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Kirby Super Star Ultra Preview
Written by Robert Falcon on Wednesday, July 23, 2008
An unforgettable SNES platforming adventure returns on the Nintendo DS, complete with a few additions.
Nintendo's pink puffball Kirby has had quite a few great adventures over the years, starting out with Kirby's Adventure on the NES and eventually moving on to other platforms, such as the Game Boy Advance and the Nintendo 64. Somewhere in the middle, however, he found success on the Super Nintendo with a bevy of games, including Kirby's Avalanche (aka Puyo Puyo) and Kirby's Dream Course. Probably our most favorite 16-bit game of all, however, is Kirby Super Star. It's a platforming tour-de-force with Kirby teaming up alongside several Helpers to take on King Dedede and his right hand man, Meta Knight, as they attempt to rule Kirby's dream world. Well, that adventure is about to come back in full force, with Kirby Super Star Ultra on the way for the Nintendo DS.
If you're not familiar with the original 16-bit game, there's no better time to rediscover it than with Ultra. All of the levels from the previous game are back, including flying levels, boss battles and several beautifully designed stages loaded with enemies to digest and take advantage of. That's Kirby's primary weapon, being able to munch an enemy and absorb its power. So if someone comes floating in with a parasol, you eat them, swallow them and put that parasol in your hand to swing at enemies. There are several power-ups available, including one that lets you spit flames and another that lets you grasp a sword ala Capcom's Strider.
Unlike Square Enix's Chrono Trigger DS, however, Kirby Super Star Ultra won't be just a port. HAL Entertainment added rendered movie scenes that bring Kirby's world to life and updated, multi-scrolling graphics to give his dream world more depth. The music should remain mostly the same, although we wouldn't be surprised if HAL did a little remixing on it as well.
Along with the many stages and mini-games found in the single-player mode, Kirby Super Star Ultra will also enable you to play with up to three friends in three DS-enabled downloadable games. All you need is one cartridge, four DS systems, and three other people willing to sit down and get Kirby-ized. The games are Kirby Card Swipe, Snack Tracks and Kirby On the Draw. Draw is a quick-shooting game where you tap targets on the screen before your opponents can shoot them. Card Swipe is a full-blown card game, fast moving and perfect for multiplayer competition. No word yet on how Snack Tracks is shaping up, but it probably involves fast-paced sprinting and food. That's just our guess.
It would've been great to see Kirby return in an all-new adventure, such as Canvas Curse, but this remixed SNES game should be sweet. Look for Kirby Super Star Ultra to take the spotlight later this year.
posted August 3, 2008