Kirby Super Star Ultra

"Has it been 12 years already?"

Kirby Super Star Ultra is a remake of a game that succeeds in creating an exciting balance of new designs with old favorites. The original game was titled “Kirby Super Star” and was released on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1996. It contained 8 “games” (more like 6 adventures and 2 mini-games) and is widely considered one of the best games on the SNES.

This new version contains three new mini-games that use the touch screen. They are a mildly entertaining diversion, but the touch screen is not used in the main games, apart from making menu choices. The formula for all of the other games is simple; get from the beginning of each level to the end, concluding with a boss battle. Kirby (the character you play as) has his tried-and-true copy ability. He can inhale enemies and swallow them to copy their abilities. There are 23 different abilities available to use, including some that have been absent from recent Kirby games such as jet, ninja, and chef.

The overall look of the game is great. The level layouts have not changed, but the backgrounds have been given more detail; this is most evident in The Revenge of the Meta Knight. All of the enemies, bosses, and mid-bosses have been given a mild facelift to accommodate their appearance on the smaller screen. All of the music and every sound effect have been redone perfectly.

Kirby Super Star Ultra revives a couple of gameplay elements that have not been seen since the original release on the SNES. The first involves the abilities themselves. Recent Kirby games offer only 1-3 attacks per ability. In Kirby Super Star Ultra, most of the abilities offer 3-7 different attacks. They are used with inputs from the D-Pad and B button, and vary more while running or in mid-air.

The second is the revival of the “helper”. At any time, Kirby can drop his equipped ability to create a “helper”, a character that is a different color from the abilities' enemy and controlled by the computer. The helper follows Kirby around and fights any enemy that gets in the way. With another DS and Game Card, a friend can control the helper. There are a few problems with the helper, though. The CPU is not very smart about avoiding traps, and Kirby and the helper cannot damage bosses at the same time. This means that if the helper is already attacking a boss, Kirby's attacks will deal no damage. Fortunately, the helpers are optional, and there is only one puzzle in the game where on is required.

When I first played through the initial 6 adventures, I honestly thought it was too easy. But then some new adventures appeared, and they were indeed challenging. The new additions make this game worth the $30. The only flaws are within the initial difficulty and the helper system.

If you don't like platforming or old-school games, then you shouldn't by this. If you like platforming and/or Kirby games, and you passed up on Kirby: Squeak Squad and Kirby and the Amazing Mirror, then this is definitely worth a buy.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/13/08

Game Release: Kirby Super Star Ultra (US, 09/22/08)