Get your Birdon! http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=16984 So it's Friday night, and you kick things off by heading out to your favorite generic restaurant. You know—the one with flair. You and your buddies want an appetizer, but you can't agree on which one, so you wind up ordering the sampler platter. Sure, you don't get as much of what you
really wanted, and you'd rather not touch those jalapeno poppers. But it's a good compromise and a reasonable (though not great) deal, making it a popular choice.
This pretty much describes Kirby Super Star. If you've ever enjoyed a Kirby platformer you'll find something to like, but you'll wish there were more of it.
Super Star is chopped into several small games, which on average are two to three times as large as the original Kirby's Dream Land. If that sounds short, it is. But in aggregate, these games amount to a title that will take roughly as long to complete as Kirby 64 or Canvas Curse.
Only this title has far more variety. While most of its games share the same controls and special abilities, each has its own twist. Revenge of Meta Knight focuses on fast-paced action and theatrics. In contrast, The Great Cave Offensive encourages slower-paced exploration for treasure, and is generally considered the precursor to Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. Ultra's new games unfortunately miss the whole point, rehashing the original games instead of introducing new modes of play. Sometimes the game falls short of its potential: Milky Way Wishes asks players to hunt for and accrue abilities, but its level design never requires the player to leverage a specific power in order to succeed (while The Great Cave Offensive does). Even so, this game is far better than Squeak Squad or the unpopular maze portion of Super Smash Bros. Brawl's adventure mode.
A good deal of Super Star's lasting appeal comes from its extensive list of abilities. In most Kirby games, power-ups are largely regulated to one—possibly two—moves. In Super Star, each ability features at least three moves, and several have over half-a-dozen. The powers are distinct and practical, making them fun to use in different scenarios. Nintendo fans will also appreciate this SNES classic's clever allusions to other franchises: sword-wielding Kirby shoots beams when his health meter is full. Subsequent Kirby games merely kept Link's hat.
I would be remiss to ignore Super Star's multiplayer. Despite what NOA told NWR at E3 2008, Ultra does retain the popular two-player cooperative option, although two copies of the game are required to truly enjoy it. The introductory game, Spring Breeze, can be played with only one card, but player two must look at player one's DS to see the action. While this mode sounds a tad uncomfortable, I question why it is relegated to the introductory game. That said, Super Star is a blast with a friend, so check out co-op out if you have the means.
Kirby Super Star isn't the pinnacle of gaming some remember it to be, but it's still a clever, approachable, and entertaining game. The instruction manual describes it as a "games omnibus", and that's a pretty good way to put it. There's something for everyone.
Pros:
Fantastic collection of power-ups Interesting variety of game modes Enhanced graphics Fun Nintendo allusions and soundtrack Cons: Music is tinnier than on the SNES Frequently recycled bosses New games are rehashed On the easy side Graphics: 8.0 Super Star was already a very good-looking SNES title; this remake cleans up some of the original's rougher spots and adds subtle new details. As with other recent Kirby handheld entries, the background animation is notably limited. Brand new FMV cut-scenes are sprinkled throughout the title, but they are noticeably compressed and have unflattering black borders on both screens.
Sound: 7.0 Super Star arguably has the best soundtrack of any Kirby game. Sadly, Ultra struggles to reproduce the SNES version's rich instrumentation, resulting in a less nuanced, stiffer rendition of the soundtrack. Still, most of the memorable tunes retain their charm.
Control: 9.0 Super Star puts pretty much every other Kirby game to shame with its crap-load of moves for each ability. Thankfully, the pause screen provides a quick reference sheet. Some of the more satisfying power-ups are so crammed with moves that it can be difficult to pull off what you want, but this challenge is largely by design.
Gameplay: 8.0 Although there are some missed opportunities, level design is above-average for the series. And excluding the disappointing new content, each Super Star game has its own personality. Other Kirby games should strive to equal Super Star's deep and vast assortment of special abilities.
Lastability: 7.0
If you strive for completion, the title will last about ten hours, give or take. Revisiting Super Star for two-player cooperative play is highly recommended (although it requires two copies) and some of the obligatory competitive mini-games are also decent.
Final: 8.0
This remake isn't nearly the best value on the DS, but its variety in both level design and special abilities makes it endearing. Kirby Super Star remains a benchmark for the series, so if you never played it on the SNES, this may be worth your while.
Topic: REVIEWS: Kirby Super Star Ultra (Read 2236 times)
