Retronomicon 02.01.12: Kirby’s Dream Land

Posted by Lee Price on 02.01.2012

This week the Retronomicon ventures back into the realm of the handhelds with a look at the title that introduced one of Nintendo’s best-loved characters! Join 411’s Lee Price as he examines Kirby’s Dream Land!

Hello one and all and welcome to yet another edition of the column that rocks your socks a little bit until they bunch up around your heels, the Retronomicon. I am your ever-present master of ceremonies Lee Price and this is an unashamedly nostalgic look at some of the best old school games that money can buy. I had a fairly weird week this week. I had to put my pet dog Pippa to sleep on Friday, which was absolutely heart-wrenching. We had that dog for more than eighteen years and it is flat out odd to not have her there anymore. On a slightly lighter note, I got a bit bored with Metroid Fusion so I moved onto another game, namely Grandia II. Some of you may recall that I took a look at the original Grandia a number of months ago and, despite the fact that I don't think the sequel quite matches up, I am seriously considering inducting it into the Retronomicon on its own merits during the course of my current play-through. Other than that things have been fairly standard in the world of Lee so I figure we had best get to the…





Comments

The Sims managed to pull in a decent amount of comments, with a surprising number of people falling into the camp that doesn't particularly care for the title. However The Ogre does enjoy the game and we kick things off with him;

All The Sims needs to be better than TS2 (TS3 is garbage, IMHO) is updated graphics and continuous actions (eg, for Talk they'd keep going and raising friendship 'til a negative reaction happens, as in TS2).

I am one of those who is of the opinion that the series has perhaps become a tad too structured after the release of the original game, but continuous talking would have been a better system than the fairly bog-standard system in place for the original game. Thus I would probably agree with you on that aspect.

Jimmy Chavez returns to the shores of the Retronomicon:

I'm sorry Lee but I can't agree about the GBA. It's like sharp cheddar cheese, it gets better with age.

As for the Sims, those damn games bored the hell out of me! I just couldn't get enjoyment out of it. It's like watching a baseball game. Sure it may catch your attention but after about an hour it's hard to stay awake. Other than that, I didn't have any issues with it.

It seems that Jimmy and I have had dissenting views over the last few Retronomicon entries. Is their tension in the ranks? Of course not, as everyone is entitled to their own viewpoints. I would agree that the main problem with The Sims is that it isn't a video game in the traditional sense. It is almost an experiment as much as anything else. You either dig it or you don't. Jimmy don't.

Comment Board Poster has mixed feelings;

I never really got into any sim games (The Sims, Sim City and so forth). My wife on the other hand, 80% of her game play are sim games. I just don't get it.

I must admit that I am a huge fan of the Sim series in general. For me I like to relax with my gaming sometimes, which is probably why I'm such a fan of old-school JRPGs as well. The Sim series is easy gaming when compared to something more action packed, like the Gears of War games for example. Sometimes I just like to sit on my arse and pretend I'm making effort. That's the appeal for me.

APrince66 joins the dissenting voices;

Never had any interest in Sims. It just looked boring with a lot of waiting.

It is quite hard to explain the appeal of the games, even though I just had a bash as to why I enjoy them above. I guess it's just one of those things that you either enjoy or you don't. Like Marmite.

IWC Member #23495867 is up next;

I would have never thought this game would have exploded like it did. After building my ideal house and maxing out my sim's stats, this game got old fast. Go figure.

I guess it was just one of those things that managed to catch attention. I figure the fact that there really isn't a way to lose the game probably drew a lot of more casual gamers in, but the lack of objectives probably dissuaded more traditional gamers.

G-Walla brings back teenage memories;

I never got into it like I got into SimCity or SimAnt, but I did have a good time playing this one. With the nudity code, no less. Ha.

Ah the nudity patch. Try explaining that one to your parents if they catch you ogling digital Barbie and Ken dolls.

We close things up with n00b;

I liked SimCity more than the sims, but still, it amazes me that a lot of non gamers liked this game particularly women and old people.

I tried to like the sims but my virtual life was so much fail I could not handle it...I got constantly fired, my house was a mess, girls lefted me, I missed my ride to the night shift... man it was awful...

That last paragraph sums up the appeal of The Sims to me I think. Just the opportunity to live out an alternate life is, of itself; reason enough to be interested in the game. If you can detach yourself from your Sim an aspect of voyeurism even comes into play.

Anyway I think we have talked enough thank you very much, so let's get to what we're here for. Strap on those rose-tinted specs because this week the Retronomicon takes a look at Kirby's Dream Land.



Music to Read Your Retro to

I was never a huge fan of the Gameboy when it came to music, as the machine was extremely limited in what it could produce. Still, Nintendo did often manage to craft something halfway decent out of the machine. Here's a selection of stuff from Kirby's Dream Land;



Fun Facts

• The Japanese title of the game, when translated into English, is actually Kirby of the Stars.


• Kirby's trademark copying ability was not actually present in Kirby's Dream Land. It would be introduced in a later game.


• Kirby started life as a dummy character that was put in place until a more detailed character could be thought up. The developers liked him so much that they decided to keep him.


• Kirby got his name thanks to a brand of vacuum cleaners.

The Background

Back in the early 1990s, HAL Laboratories was a fairly little known name in the world of gaming, despite having been making games since the Colecovision era. The company had never really produced anything that would make the world stand up and take notice of them, with their library of games up to this point perhaps best being described with the word ‘adequate'.

This led to the company looking into developing some new properties once the 1990s rolled around. Specifically Masahiro Sakurai was looking into developing a game that would be easy for beginners to pick up and play, whilst also providing a way to get people more interested in videogames as a whole.

As such he decided that the Gameboy would be the perfect console to host his new creation, as it was the console of choice for many a casual player thanks to titles like Tetris. He and a small team at HAL set about developing a fairly simple platformer that anybody could play and enjoy without needing to engross themselves in a complex gaming experience.

Starting out with a blob that was always intended to be replaced by a different character at some point in development, Sakurai and company instead found themselves becoming increasingly attached to the little guy and decided to keep it in the game as the main character. An association between the character's main skills and a famous brand of vacuum cleaners led to him acquiring the name Kirby and from there he went on to star in Kirby's Dream Land.



The Game

There aren't a huge amount of classic Nintendo characters that have debuted on anything other than the main home consoles that have been released by the company. In fact, outside of Donkey Kong's arcade origins (and Jumpman/Mario), Kirby is probably the best-loved Nintendo property to start out on something other than the NES or SNES.

Like all things Kirby related, the story is kept nice and simple. The general gist is that the gluttonous King Dedede, erstwhile evil-doer and candidate for the laziest name in video gaming history, got a little bit peckish and decided to steal all of the food from the residents of Dream Land so that he could have himself a midnight feast. It's a little bit more extreme than wandering downstairs for a midnight snack, but I already like the dude's style.

However not everybody did and Kirby can count himself amongst them. Being a bit of a chunk himself, Kirby is understandably upset about the sudden lack of food caused by King Dedede's midnight ramblings, so he takes it upon himself to retrieve the kingdom's food from the king, probably so that he can eat it all himself.

So gamers were hardly challenged with a complex narrative, which was frankly perfect for the Gameboy during this era. Handheld gaming had been proven as a success, however complex storylines that required hours of dedication hadn't quite established a handheld foothold yet. Additionally, as the game was intended to be easy for beginners to just pick up and play, having a story that was difficult to penetrate may have simply served to put off potential players.

The game also didn't stray too far from the established in terms of its general gameplay. Being a platformer with roots in the 2D platforming boom of the 1980s, Kirby's Dream Land should be instantly familiar to anybody who has touched a console in the last 30 years. Players must navigate their way through the levels provided, usually from left to right, whilst defeating enemies, navigating platforms and obstacles and generally trying to not die. So far, so standard.

What Kirby has that other characters don't is his ability to inhale his enemies. Other characters of the era, such as Mario and Sonic, would dispatch their foes by jumping on them, however Kirby took a different tack.

The walking testicle had the ability to open his mouth and simply suck up anything in his path. He can then choose to simply spit them out or to shoot them at other enemies in an effort to clear a path for himself. In that respect he operates fairly similarly to a Yoshi sans the tongue. Surprisingly his later ability to acquire the abilities of the object that he sucks in was not present in Kirby's Dream Land and was eventually added when HAL went on the develop further titles in the series.



Kirby could also inflate himself so that he could fly around levels , meaning that no areas were inaccessible to him. However whilst flying Kirby couldn't attack enemies, which in turn left him vulnerable to attacks, meaning that flying around the levels wasn't always the best course of action.

Truthfully that's about it when it comes to the gameplay. Everything is kept nice and simple, as was the idea at the time, however Kirby's Dream Land served its purpose in that it established a brand new IP back when Nintendo were already starting to become comfortable in a pattern of simply releasing new titles linked to existing IPs. The title was also perfectly suited to the Gameboy, being easy to play but also being well-designed enough to appeal to casuals and gamers alike.

There were even allowances made for people who wanted a bit more of a challenge. Upon completion of the game, which truthfully didn't really take all that much effort, gamers were presented with the opportunity to start a new game that provided more difficult enemies and bosses. This ensured that experienced players could at least get a little bit more challenge out of the title, however it was slightly hampered by the fact that the cartridge didn't include any save function so the game would have to be completed every time it was turned on just to access this mode.

Graphically the title seemed to maintain the simplicity mantra, being fairly minimalistic in its style. On the Gameboy this was actually a pretty good idea as the machine's display didn't allow for color, thus meaning that sprites and levels needed to be as clear as possible to ensure the best gameplay experience. Kirby doesn't get into too much detail with its graphics and is all the better for it as everything is clear, concise and well-drawn.

Musically the game is also a touch above most on the Gameboy. I've personally never been much for the Gameboy when it comes to the soundtracks produced on it, but Kirby does managed to provide a halfway decent one thanks to Jun Ishikawa. He would later go on to produce or work on the soundtracks for nearly every Kirby title that would follow.

The general consensus surrounding Kirby's Dream Land is that it is a fun, serviceable platformer that suffers in comparison to the Kirby titles that came afterwards. Frankly it is difficult to argue against this point, however every great gaming character has to start somewhere and Kirby is somewhat unique in that he got his start on a handheld and actually managed to establish a fanbase that could then be taken to later console games. Hell, in a few months the pink blob will be twenty years old so he's managed to do pretty well for himself so far.



The Aftermath

If it were released today it is more than likely that Kirby's Dream Land would have simply been dismissed as a casual title that was too easy to complete. However back in 1992 the game was absolutely perfect for the handheld market and this is demonstrated by the fact that it has managed to sell an astonishing 5 million copies worldwide. This is despite the fact that even critics of the day pointed out that the game was fairly simple, even if it was well-executed. However the original Super Mario Land was also quite simple, and could be completed in less than a hour, which I think adequately demonstrates the difference between handheld and home console games during the era.

Of course the true story of Kirby is what came after. A year later Kirby made his first appearance on a home console in Kirby's Adventure on the NES. It was in this game that players were first presented with the ability that truly defined the character. Kirby's Adventure allowed gamers to absorb the abilities of some of the enemies in the game when they were sucked up by our little vacuum-wannabe and it is a trait that has carried through every game that Kirby has appeared in since. Additionally Kirby's Adventure also featured the first appearance of Meta Knight, who would go on to become one of the most popular characters in the series.

Over the following two decades a host of Kirby titles have been released, with general opinion leaning towards the older titles being superior to the later ones, at least until recent years. Kirby has also put in appearances in a number of other games, most notably the HAL developed Super Smash Bros series, and has pretty firmly established himself on the B-List of Nintendo's pantheon of characters.

As for HAL, their creation of the Kirby character pretty much sealed the deal for them and they worked on little else for a number of years after he became popular. This changed when they were tasked with developing Super Smash Bros for the N64 and in the years that have followed they have pretty much dedicated themselves to these two series.

As for the future, it appears that the Kirby character is going to keep going strong, with 2010's title Kirby's Epic Yarn being fairly well received, as was Kirby Mass Attack. Kirby's Return to Dream Land has further cemented the character in the modern gamer's memory and it appears that the little guy is going to remain a part of the Nintendo scene for many a year to come as a result.

Conversion Corner

This is going to be yet another easy one for me. Outside of a Virtual Console release Kirby's Dream Land never did reach any other consoles. As such I don't need to talk about other versions and can instead recommend picking up either depending on your preference.

The Guy Who can do it Better than You

If you want proof that the game was fairly easy, here's a guy blasting through the title in about half an hour;



Enjoy and see you next week.