EP 3: Kirby and the Rainbow Curse
Pros:
Graphics - What can I say? The game is simply gorgeous. The folks over at HAL decided to transform Kirby's art style once again, this time composing him of clay. In fact, the developers actually built the characters and world out of clay in real life and used stop motion for the animations. This is evident in the game; everything feels and looks natural. The level designs pop and the characters look as if they could come out of the screen at any moment. Truly breathtaking.
Gameplay - What's that? You don't like Kirby's gameplay? Well, that may not be a problem for you, considering Rainbow Curse has highly unconventional gameplay that's only been touched on in its predecessor for the DS, Kirby Canvas Curse. No longer do you run and jump, swallowing enemies to absorb their attacks. You use the stylus on the gamepad's touch screen to create lines and guide Kirby through each level, solving puzzles and finding collectibles along the way. Drawing lines feels satisfying, and pulling off insane shapes and patterns to find hidden objects or kill enemies proves to be fun each time, even when death is inevitable. And death is inevitable. While you do have the freedom to draw lines as you please, there is a bar at the top of the screen that shows you how much...erm, rainbow ink(?) you have remaining. In order to refill the bar, you mustn't draw any more. This isn't an apparent issue in the beginning of the game, but can be an obstacle later on. The difficulty, however, doesn't feel cheap. When I died, I felt as if I had the ability to improve in spite of my mistakes. The levels organically teach you how to pull off new moves and develop new strategies, and it evokes a creative spirit in the player. Additionally, at times Kirby will transform into a tank, submarine, or rocketship and this changes the gameplay slightly. However, if you have a friend (unlike me), you can also grant them (and up to 3 total) a Wiimote to play as Bandana Dee. They have traditional Kirby controls, use their spears to attack and can pick Kirby up, aiding him in his journey.
Content - There is a sufficient amount of content in this game. There are 28 main levels (including the bosses), which contain a ranking system. Collectibles can be found in the form of figurines and music tracks, which you can see/listen to in the figurine gallery and jukebox, respectively. You can also unlock diary pages at the end of each level by guiding Kirby to them, which will be inserted into the secret diary in the main menu (where it's discovered that it's Elline's diary - Kirby's newfound ally). There is also a challenge mode, which has 48 challenges for you to attempt to complete. Key word being attempt. These are hard. Much harder than the main campaign. Each challenge level consists of four 15-second challenges, and 'special' challenges have you complete 12 in a row. If you're someone that likes insane post-game difficulty, you will enjoy this. Additionally, replaying levels in the campaign with multiple players adds a level of freshness to them, as the gameplay changes significantly with Bandana Dees at your side.
Music - This game's music is fantastic. It's catchy, upbeat and fits the tone of the game perfectly. Often I would find myself humming the tunes of the game, even when not playing. Some tracks are reused from previous games, but many are entirely original. The tracks can be retro, modern, somber, thrilling and jazzy, sometimes all within the same world. It's one of my favorite aspects of the game, and not one I thought I would enjoy so much.
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Cons:
Lack of TV - Naturally, as this game requires a touch screen, you must use the gamepad to play the game in its entirety. Looking up at the TV is a rarity, typically happening only in the beginning of the game or during moments when the game gives you a breather. This isn't a monumental issue, mind you, but having to look down at all times can be a bit of a downer.
World Concepts - It's no secret that this game is a side-scroller. One of many, many side scrollers to have existed in the past forever. While it's one of few that utilizes touch screen gameplay, it's one of thousands to make use of level tropes. There are green plains, a desert, a beach, a sky, and a volcano. The only ones that I feel are somewhat unique are the orange woodlands and the dreamy purple fortress. Obviously, this doesn't majorly affect my enjoyment of the game, but it was quite noticable how many cliches were used.
Controls - Although I do cite the gameplay as a major positive of this game, at times I felt that my control of Kirby wasn't as good as I had liked. There are numerous times where the game asks you to make precise movements, often under time limits, and sometimes it can be a challenge getting Kirby to move how you want. Becoming extremely frustrated wasn't a common occurance, but it's important to expect you won't have the same type of control in a touch-based game as you would in a regularly controlled platformer.
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Verdict: Kirby and the Rainbow Curse is a fun, inspired, challenging ride and one that lends itself marvelously to the gamepad's capabilities. The claymation style is essentially art porn, and the music never ceases to be pleasing. Despite the occasional issues with control I found myself facing, in addition to the uncreative level concepts, I had an incredibly enjoyable time with Kirby's latest romp. If you're looking for a small, inexpensive, touch-based platformer: look no further. Kirby's got you covered.
Story: Save the apples!!!! (and the color)
Graphics: 9/10
Control: 7.5/10
Sound: 9/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Overall: 8/10
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Feel free to ask questions addressing things I didn't talk about in this review, or just comment about how stupid and/or intelligent I am based on how much you agree with me. I'm welcome to any sort of criticism.
