Kirby's Epic Yarn

Kirby's Epic Yarn is a new Kirby installment for the Wii. It is the first Kirby platformer to hit a home console since the Nintendo 64's Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. It was first uncovered at E3 on June 15, 2010. Inspired by a commericial for Kirby's Adventure from almost two decades ago, the game's overall design is vastly different from Kirby's other appearances. The animation style is meant to look like everything is a yarn outline with minor details such as facial features. The layout of the worlds and levels is scrapbook-like with simple pieces of fabric such as cloth and felt. Many of the enemies are also made up cloth, felt, and pipe cleaners. Kirby also appears to have new abilities such as turning into a giant Kirby-like tank, swinging across gaps, and grabbing enemies with a strand of yarn. Beads are hidden throughout the levels for players to collect, along with other hidden items concealed in Treasure Chests, with every level having three chests.

Another key feature in the game is that Kirby has lost the ability to inhale, as the air goes right through his new body. Instead, Kirby can create a whip-like object using yarn that he uses to wrap around enemies. The enemy will turn into a ball of yarn which Kirby can carry and throw at other enemies to defeat them or grab items. Kirby can also use this ability to pull down scenery such as walls to progress or scrunch up the scenery to make gaps shorter so that he can jump across them (as he can no longer puff up and float). There is also a multiplayer feature, which allows the second player to control Prince Fluff, the prince of Patch Land, who is similar in appearance to Kirby.

Of note is that this game is the first game since Kirby's Avalanche, which is dubiously canon, to feature Kirby speaking during cutscenes, making it the first main series game to do so and possibly the first canonical game.

Plot
The story begins when Kirby is somehow sucked into a world within a magic sock. A sorcerer named Yin-Yarn is running amok in Dream Land, turning everything, citizens included, into yarn, drawing the attention of Dream Land's hero, Kirby. When Kirby encounters this sorcerer, he attempts to eat the Maxim Tomato from the top of Yin-Yarn's head, angering him and causing him to suck Kirby into a sock around his neck, inside of which is a world called Patch Land. Upon entering Patch Land, Kirby encounters Prince Fluff, who is being chased by a monster. When Kirby attempts to suck up the monster, he finds that the air goes right through his yarn-based body. However, he quickly realizes that the tomato he ate wasn't a Maxim Tomato, but a Metamato, which has given him the power to transform. Forced to come up with a different strategy, Kirby transforms into a car and escapes with Prince Fluff.

Later on, once Kirby has gotten a better handle on his new body's abilities, a monster tries to eat Prince Fluff. Kirby defeats the monster and obtains a piece of yarn that allows him to stitch the world back together. As it turns out, Yin-Yarn split Patch Land into seven parts. Kirby and Prince Fluff set out to retrieve the 7 magic pieces of yarn that will help them put the whole world back together in its normal form.

Quilty Square
In the game, there is an area called Quilty Square. Here, the player can access Kirby's Pad and decorate it with items found throughout the adventure. But beyond just setting up furniture, the player could also choose to upholster it with unlocked fabrics with a surprising amount of customization, such as changing the angle and size at which it is applied. As shown in a Japanese trailer of the game, Kirby can also purchase furniture from what seems to be a shopkeeper. Both Kirby and Prince Fluff can venture through the house with their choice of furniture and fabric. There are also what seems to be neighbors in Patch Land. Kirby can also help Dom Woole manage his appartments. Kirby helps Dom Woole by assisting with furnishing his apartments using the different patches collected in the levels in Patch Land. Once an apartment is fully furnished, a friend occupies the appartment. Kirby can play different games with his neighbors. This is what Zeke, Beadrix, Carrie, Buster, and Mara are for. Zeke plays a hide-and-seek game with Kirby. Beadrix plays a bead collecting game with Kirby. Carrie plays a game where Kirby must help Carrie get to his chair somewhere within a given level. Buster plays a game where Kirby must kill enemies. Mara races against Kirby.

Characters

 * Kirby
 * Prince Fluff
 * Yin-Yarn
 * King Dedede
 * Meta Knight
 * Dom Woole
 * Angie
 * Zeke
 * Beadrix
 * Carrie
 * Buster
 * Mara

Transformations
Kirby has lost both the ability to inhale and the ability to fly, but he has a variety of forms he can transform into.

Regular Forms
These forms do not require a power up.
 * Car - Double-tap left or right on the Wii Remote's Control Pad. This form allows Kirby to travel faster, as well as making him jump higher and farther.
 * Pendulum - Press the 1 button to latch onto a button. This form allows Kirby to reach higher places and new areas.
 * Parachute - While falling down, hold the 2 button to have Kirby turn into a parachute. This form allows him to slowly fall down.
 * 2 Ton Kirby - While Kirby is in the air, the player must press down on the D-Pad. This form allows Kirby to break bricks that he normally couldn't break.
 * Ice Skate- Kirby can become this form on a certain level in place of a car. It can slide up and down ramps at high speeds as well as skate over water when Kirby has enough speed built up.
 * Submarine- Kirby becomes this when he enters water.
 * Strength- Kirby can unzip zippers and move heavy objects.

Special Forms
Kirby can become these forms after getting a Metamortex. Some of these forms combine the two players, with the one who grabbed the Metamortex becoming the actual form and the other player serving a support role, while a few forms have Kirby and Prince Fluff transforming separately.
 * Dolphin - To get some serious speed in the water, Kirby can become this. It can also jump through hoops, swim up waterfalls and bounce beads on its nose.
 * Tankbot - Kirby becomes a large robotic tank. It can hover, has light-up eyes, and can shoot Missiles. When there are 2 players it has a boxing glove as well, which is controlled by whichever player did not grab the power-up.
 * Off-Roader - allows Kirby to travel faster and break through blocks.
 * Saucer - Kirby is in a UFO that is able to abduct enemies. When enough enemies are abducted, he can blast out an attack destroying everything on screen.
 * Spin Boarder - Kirby can surf and jump while doing so. He can grab a pair of wings for a short time that increase his jump height.
 * Digger - Kirby can dig sections of the ground that look like cotton. It can also destroy crystals in front of doorways, allowing him to enter
 * Fire Engine - Kirby can put out fire enemies and fires when he is in this form.
 * Snake - Kirby can slide through small gaps.
 * Rocket - Kirby can destroy enemies by shooting stars at them and fly around in rocket form in a similar manner to Space Invaders.
 * Train - Kirby can travel on train tracks that lead him to new areas. The tracks are drawn by the player.
 * Star Shooter - Virtually identical to its appearance in Kirby Super Star and Ultra, it flies and fires star shots sideways.

Controls
The game is played with the Wii Remote held sideways.


 * Directional Pad (D-Pad): Move
 * + Button: View pause screen
 * - Button: View controls for current form
 * 1 Button: Use yarn whip
 * 2 Button: Jump
 * A Button: Call Angie
 * B Button: U-Turn when in Train Form

Returning Enemies

 * Scarfy
 * Flamer
 * Waddle Dee (regular, parasol, balloon, spear-wielding, bow and arrow wielding, missile-throwing, snowball-throwing, and dune buggy-driving)
 * Waddle Doo
 * Bomber
 * Bronto Burt
 * Blippers
 * Chilly
 * Gordo
 * Grizzo
 * Shotzo
 * Big Waddle Dee

Mini Bosses

 * Whispy Woods
 * Kracko

Bosses

 * Fangora
 * Hot Wings
 * Squashini
 * Capamari
 * King Dedede (Brainwashed)
 * Meta Knight (Brainwashed)
 * Yin-Yarn

Levels
Certain areas can only be accesed by obtaining their corresponding Area Patch.


 * Grass Land
 * Fountain Gardens
 * Flower Fields
 * Rainbow Falls
 * Big-Bean Vine
 * Fangora Boss Battle
 * Mole Hole
 * Weird Woods
 * Hot Land
 * Pyramid Sands
 * Lava Landing
 * Cool Cave
 * Dino Jungle
 * Hot Wings Boss Battle
 * Temper Temple
 * Dusk Dunes
 * Treat Land
 * Toy Tracks
 * Mushroom Run
 * Sweets Park
 * Melody Town
 * Squashini Boss Battle
 * Cocoa Station
 * Dark Manor
 * Water Land
 * Splash Beach
 * Blub-Blub Ocean
 * Secret Island
 * Deep-Dive Deep
 * Capamari Boss Battle
 * Boom Boatyard
 * Fossil Reef
 * Snow Land
 * Snowy Fields
 * Cozy Cabin
 * Mt. Slide
 * Frosty Wheel
 * King Dedede Boss Battle
 * Frigid Fjords
 * Evergreen Lift
 * Space Land
 * Future City
 * Tube Town
 * Mysteruious UFO
 * Stellar Way
 * Meta Knight Boss Battle
 * Moon Base
 * Outer Rings
 * Dream Land
 * Whispy's Woods
 * Tempest Towers
 * Cloud Palace
 * Castle Dedede
 * Yin-Yarn Boss Battle
 * Meta Melon Isle
 * Battleship Halberd

Reception
1up.com named Kirby's Epic Yarn the best game of E3 for Wii and GameSpot named it both the best Wii game and best game overall at E3. GameTrailers.com awarded it the best graphics of E3 for 2010.

Trivia

 * Kirby's Epic Yarn appears to show similarities to Yoshi's Story. The main style of the games appear to have crafting materials for graphics in many of the early levels and Epic Yarn and Yoshi's Story are the first games of their respective series to go onto the current generation console.
 * This will be the first game since Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards that Kirby's voice will be heard on a current generation console outside of the Super Smash Bros. series.
 * The plot appears to follow a similar premise to that of Kirby: Canvas Curse, with Kirby being transfigured by the villain into another form, which changes the way he is controlled.
 * Meta Knight's mask does not fall off when defeated.
 * This is the first Kirby game to have a narration as well as captions.
 * the design of king dededes castle and the halberd imply just like in kirby squeak squad, that the game takes place in the anime universe.