Kirby has been a bit of a surprise for me lately – we’ve had two iterations of the franchise recently that have been absolutely amazing to play. Now we’re getting a third and hopefully by the time this review is published we will ...
Kirby has been a bit of a surprise for me lately – we’ve had two iterations of the franchise recently that have been absolutely amazing to play. Now we’re getting a third and hopefully by the time this review is published we will even have a firm date for it. Coming from a rather turmultuous development history (being essentially in production for at least 11 years,) you would think that the Kirby’s Return To Dreamland (Kirby’s Adventure Wii) would be a little bit of a mess – especially given Duke Nukem Forever showing. Thankfully it’s instead possibly one of the most fun games on not just the Wii, but indeed any system and definitely the best Kirby game on the market.
Kirby’s Return To Dreamland utilises a more traditional artistic direction than this year’s Epic Yarn, which I feel is a bit of a regression. While the game itself is bright, colourful and very vibrant – the artistic direction is simply nowhere near as interesting to look at as the fabric based world that Kirby found himself trapped in earlier this year. That being said, the game still looks amazing and runs very smoothly – with all the on-screen characters animating especially nicely. Kirby in particular looks better than ever and his facial expressions really add a lot of personality to his character, despite him never uttering a word. It’s just, for lack of a better word, adorable. It’s also great to see so much stuff going on screen at once, with up to four players and the game still managing to run at a silky smooth 60fps.
Kirby’s Return To Dreamland, as the name suggests, is a return to form for the series’ gameplay. Players take control of Kirby in a side scrolling adventure that’s rendered in 3D, similar to Donkey Kong Country Returns or New Super Mario Bros. Kirby’s regained all of his signature moves, so players can consume certain enemies to take on their powers – but unfortunately there is no way to “mix” them like in previous game. Instead we’ve got a whole lot of powers on offer and many of them have at least eight unique moves. You will essentially run through levels, collecting medals along the way to unlock content while occasionally shaking the Wii Remote to use certain powers. Kirby can also increase the intensity of his “Inhale” move to swallow more objects and subsequently spit out a larger projectiles. When I say that Return to Dreamland is a return to form, it really is – the stylistic choices the developers have made with this game makes it play extremely similar to the early SNES and Game Boy iterations of the series, which is sure to please many Kirby enthusiasts.
The game does throw some curveballs your way though, with a few super powers and some hidden rooms along the way. Super powers last for a short amount of time and basically kill everything on screen, though most of the segments that you’ll encounter them in are also fully destructible, which is a very nice touch and gives considerable weight to the powers. They do get rather repetitive though. Throughout the game, Kirby will encounter black holes that will suck him into another dimension, moving the game into a black and white world where Kirby must dash through the level while avoiding a wave of “darkness”. These side levels are very well designed and surprisingly tense, forcing you to run as fast as possible while navigating a whole bunch of obstacles. This desperation is only magnified when you’re playing with three friends.
The biggest head turner is of course the multiplayer functionality. Like New Super Mario Bros Wii, Kirby’s Return To Dreamland features a four player simultaneous co-op mode – and while it’s a great idea it’s not without it’s problems. Essentially, Player 1 must always be Kirby and the remaining characters can choose from Meta Knight, Waddle Dee or Kind Dedede. Other players can also choose Kirby too but there must be ONE Kirby at all times and this has to be Player 1. This, in itself, is very restricting. Additionally, Return To Dreamland pools the lives of the first player across multiple players. This essentially means that you’re only as strong as your weakest player, which can be really infuriating when playing with someone who’s less skilled – and if that happens to be Player 1, the team will have to restart a whole level if they perish, which is also incredibly frustrating. Expect a little bit of infighting when travelling through Dreamland with mates.
Still, I can’t hate the mode. It’s ridiculously fun to simply run around breaking stuff – and the offensively geared Meta Knight and King Dedede provide a good incentive to play this with a friend or two. If you’re not into hectic on-screen battles, this may not appeal, but thankfully there’s no “bumping” into other characters like in New Super Mario Bros. Wii [The best worst feature ever to exist -Ed].
Surprisingly, Kirby’s Return To Dreamland is pretty good value for your dollars. There are heaps of medals to find, which in turn unlock a variety of waggle based mini-games as well as challenge rooms that require Kirby to use specific powers to complete certain tasks. They sound a bit shallow, but upon sampling them it was quite comprehensive and while they’re nothing out of the ordinary for Nintendo’s mini-games, I did enjoy them. The only real problem with these rooms is they require the player to find medals around the levels which aren’t always so easy to find.
Besides these rooms and finding all the medals, the game itself takes about ten hours to complete. This seems to be a perfect length, as the game never really outstays it’s welcome and the constantly changing power availabilities and environments keep things feeling different. A boss rush mode is unlocked after you finish the game for those who want to revisit the game’s bosses, as well as a new game plus mode for those who want a more difficult adventure (although some will be annoyed they have to complete the game first in order to access it).
The music is, as always, ridiculously cheery and upbeat though I don’t consider this a bad thing at all – the tracks are actually far more palatable than in previous offerings, avoiding being repetitive or jarring. As with all Kirby games, the sounds that Kirby makes when he “plops” on the ground, jumps and attacks are all perfect and give Kirby and his friends real personality. It’s a game where the minimalist sound design really pays off.
Kirby’s Return To Dreamland is the game that every long time Kirby fan has been waiting for. While Mass Attack and Epic Yarn were both great, I suspect many among us were yearning for a classic old school Kirby experience and Return to Dreamland is just that. It’s fun, colourful, and provides an decent challenge to both newcomers and hardcore gamers.
Its nowhere near as charming as Epic Yarn was, but Return to Dreamland is still incredibly colourful, lush and well animated.
Return to Dreamland is a great platformer with a great amount of powers, but sometimes it does feel a little bit too easy and some powers are obviously made better than others. This feels like a SNES or Game Boy Kirby game, a great throwback for fans. Multiplayer is good although some elements need work.
The music itself is cheery and uplifting without being grating and annoying. The sound effects and voice work really adds character to both the villains and the protagonists. Some will still not dig the sincerity of the tunes though.
For what it is, Kirby is acceptable at around about ten hours, and it never outstays its welcome. Challenge Rooms and unlockable mini-games, coupled with an interesting multiplayer mode means that will be great fun and value for everyone.
Return to Dreamland is literally a return to form I absolutely loved the way the game plays and the classic yet oh so good gameplay that it offers. It is a bit depressing to see any of Kirby or his friends get hurt though.
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