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WiiU

North America

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse (Wii U) Hands-on Preview

by Curtis Bonds - February 16, 2015, 3:43 pm EST
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Curse or no curse, Kirby’s Wii U debut is quite a delight.

Within the first few months of the Nintendo DS launching, many people were predicting that the system was doomed, due to the lack of quality games. Things changed when Kirby Canvas Curse arrived on store shelves. An innovative platformer that involved creating paths for Kirby rather than moving him directly was the kind of game that led the way for many touch-controlled games. Fast-forward to 2015, nearly ten years after the release of Canvas Curse. While the novelty of touch-controlled gameplay has mostly worn off, it didn’t stop Nintendo from making a sequel to the DS classic on the Wii U. I got to spend an hour with Kirby and the Rainbow Curse at Nintendo’s San Francisco office, so here are some short but sweet thoughts.

Unlike Canvas Curse, Rainbow Curse forgoes a familiar 2D pixel art style in favor of giving the characters and world a claymation style. Despite this change, the game still manages to maintain its bright and colorful atmosphere that the Kirby series is known for. If I had to compare the visuals to anything, it would be to the old Penny cartoons from the 1980’s CBS series, Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. It’s a very crude style, but it works in its favor, due to how simple the objects and characters in the Kirby universe are drawn.

The game controls almost exactly like Canvas Curse did: use the stylus to draw rainbow paths on the touch-screen that allows Kirby to roll along, avoid obstacles, and gather items. You can also tap Kirby to do a short dash attack, which will allow him to move a bit quicker, as well as take down most enemies and destructible blocks in his path. Controlling the game is simple enough, if not a bit difficult when there’s a lot going on in the level at once. There’s a stage in particular later on in the game where you have to control two Kirbys at once, and cost me quite a few lives in the process.

Thankfully if you have some friends around, up to three other people can grab a Wii Remote and join in as Waddle Dee. Unlike Kirby, the Waddle Dees can be controlled directly with the D-Pad and buttons like a traditional platformer, and can really come in handy in the game’s more difficult stages. The game also features several stages where you take control of a Kirby Tank, Kirby Rocket, and Kirby Submarine. Similarly to Kirby’s Epic Yarn, these sections are stage-specific, but provide some nice variety to the main adventure by allowing for some more complex level design and challenges.

The only issue I really had with the game was due to the nature of the Wii U itself. Since the game is primarily controlled with the touch-screen, that’s where most of my focus has to be. While this isn’t a bad thing, it doesn’t allow me to fully grasp just how beautiful this game can look on an HDTV. The game still looks incredibly charming on the GamePad’s 480p screen, but unless I’m playing as a Waddle Dee as someone else controls Kirby, I feel like it would be a rare occurrence to be able to admire just how crisp and sharp the game really looks.

Overall I had a nice experience with Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, and I’m looking forward to playing the full version when it’s released in North America on February 20.

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WiiU

Game Profile

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse Box Art

Genre Action
Developer HAL Laboratory
Players1
Controllers & Accessories Amiibo

Worldwide Releases

na: Kirby and the Rainbow Curse
Release Feb 20, 2015
PublisherNintendo
RatingEveryone
jpn: Touch! Kirby: Super Rainbow
Release Jan 22, 2015
PublisherNintendo
RatingAll Ages
eu: Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush
Release May 08, 2015
PublisherNintendo
Rating3+
aus: Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush
Release May 09, 2015
PublisherNintendo
RatingGeneral
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