Kirby and the Rainbow Curse

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse (known as Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush in Europe) is a Kirby game for the Wii U that was released in Japan on January 22, 2015 and on February 20, 2015 in North America. The game is a sequel/successor to Kirby: Canvas Curse for the Nintendo DS, but rather than centering around a painted art style, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse uses a clay motif instead. It is the first original Kirby title to be released for the Wii U.

Plot
On Planet Popstar, Kirby is seen upon a hill. He brought an apple for a snack, but he accidentally dropped it down the hill. Kirby runs after it, but trips and begins rolling down the hill, still chasing the apple. Bandana Waddle Dee is seen fishing with his spear when the apple rolls and falls into the lake beside him. Kirby follows and knocks Bandana Waddle Dee over. While Kirby tries to get his apple out of the water, Bandana Waddle Dee gets up and notices an unusual hole is forming in the sky. The hole soon begins to shoot a ray of light that drains the color from the land and makes anything it touches lifeless. Bandana Waddle Dee tries to warn Kirby as the light approaches, but is too late and it turns them both into colorless clay. The hole then begins to disappear, but before it closes, a paint brush-like being named Elline falls through. Two Grab Hands then come out and begin to chase her. She manages to evade them until she finds Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee. Elline recolors them and Kirby saves her before she is grabbed. Bandana Waddle Dee then knocks the Grab Hands away with his spear before they can attack again, prompting them to retreat back into the hole in the sky. Elline asks Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee for help and they both accept. She then paints a Rainbow Rope that Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee follow into the hole in the sky.

Playable Characters

 * Kirby
 * Bandana Waddle Dee
 * Green Bandana Waddle Dee
 * Yellow Bandana Waddle Dee

Other Characters

 * Elline
 * Claycia

Game Modes

 * Single-player
 * Co-op Multiplayer
 * Challenge Mode

Stages

 * Green Valley
 * 1-1: The Adventure Begins
 * 1-2: Up the Big Ol' Tree
 * 1-3: Great Cave Escape
 * 1-Boss: The Forest of Whispy Woods
 * Yellow Dunes
 * 2-1: Dig and Dash
 * 2-2: Deploy the Kirby Tank!
 * 2-3: The Long-Lost Ruins
 * 2-Boss: Hooplagoon, Relic of the Ruins
 * Indigo Ocean
 * 3-1: Swept Out to Sea
 * 3-2: The Haunted Ship
 * 3-3: Kirby Submarine's Torpedo Time
 * 3-Boss: The Claykken's Lair
 * Blue Sky Palace
 * 4-1: Rainbow Across the Skies
 * 4-2: The Wild Red Yonder
 * 4-3: Kirby Rocket's Big Blastoff
 * 4-Boss: Sky-High Whispy Woods
 * Orange Woodland
 * 5-1: Woodland Battle
 * 5-2: Gondola Ride
 * 5-3: Deep-Divin' Kirby Submarine
 * 5-Boss: Hooplagoon of the Lake
 * Red Volcano
 * 6-1: Burning Secrets
 * 6-2: Back to the Battleship
 * 6-3: Volcanic Panic
 * 6-Boss: The Claykken's Sea of Fire
 * Purple Fortress
 * 7-1: Infiltrate the Junk Factory!
 * 7-2: Kirby + Kirby
 * 7-3: Wonder Space
 * 7-Boss: The Final Battle

Transformations

 * Kirby Rocket
 * Kirby Submarine
 * Kirby Tank

Enemies

 * Blado
 * Blipper
 * Bombzway
 * Bouncy
 * Bronto Burt
 * Bronto Knight
 * Bzztbulb
 * Cannon Cotta
 * Carpa
 * Cotta
 * Cotta General
 * Cotta Knight
 * Crabbo
 * Dangle Sloth
 * Dethskullk
 * Drill Cotta
 * Explortle
 * Gondola Bzztbulb
 * Gordo
 * Grab Hand
 * Grindarr
 * Hot Head
 * Mega Grindarr
 * Mini Deepsee
 * Sawgill
 * Shieldster
 * Shockcreepa
 * Shotzo
 * Bouncy Sis
 * Soarar
 * Spear Cotta
 * Spear Cotta Knight
 * Sportletini
 * Sportle
 * Thornsby
 * Trakker

Mid-Bosses

 * Deepsee
 * Dethskullk King
 * Grinkey
 * Mecha Cotta

Bosses

 * Whispy Woods (Green Valley, Blue Sky Palace)
 * Hooplagoon (Yellow Dunes, Orange Woodland)
 * The Claykken (Indigo Ocean, Red Volcano)
 * Claycia (Purple Fortress)
 * Dark Crafter (Purple Fortress)

Items and Objects

 * 1UP
 * Bubble Blocks
 * Bumper
 * Cannon
 * Doors
 * Figurines, which function similarly to the trophies in the Super Smash Bros. series
 * Flowers, which grant stars upon passing. Blooming certain groups of flowers can reveal prizes or other rooms.
 * Food
 * Gates
 * Giant Star Blocks
 * Gondola
 * Hollow Blocks, which can be destroyed in one hit, whereas star blocks are a bit more durable
 * Ink bottles, which will refill Kirby's ink gauge
 * Invincibility Candy
 * Maxim Tomato
 * Metal Blocks
 * Music bites
 * Pep Brew
 * Posts
 * Puzzle pieces: touching it will make eight other pieces appear. Collecting them all within a time limit gives Kirby a treasure chest
 * Secret Diary Pages
 * Shell
 * Springs
 * Stars, which act as a point system. Once Kirby collects 100 of them, he can temporarily grow larger and perform a Star Dash, a more powerful dash attack that can destroy metal blocks.
 * Star Blocks, which appear to be more durable than in Kirby: Canvas Curse
 * Star Spinners
 * Suction Pipes
 * Switch
 * Treasure Chests
 * Unnamed cannon
 * Walls in the background that try to fall on Kirby

Gameplay
Kirby can ride on Rainbow Ropes, much like he can in Kirby: Canvas Curse, and tapping Kirby will cause him to perform a Tap Dash; however, dashing into an enemy in this game will cause Kirby to rebound. After collecting 100 stars, Kirby can use "Star Dash," a charge attack with greatly increased power, speed, and range. Multiple Star Dashes can be held before later usage, each being represented by a cyan ring around Kirby. Rainbow Ropes can be used in order to interact with the environment, such as blocking off water- or lava-falls. Rainbow Ropes will start to dull and lose their color before vanishing. Another environmental element is a 'gray zone', which prevents the usage of clay, similar to the static zones in Kirby: Canvas Curse that prevent the usage of ink. Kirby can also travel behind some of the foreground objects.

Kirby has four hit points and can transform into Tank, Submarine, or Rocket at certain intervals. This attack can be initiated by holding the stylus on Kirby; he will glow cyan and have a ring orbit him when he has enough power to use it. Kirby's transformations can also receive buffs via collecting 100 stars. With the multiplayer co-op, other players can use Bandana Waddle Dees (which have two hit points) that can double jump and carry and throw Kirby. They will also be equipped with the appropriate weapons should Kirby be in a transformed state. A version of the goal game appears, featuring eight rotating circles with which Kirby may collide. Each circle is labeled with a prize.

Rankings are given at the end of each stage depending on the overall numbers of stars collected. The rankings are Bronze, Silver, and Gold medals. Treasure Chests collected throughout gameplay unlock trophies and music (some from previous games); in the game's Sound Test, players can even pick favorite songs by marking them with a star. The trophies can be viewed on a shelf, or individually. Viewing one individually allows the player to control the camera, and also provides a description of the character. There is also a story book that can display cutscenes. Pages can be obtained occasionally during the goal game.

The game is also compatible with Kirby, Meta Knight, and King Dedede amiibo figures. The Kirby figure allows Kirby to use the Star Dash ability at any time in one stage, once per day. The King Dedede figure gives Kirby two extra hit points and the Meta Knight figure gives him greater speed during his touch-activated spinning attack.

Reception
The game has received generally favorable reviews from critics and players, holding a critical score of 76 out of 100 on Metacritic. GameTrailers gave Kirby and the Rainbow Curse a score of 7.5 out of 10, saying that '...it may not be Kirby’s most triumphant outing, but Rainbow Curse is still an entertaining ride.' IGN called the game a 'delightfully charming and unique platformer,' and gave the title a score of 80 out of 100. Destructoid gave it a 9 out of 10, praising the game's graphics and multiplayer functionality while criticizing Kirby's vulnerability while dashing.

Trivia

 * Unlike his appearance in Kirby: Canvas Curse, Kirby's hands and feet can be seen but are significantly smaller than in his usual appearances.
 * This is the third game in which Kirby and the world around him are made to look like a specific crafts material (clay in this case), the others being Kirby: Canvas Curse (paint) and Kirby's Epic Yarn (yarn).
 * Humorously, a clay bandage appears on Kirby's head when he has one vitality remaining.
 * Similarly to Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land, there seem to be different color variations of characters, such as Bronto Burt and Bandana Waddle Dee.
 * Kirby and the Rainbow Curse was released in 2015, a little less than ten years after the release of Kirby: Canvas Curse.
 * When Kirby is being painted by Elline during the transformation phrases, he temporarily takes the shape and colour scheme of the Animal Friends. He'll reference Rick when turning into the tank form, Coo when turning into the rocket form, and Kine when turning into the submarine form.
 * The power-ups Meta Knight's and King Dedede's amiibo figures grant Kirby are similar to their own respective stats in Kirby: Canvas Curse (quickly ramming through weak enemies for Meta Knight and increased vitality for King Dedede).
 * A cyan Bandana Waddle Dee was shown in promotional artwork at E3 2014. This Waddle Dee, which was presumably meant to be a fifth player at one point, was left unused in the final game.
 * Kirby and the Rainbow Curse is the first Kirby game to show Kirby's face at his health meter having dimples.
 * Some of the songs that were used in Kirby: Right Back at Ya! are reused in parts of the game.
 * Unlike other Wii U games, this game does not run at 60 frames per second. This was done intentionally to capture the look of claymation, in both the cutscenes and in the gameplay.
 * The levels in Seventopia are all named after the colors of the rainbow.
 * Excluding his cameo appearance as a figurine, King Dedede does not appear in this game. This makes Kirby and the Rainbow Curse the second game in the Kirby series in which he doesn't appear. The first is Kirby & The Amazing Mirror.
 * Due to Club Nintendo's discontinuation on July 1, 2015, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse is the first Kirby game to not come with a Club Nintendo PIN code since the program's start in 2003.