H.P. Lovecraft’s frail, insanity-prone protagonists could learn a few things about bravery and heroism from Kirby. As he tangles with mysterious cosmic terrors, that infectious smile remains plastered on his puffy pink face.
First you draw a circle, then you dot the eyes. Add a great big smile, and presto…Cthulhu’s bane!
True, Kirby and cosmic horror don’t form the most apparent of connections. But with two recent additions to the long-running series, Kirby Mass Attack for Nintendo DS and Kirby’s Return to Dream Land for Wii, now is a great time to have a look at a particular aspect of the franchise’s identity and appeal that lies well below the surface of the bright, cheery box art.
Many of Kirby’s adventures take place in Dream Land, a kingdom situated on the lush garden planet called Pop Star. Dream Land is comprised of every sort of ecosystem imaginable and is the home of countless colourful creatures and quirky characters.
If you’ve played a few platformer games in your days, you've already prepared your mental checklist — get ready to run the usual gamut of themed video-game worlds. Ice world: check. Desert world: check. You've saved kingdoms just like this one time and time again, right?
The bulk of the time you’ll spend in Dream Land has you hopping and floating your way through these pastel-coloured landscapes — cheered along the way by the energetic and upbeat music that the series is known for. Most games in the franchise will also have you playing around with the latest iteration of the mechanic that has made Kirby famous: the ability to assimilate and mix-and-match the skills of his enemies.
The many faces of Kirby have molded him into the beloved hero he is today. But sometimes, you reach the last stretch of a Kirby game and it puts on a face you weren’t quite prepared for.
You might find yourself caught up in the designs of an alien entity known as Zero. Its origin and ambitions are mysteries, but it seems to be the source and manipulator of the sentient cosmic force known as Dark Matter. It is a threat that operates on a cosmic scope; entire planets have been subjected to the corruption of Dark Matter…to horrifying effect.
Idyllic landscape, meet Zero.
Whenever Dark Matter takes hold, things get weird. Loyal friends and cuddly creatures take on terrifying new visages (mouths in stomachs; eyes where they shouldn’t be), and the music quickly catches up to the sudden shift in tone to assure you that things have indeed gone horribly wrong.
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The eventual showdowns between Kirby and his eldritch foe are always memorable ones. As you fight your way through the monster’s strange forms, you’ll be treated to a sweeping score that really imparts the feeling that something’s at stake — that's not an easy thing for a colourful platformer to pull off. The Kirby series is perfectly comfortable to revel in its light-hearted cheer most of the time, but when the stakes need to be raised, it effortlessly ventures beyond that comfort zone.
Plenty of video games work to subvert the expectations of lifelong video-game players, but most carry this off with plot twists, character revelations, and other tricks that are as old as fiction itself. Few games attempt to flip their mood and tone on their head, and fewer still pull it off without breaking their neck.
Got a great idea for a new game? Want to treat your players to a roller-coaster ride that ends up taking them to another theme park entirely? Let Kirby be your guide.