It's so impressive that they managed to pack a full 7-world Kirby platformer with copy abilities on the Game Boy. Plus, the three animal characters each add three different variations to every copy ability too! In addition to all the great sprite animation that this series is known for, this might be the most impressive and modern-looking Game Boy game I've played.

With that said, the level design is kind of brainless and doesn't have much variation or a difficulty curve. Each level just feels the same as the last, and it gets very monotonous. This really made it hard to get through the whole game. Also, despite how impressed I am with it, I am not a huge fan of the animal mechanic, as I prefer modern Kirby's method of having copy abilities with complex movesets, rather than mixing ability combos that you can only find in certain levels. I can appreciate the unique concept though. And this game also started that whole "true final boss is locked behind some bullshit collectibles" trend, and that's the worst thing any Kirby game has done. I'm not gonna suffer through that and neither should you.

I still enjoyed this game enough. It's undoubtedly my favourite of the Dream Land trilogy, since 1 barely qualifies as a full game and 3 added nothing to the formula while doubling down on this game's flaws. In comparison, 2 is quite innovative and technologically impressive. Still, don't be surprised if this whole trilogy ends up as the bottom 3 on my hypothetical Kirby ranking.

Ohh right, this is the game with the naked woman. 5 stars

It's astonishing how well this game holds up in spite of its ambitions. Usually these early 3D shenanigans age like fine milk but the prerendered graphics still somehow look nice. They didn't just coast on the technology like most other 3D showcase games of the era did; they also put a ton of love into the atmosphere, art direction, and animation and that has caused this game's visuals to age gracefully. But it's not just pretty to look at, it's also a fantastic platformer, and the game would not be as well-regarded today if it didn't feel good to play. The level design is tight, and the engine/physics is genuinely some of the best-feeling of any platformer even 30 years on. Screw Sonic, this is a real momentum-based platformer. And do I even need to mention the MUSIC?

Still, it's very rough around the edges in some aspects. The difficulty curve and camera are frustrating, the secrets and bosses leave a lot to be desired, and the level variety is low (way too many caves). It's so insane to me how this game constantly appears on lists of the best video games ever made, instead of its sequel, which improves on this game in literally every aspect.

Overall though, I think this game manages to marry visuals, audio, and gameplay in a way that few other platformers outside the DKC series really do. DKC's world feels truly tangible and alive, which is an insane achievement for a platformer. Platformers usually strive to be as "video gamey" as possible (think Mario), but DKC is so much more than just a video game, it's a living breathing world. I think that's this series' secret weapon.

Also this game introduced my Smash main. Love ya K. Rool

Mario Kart 8:
- No playable Boo
- No Boo item
- No Boo track (in name)

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe:
- King Boo
- Boo item
- GBA Boo Lake

I think it's pretty clear which version is superior.

I just replayed Mario 1 and Lost Levels back to back yesterday and it was kind of an interesting experience actually. Looking at these two games as two halves of a whole certainly adds a bit of appeal to both games.

Anyway, Mario 1. Super important, super iconic, super... meh. It doesn't even need to be stated that it set the groundwork for the Mario franchise, because that goes without saying, but that also means that most Mario games are literally just better versions of this game. So there's just straight up no reason to play this game today unless you either want a history lesson or a harmless way to spend 45 minutes. The controls are stiffer than they should be, the music gets repetitive, and some of the game's later levels are just copy pastes of earlier levels in the game. It certainly is no Mario 3, let alone Mario Wonder. Still, the Mario fun is there, so I can't hate it too much.

Something I find interesting is that I actually find this game quite fun when I'm speeding through it as fast as I can. I think the game flows really nicely when approaching it in this manner, as opposed to playing the game slowly and carefully since I'll have to deal with the game's annoying momentum more.

Yeah, I dunno. I still don't get it. After just replaying the game (because it's short so why not), I'm really surprised by the overall positive-to-mixed reactions to the game after its addition to NSO. I really thought that its addition would cause more people to look at it in a more critical light, but I guess people truly will eat up any platformer with "Mario" in the title, huh...

People call this game "weird" to justify giving it high scores, but I actually think this is one of the most aggressively bland Mario games out there. It is paint-by-numbers Mario, but it even feels like a pale imitation of that, with uninteresting level design and zero secrets. It's like Mario 1 but even further stripped down to its bare essentials. If having a few unique character designs and two generic space shooter stages constitutes "weird", then those are some extremely low standards of weirdness. If you want weird, play Mario Land 2. That's a game that truly earns its reputation for weirdness, and it's also much higher quality too.

Is having a few weird character designs and some mild historical significance as the first handheld Mario game really enough to single-handedly give this game a passing score? Enough to look past the controls and visuals and everything else that is clearly substandard? Honestly after thinking about it I truly feel confident in saying that this is my pick for the worst mainline Mario game. I'm pretty shocked that it isn't brought up more in that discussion.

Ugh.

The core gameplay is really enjoyable. The graphics have aged well and the music is solid. The world is super charming and filled with personality and witty writing. But at practically every turn, this game is completely frustrating and unfun.

You are essentially forced to search up a walkthrough every 30 minutes, and that's not an exaggeration, because of the game's sheer crypticness. Every new segment of the game (both in the dungeons and during the process of unlocking the dungeons), seems to have like three more roadblocks where the game gives you absolutely zero information on how to proceed, despite literally having a hint system. Why do people consider this game good? Are people just so familiar with this game that they know everything by heart, and thus overlook the fact that there's zero way to know what to do or where to go on a first playthrough? Ocarina and Link to the Past also have their fair share of "what the fuck do I do" and "how the fuck was I supposed to know that" moments, but never have I felt those moments made up the entire damn game

And don't even get me started on the unskippable text.

This compass has a new feature! That's so important, we'll tell you this in every single dungeon! Wow, this looks pretty heavy! We'll tell you this every time you brush up against a heavy object! Link checked the chest! HAHA isn't that just so funny??? By the way, this compass has a new feature!