The game was produced by HAL Laboratory and was released on May 1st, 1993. This was the first game that saw Kirby with his famous pink color and was the first Kirby game to make use of an in game save system. This game also brought Kirby's most revolutionary feature into light, his ability to copy the abilities of his enemies. I'll touch more on that in a little bit.
The plot of the game is that Kirby wakes up from a nap and realizes that he did not dream at all during his slumber. He travels to the Fountain of Dreams to discover that the Star Rod (the source of power for the fountain that gives the citizens of Dream Land their dreams) had been stolen by King Dedede and his minions.
Ironically after hunting down King Dedede and all of his minions, including the now popular Meta Knight, and returning the Star Rod to the fountain the evil Nightmare that corrupted the fountain prior to King Dedede removing the Star Rod emerges takes off into space. King Dedede acts quickly by inhaling Kirby and the Star Rod and blasting them off after Nightmare. Kirby defeats nightmare and makes up with King Dedede and Dream Land exists happily once again. The ironic thing is that King Dedede, the series main protagonist actually stole the Star Rod in an effort to protect Dream Land from Nightmare. He also shot Kirby after Nightmare which if he hadn't done, Nightmare could have easily returned and did far more damage. That leads to this curious question. Is King Dedede as much a hero in this game as Kirby? I do believe so, but of course it is debatable.
Meta Knight vs Kirby!
So that's the plot of this game. For the most part, the game acts in a similar manner to Kirby's Dream Land. You go through each level eating enemies and floating through the air. Many of the same powerups (maximum tomatoes, food, and candy) make a return to the game in a similar manner to how they acted in Kirby's Dreamland. So that's what stayed the same, here's what's different. Unlike Kirby's Dreamland, this game contained worlds and levels. To access a level in a world you would go through a door. Also within the world map were bonus doors that you could access to try to snag some extra lives or access abilities (more on that to come) or take you to other worlds. Many of the later levels were given a hidden switch that would allow Kirby to access additional bonus areas on the world map screen.
The world map of Rainbow Resort
The hidden switch found in later levels
The bonus rooms are fun little minigames that can earn you extra lives or an opportunity to grab an ability with no hassle... or a lot of hassle. There is also a brief bonus level at the end of each level where you will see Kirby land on a platform and it is the player's job to launch him upwards. The higher you go, the more points you'll score unless you hit the top where you will get a 1-up instead!
Crane Fever is a bonus stage in which you operate a crane machine and try to pickup Kirby's and deliver them to the winner's tube. Big Kirbys are worth 2 lives while small Kibys are worth 1. The chances of dropping a big Kirby are higher than those of dropping a little Kirby... Surprise surprise.
In the colosseum, Kirby faces off against one of several mini bosses seen throughout the game. This is a great way to pick up a more rare ability such as the hammer or wheel ability. If Kirby succeeds he is also rewarded with a maximum tomato for his hard work.
In Egg Catcher, King Dedede will throw a mixture of eggs and bombs at Kirby. You can earn extra lives by eating enough eggs, but if you eat a bomb, it's game over. Word of warning. It is pretty high paced.
Quick Draw is a game that tests your reflexes. You wait until the word FIRE appears on screen and then you shoot your opponent. Whoever shoots first wins. Lightning fast reflexes will earn you extra lives while slow reflexes will land you well...shot.
The final bonus area is the museum where Kirby can freely copy an enemies ability. With that being said now is the perfect time to explain this copy ability I've mentioned time and time again in this blog.
The greatest change from Kirby's Dreamland to Kirby's Adventure was the addition of the copy ability. Kirby became able to eat certain enemies and rather than spit them out at other enemies, swallow them and copy the ability of the enemy. For example. If Kirby ate the enemy seen in the museum photo, he would gain a sword and become Sword Kirby. In this game, Kirby is able to gain the following abilities... Sword, fire, spark, backdrop, ball, beam, burning (fireball in this game), freeze, cutter, hammer, high jump, laser, ice, parasol, needle, throw, stone, tornado, UFO, and wheel. Each of these abilities do different things so Kirby changes the way he plays often. All of these abilities give Kirby a massive advantage over his enemies both minions and bosses alike. There are several cases in which you'll actually need a specific ability to do certain things. For example, fire or burning Kirby can light a fuse that leads to a cannon that once fired with Kirby inside will send him to a secret area. There are two other abilities as well. Crash is a one time use that will eliminate all enemies on the screen (besides bosses). Microphone does the exact same thing as it did in Kirby's Dreamland... Clear all enemies on the screen besides bosses... The difference between the two abilities is that microphone can be used 3 times. The copy ability was such a massive change in the direction of Kirby and one that really brought the series to life on a whole new scale.
For the most part the game handles pretty well. There are a few times that I've experienced pretty nasty lag in this game, but really only when the little spark guys (Sparky by name) are attacking you or Kirby using spark with a lot of other stuff on the screen. Graphically the game is what it is as it is on the NES. Overall I think they look pretty good, perhaps even some of the best the system has to offer. The game really captured what has become the theme of Dream Land through the rest of the series. The music is bouncy and happy throughout the game. The only exceptions are during boss battles where the boss music is playing. I'd honestly have to say that this game had some of the best music on the system to go along with some of the best graphics...
This game is one of my favorite NES games and one of my favorites in the Kirby series. Later in the series this game was remade in a sense into a fantastic gameboy advance game under the name Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland (more on that later). That game stayed true to the original, but updated the graphics, soundtrack, etc. The original though still holds it's spot as the game that changed Kirby forever. As is the case with most Kirby games, this game is not overly difficult. In fact I found that I had a surplus of lives even the first time playing through the game.
Overall I'd rate this game an incredible 9 out of 10. There really is not anything really wrong with this game. It is extremely fun. It is a game that introduced a core for a gaming series to be built around and did a magnificent job of doing that. Both new and experienced gamers should find themselves playing through this game and having a blast. Perfectionists? Well there's plenty of hidden switches to be found to 100% this game! If you own a NES or a virtual console that has this game available on it, I highly recommend giving it a go as it really is a lot of fun and pushes the NES to the limits! Now that you've heard all about it. Enjoy watching some of the first world of this game in action! (Note: For some reason the sound effects and music during levels is kinda wonky... Still learning the ins and outs of the recording program X_X)
Final Verdict: 9 out of 10. Kirby's Adventure is quite possibly the best game in the series!
Thanks for reading and watching! The next game in the Kirby Series will be an adventure full of bumpers, flippers, and balls...Kirby's Pinball Land!
The final bonus area is the museum where Kirby can freely copy an enemies ability. With that being said now is the perfect time to explain this copy ability I've mentioned time and time again in this blog.
The greatest change from Kirby's Dreamland to Kirby's Adventure was the addition of the copy ability. Kirby became able to eat certain enemies and rather than spit them out at other enemies, swallow them and copy the ability of the enemy. For example. If Kirby ate the enemy seen in the museum photo, he would gain a sword and become Sword Kirby. In this game, Kirby is able to gain the following abilities... Sword, fire, spark, backdrop, ball, beam, burning (fireball in this game), freeze, cutter, hammer, high jump, laser, ice, parasol, needle, throw, stone, tornado, UFO, and wheel. Each of these abilities do different things so Kirby changes the way he plays often. All of these abilities give Kirby a massive advantage over his enemies both minions and bosses alike. There are several cases in which you'll actually need a specific ability to do certain things. For example, fire or burning Kirby can light a fuse that leads to a cannon that once fired with Kirby inside will send him to a secret area. There are two other abilities as well. Crash is a one time use that will eliminate all enemies on the screen (besides bosses). Microphone does the exact same thing as it did in Kirby's Dreamland... Clear all enemies on the screen besides bosses... The difference between the two abilities is that microphone can be used 3 times. The copy ability was such a massive change in the direction of Kirby and one that really brought the series to life on a whole new scale.
For the most part the game handles pretty well. There are a few times that I've experienced pretty nasty lag in this game, but really only when the little spark guys (Sparky by name) are attacking you or Kirby using spark with a lot of other stuff on the screen. Graphically the game is what it is as it is on the NES. Overall I think they look pretty good, perhaps even some of the best the system has to offer. The game really captured what has become the theme of Dream Land through the rest of the series. The music is bouncy and happy throughout the game. The only exceptions are during boss battles where the boss music is playing. I'd honestly have to say that this game had some of the best music on the system to go along with some of the best graphics...
This game is one of my favorite NES games and one of my favorites in the Kirby series. Later in the series this game was remade in a sense into a fantastic gameboy advance game under the name Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland (more on that later). That game stayed true to the original, but updated the graphics, soundtrack, etc. The original though still holds it's spot as the game that changed Kirby forever. As is the case with most Kirby games, this game is not overly difficult. In fact I found that I had a surplus of lives even the first time playing through the game.
Overall I'd rate this game an incredible 9 out of 10. There really is not anything really wrong with this game. It is extremely fun. It is a game that introduced a core for a gaming series to be built around and did a magnificent job of doing that. Both new and experienced gamers should find themselves playing through this game and having a blast. Perfectionists? Well there's plenty of hidden switches to be found to 100% this game! If you own a NES or a virtual console that has this game available on it, I highly recommend giving it a go as it really is a lot of fun and pushes the NES to the limits! Now that you've heard all about it. Enjoy watching some of the first world of this game in action! (Note: For some reason the sound effects and music during levels is kinda wonky... Still learning the ins and outs of the recording program X_X)
Final Verdict: 9 out of 10. Kirby's Adventure is quite possibly the best game in the series!
Thanks for reading and watching! The next game in the Kirby Series will be an adventure full of bumpers, flippers, and balls...Kirby's Pinball Land!
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