Kirby: Planet Robobot
Publisher: Nintendo Developer: HAL Laboratory Platform: 3DS Players: 1 (Story, Arena, MKR, K3DR), 1-4 (TKC) Release: 2016 Genre: 2D Platformer / Action Rating: 8.7 \ 10: Fantastic
Above is Kirby battling a boss in the Robobot armor.
Kirby: Planet Robobot isn't a particularly unique game. It doesn't do much to differentiate itself from its predecessoors, but it does surpass the games that came before it in one way: It manages to be one of the most consistently fun platformers I've played in quite awhile. If you're in search of a deep plot, you'll want to avoid a large number of Nintendo games, but there is a tad bit more complexity here than in previous Kirby titles; Everything is well and good on Kirby's homeworld Pop Star until a fleet of alien ships arrive and start to industrialize the entire planet. Unsurprisingly, it's up to Kirby to defeat the head of this operation and restore peace to Pop Star.
Gameplay wise, Planet Robobot is hardly distinguishable from Triple Deluxe before it. As you might expect, the game plays like a combination of Kirby's Adventure and Kirby Super Star with a few neat twists including new copy abilities, creative sequences where you jump between the foreground and background of a level (just like Triple Deluxe), and the all new Robobot armor. This powerful suit doesn't appear in every stage, but when it does, it's an absolute blast to use. Just like Kirby, the armor is able to scan enemies and absorb their abilities, making the machine practically unstoppable. These power trip sections are in my opinion more fun then the Hypernova and Super Ability sections from previous games in the series due to armor abilities which add a lot for variety and a larger number of puzzles and increased interactivity. Wreaking havoc with the aforementioned power ups in the previous games was fun, but you often caused all the destruction with very little input and mostly watched the chaos unfold. With the Robobot suit, overcoming the obstacles that lie before you hardly ever involves simply holding down a button or watching a cutscene unfold life before. Whether or not you're using the Robobot, the levels are as entertaining and creatively designed as ever.
As I said before, KPR includes some fun new Copy abilities. These include Doctor, which equips Kirby with deadly pills and syringes (Rated E for Everyone!); ESP, an ability inspired by Ness from Earthbound which enables you to control a deadly ball of energy using telekinesis; and my personal favorite, Poison, which grants you the power to spew and surf on lethal purple liquid and breathe out small toxic clouds. While these new abilities are great, two of my favorites from Triple Deluxe, Beetle and Bell, have sadly not returned.
Presentation wise, this is easily one of the strongest games in the franchise. Industrial-themed areas usually look incredibly dull, but Planet Robobot uses this theme to its advantage by adding adorable cyborg enemies and colorful areas amidst the metal and machines, making for a game that looks fantastic by 3DS standards. It's also well worth mentioning that Robobot easily has one of the best soundtracks in the series so far, which is quite a feat. The score features tons of catchy new tunes that span a decent number of genres, as well as plenty of excellent rearrangements of old fan favorites. The references to the series's past don't appear exclusively in the music, either -- there are also numerous references to Kirby's Dream Land 2 and Kirby Super Star which I won't spoil here which are sure to bring a grin to the faces of longtime fans.
In addition to the main story, the game also features a few other modes that can be unlocked. The first of these is Team Kirby Clash, a co-op RPG-lite mode in which you battle bosses using one of four Copy abilities with a team of AI or human-controlled Kirbys. While the mode is plenty of fun, the progression is shallow, and there isn't much replay value. Next up is Kirby 3D Rumble, a brief but entertaining top-down sub-game where you rack up combos by defeating enemies without taking damage. Two more modes are unlocked upon completing the adventure: The Arena and Meta Knight's Revenge. The Arena has barely changed at all since its previous iterations; You select your favorite Copy Ability and face every boss in the game with limited health items to use in between. In the Meta Knight's Revenge, you play through the main game as Kirby's frienemy Meta Knight. The prospect of playing through the game of the iconic antihero is made is better by the inclusion of several powerful moves that can be unleashed by collecting M-shaped coins.
As much as I enjoyed this game, there are a few issues that must be addressed. While the game runs at a very smooth 60 frames per second most of the time, I occasionally experienced brief slowdown (I played the game on both the original 3DS, and the New 3DS and there were no differences in performance despite the faster processor of the newer system). I was also mildly disappointed by how similar the game was to Triple Deluxe (as great as that game was), and it doesn't always feel like its own unique title.
Regardless of these minor issues, I highly recommend that any 3DS add this title to their library. It may not be very different from its predecessors, but any fan of the Kirby franchise is quite unlikely to be disappointed.
Ups
Creative level design
Robobot segments are great fun
Charming and detailed visuals
Fantastic music
Entertaining extra modes
Tons of fan service
Downs
Team Kirby Clash is fairly shallow
Occasional framerate drops
Too similar to Triple Deluxe
ESRB: E Content: Cartoon Violence Price: $39.99 (Retail / Download)
