"Kirby: Canvas Curse is perfect in all ways but one; it eventually has to end. ;-;"

Introduction ~

"<(^_^)>"

Kirby, eh? He just can't make up his mind. At the very start, he was simply happy to just march around and gobble up whatever took his fancy. In the early years, that's all he would do, and it was fine. More than fine, to be honest with you. Until his recent adventures on the Game Boy Advance were, well, disappointing. Well, in my opinion at least, but most people would agree that they were not up to Kirby's usual standard. But, don't get me wrong, they were still enjoyable. And they were still fun. Of course, that's all well and good, but in the Videogame world, you can't keep doing the same old stuff over and over again. No, you can't. So, Kirby decides to gather a few friends and take a ride on his Shiny Golden Star. The result? A horrid attempt at a Kirby racing game. Well, it wasn't actually horrid per-say, but it was bad. So, after brushing away the tears from his eyes, Kirby goes back to the drawing board. His goal? to create the most magnificent and original Kirby game yet. Or, game in general. Obviously, he must have had a darn good drawing board, because he succeeded. And so, I present you with; Kirby: Canvas Curse…

Gameplay ~ 10/10

"Wait, I thought that a pot of gold was at the end of a Rainbow, not Kirby..."

Ah, yes, Gameplay. Well, being a Kirby game, you know that it's going to be good. Unless it's one of those not so great games listed above, but let's not talk about them. So, the basics then. Being a Platformer, the basic goal of reaching the end of the level is present. But it's how you do that through-out the 21 different Levels which is the best part. No longer does Kirby have his cute little Arms and Legs, oh no, in Canvas Curse he's been transformed into a circular pink ball. And as you would imagine, it's going to be hard for him to control himself. Actually, he doesn't do any such thing. Instead, he is constantly rolling around against his will. Now, that will never do, will it? No, not if Kirby has any hope of succeeding with his quest. So that's where you come in, oh mighty stylus wielding hero. Really, you're the star of the show in this game.

So then, you control Kirby by means of drawing magical rainbow lines of Ink with your Stylus. These lines will guide Kirby along a set path, over obstacles, and ultimately; keep him from rolling into his doom. Of course, you can do much more. Such as draw a ramp to launch Kirby into the air, and then draw a line to catch him. You can also tap Kirby with the Stylus to send him rolling forwards with a quick burst of speed. Witch can be useful when facing awkward obstacles or getting Kirby out of danger. But, what's a Platformer without it's fair share of enemies? Well, nothing, and Canvas Curse does indeed have it's fair share. The cast of enemies are your usual Kirby lot, although some new ones do appear. But with Kirby being a ball and everything, it's going to be near impossible to defeat them, right? Wrong. By prodding the enemies with your stylus, you will temporarily stun them, allowing Kirby to defeat them. When an enemy is defeated, they will usually leave behind a special ability for Kirby to consume. Much like other Kirby games, these abilities vary a lot, and as you would expect, help with different aspects of the Levels. Such as helping with defeating enemies or helping with navigating certain obstacles. Standard Kirby stuff, really. <_<

The Levels themselves are great. Each one is modeled on a certain environment, which spread through-out seven different Stages. Now, these seven Stages are then split up into three different Levels. Each Level has certain sections to them, which are linked by the way of special doors. These doors are opened by converting special nearby Panels to the same color as the door. Levels also contain other such special features, such as sections of Water, special Switches, Boost Pads and Wind Affected Areas. All in all, making for an extremely varied and action packed game. At the end of each Level you will play a special mini-game, and at the end of each Stage you will have to, predictably, complete a Boss Stage. But, each Boss makes use of your Stylus, and will have you drawing lines all over your Touch Screen in all manner of different ways. Also, in each stage are special hidden Medals, which when collected will offer you all kinds of special power ups. Sounds fun, doesn't it? ^_^

Story ~ 9/10

"You just know that a Witch is serious when they turn your World into a painting. Oh yes..."

Well, I'll be honest with you, Kirby games have never really been about the story. At all. In fact, the story is usually just an excuse for Kirby to gobble people up. Greedy little thing. I'm not complaining, though. But in Kirby: Canvas Curse, a little more emphasis on the story is noticeable. There is a reason that Kirby is a ball, you know. One sunny afternoon in Dream Land, Kirby decided to take a nice relaxing stroll. Although, it was hardly relaxing to say the least, because out of nowhere; an evil Witch appeared out of a magical portal. In an evil act of evilness, she turns the entire world of Dream Land into a painting. Why though, is beyond me. That time of the month I guess. Anyway, Kirby, being the brave person that he is, does his best to fend her off. Aww, bless him. Although his acts are in vain, the Witch decides to flee, but not before transforming Kirby into a cursed little ball. Oh noes. Kirby isn't having none of it though, and decides to follow her. In the process coming across a Magical Paintbrush that the Witch somehow dropped. That Magical Paintbrush, however, just so happens to transfer it's power to the very same Stylus that you're holding. Great. And so, it's up to you to team up with Kirby and help save the world of Dream Land. You have to love Nintendo, really. Only they could come up with such a great story. Bizarre, but great.

Graphics ~ 9/10

"Pink is the new Black."

Heh, well, Canvas Curse is hardly pushing the DS to it's limits, but it still looks beautiful none the less. Being a Kirby game, everything looks twice as bright and colorful than it should do. Which, in effect, while being displayed on the DS's super crisp back-light screen, results in one pretty looking game. It's very easy on the eyes to say the least, and adds a nice effect to the whole painting theme of the game. The character models are simple, yet ultimately stylish. The animation is also top notch, and it's all very satisfying when touching Kirby. The art style is magnificent for this game. And the backgrounds are in most cases breathtaking, and flow perfectly as Kirby speeds along the Screen. Kudos, then, to Nintendo it would seem.

Sound ~ 9/10

"Kirby: Canvas Curse rocks. In more way than one..."

The sound is great. Each Stage has a very fitting piece of music to accompany it, which nicely adds to the effect. The sound effects are perfectly simple, and are what you would expect from a Kirby game. CC also features a Sound Test mode, which is a nice feature. I would also like to say that the Sound is very original in places. Granted, at first it might take a little adjusting to, but before long you will be humming the tunes in your sleep. Assuming that you even mange to get to sleep, that is. Chances are that you will be too hooked on this game to even eat. <_<

Play Time/ Replayabilty ~ 10/10

"Five heads are better than one. And five balls are even better..."

A very strong aspect of Canvas Curse is just how replayable it is. Honestly, and this goes for everyone now, you WILL be addicted. The Gameplay will grip you and you will often find yourself muttering “Oh, well, just one more try, it can't hurt” and then find yourself muttering the very same thing two hours later. Time just flows right on by when you play CC. Is that a bad thing? Well, I'm not sure. So, in conclusion, I would confidently say that you will at least want blast through it one more time. But, that's after you complete everything that there is to do. And, well, there is a LOT of extra features.

Firstly, the game features a total of four un-lockable characters, including King DeDeDe and Meta Knight. They are unlocked by completely certain tasks within the main game. It's a great feature, and you will most probably want to complete the game with all five characters at least once. Now, each character plays differently, and each of them have their positive and negative aspects as you would expect. Part of the fun is discovering them and using them to your advantage, though.

Moving on from on that, you have a total of 250 Medals to collect, which is no easy task. Then, you have a Line Trial and Time Trial Mode to tackle. Now, while this may sound boring, it actually isn't. Both modes are very fun and competitive. You also have a few Mini Games and a Rainbow Run Mode. And then you have a Sound Test Mode to unlock songs for. So, as you can see, you have a lot to keep you busy. All in all, to complete everything that you need to get a 100% File, you're looking at around 40 Hours minimum.

Final Recommendation ~ 10/10

Kirby: Canvas Curse is without a doubt the best Kirby game yet. It's familiar enough for it to retain that certain magic that only Kirby games have. Yet, it's unique and original enough to offer a whole new playing experience and appeal to anyone who is in possession of a DS. And, as for the DS itself, Canvas Curse features probably the best use of the Touch Screen yet. Proof, if you needed any, that touching really is good. Especially when it's Kirby.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/15/05