Honestly, I was blown away when I realized this game was an NES title. The graphics, music, level design, and depth are all ahead of their time.
While only the 2nd Kirby game, it's surprisingly the first to feature copy abilities, including things like the Hammer, Beam, Wheel, and UFO abilities! The level designers really went all out, utilizing Kirby's immense copy-enhanced moveset to create much more intricate stages than in Kirby's Dreamland. It also has significantly more stages than Dreamland, with tons of secrets and puzzles. And it all culminates in an absolutely unforgettable final boss battle.
Sadly, the game runs terribly. In a way, it's further proof of how advanced the game really is for the hardware. It absolutely chugs when there are only a handful of things on screen, and it makes Kirby frustratingly hard to control during more pivotal moments, even dropping my inputs at times. Topped off with most of the unlockable stages being filler 1-UP mini-games, and it sours the experience a little when looking at the whole picture.
Overall, an absolute must-play if you're a fan of Kirby or the NES. It has some misgivings, but playing it makes it easy to understand how and why Kirby became such a Nintendo superstar, and it's definitely an important piece of video game history.
While only the 2nd Kirby game, it's surprisingly the first to feature copy abilities, including things like the Hammer, Beam, Wheel, and UFO abilities! The level designers really went all out, utilizing Kirby's immense copy-enhanced moveset to create much more intricate stages than in Kirby's Dreamland. It also has significantly more stages than Dreamland, with tons of secrets and puzzles. And it all culminates in an absolutely unforgettable final boss battle.
Sadly, the game runs terribly. In a way, it's further proof of how advanced the game really is for the hardware. It absolutely chugs when there are only a handful of things on screen, and it makes Kirby frustratingly hard to control during more pivotal moments, even dropping my inputs at times. Topped off with most of the unlockable stages being filler 1-UP mini-games, and it sours the experience a little when looking at the whole picture.
Overall, an absolute must-play if you're a fan of Kirby or the NES. It has some misgivings, but playing it makes it easy to understand how and why Kirby became such a Nintendo superstar, and it's definitely an important piece of video game history.