Although Kirby's Epic Yarn was a wonderful experience, there were a lot of diehard Kirby fans who we're a bit put off by its radically-different visual style and gameplay scheme. Now Nintendo is sending Kirby back to his roots and bringing back not only the familiar visual stylings fans have grown to love over the years, but also the classic gameplay system as well.
From the moment you pick up the controller to play Kirby Wii, it's quite apparent that things have returned to normal in the world of Kirby. Kirby's trademark inhaling capabilities have returned in all of their glory and once again Kirby can absorb the special abilities of his enemies. Of course, there are a host of brand new touches as well, that do make things even more interesting.
Playing Kirby Wii has you holding the Wii Remote on its side and much like the original Kirby releases from the 8 and 16-bit days, the gameplay scheme remains simple, yet wildly playable. As soon as you get into the action, you'll find yourself sucking in enemies and stealing away their powers, many of which prove to be quite effective at navigating many of the trickier levels you'll encounter.
Special abilities play a pivotal role in how effective you'll be, but you'll have to keep an eye on your special ability gauge and make sure you make use of these powers strategically. Some abilities are flashier and more effective than others, but the Ultra Sword, an ability that has Kirby whipping out a gigantic sword and swiping through half of the screen, proves to be one of the more effective and dynamic weapons in the game.
One of the more enjoyable features of Kirby Wii involves the game's multiplayer mode that allows up to four players to take on the game cooperatively. Each player takes control of a different Kirby character and you can even jump onto the back of another player, something that opens up even more gameplay variety. Of course, players who like to be a bit more competitive can also tackle the levels in a more aggressive manner in an effort to outdo one another.
Kirby titles have generally always featured a rather toned-down level of difficulty, but this Wii release feels a bit more challenging than usual, although it's still not going to give seasoned platformer fans too much trouble. And while there were only a handful of levels to try out on the show floor, what was on display more than showed that the beloved Kirby gameplay, with the smooth and responsive play controls that comes along with it, is back and better than ever.
There's no denying that the visuals in Kirby's Epic Yarn were impressive, but there's just something about the classic Kirby environments that have really been captured quite amazingly in this new Wii release. Not only are you getting plenty of vibrant levels that jump off of the screen, the multiple-layered backgrounds bring even more depth and realism to the presentation. Toss in some over-the-top special effects and silky smooth animation and you've got what has to be one of the most amazing visual productions seen on the Wii to date.
The Kirby games have always featured some of the most charming and catchy musical tracks you're ever likely to hear, but the soundtrack in this newest release might be even better. To say that the score is dripping with endearing charm might be a gross understatement, but the further I played into the game, the better the music got. It pretty much left me wondering how much better the music could possibly get, something we can all look forward to once the retail release rolls around.
As enjoyable as Kirby's Epic Yarn was, you can't help but love the good old-fashioned Kirby experience that's been such a staple of the series over the years. A wide variety of visual themes and special powers give the game a dynamic look and feel, but the inclusion of multiplayer adds a whole new dimension to the package. Toss in a slightly higher level of challenge and enough hidden surprises to keep you coming back for more and what you have is easily one of the best Kirby releases ever crafted and yet another great game to hold gamers off until Nintendo's next console hits store shelves next year.
Comments 44
I can't wait!
Can't wait to unleash that massive sword! >: D
@2.
Kirby sadly didn't suck in Epic Yarn. The amount of difficulty did though.
Kirby Wii WILL beat New Super Mario Bros. Wii. (:
Disappointed that the dual-powerup mechanic isn't being revived from Crystal Shards. It looks like a fun romp, but I really rather prefer the Epic Yarn-style deviations from the Kirby norm.
YeaahYaaa! Now this is what I'm talking about. As "zeeroid" said I also would like to of seen Dual-Powerups as it would seem Fusion attacks are always super cool. But this even with out that looks very amazing. Personally I've been very disappointed with the Wii's selection but this looks like something I would not regret buying.
Haha the review tagline about sucking really threw me off. Peoples' comparisons to NSMBWii has me thinking this could be a good game to pick up for someone who has never experienced Kirby before...
If this is anything like Kirby Super Star
Then we have here is Kirby back to his roots, and kick'in butt!
Waddle Dee is playable???
insta-buy
Yep, Meta Knight, Kirby, King Dedede, and Waddle Dee. Fun times!
Kirby sucks and blows in every game he's been in. And I can't wait to get back to blowing and sucking.
Not having played a traditional Kirby game before, I'm definitely looking forward to checking this out!
So much more effort have gone into these visuals than the New Super Mario games. Kirby's Epic Yarn - along with Epic Mickey, Sonic Colors and Mario Galaxy 2 - were far and away the best games of Wii last year. And some of the best games on the console yet. I'm all for more Kirby, even though my Wii is pretty much boxed up right now. Maybe I'll pick it up and hold onto it until the Wii U releases...
And speaking of which, here's hoping New Super Mario Bros. for Wii U has visuals that aren't identical to the DS and Wii precursors.
I can't wait to find out how they tweaked the abilities this time!
I love comparing them between games, they're getting more and more different with every game.
Also, I hope it'll have tons of collectibles, like Squeak Squad.
The color palettes and the ability scrolls really enhanced the game.
He both sucks and blows!
@armoredghor This game looks awesome, but I doubt it will be as good as NSMBW. That is an excellent game with some of the best level design I've seen in a 2D platformer.
@Corbie What are the other characters like? How different are they to each other? What do the other characters have instead of the sucking ability that Kirby has?
I can't tell you that just yet. But perhaps you can catch a glimpse of their abilities on the gameplay trailer.
@11 This is much like Kirby Super Star, and it is glorious!
hmm. This might be a christmas wish...
Looks really nice, but I'm sure I'll ignore it if it comes out in the "holiday season" because of all the other great games. Skyward Sword and all the 3DS games I've wanted since last E3 will be out. I won't have enough money already, and I'm sure I'll be starved for new games with nothing major coming out between now and then. OoT 3D and Star For 64 3D, I don't really care for Resident Evil or any of the other games coming out before the holiday season.
But back on the subject of Kirby games, I don't see why this has to be compared to Kirby's Epic Yarn. Epic Yarn was a break, a different type of game, I suppose you could call it a spin off series like Mario Kart or Paper Mario. People aren't comparing Paper Mario to Super Mario Galaxy 2, last time I checked. It just doesn't make much sense to me. I love the Paper Mario series, but I'm still excited for the next Super Mario game. Kirby's Epic Yarn is a gem in my game collection, but another traditional Kirby game, especially with 4 person multiplayer. Both are/probably will be great games, they are just so different even though they use the same character that what's the use of comparing them?
Seriously, this is a Day-1 Buy for me. Love classic Kirby and I can't wait to play this with 4 people
It looks fantastic, I can't wait! I wasn't a big fan of Epic Yarn...
When I was first looking at the trailer's for this game, I knew it was going to be great. Thanks for the reassurance!
It better have the song from the Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland commercial in it.
Question: is jumping on people's back just a case of jumping on them?
Because I really didn't like that in Epic Yarn and DKCR, you couldn't do anything together without accidentally picking each other up.
Other than that it looks awesome.
Looking forward to this more then any other Wii game including Zelda.
My 6 and 8 yr. olds blew through Epic Yarn like it was nothing. Admittedly they didn't complain that it was too easy, but they seemed unsatisfied when it was over. NSMB left us very happy. DKCR was too difficult for them - they have no use at all for the "timing" train and barrel rocket levels - so I hope it isn't THAT hard.
The video looks a lot like Subspace Emissary, which is great b/c that "add-on" got more play than any other other whole game I've ever purchased. 4-player makes this awesome. And we've never played any other Kirby game - though he's a big hit in Brawl - so it's all new to us. Under the tree for sure. (Well if it's out by then of course.)
4-player platformers for the win !
I know what Kirby will be sucking up this fall, my money. Epic Yarn was good, but Kirby's best adventures involve eating enemies and stealing powers. Even better is the 4-player co-op. Unlike NSMBWii, every character seems to have his own special ability. Can't wait!
Cool, I like Kirby games. Hopefully we can get some Kirby GameBoy games in the near future on the 3DS as well.
Now this is the Kirby game I've been waiting for. Day One for me, I can't wait!
This looks like a blast! I say bring it on!
Me and a friend of mine always run KSS every so often, but now we'll have to gather 2 more friends when we get to run this game 4P. CAN. NOT. WAIT.
@WaveBoy
Not to disrespect your opinion, but I don't really get why you're so sure this will be so much better than NSMBWii, which you say is "uncreative, generic and completely played it safe". I think this looks awesome, but this looks like a total rehash too. It looks like every Kirby game since Super Star with awesome visuals. That's it. And judging from previous Kirby games, level design won't be above "okay" level and there also won't be much of a challenge. NSMBWii was weak from a presentation standpoint, but nailed everything. Incredible Single Player, hilarious Multi Player, godlike controls, delightful level design, hours upon hours of pure gameplay, an amazing balance between challenging and accessible gameplay (to me NSMBWii is the perfect game for the so called "Casual Player" and NOT games like Wii Sports) and those delicious star coins. I don't know how much more you can expect from a platformer. It seems like this one at least has an AWFUL lot of shoes to fill...
Still, purchasing this one as soon as I can though!
@8: I respect the fact that you like Kirby more than Mario. I disagree with you in one point, NSMBW was everything but uncreative. There were game mechanics that were used on only one stage, and it had a lot of variety.
Never played a Kirby game before, this could have the potential to be the first! Or, maybe not... I will keep everybody updated though in the following months. Stay tuned!
Game of the Year
For me
Cannot wait for this. I enjoyed Epic Yarn but to have copy abilities back, and hopefully a longer game, would be perfect
So far it looks too been-there-done-that for me.
Not too high on my want list for the moment.
Looks very good! I wasn't a big fan of Kirby64, but I have a feeling this one will be better. This one looks a lot quicker then Kirby64.
Thanks for the article, this game does look DopeBrightFunTastic.
KEY was good because we haven't had a Kirby game in awhile. Seeing as this one is made by Hal, it's an obvious instant buy. It's like they are making up for the cancelled gamecube one. I only hope someday we can get an exploration Mario 64-esqe kirby game someday. That would be interesting!
YEAH!!!!! Ive been waiting since e3 2005 for this game!!!
YAY
I hope kirby wii has WIFI!
I want to play as WADDLE DEE!
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