"One tough puff."

Within the first eight months of the release of the Nintendo DS, loyal handheld fans waited patiently for a title that could truly show off the system's potential and spit in the face of Sony's competitor. Unfortunately, they were treated to lackluster titles whose gimmicks and novelty wore off within a matter of days. These touch-dependant titles showed off nothing more than different and limited uses for stabbing the lower screen furiously with your stylus, hoping the delicate thing does not crack. Not even more traditional gaming styles were any savior, as good old Mario was trapped within a dismal port of a classic title that controlled incredibly poorly with the system's control setup. With the PSP's big titles on the rise, the fate of Nintendo's dominance of the handheld market was steadily drawing shut. A savior was needed. Now, in most people's books, Kirby has often played sideshow to many of Nintendo's more popular mascots, starring in simplistic titles that sell much better with the younger audiences. Yet, Kirby: Canvas Curse managed to single-handedly not only be the savior and ultimate turning point of the system, but offer an incredibly addictive and innovative style of gameplay, the potential of which previous titles on the system were unable to achieve.

Keeping in tradition with the majority of Kirby's titles, Kirby: Canvas Curse is relatively lighthearted in its presentation, almost on the borderline of obnoxious. Dreamland is one day invaded by an overweight witch named Drawcia (Get it? Draw? Ha, ha.), the likes of whom are easy to confuse with that of an incredibly hairy man. Anyways, he/she gets incredibly bored for some reason and decides to turn Dreamland into one gigantic painting. Drawcia uses her demonic paintbrush to sketch and create chaos. Kirby protests and journeys to challenge Drawcia with his fluffy fists of fury. However, before Kirby is able to suck the air out of the gender-challenged hag, Drawcia transforms Kirby into a perfect sphere, enabling him to merely roll around like a ball. Amidst the chaos, however, the magical paintbrush is lost, and eventually lands in the hands of the player (i.e. Your stylus). Using the magic paintbrush, it is your mission to guide Kirby through the eight world of Dreamland by savagely poking him and creating rainbow paths that will transport him to his goal.

Kirby: Canvas Curse is controlled entirely by using the touch screen. In order to make Kirby move, you must repeatedly stab him with your stylus. The faster you poke the guy, the faster he will roll. Obviously, however, you cannot roll straightforward through an entire stage, which is where your paintbrush comes in handy. By drawing lines on your bottom screen, you will create solid rainbow paths that Kirby can travel across. By creating these bridges and ushering Kirby across them, you can bypass hazards and reach high ledges with ease. These trails are not permanent, however, and you can only use as much paint at a time as shown in your paint meter at the top of your screen. This meter will automatically replenish itself, but your previous trails will disappear within seconds. Therefore, you will want to be conservative with your paint. You can also use the rainbow lines as walls or shields. If you wish for Kirby to change direction, you can create a wall that will direct him the opposite way. You can also create lines to block off projectile attacks from enemies. Using your stylus, you can also paralyze enemies. Once your foes are stunned, you can have Kirby roll into them to take them out for good.

In a trademark feature of the franchise, Kirby has the ability to copy his enemies' powers and use them as his own. Select enemies have a special element to them, as when Kirby makes contact with one of these stunned enemies, he will gain a temporary power based on the element. For example, defeating a rocky enemy will grant Kirby Stone powers, which will enable him to harden and break blocks, in addition to making him completely invulnerable while in his solid state. Trouncing a Chilly snowman enemy will enable Kirby to utilize Ice abilities. Pesky electric Plasma Wisps will yield Spark power, causing a stream of lightning to rain onto Kirby at every touch of the stylus, zapping any foes unfortunate enough to be positioned above. The Wheel ability allows you to cruise along a straight path at rapid speeds until you come in contact with a wall, taking out any enemies that lie in your way. Of course, that is only discussing the tip of the iceberg, as several other abilities as Fire, Spike, Balloon, and Missile await you throughout the game. These abilities will stay in effect until Kirby takes damage or are manually disabled by the player. Kirby's health is marked by a meter on the upper screen. Such healing items as energy drinks or giant tomatoes will revive your meter.

After completing the three stages in each world, you will be pitted against a boss. Do not be fooled by the mere term, as these “battles” are more like minigames than anything else. The game will give you the option of which boss to confront, though you will have to defeat all of them eventually. If you choose to challenge King Dedede, you will engage in a cart race, weaving through a series of obstacles by guiding Kirby with your stylus. In one of the more quirky challenges, you must connect the dots on a sketchpad rapidly by tracing the silhouettes before Kirby is blown off the screen. While none of these boss battles are necessarily challenging in the least bit, they can be played repeatedly to achieve high scores out of pure amusement. For completionists, the real challenge lies in obtaining each of the game's red medals. Cleverly secreted inside each stage lies a trio of these medals, which are generally found off the beaten path. A map on the upper screen can help you pinpoint the location of these trinkets, but more complex strategies are generally needed for medals that are sealed off by elemental barriers. Various incentives are given for obtaining numerous amounts of these medals. Some of these rewards are just for fun, like a different colored paintbrush. Others can enhance the gaming experience, such as health upgrades, new minigames, and additional playable characters.

While the majority of the adventure takes place in the main Story Mode, certain minigame trials off to the side will test your abilities further. Most noticeably is Rainbow Run, which consists of a series of trials that take place in stages that you have already completed in the main mode. The Time Trials will test how quickly you are able to complete a portion of each stage. There are certain time limits you will be required to meet, and memorizing the quickest method of streaming through each area while ferociously tapping Kirby will ensure you the highest rewards (which are, in this case, additional medals). There is also a Line Trial, which is somewhat peculiar. There is no time limit, unlike the Time Trial, and the focus is completely different. Rather, the goal is to complete the area using the least amount of paint possible. You must conserve your paint, creating as few paths as possible and sketching short and quick cuts to propel Kirby across hazards. These are actually some of the trickiest challenges in the game, coaxing you to be thrifty with your lines. Unfortunately, the rest of the game lacks much challenge, which is really the game's ultimate downfall. Now, Kirby games have never been all that difficult (I did not die in The Crystal Shards until I reached the final boss), but even with a completely new style of gameplay, gamers will not feel challenged until the very late stages of the game, and at that point, the adventure is practically over. Even the boss battles are hardly even battles. Obviously, the game's many secrets make up for some of this, though a casual gamer who simply wants to complete the main mode will not feel a substantial sense of accomplishment.

In a game that features paint as its main theme, one would no doubt expect a vibrant and colorful atmosphere. Well, what you see is what you get. Though the side-scrolling style of play may trick one's mind into thinking the game is fully 2-dimensional, the character models and backgrounds are all fully rendered. While rolling through the vibrant canvas, you will witness desolate forests, active volcanoes, and volatile factories, all of which is presented beautifully. What deserves more attention, though, is the soundtrack. Know this one thing – There is hardly a single original piece on this entire soundtrack. Every single track is a remix from another that appeared in practically every Kirby game before it. However, they are good remixes. The songs are upgraded from their two-note beeps on the Game Boy, generally mixed in with an instrument that suits the environment the track is played in. Obviously, the Kirby nostalgia fanatics will have a play day with this title's audio features. (There are even a few Easter Eggs where you can discover the original tracks in their unmixed form.)

Kirby: Canvas Curse is not a game that boasts a hard-as-nails challenge, nor does it fall under the category of being a simple touch screen minigame like predecessor titles on the DS. Rather, it takes full advantages of the DS's innovative features by fleshing out a unique platform title not feasibly possible on any other system. By Nintendo's loyal fans who were not willing to let their new handheld go so hastily, Kirby: Canvas Curse unexpectedly offered a glimmer of hope, finally putting an end to the streak of hit-and-miss titles. While Kirby alone may not have been the sole savior of the DS's seemingly inevitable plunge, he was a vital player nonetheless. For fans today who have yet to pick this title up, it is recommended that you do so. Despite its lack of challenge, the game arguably features the best use of the touch screen we have seen thus far on the system. Pick this game up, and let the game paint you a brand new experience that could not be playable elsewhere.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/09/06