My Kirby series has approached the final Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance games. I thought there would be more, but as it turns out, Kirby quickly moved onto the most successful gaming console/handheld of all time: The DS. I can’t blame them for adopting the DS as soon as they could, but I do blame Nintendo for not really giving us more GBA titles outside of a remake and something pretty mediocre.
And then there’s “Tilt ‘n’ Tumble.”
“Tilt ‘n’ Tumble:” What is it with Kirby and golf games?
Kirby rolling up into a ball is the basis of so many spin-off games. Not him eating, or being a cosmic being of unlimited power? Nope, just a round ball! Why hasn’t he been a baseball, soccer ball, or even a marble for that matter?
This game is built around one central mechanic: Moving your Game Boy around because the cartridge has a gyroscope in it. You can play this on Switch as well, or a GameCube, but unless you really love motion controls, then this is nothing more than an interesting experiment that doesn’t last very long.
“Nightmare in Dreamland:” Have I not played this exact same game three times already? What is the obsession with remaking the same thing over and over?
I get that you want to remake something with better graphics and sound, and maybe improve the gameplay, but it seems like a good portion of Kirby games are just remakes of either “Kirby’s Adventure” or “Dream Land,” but way too many times. But don’t get me wrong, this is the definitive way to experience this shit. The controls are perfect, and I love the art style.
But getting hit once and losing your ability still sucks! These levels are still super short, and this is somehow not on the Switch NSO yet.
If this was the first time I played any “Dream Land,” or any Kirby game in general, this would be like my favorite game ever. It’s impossible not to fall in love with it. The music slaps, the rail grinding mini-game is fabulous, and, hell, even the final levels throw back to the original Game Boy grey for nostalgia.
This is simultaneously a must-play and an unnecessary game at the same time. But if you want to dive in somewhere, this is the place to do it since it’s one of the few traditional platformers that’s easy to play, understand, and parse. Unlike…
“Amazing Mirror:” Kirby’s first and last Metroidvania.
I really wanted to love this one. I love the concept, the bold attempt to venture into something new, and yet the execution leads this one to fall a bit short of expectations.
A major component of any legitimately great Metroidvania is the map, and this game straight up has a bad map. Confusing, unhelpful, and trapped on a console that already has three terrific Castlevania games on it.
Getting lost doing basic backtracking feels like a low point for Kirby. It’s very slow to turn around and go the right way upon hitting a dead end, which will happen often. One might say it’s too ambitious, and if they made a sequel (they will never), Sakurai and co. could nail it.
It’s an overwhelming sensation to go into a door within a door within another door only to not go forward but to end up somewhere you thought would be impossible to end up at. And the addition of having (fake) co-op partners seems like it should help, but it doesn’t in the slightest. It’s nice having extra little Kirby dudes give you a kiss to share health, and randomly get power-ups to fight enemies, but it’s another totally lacking feature.
You use a cellphone to call in three other guys, but the AI is just so janky that they wander off or start some mischief. As such, I never used the phone.
Strangely, this entire game is not explained well at all. The map is a Rorschach test that you have to decipher on your own, it’s completely unclear what the buttons do in-game, and it results in a big messy game.
But the bones of Kirby are there. Not literally, mind you. He’s obviously boneless. I mean the core gameplay. It’s fun to swallow enemies, and both you and your foes take more than one hit to drop. That’s a major evolution of the combat since you have to actually fight the creeps, and one touch doesn’t knock out your power. Plus, the first boss fight isn’t the tree face that blows you away anymore — it’s made of stone now!
What progress we’ve made. I don’t think this is a top tier Kirby game though, and I pray that “Squeak Squad” improves the formula.
Want to know even more about our beloved pink lad? I’ve written a whole lot about the early Kirby games already.
Image credit: “Kirby and the Amazing Mirror,” HAL Laboratory
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