Alex Kidd (character)

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 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. A remake of the first game was released on June 22, 2021, making it the first main appearance of the character since 1990's ''Alex Kidd in Shinobi World.''

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, with his age stated to be 14 years old in human terms. He is a member of an alien race known as the Arians, a species possessing an incredibly long lifespan, with Alex himself having 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. The character of Alex Kidd was inspired chiefly by Sun Wukong from the Chinese novel Journey to the West, martial artist Bruce Lee, and Goku from the Dragon Ball franchise.

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 Thunder (referred to in-game as "King Sander"), 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 must 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 the Petit-copter, 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 (known in Japan as "Janbarik"). 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, and learns that the king had been kidnapped by Ashra, son of Janken the Great. After travelling to the Sky Castle, King Thunder reveals that he was not abducted by Ashra, and was actually using him as a servant.

Legacy

Alex Kidd has 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.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kidd, Alex

Video game characters introduced in 1986
Child characters in video games
Extraterrestrial characters in video games
Male characters in video games
Sega protagonists
Prince characters in video games
Video game mascots