Kirby's Dreamland (aka Hoshi no Kirby) made its debut in 1992, the genesis of the successful Kirby franchise.
 
This early Game Boy game is classic Nintendo, a platformer where you jump and fly through hallucinatory landscapes with bizarre enemies. The innovation is Kirby's ability to inhale the bad guys. Later games would turn this into the famous "clone" ability, but here it's just a way to clear them out.
   
Most of the thematic elements that make Kirby are present in this first game. The little Kirby blob is cute, particularly when he's inhaling or full. The graphic tropes are there: the flying stars, the sad Wizard of Oz trees and the 3x Kirby dance at the end of the level. And the musical theme is upbeat and jingly. Like most Kirby games you don't need to be a power gamer to enjoy and Kirby's Dreamland. A very relaxing game.
culturegamesemulationkirby
  2003-10-26 22:07 Z