alex Kidd fell into obscurity as the development of new games in the series had stopped. Despite that, he has made cameo appearances in other games.

Character description

Alex Kidd appears as a short boy with large ears and slightly monkey-like features, a red and yellow jumpsuit, and oversized hands. Sometimes he appeared as a teenager, although the only time his exact age has been stated, it was stated to be 14 years old. However, being a 14-year-old Arian was somewhat different from being a 14-year-old human. The games state that he lived many hundreds of years previously.

Disregarding the various costumes he would wear in the later Alex Kidd titles, the initial appearance of the character would swing between garb loosely resembling a traditional Mandarin tunic or red-striped jumpsuit, sometimes overalls closer to the appearance of Mario depending on the localisation. At a glance it is easy to see that the character of Alex Kidd was inspired chiefly by Bruce Lee (evident in the jump suit) and Sun Wukong the Monkey King.

Initially, in the original game, he is an orphan who lives alone on Mt. Eternal, on the planet Aries (also known as "Miracle World"), where he has trained in the Shellcore technique. This technique enables an Arian to alter the size and toughness of their fists through sheer willpower, and enables one to shatter rocks with bare fists.

After the disappearance of King Sander Radaxian (referred to in the manual as "King Thunder"), the planet Aries is thrown into disarray. A usurper, Janken the Great, kidnaps the next in line to the throne, Prince Igul (referred to in the manual as "Egle"), and his fiancée Princess Lora. Many of the citizens are turned to stone through Janken's magic. Alex Kidd learns from a dying man that he is in fact a lost member of the Radaxian Royal Family, son of King Thunder and brother of Prince Egle. Alex Kidd sets out to discover the whereabouts of his father, rescue his brother, restore the kingdom, and destroy the monstrous minions of Janken. Numerous magical artifacts and medallions are needed to be discovered to progress in the story.

During the game, Alex can collect "Baums" (the currency of Miracle World) which can then be used to purchase extra lives, items, power-ups and vehicles for Alex Kidd from shops at the start of several stages, such as the Sukopako Motorcycle and "peticopter", a small pedal-powered helicopter.

After Alex defeats Janken the Great, the game explains how Alex restores peace to Radaxian, and that the people who were turned to stone by Janken have returned to normal. In the city, Egle is crowned King of Radaxian, and Alex Kidd, with his martial arts, takes the position of Defender of the City, although his next goal will be to find his father, King Thunder.

Some time later, in Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle, Alex hears a rumor that his long lost father (referred to in this game as King Thor) is alive and well on the Planet Paperock. The Planet earned this name as it is inhabited by experts at the game "Paper, Rock, Scissors." Despite discouragement from his family, Alex travels to the Planet Paperock in hopes of finding his father.

History

The game for which he is best known, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, was released in 1986 and built into later versions of the Master System and the Master System II model, replacing the Snail Maze/Safari Hunt/Hang-On games of the first model. This integrated SMSII version reversed the attack and jump buttons from the earlier cartridge version to conform to that of other popular action games of the day. A notable visual difference is in the original cartridge version, Alex is shown eating Japanese onigiri, but in the SMSII integrated version, it has been changed to a hamburger to appeal to Western players.

Most games in the Alex Kidd series differ dramatically from one another, the sole exception being Miracle World and its direct sequel, Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle. While most games in the series were still platform-based, the only elements that tied the series together was the name and the title character. One game in the series, Alex Kidd: High-Tech World, was not an Alex Kidd game in Japan and was based instead on a 1980s Japanese animated series airing at the time.

After the release of Alex Kidd in Shinobi World in 1990, Sega decided to shift focus towards Sonic the Hedgehog.

In 2020, Sega confirmed that they would be publishing a remake of Alex Kidd in Miracle World developed by Merge Games and Jankenteam,[1] similar to the previous releases of Sonic Mania and Streets of Rage 4.

Games

The Alex Kidd franchise includes seven titles.

Legacy

Alex Kidd titles have been re-released as part of various Sega video game compilations, including Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection and Sega Vintage Collection. Alex Kidd has also continued to make cameo appearances in other Sega titles, including as a playable character in Sega Superstars Tennis, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.

Alex Kidd is one of several Sega and Capcom guest heroes who are recruited by Sonic the Hedgehog and Break Man to battle Sigma in the Worlds Unite crossover from Archie Comics. The crossover spans Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Universe, Sonic Boom, and Mega Man comic series.[2]

Notes
  1. Japanese: アレックス・キッド, Hepburn: Arekkusu Kiddo

References
  1. "Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX". Steam.
  2. "Capcom and Sega Join Forces for Worlds Unite Comic Book Crossover". IGN. 2015-02-26.
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