Pit

is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Kid Icarus series. Debuting in Kid Icarus for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1986, Pit would later appear in Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters for the Game Boy in 1991, and Kid Icarus: Uprising for the Nintendo 3DS in 2012. Pit has also made various appearances in many other Nintendo games, most notably as a playable character in the Super Smash Bros. series. He was also one of the recurring characters in the Captain N: The Game Master animated series, but named Kid Icarus. Since his introduction, Pit 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, use ability-enhancing objects like Link, and shoot enemies like Samus Aran. 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. The Kid Icarus 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) might be a reference to the Japanese katakana for Cupid (キューピッド "Kyūpiddo"). 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.