Kirby Super Star
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Eight Kirby games in one game? That sounds awesome!
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"Eight games in one? That sounds like fun! This title introduced Copy Ability hats, which changed Kirby's appearance based on which power he was wielding. This game also gave Kirby the ability to transform an equipped Copy Ability into a Helper, which added a new kind of cooperative play to the mix. A Helper could be either controlled by the game's AI or controlled by a second player, and each type of Helper had its own moves"
— Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition summary of the game
Kirby Super Star, released as Kirby's Fun Pak in PAL regions, is an anthology platform video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1996.
An enhanced remake titled Kirby Super Star Ultra was released for the Nintendo DS in 2008 and 2009 to commercial and critical success, selling just under 3 million copies.
Development
SNES version
Kirby Super Star was developed in Japan by HAL Laboratory and directed by Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai. It was the third Kirby game he directed, following Kirby's Dream Land and Kirby's Adventure. Although a Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) title, the Kirby Super Star prototype was developed for the original Nintendo Entertainment System. According to Sakurai, although the prototype was for internal use only, it was almost complete and some of Kirby's animations were nearly identical in the final game. The prototype was used to test out ideas before implementing them in the final product; Sakurai said having the game operating on an internal build made it easier to develop ideas. HAL president Satoru Iwata had little involvement with the game, and left development under Sakurai's supervision.
For Kirby Super Star, Sakurai "had three pillars in mind. One was two-player cooperative gameplay and another was including actions similar to those in fighting games. The third was an omnibus format. The addition of cooperative gameplay was something Shigeru Miyamoto requested. While Sakurai knew a SNES Kirby game would mean bigger, more detailed characters and graphics, he wanted to hear from Miyamoto before thinking about the foundation and other important aspects. Sakurai and Iwata traveled to Kyoto; there, Miyamoto told them he wanted cooperative gameplay, something uncommon in side-scrolling platform games. Miyamoto had dreamed of creating a cooperative game in his Super Mario franchise for many years, but was unable to until New Super Mario Bros. Wii in 2009 because of how fast the series' gameplay is. Kirby, on the other hand, is slower-paced, so Miyamoto figured it would be possible. Sakurai thought about it and came up with the idea to have a main player and an assisting one; this led to the conception of Helpers, which he thought opened the door for inexperienced players.
As for including fighting game-like moves, Sakurai made enemies stronger. He did this because the main player would simply hurl blades and lay waste to opponents while the Helper just watched. Additionally, he expanded copy abilities' possibilities so players could perform multiple actions by pressing the same button, similar to fighting games. The game was also the first in the series in which Kirby's appearance changed depending on his copy ability. The omnibus format was chosen because Sakurai noted most SNES and some NES games were of considerable length, and prices were high. Kirby Super Star served as "the antithesis to that trend," with Sakurai hoping to create sections with different stories and gameplay that appealed to both experienced and inexperienced players. Spring Breeze, a remake of Kirby's Dream Land, was designed for beginners and is thus Super Star's first mode. The title is a quote from the Dream Land manual that "describe Kirby as a youth who came with the spring breeze," and was chosen to signify its simplicity. Originally, Sakurai was going to remove copy abilities to remain faithful to the original game while teaching beginners how to play, but ultimately did not.
Development lasted three years, longer than usual for the era. This was partially due to the influence of Rare's Donkey Kong Country (1994), a game that incorporated computer-generated (CG) graphics. Sakurai was certain using CG would be beneficial, so the team redid the artwork about halfway through development. HAL's development schedule also lengthened development. Sakurai planned to include an additional game mode, Kagero Mansion, which was discarded due to time constraints. Kagero Mansion was a horror game with an emphasis on action and puzzle elements; it saw Kirby stuck in a mansion and unable to inhale. HAL also planned to add a move that allowed Kirby to create an explosion from guarding, but cut the idea. The game's working title was Kirby of the Stars: Active, which "suggest that the game was more proactive and had more active gameplay. Mother series creator Shigesato Itoi came up with the final title, which Sakurai said "convey how rich it is in content"
Nintendo DS version
After the release of Kirby: Squeak Squad, HAL Laboratory's next Kirby project veered towards the idea of a remake of Kirby Super Star on the Nintendo DS. Originally it was meant to be a simpler remake, titled Kirby Super Deluxe Plus, but Masayoshi Tanimura, the president of HAL, requested from the team a deluxe package that would exceed customers' expectations. Kirby Super Star Ultra was exhibited at a trade show mid-development; the development team remarked that even though the show was aimed for adults and Wii Fit was the main attraction, the number of people who showed up at their booth exceeded expectations, as they held high nostalgia for Kirby Super Star. The direction of Kirby Super Star Ultra was handled by Shinya Kumazaki. The team's goal was to retain all modes from the SNES original; despite the game's considerable size, Kumazaki believed he could not remove anything due to fans' nostalgia, a sentiment shared with other members of the development team. Difficulty was also adjusted to make earlier sections, particularly Spring Breeze, easier than in Kirby Super Star, but is compensated with the addition of new harder modes like Revenge of the King. Player research with people who played Kirby Super Star was highly valued so that adjustments could be made for new players while keeping the original game's appeal, as the game was viewed not just as a remake in-house, but a new title.
The addition of the Nintendo DS's functionalities expanded and streamlined parts of the game originally locked behind menus, such as the ability to change abilities on the bottom screen in Milky Way Wishes, or the player's treasure collection in The Great Cave Offensive. This came from a desire to keep no information on the top screen when possible during play. Adjustments were made to Kirby's move set to enhance play; more copy abilities were considered during development but dropped, due to how it could upset the balance of the game modes. 2 Including Kirby Super Star's co-operative play through the DS's wireless functionality was a key aim to the development team, and Kirby Super Star Ultra was further refined to allow every single mode to be played in co-op, unlike the original. The team felt a lot of pressure during development to retain the feature, as Shigeru Miyamoto had personally requested cooperative gameplay for Kirby Super Star on a visit to HAL Laboratory in 1996. 3 full-motion cutscenes were also added to enhance the game's story; these were kept short and faithful to Kirby Super Star in order to not disrupt the game's pacing.
Kirby Super Star Ultra's soundtrack was composed by Jun Ishikawa, who also worked on the original Kirby Super Star, and Hirokazu Ando, a veteran composer for the series who did not work on the original. New music was composed for the remake, including additional tracks for the original game modes and new tracks for the extra modes and cutscenes.
Kirby Super Star Ultra was released in North America on September 22, 2008, in Japan on November 6, 2008, and in Europe on December 18, 2009. The packaging design was initially planned to emulate a Paulownia wood box, as in the original game's Japanese packaging, with the addition of noshi paper wrapped around it. This would indicate that the product was an even more luxurious experience. However, Nintendo coordinator Mari Shirakawa was concerned that children would not understand the connection between Paulownia and luxury. As a result, the final packaging was designed with a coat of glitter to retain the sense of luxury while making it more accessible. Unlike Kirby Super Star, this packaging was retained worldwide.
Why Kirby's A Super Star
SNES version
- The graphics are awesome to look at, even for an SNES game; they are very detailed and colorful. This proves that all of the Kirby games have good graphics.
- The sprite work is also very good to the point that it's got some of the most iconic sprites of the Kirby franchise, this count for Kirby and even Meta Knight. The remake on the DS makes these sprites (and even graphics) even better than the already great-looking SNES version.
- The backgrounds are also very detailed and colorful, much like the sprites themselves.
- Tight and responsive controls: much like most Kirby games, Kirby will always respond to your command, and he will never be unresponsive, just like Marble Madness.
- This is also one of the reasons why this game is so fun and good, and not any of the controls are clunky.
- Much like the graphics, the DS remake improves them even further.
- The game has 8 small games that were executed very well and are very fun to play with. Each of the small games has a unique gameplay and plot.
- Spring Breeze is a remake of Kirby's Dream Land, which stays very faithful to the original game as it has a similar plot. Because it's faithful to the said game, it can also introduce new players to the Kirby franchise due to being too easy.
- Gourmet Race is where Kirby races King Dedede in three different levels while eating the most food to win.
- Dyna Blade is where Kirby goes to the mountain after realizing Dyna Blade is ruining Dream Land's crops.
- The Great Cave Offensive is where Kirby explores the cave while finding as many treasures as he can.
- Revenge of Meta Knight focuses on Meta Knight trying to take over Dream Land with his battleship called The Halberd. Kirby has to destroy the Halberd with a time limit and later fight Meta Knight.
- Milky Way Wishes is where Kirby needs to prevent the Sun and the Moon from fighting, and he can't inhale enemies to copy abilities (which will result in "No Good"/"Gulp!"), instead getting copy abilities by using a Copy Essence Deluxe and using them anytime.
- Megaton Punch is a sub-game in which you and your opponent see how hard you can punch the ground. This also makes cracks on Popstar's surface.
- Samurai Kirby is another subgame; in this one, you must compete in a single-hit samurai duel, similar to Quick Draw from Kirby's Adventure.
- The remake adds more subgames (Card Swipe, Kirby on the Draw and Snack Tracks) and makes the game even bigger than this original version.
- The soundtrack is awesome and very memorable, much like a lot of Kirby games out there; they are also so catchy, and like the sprite work, this game contains some of the most iconic music from any Kirby game; the DS remake even improves some of them. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Green Greens is a great remake of the theme of the same name, as it's catchy and unforgettable.
- The boss battle theme is very catchy and unforgettable, much like the remix of the Green Greens theme from Kirby's Dream Land, and it's also energetic.
- Gourmet Race is one of, if not the most memorable music of the game, as it's so catchy and it's fit the first stage of the said mode; it's so good that it's been remixed many times.
- King Dedede is also a very good remix of his theme from Kirby's Dream Land, and it's even sounding better than the original one (if you see it that way), and once again, it's catchy music; this may possibly be in the top 10 of the best musics of the game.
- Computer Virus Battle is a very catchy boss battle theme that sadly only appears in the boss battle with a RPG concept, and it fits the boss fight very well.
- Marx Boss theme is extremely catchy and memorable, even for a Kirby game, as it's sound menacing and it fits the boss fight very well.
- Meta Knight Revenge is possibly the best song of the game, as it's extremely catchy and it sounds even better on the DS remake (which depends on you). It's so good that you will want to listen to it over and over.
- Some of the boss fights have very interesting ideas, such as the computer virus fight where you fight in the form of a rog game, but it's too easy for this fight.
- The final boss is epic, as you fight Marx in an awesome-looking environment in space, along with the catchy and epic music that plays in that fight.
- The fight itself is also very good; while it is easy for most parts, especially if you have learned the paths of Marx, it's still an awesome boss fight that is extremely fun.
- Marx Soul in Super Star Ultra is even more epic (see the Kirby Super Star Ultra section for more details about it).
- The boss fights are very fun, especially King Dedede, Meta Knight, Computer Virus (which was talked about in WIASS #5), and Marx (as said in WIASS #6).
- The ending is great, since Kirby defeated Nova along with Marx and he has returned to his house to sleep, complete with the beautiful music for the credits.
- The subgames are very fun to play, despite being very simple and only utilizing one button.
- This is the first Kirby title that introduced Helpers that will help him on the journey, which can help make the game a lot easier and more fun; another player can even do co-op controlling one of them in both the original and the remake.
- The gameplay is still very fun as always, and it's introduced a huge amount of new copy abilities such as Fighter, Mirror, Ninja, and Yo-Yo, and they are extremely fun to use, especially Yo-Yo Kirby.
- The copy abilities that were in Kirby's Adventure are also improved, such as combining Fireball/Burning and Fire as the Fire Ability combining Throw/Backdrop as the Suplex Ability and combining Ice and Freeze as the Ice Ability.
- This was also the first Kirby game where he gets hats whenever he copies an ability, which was such a good concept that has been brought back ever since.
Kirby Super Star Ultra
- The game introduced a lot more small games that are extremely fun to play.
- Revenge of the King: This small game seems to be similar to most of the levels of Kirby's Dream Land, but that's not really the case. While it sounds like it, you unfortunately don't have the chance to play as King Dedede, but it's still a great mode with a very funny plot where King Dedede wants revenge on Kirby. You also fight the bosses from Spring Breeze with a different form and fight Masked Dedede, while also slightly nerfing the abilities (except Hammer). Sure, it's a short, small game, but it's still an awesome small game, and it's not even the very best new one.
- Meta Knightmare Ultra: In this small game, you play as Meta Knight, and it's the best new subgame, as it's extremely fun to play as Meta Knight, as he's very fast, very strong, has a very fun hack and slash gameplay, and is also quite overpowered, as you can heal yourself easily, and it's a great way to play a Kirby game. While it's not the first time you can play as Meta Knight, because Nightmare in Dreamland for the GBA also has a mode that lets you play as Meta Knight, it's still one of the first, and it's even the closest you will ever get to a spin-off game centered on Meta Knight.
- Helper to Hero is a pretty decent new small game too, as you can play as an ennemy from the series, and a lot of them are fun to play with, especially Knuckles Joe.
- The True Arena is an expansion of the original True Arena small game where you fight bosses that don't appear in the original game, and it's even got a new one (although not that new) created specifically for this small game, which is Marx Soul, and he is even more epic due to the awesome background and his slighly new appearance. It's also the only small game where you can fight Galacta Knight with Kirby.
- It is easier to remove a copy ability by simply pressing the Select button.
- The soundtrack is as good as the SNES version, and some of the remixes sound even better than the original game, such as Meta Knight Revenge, which is even more catchy than the original due to how much it is a banger of a song, or even the Computer Virus Battle.
- In fact, even the new songs are great, such as Galacta Knight battle or the Masked Dedede theme.
- The gameplay is even more fun; as the controls are slightly improved and the helper AL is a bit improved from it's SNES counterpart, the copy abilities are still extremely fun to use.
- The graphics are even more awesome than the original SNES version, which already looked great, and it's had some of, if not the best, 2D scenes from the series as they were improved. The visuals were also improved.
- The sprite work is extremely good in this remake, as said before, as now it almost looks like an HD game rather than a 2008 DS game, which is quite impressive. Kirby and King Dedede sprites are the best example.
- The backgrounds are as good as the SNES version, as they are even more detailed and colorful, and they have a lot of life into them.
- The gameplay and controls are even improved from it's already awesome SNES counterpart, to play more like Nightmare in Dreamland or Squeak Squad (which is also on DS).
- The cutscenes in the remake have been redesigned in nice-looking CGI, although they have badly aged over time.
- Galacta Knight is introduced in this game, and he's an awesome character that you have to fight in both Meta Knightmare Ultra and The True Arena. He has an excellent boss fight too. In fact, he will reappear later in Kirby's Return to Dream Land and Kirby: Planet Robobot.
- The sub-game cards in the remake have been given excellent redesigns and a better visual presentation. The title screens have also been upgraded.
- The final boss fight with Marx Soul is extremely epic (even if it's almost the same fight as the basic Marx), and along with the awesome background and tiles, the ending is also very great.
- Due to the DS having two screens, you can now see your stats on the below screen; in fact, it's made 100% of Great Cave Offensive a bit easier, and it's easier to see what number of treasures you have collected.
- The Helper AI is much better than in the SNES version, as they will attack the enemies more and will react much faster.
- The unlocked blooper video when you beat the game is absolutely hilarious and very funny, almost like the one (although they are outtakes) in Pac-Man World.
Bad Qualities
Both versions
- Spring Breeze has no challenge, and you can easily beat it without dying once, even for the less skilled players.
SNES version
- The Helper AI is quite poor in the SNES version, the most frequent example is that sometimes they will not even attack an enemy or continue to touch them.
- The Arena can be very painful to beat depending on your skill, especially if you have weaker copy abilities.
- There is a gltch that when you choose the game not to teach you about the basics of the game, they still do it.
- The game is quite short, as you can beat it in only 3 hours (or even 2).
Kirby Super Star Ultra
- The True Arena can be very painful to beat, as there are no Maxim Tomatoes to restore all of your lost health (instead opting for regular tomatoes), and the boss fights are extremely hard due to that.
- The sound effects are very loud, so loud that they're louder than the music itself.
- Unfortunately, the CGI has badly aged over the years.
- Capsule J was the only helper exclusive to the SNES version, becasue he was replaced by Capsule J2. due that his design heavily resembles Konami TwinBee character.
Reception
The game receives overwelmingly positive reviews from critics and fans alike, and many consider this game to be one of, if not the best, Kirby games in the series.
The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming on the SNES version monthly applauded the large amount of content, simultaneous two-player mode, graphics, and Kirby's power-absorbing ability. Captain Cameron of GamePro gave it a perfect 5 out of 5 in sound, control, and FunFactor, and a 4.5 out of 5 in graphics. He commented that "the perfect execution of the varied controls leads to simple-but-charming fun. The SNES version also got an 86% on GameRanking.
The DS remake also receives extremely positive reviews by critics, and it's got an 80% in GameRanking and a 76/100 on Metacritic, although it's received even more positive reviews by fans, who call it one of the best Kirby games of all time and the best on DS so far.
The game receives praise for having a huge number of small games, the graphics that they considered gorgeous, and the soundtrack, but they criticize the easy difficulty.
Trivia
SNES version
- Despite claiming to be "8 Games in One!" Kirby Super Star actually contains nine games. The Arena is likely the unmentioned ninth game, which is also not mentioned in the instruction booklet, likely to avoid spoilers.
- Despite the game's 1996 Japanese release, the earliest in-game copyright year is given as 1995. In the Japanese version, it is the only year. This indicates that the Japanese ROM data was completed in 1995 and originally planned for release by the end of that year, but was delayed.
- Due to limitations, many of Kirby's Copy Ability hats are recolors (some of which were redesigned in later releases):
- Beam and Mirror wear jester hats and carry wands.
- Sword and Bomb wear elf hats.
- Fire, Plasma, and Ice wear headdresses.
- Ninja and Stone wear samurai helmets.
- Fighter and Suplex wear headbands.
- Wheel and Yo-Yo wear backwards caps.
- Parasol and Hammer lack hats altogether.
- Copy, Crash, Cook, Mike, and Paint all have Kirby flashing white when not performing their attacks.
- The music for the Trial Rooms and the rest area of The Arena is a remix of the music used in the main room of Mt. Dedede from Kirby's Dream Land.
- When Kirby Super Star was released on the Wii U eShop in Europe, the version released was not European, but instead North American. This was the same with the European release of the SNES Classic Edition.
- In the Music Room in Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, Kirby Super Star is represented by an image of Kirby in front of a striped background. This resembles the Kirby Super Star Ultra logo.
- When playing amiibo tap: Nintendo's Greatest Bits, if the player taps an amiibo product to the Wii U GamePad, there is a chance to unlock a demo of Kirby Super Star.
- Concept artwork seems to suggest that additional Copy Abilities were considered for Kirby Super Star. These included Tonosama (feudal lord), Satellite, Summon, Donate, Grenade, Card, Flower, Rush, and Mantle.
- Although Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai's favorite Copy Ability is said to be Beam, he has stated in a Twitter post that his favorite abilities in Kirby Super Star are "hand-to-hand" abilities like Fighter and Suplex.
- The boss theme of this game was remixed for Level 1 of the Scope Shot sub-game in Kirby's Return to Dream Land and the music that plays during the battle against DX mid-bosses in Kirby: Triple Deluxe.
- An in-game reset can be activated by holding L, R, Select and Start at the same time.
- Kirby Super Star, despite being intended for an SNES release from the get-go, actually began development on the original NES. This unreleased prototype was used for internal purposes only, as a way of finalizing all the ideas that would go into the final product. This can be seen with the NES sprites for the Yo-Yo and Cutter abilities, which were released to the public over 20 years later in an issue of Famitsu: the sprites shown look nearly identical to their counterparts in the finished product. Director Masahiro Sakurai stated that this type of development style is beneficial to him, as the starting step of finalizing all of a game's ideas via an internal prototype makes the rest of development significantly easier.
- Kirby Super Star appears as a Masterpiece in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. The trial begins in The Great Cave Offensive and players have three minutes to play before the trial ends.
- In Japan, Kirby Super Star was packaged in a box resembling Paulownia wood. This wood is culturally significant in Japan, being used to store valuable objects. As such, Nintendo used this packaging to comment on the value of the game, perhaps alluding to the "Super Deluxe" subtitle.
- The disc case for Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition hearkens back to this, as its design is printed to look like Paulownia wood. Nintendo wanted to convey that it too was a valuable game.
Kirby Super Star Ultra
- In the opening FMV intro, there is a rare chance that Kirby will wink at the player as he flies by on his Warp Star, do a back flip on his star instead of a loop, and an island will appear in the water as Kirby flies past it. After beating Meta Knightmare Ultra, the Meta Knight version of the intro may play instead.
- Unlike in the original Kirby Super Star, Kirby does not fly though Dream Land but rather in space in the FMV intro.
- Occasionally, on the title screen, Kirby will make different faces.
- A lot of the music in this game are remixes (or were remixes before, if Kirby Super Star is counted) of themes from other Kirby games:
- The music for Snack Tracks is a remix of the music heard in Stage 4 of Shiver Star from Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.
- The music for the rest area in Helper To Hero is a slower, calmer remix of Ripple Star's level select theme from Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.
- The theme of Dyna Blade and Wham Bam Rock/Wham Bam Jewel is a remix of Dyna Blade's theme in City Trial in Kirby Air Ride, itself a remix of the music in Castle Lololo from Kirby's Dream Land.
- The theme of Spring Breeze for this game is a remix of Kirby's Dream Land's title theme.
- The music that plays in the blooper reel is a remix of the music that plays during the introduction of Gourmet Race, with the extension used in the remix used for Chef Shiitake's theme in Kirby: Right Back at Ya!.
- The pins on the game's cork board (where the player selects the sub-game to play) are color-coded:
- Yellow pins indicate that the sub-games were available by default in Kirby Super Star.
- Blue pins indicate sub-games that needed to be unlocked in Kirby Super Star.
- Red pins indicate new sub-games that were added in Kirby Super Star Ultra.
- Depending on what Helper (or lack thereof) is helping Kirby, Kirby's victory dance will be altered.
- Just like the original game, one can see more Nintendo characters such as Mario, Peach, and Wario while facing King Dedede in Spring Breeze. The original arrangement of such characters remains in Megaton Punch.
- The Meta Knight symbol was altered in the remake - it now resembles Galaxia in the shape of an "M." In addition, it is more prominently displayed on the Halberd.
- This Kirby game has been so far the only one with a blooper reel.
- Kirby Super Star Ultra is the only Kirby game to come with special reflective box art.
- On the North American and Australian box arts, the title "SUPER STAR ULTRA" appears in lights behind Kirby. Each word is the same size and length, despite the fact that the word "star" is shorter than "super" and "ultra." As such, there must be a space in the middle of the word, making the background text "SUPER ST AR ULTRA."
- As the Japanese version uses the words "ULTRA SUPER DELUXE," this spacing issue would not be an issue, although the letters in "deluxe" are notably more tightly packed.
- Kirby Super Star Ultra is one of the four Kirby games that has never been released as a permanent digital download; the others are Kirby Air Ride, Kirby Slide, and Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition.
- Kirby Super Star Ultra retained its American name in Europe and Australia, despite the original Kirby Super Star being renamed Kirby's Fun Pak for European and Australian countries. Otherwise, the game would have been called "Kirby's Fun Pak Ultra".
- Footage of Kirby Super Star Ultra was not shown in the "Kirby's 25th Anniversary Trailer" video, for unknown reasons.
- Despite being available from the beginning in Super Star, the Samurai Kirby and Megaton Punch sub-games must be unlocked in Super Star Ultra by beating Meta Knightmare Ultra and The Arena respectively.
- Kirby Super Star Ultra is the first Kirby game since Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble to display a happy-looking Kirby on its North American box art.
Videos
SNES version
Kirby Super Star Ultra
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