To be honest I never actually played the original game on Wii (didn't actually own any Kirby games on the system until 2018... and even then it was just Dream Collection lol), so this was ultimately my first experience with the game. And, well, all I can say is that it was a really good one.
Levels are overall just well-designed and fun in general, full of variety in terms of the core level design, art style and all the different power-ups/abilities you can pick up, while also being open for replayability and completion with collectibles like the Energy Spheres which unlock new challenges and 'rooms' within the Starcutter.
The 'Super Abilites' were especially interesting to me, largely coming down to how they used upgraded versions of the regular abilities to change up the environment and unlock dimensional rifts, adding a sort of mini-challenge taking place within a sub-level that allows you to unlock energy spheres. Plus the game is generally well designed around the abilities in general and how you can use certain abilities with the environment and level design.
The visuals are also really nice and colorful, and I really like the storybook aesthetic for the cutscenes. Plus the controls also feel really good.
Really, the only thing that I can complain about is that the difficulty is really on the easy side, especially if you're just beating the main story mode instead of going for collectibles. It does pick up a bit towards the end, but even then I was able to hold on to around 50 lives at the end of the game just on my first playthrough. That being said I don't think Kirby is really a series that is going for any level of difficulty so it doesn't bother me all that much. Guess I could also point out that Kirby's ground movement was a little slow for my liking at least in some areas, but again, didn't really bother me too much.
This remake also adds some new features and further replayability to the game. Admittedly I didn't really get too into it as I just focused on beating the Story Mode for this playthrough, but I do think it is worth noting in addition to the updated graphical style, there's also the addition of masks, the 'Merry Magoland' mode, and the Magalor epilogue that adds some lore to the character - something I'm definitely going to go back to and try at some point and gives some added value to the remake even for those who already own and/or played through the original version.
Overall, really solid remake and I can see why this game is among the fan favorites. As someone who's just now getting into the series, this might be my favorite out of what I played (which granted is just Kirby's Dream Land 1, Forgotten Land and this lol) and honestly between playing it and Forgotten Land last year I do kind of wish I played more Kirby games growing up.
Levels are overall just well-designed and fun in general, full of variety in terms of the core level design, art style and all the different power-ups/abilities you can pick up, while also being open for replayability and completion with collectibles like the Energy Spheres which unlock new challenges and 'rooms' within the Starcutter.
The 'Super Abilites' were especially interesting to me, largely coming down to how they used upgraded versions of the regular abilities to change up the environment and unlock dimensional rifts, adding a sort of mini-challenge taking place within a sub-level that allows you to unlock energy spheres. Plus the game is generally well designed around the abilities in general and how you can use certain abilities with the environment and level design.
The visuals are also really nice and colorful, and I really like the storybook aesthetic for the cutscenes. Plus the controls also feel really good.
Really, the only thing that I can complain about is that the difficulty is really on the easy side, especially if you're just beating the main story mode instead of going for collectibles. It does pick up a bit towards the end, but even then I was able to hold on to around 50 lives at the end of the game just on my first playthrough. That being said I don't think Kirby is really a series that is going for any level of difficulty so it doesn't bother me all that much. Guess I could also point out that Kirby's ground movement was a little slow for my liking at least in some areas, but again, didn't really bother me too much.
This remake also adds some new features and further replayability to the game. Admittedly I didn't really get too into it as I just focused on beating the Story Mode for this playthrough, but I do think it is worth noting in addition to the updated graphical style, there's also the addition of masks, the 'Merry Magoland' mode, and the Magalor epilogue that adds some lore to the character - something I'm definitely going to go back to and try at some point and gives some added value to the remake even for those who already own and/or played through the original version.
Overall, really solid remake and I can see why this game is among the fan favorites. As someone who's just now getting into the series, this might be my favorite out of what I played (which granted is just Kirby's Dream Land 1, Forgotten Land and this lol) and honestly between playing it and Forgotten Land last year I do kind of wish I played more Kirby games growing up.