Kirby's Return to Dream Land



Kirby Wii (previously referred to as Kirby: Legend of the Stars, Kirby Adventure, Kirby GCN, Kirby's Dream Land Wii or simply Hoshi no Kirby) is the (potentially tentative) name for the Kirby title for the GameCube, besides Kirby Air Ride, but was presumed to be cancelled.

The title was initially announced for the GameCube, but there was no further information for a prolonged period following the announcement, and the game's page from Nintendo's website was removed, so the game was presumed to be cancelled for good. In a Nintendo press release on 31st July 2009 however, it is stated that the game is still being developed. Again, it was a very long time before any more information became available, which is in a Nintendo investor briefing.

While the title appears to be far more polished than the intitial beta screenshots and media from the GameCube version, it has changed much throughout the years. Very little else is known about it besides the previously-revealed and rather outdated information. Iwata himself (CEO and president of Nintendo Japan), however, did apologize for the long wait and promises a release date for the title some time in 2011. After Nintendo's later E3 conference, new information was released, again confirming the mystery title is nearing completion.

Story
An early storyline from the GameCube days revealed that King Dedede stole Kirby's Warp Star and Kirby is trying to get it back. A Warp Star appears in the recent trailer, however, may mean that this plot has been discarded. Additionally, King Dedede is revealed to be a playable character in the final Wii release, along with Meta Knight and Waddle Dee. A new trailer shows a part of the game's introduction - while King Dedede and Waddle Dee are chasing Kirby holding a Strawberry Shortcake, a star-shaped void (with a very similar appearance to Dark Nebula opens up in the sky. A crystalline airship with an unfamiliar insignia pops out and crashes nearby, so it's up to these characters to investigate. It's unknown how Meta Knight becomes involved, perhaps suggesting that characters can be unlocked as the story progesses. The bulk of the game appears to be Kirby and company retriving the spaceship parts throughout Pop Star to help their new alien friends.

Gameplay
The GameCube version featured a variation of the Helper System from Kirby Super Star where up to three helpers can be created at once, they can then be controlled by up to three players or be computer controlled. It is possible that the game has a 3D playing field. A stacking system has also been revealed where Kirby and his helpers can ride on each other's back (possibly creating new attacks). Looking at images, it is assumable that the helpers you make would've be either yellow, green or blue and looking at past games, yellow is assumably for 2nd player, green is for 3rd player and blue is for 4th.

The new ability showcased in the GameCube trailer was Water. It looked similar to the anime, and was functionally very similar to Chuchu + Ice from Kirby's Dream Land 3. A returning ability from that game was also Clean, which also had an ability cap similar to the anime. From what could be gathered from the trailer, some of the hats were redesigned entirely - most noticeably, the Bomb ability had a party hat and the Stone ability had a rocky helmet. While this is possibly to avoid having duplicate hats in 3D, the Hammer ability's twisted headband was replaced with a hard hat.

The recent Wii trailer shows very little indication of the Helper System (though it's still possible, as there appears to be plenty of room for multiplayer). A brand new feature are the "Final Smashes" - at least Sword and Fire have an ultimate attack that seems to affect most of the screen, destroying enemies and obstacles. Water appeared to be redesigned with a noticeably pink Kirby rather than a translucent blue, and he surfs on his own waves as an attack. Two other exclusive abilities were seen - Whip and Leaf. Whip Kirby is self-explanatory and performed a fast attack similar to Meta Knight's standard A move from Brawl, while Leaf Kirby was shown very briefly and appeared to be holding a Cannon over his head. Kirby's inhaling ability also seems to be enhanced, being able to handle more enemies and produce larger Star Spit. In addition, Stars make a return, though it's unknown if they function as points of if they have something to do with the "Final Smash" feature.

It was recently confirmed that Meta Knight, King Dedede and Waddle Dee (wearing a blue bandana) as playable characters for players two, three and four respectively. It is uncertain how they control, though they appear to wield their now-standard sword, hammer, and spear (again respectively). The riding feature highlighted in the GameCube original has returned, and Meta Knight is seen being summoned in the gameplay. Copy Essence Deluxe seem to have returned as Ability Stars, as Kirby is seen freely grabbing a Cutter ability in the trailer. In addition to the long-awaited reappearance of certain abilities, Kirby is once again seen holding the items such as a candle over his head, this time without the aid of the Leaf ability. Stone Kirby also now wears a rocky headdress similar to the one seen in GameCube footage rather than his old gear. Sword's "Final Smash" has also now been given a name - Ultra Sword. In addition, these "Final Smashes" are actually called Super Abilities and are enabled when inhaling special enemies. Another observation is that there are apparently collectibles for the fallen airship seen in the game's opening. Kirby is also seen riding a giant Kuribo's Shoe-esque boot with spiked heels. Miniature starry voids also serve to warp Kirby to a space that is slowly being erase, much like the previous trailer. In here, it's shown that shaking the Wii Remote allows Kirby to inhale huge amounts. It is also shown that Kirby can swim like in previous games - the other playable characters also gain goggles. Finally, more was seen of the Leaf and Whip abilities, minibosses, and Whispy Woods (who can now inhale much like Kirby and King Dedede. The trailer ends with Kirby inhaling his three allies and spitting them in a group at Whispy.

Confirmed Abilities

 * Sword
 * Water (and Bubble?)
 * Fire
 * Leaf
 * Whip
 * Cutter
 * Stone
 * Parasol
 * Tornado
 * Ice
 * Beam
 * Sleep (probable, as Noddy is in the latest trailer)

Confirmed Helpers (GameCube Beta)

 * Waddle Doo
 * Blade Knight
 * Bonkers
 * Water Enemy and/or New Bubble Enemy
 * Golem
 * Broom Hatter
 * Caller
 * New Bomb Enemy
 * Chilly
 * Flappy
 * Parasol Waddle Dee
 * Sir Kibble
 * Wheelie
 * Heat Phanphan
 * Plasma Wisp
 * Knuckle Joe
 * New Wind Enemy

Confirmed Piggyback Helpers (GameCube Beta)

 * Bonkers
 * Flappy
 * Heat Phanphan
 * Wheelie
 * Golem

Confirmed Non-Copy ability Enemies

 * Waddle Dee
 * Robo Mecha Dedede
 * Bronto Burt
 * Mumbies
 * Como
 * Pacto
 * Kabu
 * Giant Blipper
 * Nelly (or Nruff)
 * Glunk
 * Squishy

Confirmed Bosses

 * Whispy Woods
 * Robo Mecha Dedede
 * King Dedede (Possibly)

Trailers
thumb|left|300px|Kirby GCN E3 trailer thumb|300px|right|The first teaser for the finished product thumb|left|300px|Kirby Wii US Trailer released at E3 2011