Kirby Super Star Ultra

"This remake of the beloved Kirby title Kirby Super Star included the original games with updated graphics, a new storyline, and several new games. Among these new games were stylus-controlled minigames. Many of this title's games allowed several players to play together. Beating certain games unlocked special bonus content, including a hilarious blooper reel!"

- Summary

Kirby Super Star Ultra, known in Japan as 星のカービィ ウルトラスーパーデラックス (Hoshi no Kābī Urutora Sūpā Derakkusu, meaning Kirby of the Stars Ultra Super Deluxe, is a Nintendo DS remake of the Super NES game Kirby Super Star. It includes all games found in the original, but adds several new ones. In addition, the game features 3D FMV cutscenes for all of the levels, improves the visuals from Kirby Super Star, has more bosses, and adds to/modifies the gameplay in some ways.

This remake features several new games. The first new levels are the sub-games, which include Snack Tracks, Kirby Card Swipe, and Kirby on the Draw. All of these games feature four Kirbys, and the objective in them is to get the most points of the four. In Snack Tracks, Kirby is laying in front of a conveyor belt which is carrying food towards them, attempting to eat the most of the four while also touching non-food objects to keep them out of Kirby's path. Kirby Card Swipe requires the player to view a certain number of cards with images on them, wait for an image to show on the top screen, and then touch whatever card matches the image shown. Kirby on the Draw requires Kirby to shoot at images that appear in a shooting gallery. Like in many shooting galleries, most images give the player extra point, while some give negative points.

There are four new platforming games, though two of them are remakes of earlier games. The first is Revenge of the King, a harder version of Spring Breeze. It has modified level layouts, several new enemy designs, and several features from Kirby's Dream Land (such as the boss Kabula, formerly "Kaboola"), that Spring Breeze (a remake of Kirby's Dream Land) did not include. It features a different plot involving King Dedede being angry over his loss in Spring Breeze, and wanting revenge on Kirby. The second is Meta Knightmare Ultra, where the player controls Meta Knight through all of the original games (excluding Gourmet Race and The Arena): Spring Breeze, Dyna Blade, The Great Cave Offensive, Revenge of Meta Knight, and Milky Way Wishes. Meta Knight retains most of his moves from Revenge of Meta Knight, but in an unusual fashion. He may use only his sword, but there are abilities that the player can use by touching them on the touch screen. When Meta Knight defeats an enemy, he gets a certain amount of power points, which he needs to use these techniques. The game records the player's best time for their run of each game in Meta Knightmare Ultra. The game has various changes to some modes, such as blocking access to some rooms, and a different plot. The third new sub-game is Helper to Hero, which is a remake of The Arena where the player controls one of the helpers that appear in the game. The final new level is The True Arena, which contains all bosses from the remake. After The True Arena has been beaten, a Special-edition Blooper Reel can be viewable in the Theater, which contains various clips from Spring Breeze, Dyna Blade, Gourmet Race, The Great Cave Offensive, Revenge of Meta Knight, and Milky Way Wishes with a special added touch of comedy. For example, in Gourmet Race, when King Dedede throws the food in the air to eat it he misses and they fall to the ground.

Sub-games
All of the classic sub-games have returned (though the classic sub-games need to be unlocked). Also, Gourmet Race can now be played with two players (the second player is Yellow Kirby).

New sub-games

 * Revenge of the King- King Dedede wants revenge on Kirby for beating him back in Spring Breeze. The game is a recreation of the Extra Mode in the original Kirby's Dream Land, although abbreviated (similar to the Spring Breeze sub-game), a new stage (Mt. Dedede Sky), with a different final stage (ending with a fight against King Dedede with a mask and a metal hammer).
 * Meta Knightmare Ultra- Play the entire game as Meta Knight (though only the adventures Kirby experienced in the original Kirby Super Star, and he even has to fight his own minions and destroy his own ship!). At the end of the sub-game, Meta Knight wishes to Nova to fight Gamble Galaxy's greatest warrior.
 * Helper to Hero- An endurance challenge where the player can play as any and every helper, and the final boss is a pair of Wham Bam Rock, and the Wham Bam King, Wham Bam Jewel. Beating it with all helpers will unlock at a cutscene showing the original cutscenes from Kirby Super Star.
 * The True Arena- A harder endurance challenge that has all the bosses from Revenge of the King, and the four new bosses as the Final Four, Masked Dedede, Wham Bam Jewel, Galacta Knight, and the revenge of Marx- as the dreadful, evil, and incredibly deadly Marx Soul. Beating The True Arena unlocks the Movie #34: Special Edition Blooper Reel in the theater, which twists and makes fun of previously-seen cutscenes before The True Arena is unlocked.
 * Kirby Card Swipe- a sub-game that seems to be based off a Japanese card game called Karuta. It's a sub-game that tests the player reflexes. On the touch screen, several cards will be revealed to the player and the goal is to be the first one to tap the matching card that shows up on the top screen. The player will get disqualified if they tap too early, so they have to wait until the card is shown.
 * Kirby on the Draw- It is a cowboy-themed fast-paced shooter sub-game where Kirby needs to take out as many targets as he can for points. He has eight rounds of ammo before he runs out, but the player can reload by tapping the bottom of the screen. Bombers will appear, which Kirby needs to avoid because they will give him negative points.
 * Snack Tracks- It is another frantic little sub-game where Kirby sits at the bottom of a conveyor belt and tries to eat as many food items as he can. The items will start scrolling down from the top screen, so Kirby can look ahead to see what's coming next. Bombs can be tossed around, and tapping them will knock them into another lane. Bugs and rocks will also come up, but because Kirby doesn't seem to digest those very well, the player quickly needs to tap them to get them out of the way before they reach Kirby's mouth. Halfway through the game, the lanes will also change to keep Kirby on his toes.

Reception
Kirby Super Star Ultra has received mostly positive reviews, but many reviewers noted that the game wasn't very difficult. 1UP gave Super Star Ultra an A-, praising it for its multiplayer and describes it as "excellent", but notes that it is not very difficult, and the level design is not as intricate as in the Mario titles. IGN's Craig Harris gave it a 7.9, saying that while fun, the game is "a bit on the easy side". Popular Japanese gaming magazine Weekly Famitsu gave it a 32/40, meaning all four reviewers gave the game an average score of 8/10.

Trivia

 * 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. He does a back flip on his star instead of a loop, and an island will also appear in the water as Kirby flies past it. Also, after beating Meta Knightmare Ultra, the Meta Knight version of the intro may play instead.
 * Occasionally, on the title screen, Kirby will make different faces.
 * A lot of music in this game is a remix (or has been remixed, if Kirby Super Star is counted) of another Kirby game:
 * The music for Snack Tracks is a sped up version of the factory music on Shiver Star in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.
 * The music for the wait room in Helper To Hero is a slower, calmer remix of the Ripple Star level-select theme in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.
 * The boss theme for Dyna Blade and Wham Bam Rock/Jewel is a remix of the Castle Lololo theme for Kirby's Dream Land.
 * The Spring Breeze theme for this game is a remix of the original Kirby's Dream Land title screen.
 * The music that plays in the blooper reel is a remix of the introduction to Gourmet Race.
 * Depending on what Helper (or lack there of), Kirby's victory dance will be altered.
 * This is one of only four Kirby games in which the final boss comes back as an undead form in the same game (Marx comes back as Marx Soul in The True Arena as the true final boss). The others are Kirby: Canvas Curse, Kirby's Return to Dream Land and Kirby: Triple Deluxe.
 * 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 the Galaxia Sword 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.
 * All sub-games unlocked at the beginning of the game (Spring Breeze, Dyna Blade, Gourmet Race, and The Great Cave Offensive) are pinned to the corkboard with yellow pins. Sub-games that are teased at the beginning of the game (Revenge of Meta Knight and Milky Way Wishes) are pinned with blue pins. All sub-games unlocked after these (The Arena, The True Arena, Helper to Hero, Meta Knightmare Ultra, and Revenge of the King) are pinned with red pins.

Magazine Scans

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