Anyway, on with the review! Kirby is a series that got me into trying other game franchises other than just Pokémon. I went through a phase where that was the only thing I would play. The first Kirby game I played was Super Star Ultra, which is a great game. I instantly wanted more after finishing the game and when I looked up stuff about the supposed Kirby title coming out for Wii, I was really happy. This game has been delayed and has been through a lot of different phases in development, but once 2011 came, Nintendo and HAL finally released the long-awaited console traditional Kirby title experience that we didn't truly have since Kirby 64. This is what all of that delaying and uncertainty has lead to. Was it worth the wait? Is it another Duke Nukem Forever? I'm here to tell you that today.
Graphics
This game looks pretty good for a 2D sidescroller title on the Wii. Everything runs at a smooth 60 fps and the presentation can be real top-notch at times. The game looks great!
Plot [SPOILERS]
Now is your time to skip ahead if you don't want spoilers for the game!
Kirby games are never known for their plots. It's usually something along the lines of all of the food being stolen from Dreamland and Kirby needing to get it back from some demon-like character. Well, this game's plot is no different....for the most part. They actually stepped things up considerably with the plot of this game. A ship crashes onto Dreamland and it was apparently the ship of a martian-like character named Magolor, who flies a ship known as the Lor Starcutter. He needs Kirby, Dedede, and Meta Knight to get the pieces of his ship back. They go through 7 worlds and rebuild his ship. Just when you think it's all over, you actually go back home with him to the planet Halcandra. At the end you face Landia, who is basically the love child of Hydreigon and Spyro. After defeating Landia, a crown falls off of him that Magolor takes. All this time he was manipulating Kirby and the gang and goes all super powered on them. After an epic boss battle that is possibly one of the best in gaming history, Magolor and his soul are defeated and they all go home. It's still a rather simple plot, but the whole twist with Magolor completely surprised me and because of that this game has a good plot.
Gameplay
This is where things get good. I mean real, real good. This game is SO. MUCH. FUN. Most Kirby games are fun because of how you're basically playing through levels as an overpowered pink puff, but somebody at HAL decided that you weren't power happy enough and put Kirby ON STEROIDS. Seriously, Kirby is practically unstoppable in Return to Dreamland. They gave him a super inhale which lets him inhale larger enemies and objects just by shaking the wiimote a little while inhaling. As if that wasn't enough for you, he now has super abilities. You heard me right, super abilities. Using the super abilities in this game to plow through parts of levels is some of the most fun I have ever had in a video game. Super abilities are abilities Kirby can get that are very powerful. They're used creativley in the levels. I always feel a huge sense of joy playing through the levels of this game. All of the levels are expertly crafted to the point that there is nothing that feels cheap about the levels, which trust me, is almost impossible to do in a platformer. There's also 4-player multiplayer in this game, a first in the series for the time, and the multiplayer can be real fun, You can either have Meta Knight, Dedede, Waddle Dee, or a different colored Kirby join you in these levels. Holy crap this game is so fun...
There are also mini-games you unlock where you clear rooms with certain copy abilities that you unlock by collecting spheres found in the levels. Speaking of copy abilities, the copy abilities in this game are all great. The new ones include Leaf, Whip, and Water (about time!). Almost every ability has a super charge move, which adds to the whole steroids ideology I feel in this game. They seriously buffed the Plasma ability to ridiculous levels though, and while that's not a bad thing, it's worth pointing out. After clearing the main game you unlock The Arena, which is returning from Super Star Ultra, and a second quest which is the same game but this time you have less health and there are revamped versions of every boss you faced in the first playthrough. After beating The Arena, you unlock The True Arena, which was introduced in Super Star Ultra and I'm very glad to see it return. There are also a couple of mini-games like usual. Ok, this game's gameplay is definitely awesome. Like I needed to say that anyway.
Soundtrack
This game has a beautifully orchestrated soundtrack. Some of my favorite themes from this game are C-R-O-W-N-E-D, Cookie Country, the Super Ability theme, and the theme that plays when facing some of the bosses in The Arena. The soundtrack gets an amazing.
Overall
In short, Kirby's Return to Dreamland is plain awesome. It is up there as one of my absolute favorite games of all time. It takes almost everything Kirby has done right over the years and put it into one huge funfest of a game. The fun in this game is almost tangible! The insane amount of fun I get from this game alone is why it's one of my favorite games. It's definitely my favorite Kirby game. I recommend this game to anyone who's looking for a fun time and doesn't care about a game being easy and of course Kirby fans. I also recommend it to those who have been really pushing themselves lately whether in gaming or in life and just wanna kick back, relax, and have a good time playing a game that isn't too difficult. If you immediately look at a game with bright colors and happiness and not like it, then you're obviously not gonna want this game. If you have a Wii and not this game, get it. Get this game at full price if you can because it is worth every penny. This game is also great to play at parties. I picked this game to review right now on purpose as I am soon getting Triple Deluxe, which looks like it borrows a lot of ideas from Return to Dreamland. Expect a review of that game in the near future. That's all for now, have a nice day!
