At its core, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe is a faithful remake of the 2011 Wii sidescroller, which didn’t seek to subvert the classic Kirby formula, instead applying modern graphics and gameplay improvements to the 2D platforming foundation laid down by 1992’s Kirby’s Dream Land. Though much has changed in the 30 years since that quintessential Game Boy title introduced Kirby to the masses, the cutesy rotund blob of eternal cheerfulness and destruction remains just as loveable, bizarre, and enjoyable to play as always.
While most platforming games feature a fairly vulnerable, hapless protagonist faced with difficult obstacles and certain harm, Kirby is unique in that he represents one of the most overpowered characters in video game history. Not content with simply jumping over obstacles, Kirby can inflate himself to float over most anything that might do him harm. Similarly, enemies rarely represent a threat as he can usually swallow them up and take on their abilities. While these act as power-ups that offer extra variety and gameplay mechanics, little to no explanation is given as to why he can do this, or even what he actually is, which may leave you wondering whether he’s simply a fun-loving Nintendo mascot or some kind of Eldritch horror.
In Kirby’s Return to Dream Land, Kirby adventures across Planet Popstar to retrieve parts from evil Magolor’s space ship. Along the way, you’ll steal various ill-fated opponents’ abilities, including some exciting new power-ups, like Mecha, that turn Kirby into a futuristic fully armed two-fisted technological killing machine, in order to bring down the alien menace.
This expanded deluxe edition of the game, which comes with four-player co-op, also features a bonus co-op episode where the player can take on the role of Magolor himself, fighting across a hostile dimension beyond space and time to recover fragments of his powers after his defeat at the end of the main campaign. It’s appropriately weird extra, as is the amusement park with 10 minigames called Merry Magoland, unlocked across the adventure via Magolor’s spacecraft.
The opening levels of this deluxe edition really make it feel like Kirby’s Dream Land has been given a bright and colorful spit-shine, with the effects of your copy abilities filling the screen with flashy graphical effects. But it’s only during the later part of the campaign does the game truly advance the classic Kirby formula with some truly creative and unusual level designs, often based around utilizing Kirby’s powers in new and exciting ways to traverse the world.
From Kirby’s water ability allowing him to jet around fire obstacles, to him stomping on ice with a spiked update of Kuribo’s Shoe from Super Mario Bros. 3, it always feels as if the game is throwing something new at you. And while the game is rarely difficult, it offers an engaging experience for those willing to explore its detailed levels to find Energy Spheres and other collectibles, as well as additional modes and secrets that make the return trip a delight.
And that delight is the core appeal of a game like Kirby’s Dream Land—that is, one that overflows with joy and happiness via relatively calm and easygoing gameplay that’s matched by bright and colorful graphics. Dream Land has never looked better than it does on the Nintendo Switch with this release, which updates the relatively plain 3D characters of the Wii version with gorgeous cel-shaded renderings that look like a cartoon come to life.
This game was reviewed with code provided by Golin on February 24.
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