Kirby's Adventure

Kirby's Adventure is a Nintendo Entertainment System game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo in 1993. It is the second game of the overall Kirby franchise, but it is not a direct sequel to the first title, Kirby's Dream Land, which only got an indirect follow-up in 1995 with the release of Kirby's Dream Land 2. Kirby's Adventure is the first game to have Copy Abilities, a signature ability of Kirby in which he can obtain a power-up by inhaling certain enemies.

In 2002, Kirby's Adventure received a remake for the Game Boy Advance titled Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land. The original Kirby's Adventure has been ported several times, starting with a release on the Wii's Virtual Console in 2007. In 2011, Kirby's Adventure was remade as a 3D Classics title for the Nintendo 3DS rather than as a Virtual Console title. In 2012, Kirby's Adventure was one of the six titles included on Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition. In 2013, Kirby's Adventure was released for the Wii U's Virtual Console. Kirby's Adventure is one of the thirty titles included on the NES Classic Edition. In 2019, Kirby's Adventure was released as a title for Nintendo Switch Online along with a library of several other Nintendo Entertainment System titles.

Story
Story from the instruction booklet: Light years away, on a tiny star not visible from Earth, is the magical, peaceful place known as Dream Land. The beings that inhabit this wonderful place live a blissful existence that centers on eating, sleeping, and playing. An example of their care-free customs include the traditional after-lunch feast nap. After they awaken from their nap, the Dream Landers discuss their dreams and fervently hope that each other's fondest wishes come true. One day, a young Dream Lander named Kirby awoke from his after-lunch nap feeling terrible. "What happened?" he wondered to himself. "I didn't have any dreams during my lunch nap!" This lack of dreams left Kirby feeling very uneasy. After talking to some of his friends, he found that the problem was much more serious than he had thought, for they had not experienced any dreams either! "Something must have happened to the Dream Spring!" they exclaimed in unison. The Dream Spring is a magical well that is a reservoir for all the dreams of the inhabitants of Dream Land. Dreams also flow out of the Dream Spring and envelop Dream Land, granting all sleeping beings enjoyable dreams. Legends told that the Dream Spring was created by a magical artifact known as the Star Rod. The sparkling star on the tip of this scepter was an actual fragment of a star that had landed in Dream Land in the distant past. The Star Rod now provided energy to the Dream Spring and served as the very symbol of Dream Land. The lack of dreams made everyone in Dream Land feel restless and irritable. The joyful laughter that had once resounded throughout Dream Land could no longer be heard at all. Things were bleak. Kirby, the roly-poly hero of Dream Land, boldly announced his intention to investigate the Dream Spring and find the cause of all the trouble. Upon reaching the Dream Spring, who did he find but King Dedede, bathing in its magical waters! In the past (see Kirby's Dream Land™ for Game Boy®), King Dedede had caused mischief in Dream Land by stealing all the Dream Landers' food and Sparkling Stars. Now, in the middle of the Dream Spring, in place of the Star Rod, sat Dedede, covered with bubble bath. "So you're up to your old tricks again, eh, Dedede?!" accused Kirby. "What are you talking about, young pudge ball?" Dedede looked surprised. "I thought I'd do everyone a favor by..." "No, no no!" Kirby shook his head. "I won't listen to your tricks! What have you done with the Star Rod?!" "Oh, that old thing," Dedede said nonchalantly. "I broke it into seven pieces and gave each piece to one of my friends..." "What was Dedede thinking?!" Kirby wondered. Before hearing any more of what Dedede had to say, Kirby set off on the long trek to gather the pieces of the Star Rod and return them to the Dream Spring. Hopefully, he could return the sparkle to the Dream Spring so that the people of Dream Land could again enjoy their happy midday naps.

In-game text: ''One day, the peaceful life of Dream Land was shattered by a mysterious crisis! The inhabitants didn't dream! On the edge of Dream Land, dreams and hope once gushed forth from the Dream Spring, fueled by the Star Rod. Investigating the Dream Spring, Kirby found naughty King Dedede swimming in its magical waters! Dedede had broken the Star Rod and given the pieces to his friends, who are now hiding in Dream Land! To bring back the lost dreams, Kirby sought the Star Rod!''

One day, the inhabitants of Dream Land lost their ability to dream, so Kirby went to investigate. At the Fountain of Dreams, Kirby finds that the Star Rod, which allows Dream Land's inhabitants to have dreams, had been stolen. He also sees King Dedede swimming in the Fountain of Dreams. King Dedede had broken the Star Rod into seven pieces, giving one to each of his six close friends and keeping one for himself. Kirby goes on an adventure to reassemble the Star Rod and return it to the Fountain of Dreams.

Along the way, Kirby encounters the Meta-Knights and fights their leader, Meta Knight, at the end of Orange Ocean. At the end of the seventh level, Rainbow Resort, Kirby faces off against King Dedede near the Fountain of Dreams. When Kirby defeats King Dedede in a battle, the eighth and final level begins, The Fountain of Dreams. It starts with a cutscene of King Dedede dragging on Kirby's foot, begging him to not return the Star Rod to the Fountain of Dreams, but Kirby ignores him. When Kirby puts the Star Rod back on the Fountain of Dreams, Nightmare emerges from it, and this terrifies both Kirby and King Dedede. Kirby is then inhaled by King Dedede, who then spits him out high into the sky where Kirby begins his battle against Nightmare. The second phase of the battle takes place on Planet Popstar's moon, where Nightmare ultimately manages to defeat Kirby. The resulting explosion blows off a chunk of the moon, making it crescent-shaped.

The following epilogue shows Kirby flying on a Warp Star in the sky while King Dedede floats after him. Meanwhile, the conclusion states that King Dedede had good intentions when hiding the Star Rod, as Dream Land had been invaded by Nightmare, who wanted to torment Dream Land's inhabitants. As a result of Kirby and King Dedede's teamwork in defeating Nightmare, good dreams have been restored to Dream Land.

Gameplay
Kirby's Adventure is a side-scrolling 2D platformer where the objective of each stage is to reach the end goal. Kirby can inhale most enemies and certain objects, and in doing so he can either swallow them or spit them out as a Star Bullet. Kirby can also float in midair, during which he cannot attack or use any other move, but Kirby can exhale to release an Air Pellet which cancels his flight and can be used to damage enemies or destroy Star Blocks. Kirby also gains a few moves, including running or performing a slide kick (after crouching).

Kirby has six vitality bars that measure his health. If Kirby touches an enemy, he takes damage and therefore loses a vitality bar. Certain attacks, usually dealt by mid-bosses and bosses, can take away two of Kirby's vitality bars. Kirby starts off with five lives, and if he loses all six vitality bars, he loses a life. If Kirby loses all of his lives, he gets a Game Over.

The most notable feature introduced in the game are Copy Abilities. Kirby can obtain one by inhaling a certain enemy and then swallowing it. Each Copy Ability grants Kirby a certain attack, such as fiery breath, which replaces his inhaling ability. Without a Copy Ability, Kirby does not have any specific means of attacking aside from inhaling enemies or objects and then spitting them out at his target. If an enemy gives Kirby a Copy Ability, the HUD icon of Kirby changes to one of him with the Copy Ability. If Kirby swallows an enemy that does not grant a Copy Ability, the "Nothing" icon, which depicts an unhappy Kirby, is shown for a few seconds before reverting to the regular Kirby icon. Some Copy Abilities are required to perform certain actions, such as the Fire ability to light a fuse or the Hammer ability to pound down a post.

The game has a feature named Mix where if Kirby inhales two enemies who have a different Copy Ability at once, a roulette begins to randomly select a power. The game has an exploit where if the player does not press any button on Mix roulette and rather leaves it alone until it stops, Kirby gets a certain Copy Ability whenever he gets that same pair of enemies. For example, if he swallows both a Waddle Doo (Beam) and a Sparky (Spark) at once, the Mix roulette always lands on Hammer, giving him that power. This exploit also applies to enemies who are the same. For example, inhaling two Sparkies earns Kirby the UFO Copy Ability.

Instead of standard progression like in Kirby's Dream Land, Kirby has to access the individual stages from numbered doors within separate hub areas, which are the overall levels themselves. The levels consist of a few stages, some Sub-Games, a Museum (where Kirby can inhale an enemy for their Copy Ability), and a boss fight at the end. There is also a Warp Stage, allowing Kirby to travel between levels that he has already visited. Kirby must defeat the boss in order to access the next level. Whenever Kirby completes a level, the game's progress is automatically saved.

Kirby's Adventure also introduces Goal Game, which Kirby must do after clearing a stage. It starts with Kirby dropping onto a platform which briefly dips downward and then launches him up. The player must press at the platform's maximum descent to launch Kirby up as high as possible. Seven tiers of clouds are above the platform, and reaching the topmost tier awards Kirby with an extra life while most other tiers except the lowest one just awards him points. The lowest tier rewards him with nothing and only provides the tip, "Push A!".

Copy Abilities
There are 25 different Copy Abilities:
 * Backdrop
 * Ball
 * Beam
 * Crash
 * Cutter
 * Fire
 * Fireball
 * Freeze
 * Hammer
 * Hi-Jump
 * Ice
 * Laser
 * Light
 * Mike
 * Needle
 * Parasol
 * Sleep
 * Spark
 * Star Rod
 * Stone
 * Sword
 * Throw
 * Tornado
 * UFO
 * Wheel

Items
Each stage usually has one or more items. Whenever Kirby picks up an item, it assists him in some way. Certain items do not return from Kirby's Dream Land, such as Superspicy Curry or Mint Leaf, because their abilities have been integrated into a Copy Ability. Therefore, many items are about restoring Kirby's health.

Levels
The game takes place in Dream Land across seven different levels and an area where the final battle takes place. Each level has a number of stages, usually six, followed by a boss. The stages are accessed through small doors on the level hub. When Kirby first enters a level hub, only the hub entrance and the door to the first stage are available. The first six levels are named after a type of food, and the first seven levels begin with a letter corresponding to a color of the rainbow, albeit in reverse order: violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red.


 * 1) Vegetable Valley
 * 2) Ice Cream Island
 * 3) Butter Building
 * 4) Grape Garden
 * 5) Yogurt Yard
 * 6) Orange Ocean
 * 7) Rainbow Resort
 * 8) Fountain of Dreams

Once the player has achieved 100% completion, Extra Mode is unlocked. In Extra Mode, Kirby can only have up to three vitality bars, and the player cannot save the game. Completing Extra Mode unlocks the Sound Test.

Minigames
There are doors leading to certain minigames in every level hub, and these serve as opportunities for Kirby to earn additional points or lives. After Kirby plays a minigame once, its door is barred shut, therefore preventing him from playing it again. Some minigames only become playable if Kirby activates a Big Switch inside of a certain stage.


 * Arena - Here, Kirby fights a mid-boss. If Kirby wins, he is rewarded a Maxim Tomato and, as usual, can obtain the mid-boss's Copy Ability. Even if Kirby loses all his health in the Sub-Game, it still counts as him losing a losing. Each level has different mid-bosses for Kirby to fight as well as a different prize.
 * Crane - The player must hold to operate a crane within a  by moving it to the right. If the player releases the button, the crane lowers and potentially grabs either a small or large Kirby toy. The crane has a greater chance of picking up a small Kirby toy, which grants one life, while the larger Kirby toy grants two lives. In higher difficulty settings, the crane moves quicker.
 * Egg Catcher - King Dedede throws eggs and bombs at Kirby. Kirby must open his mouth at the right intervals to eat the eggs but not the bombs. If Kirby swallows a bomb, the game ends, and Kirby earns no bonuses. At the end of a successful game, the eggs are tallied, and lives are awarded accordingly.
 * Quick Draw - This sub-game is a cowboy-themed gunfight. The objective is for Kirby to shoot his target before they do so; this is done by pressing after a randomly timed signal. If Kirby shoots before the signal, he gets a penalty, and after three penalties, he is disqualified. There are a total of five stages, which increase in difficulty, and the harder ones require quicker reactions. The more stages that Kirby passes, the more points and lives he gains. The final opponent is King Dedede, and defeating him earns Kirby three extra lives.

Wii Shop Channel
"Not everything is well in Dream Land. For some mysterious reason, the Dream Spring, a magical well that is the reservoir for all the dreams of the citizens of Dream Land, is no longer working. Everyone is being subjected to their worst nightmares every time they go to sleep. Upon reaching the Dream Spring, Kirby finds out that evil King Dedede has stolen the Star Rod, thus depriving Dream Land of the magical energy that feeds its spring. Using 20 unique tricks and your ability to steal your enemies' powers by swallowing them, you'll have to make your way through a horrific land filled with all kinds of nightmares. Recover the broken pieces of the Star Rod, and everyone in Dream Land will sleep peacefully once again. If you fail, the citizens of Dream Land will be subjected to a lifetime of terrible nightmares."
 * North America

"Released in the later years of the NES, Kirby’s Adventure was a groundbreaking, graphically impressive platformer that famously introduced Kirby’s ability to copy the powers of his enemies.
 * Europe

In his one and only NES escapade, Kirby must reunite the shattered pieces of the Star Rod stolen by King Dedede, so that the residents of Dream Land can have a peaceful night’s sleep.

In his default form, Kirby is a near-powerless pink blob, but by sucking up enemies he can absorb their abilities; including a laser beam, fire blaster, boomerang and spikes. By gulping down two different kinds of enemy Kirby can also combine powers, sometimes with unexpected results.

With tons of bonus levels and minigames, plus more than 20 copy abilities to discover, Kirby’s Adventure is as full of surprises as Kirby himself!"

Nintendo eShop (3D Classics)
"3D Classics: Kirby's Adventure offers you a chance to explore the world of Dream Land in a whole new way!
 * North America

The landscape comes to life as Kirby™ crosses land, sea, and sky in his quest to restore the Star Rod! After waking from a dreamless sleep, Kirby goes to investigate the Dream Spring only to find that its source of energy has been stolen by King Dedede! Broken and divided across seven worlds, Kirby will need to use his unique ability of stealing enemies' powers to battle his way and restore the pieces of the Star Rod! Without it, how can a hero fight another day if he can't get a good night's sleep?! Embark on this adventure as our beloved pink character tries to save the citizens of Dream Land from a lifetime of terrible nightmares!"

"Enjoy classic games in a new dimension with the 3D Classics range, remastered with immersive 3D visuals!
 * Europe

In 3D Classics Kirby's Adventure, Kirby must reassemble the pieces of the Star Rod so that the people of Dream Land can dream once again.

Originally on NES, Kirby's Adventure introduced Kirby's copy ability; allowing the innocent pink blob to fire lasers, burst into flames, become a giant mallet, and more.

With lots of minigames and secrets to discover, too, Kirby’s Adventure – like Kirby – is full of surprises!"

Wii U Virtual Console
"Not everything is well in Dream Land. For some mysterious reason, the Dream Spring, a magical well that is the reservoir for all the dreams of the citizens of Dream Land, is no longer working. Everyone is being subjected to their worst nightmares every time they go to sleep. Upon reaching the Dream Spring, Kirby finds out that evil King Dedede has stolen the Star Rod, thus depriving Dream Land of the magical energy that feeds its spring.
 * North America

Using 20 unique tricks and your ability to steal your enemies' powers by swallowing them, you'll have to make your way through a horrific land filled with all kinds of nightmares.

Recover the broken pieces of the Star Rod, and everyone in Dream Land will sleep peacefully once again. If you fail, the citizens of Dream Land will be subjected to a lifetime of terrible nightmares."

"The only Kirby game ever made for NES™, Kirby's Adventure was a groundbreaking platformer famous for introducing Kirby’s ability to copy the powers of enemies.
 * Europe

By sucking up foes, Kirby can fire lasers, burst into flames, use a giant mallet and more. Kirby can also combine powers with some unexpected results.

With lots of minigames and secrets to discover too, Kirby’s Adventure – like Kirby – is full of surprises!

If you own this title on your Wii™, perform a system transfer from your Wii to your Wii U™ to receive a special upgrade price.

This is the European version of the game, which was optimised originally by the developer to offer gameplay and music speed similar to the US version. Demos and animations may run at PAL speed. The aspect ratio has been corrected for this release."