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Kirby's Adventure is a platformer that was released late in the NES's lifespan. In this game, Kirby must retrieve the broken Star Rod pieces in order to restore everyones' dream.


Overview

Kirby's Adventure was the second game released in the Kirby series, the first for a home console, and one of the final games released for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It also marked the first time that Kirby was coloured pink. In the original Kirby's Dream Land, for the Game Boy, which was a monochrome system, Kirby was white on the box art. Kirby's Adventure was released for the NES on December 21, 1992.

The game is a platformer that includes many unique aspects. As in the original game, Kirby can inhale enemies and spit them at other enemies in the form of stars, as well as flying indefinitely and swallowing inhaled enemies to destroy them without spitting them out. However, Kirby has a new Copy Ability, which allows him to copy the powers of specific enemies when he swallows them. For instance, swallowing a burning enemy will allow him to breathe fire, while swallowing a laser-shooting enemy will allow him to shoot a laser beam himself. The game is divided into seven overworlds, each with six sub-levels and several bonus stages. Completing a level opens up further levels in the world, while finding secret areas in the levels opens up bonus stages.

Gameplay

Kirby's Adventure is a basic platformer, and the player guides Kirby through each of the many levels in seven different worlds. Kirby can run when the d-pad is double tapped, he can jump with the A button, and can float around stages when the player repeatedly presses up on the D-pad. The foundation is standard platformer fare: progress to the right, eventually reaching the goal, and take care not to fall down any holes or get beat up by dudes. In Kirby, once a level is completed, the player has a chance to earn bonuses with a timed button press. Most of these bonuses increase the score, but the top bonus will award a bonus life.

The cardinal mechanic of the Kirby games, and the one that separates the Kirby franchises from other platformers, is Kirby's ability to swallow enemies and copy their special abilities. Kirby can gain a great variety of skills through his copy ability. Many of these skills are offensive in nature, like the sword and electric shock. Many, however, will increase Kirby's mobility and allow players to access new areas. These include the high jump and the wheel, which will send Kirby roaring through a level. There are also a number of special powers that can only be gained from mini-bosses and at certain points in the game, such as the microphone, which allows Kirby to belt out, killing all enemies on the screen (Ostensibly, Kirby isn't a very good singer).

In addition to the main game, there are a variety of mini-games Kirby can participate in, as well as an arena, and warp star rooms.


Mini games

Crane Fever
In crane fever, the player is presented with a crane game, and two Kirbys, one large and one small, are scattered in the machine. The player presses and holds the A button, and releases it to grab. The goal is to snag one of the Kirbys, though the larger one will bring a greater reward.
Quick Draw
This is a cowboy-themed reflex-based game, where the player must wait until draw, and then draw before their opponent. Drawing too early is punished.
Egg Catcher
Kirby enters the ring with the game's villain King DeDeDe, who tosses bombs and eggs at the pink ball. The goal is to swallow as many eggs as possible, and avoid all bombs.


Levels

◾Vegetable Valley

◾Ice Cream Island

◾Butter Building

◾Grape Gardens

◾Yogurt Yard

◾Orange Ocean

◾Rainbow Resort

◾Fountain of Dreams


Abilities Gained From Swallowing Enemies
◾Fire: Holding B makes Kirby shoot a short range flamethrower in front of him.
◾Fireball: Kirby transforms into a fireball and shoots forward at rapid speed.
◾Stone: Kirby turns into an invulnerable rock. If he activates this in mid-air, he plummets to the ground, killing any enemies in his path.
◾Needle: Holding B sprouts protective spikes in all directions.
◾Mike: Each time it's used, mike kills all enemies on screen.
◾Cutter: Kirby can throw up to three spinning blades that go forward a short distance and boomerang back.
◾Laser: Kirby shoots a laser beam that can ricochet off of 45 degree angles.
◾Crash: Kirby destroys all enemies on screen, and does significant damage to bosses.
◾Ice: Holding B makes Kirby shoot a stream of ice that freezes enemies. The frozen enemies can then be used to take out other foes.
◾Back Drop: Kirby sucks in enemies, then pressing a direction on the D-pad makes Kirby perform a wrestling move that kills the enemy.
◾Ball: Kirby turns into a bouncy ball. He can jump very high and will kill enemies that he jumps into.
◾Light: In dark areas, the light power will light up the stage.
◾Beam: Kirby shoots a short range beam that starts above him and arcs forward and down.
◾Parasol: Kirby gets a cute parasol that protects him from above and slows his fall. He also can swing it to kill enemies.
◾Freeze: Holding B radiates an ice field around Kirby which freezes enemies. The frozen enemies can then be used to take out other foes.
◾Hammer: Kirby holds a giant hammer that kills anything it hits when swung.
◾Sleep: Kirby falls asleep for a short time.
◾Spark: Kirby electrifies the air around him, killing any enemies who venture too close.
◾Sword: Kirby slashes enemies with a sword.
◾Hi-Jump: Kirby jumps extremely high and is invulnerable. The player can control the trajectory somewhat.
◾Tornado: Kirby becomes an invulnerable, if hard to control, whirlwind for a short time.
◾Wheel: Kirby screams along the ground as a fast-moving and invulnerable wheel.
◾Throw: Kirby sucks in enemies and throws them in the direction the player presses on the d-pad.
◾UFO: Kirby turns into a speedy UFO that has several powerful attacks.
◾Star Rod: Fires stars that can damage the final boss.


Other Releases

In 2002, Kirby's Adventure was remade as Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land for the Game Boy Advance. The original NES game was made available for the Virtual Console on the Nintendo Wii. A demo of the game was also included in the Masterpieces section of Super Smash Bros. Brawl.