Say "Poyo" to all Kirby's enemies!
Ever played a game where you preferred the bad guy over the hero? Wish they could just be friends? Well, Kirby’s got plenty of them in Kirby Star Allies! Enemies you fought in past games are now Kirby’s best buddies!
Kirby Star Allies was one of the first games I played when I got my Switch. My love for the squishy, pink ball has been around since Nightmare in Dreamland for the Gameboy Advance. And let’s not forget that this little guy had an anime (right back at ya!).
My review will be based on the 1k+ hours I spent fighting along my allies. You think Kirby’s iconic victory dance is already adorable? You add no-nonsense characters like Meta Knight to the sharade, it’s a sight to behold.
About Kirby Star Allies
Kirby Star Allies is an action platformer game where you once again play the beloved pink hero. As Kirby, you have the ability to jump. Or float. Or even swallow your enemies. Enemies with abilities you can use.
But instead of eating your enemies, make friends with them!
You can have Kirby toss friend hearts at whoever you please. Your foes will immediately change sides. And as the game continues, you can switch friends. Change your party as much as you want.
The adventure allows you up to three players. If you team up, you’re allowed special abilities that can maximize damage during boss battles.
Nintendo released the game on March 16, 2018. To an army of obsessed Kirby fans.
Before it even came out, gamers were excited to learn Kirby was finally going to join the Switch community. As soon as the trailer launched, fans were already planning to pre-order.
Soon as the game came out, over a million copies were sold. Kirby’s game is currently ranked #16 on the list for best Switch games. Just like Mario and Link, the little guy has come a long way since his 1992 debut.
The game was already awesome to begin with. Not long after, the developers were already bringing out DLC.
While already fun, the downloads and updates have tripled its enjoyment. Since 2019, more fans have dubbed the game a “complete experience”.
Kirby Star Allies Story
Above: Up to three players can fight alongside Kirby. You have the choice of befriending any enemies during the adventure.
Planet Popstar is in danger, and Kirby is its only hope. With him are several foes you can befriend along the way. See an enemy. Toss a friend heart. Extra player acquired.
Knowing how Kirby games usually work, I knew it was going to be a new intergalactic evil. What I didn’t count on was how this new baddie just gives me chills.
Before the game, you’re treated to a scene that feels like the trailer for a really good movie. A creepy-looking monk performs some kind of ritual on what serves as the Macguffin. It’s a powerful crystal heart that then explodes.
All those fragments travel through space and end up landing in Dreamland, home to our beloved pink hero. Well-known characters King Dedede and Meta Knight show up first in the story. Later you have to battle their corrupted selves.
Throw your friend hearts at them after defeat. Instant BFFs.
The beginning scene actually creeped me out. That was proof this game was going to be fun. It made me want to breeze through the fights just so I could see another cutscene.
What really pulls me into a game is how mesmerizing the cutscenes are. Kirby Star Allies seems to have a really good storyline. How it introduces these new characters explains the plot without being excessive.The story gets a lot darker the more I play. Bosses in particular extend the story. Meaning there are even scarier threats than what I’m dealing with.
But I assure you the nightmare fuel is merely dark splotches of cuteness. It’s like the Deep Woods level in Super Mario Odyssey.
If the creators decided to brighten the colors. And put upbeat music. And allowed Mario and the T-Rex to be buddies.
Kirby was already the ‘chosen one’ from the get-go. But to me, this looked like a tiny hero’s quest on a grand scale. Enemies I remember fighting in older games are now in the same boat.
The best thing about the story is how involved Kirby’s allies are. I finished this game many times. What I enjoy the most is how often I can switch out my friends.
And if you’re lucky, you might find a scepter that lets you choose Kirby’s Dream Friends. Those are the special characters from very old or popular Kirby games. They’re a lot more helpful in battle.
Kirby Star Allies Gameplay
Kirby: Each level has you not only getting different friends, but you can also swallow your enemies to gain new abilities.
Just like Kirby’s other games, you swallow enemies and gain their abilities. But in Star Allies, you can do that and gain their friendship. This makes it so you don’t lose lives often.
You play as Kirby, and all the way to the end you’re still Kirby. After finishing story mode, you get to do it all again. But this time, you get to choose any of the characters you befriended.
In Star Allies Go! you get to choose from over 30 characters. Any of them can take Kirby’s place as the hero of the story.
In my experience, I’ve played any of the Dream Friends. Because those guys get newer levels. But for the regular enemies, it’s the same routine.
Each of these characters come with their own abilities. Which Kirby will use to his advantage. Too bad if you play story mode with any of Kirby’s friends, there’s no copying ability.
I never thought fighting a whole game with only one power could be so hard.
The last time I played as Dedede, it was the alternate bonus mode on Kirby Triple Deluxe.
You start off in Dreamland. Run. Float. Eat. And get three friends to join you. While that happens, you deal with a number of mini-bosses along the way.
One of the things I really like about this new gameplay is that I don’t have to fight alone. With three other characters set to do my bidding, losing a life is nearly impossible.
Of course when your health meter is low, you have to find food sitting around. However, in Star Allies...just kiss one of your friends and you’re good.
Yup, you literally have to kiss any of your friends to raise your HP (and this is how shipping happens). As if Kirby games aren’t already adorable!
The characters you deal with are entertaining. Or can be annoying when they get in your way. Still, you can eat or befriend them. Or go solo and not worry about extra baggage.
Another thing I love about this game is find-and-collect. You can explore hidden areas to get bonus stuff. Your puzzles will build up over time.
Hint: all the puzzles are callbacks to the past.
That’s usually the main reason I replay levels. Because I’m a total completionist and really want to see unlocked pictures. The game is already addicting enough.
If I could suggest one thing that could improve this already good game: have more than one Kirby.
Since this game has the multiplayer option, it would be nice to see another Kirby joining Kirby. Storywise, it’s already been established there’s more of his kind. If you have the option to play any of the villain characters, then playing multiple Kirbys should be one too.
Kirby Star Allies Combat
Already love Kirby music? Most levels make a callback to several past Kirby games. One thing the company loves to do is add Easter eggs into their levels.
They throw in music pieces that will get you nostalgic.
When you finish a level, the beautiful victory music starts. I raise the volume just to hear it. More rewarding when the friends you make start doing the victory dance.
Kirby already gains abilities by eating his enemies. Combine him with other members of your party. Get even better abilities.
Prefer Kirby with a sword? Raise it up and one of your buddies will upgrade you. Fire. Water. Ice. Electricity. Now you wield any of those powers.
Same can be applied to anyone with an accessory. A sword. A staff. A bomb. Any of your friends can be stronger.
And stronger abilities means easier wins. Combined powers maximize damage when facing bosses. So it’s always good to have Chili the snowman or even a Burning Leo accompanying you.
Your friends will perform tasks that will get you further in the game. If they see something that requires a certain ability, they will immediately fulfill it. But the downside of their automatic feature is that they’ll end up making you miss your chance.I had a Burning Leo on my team once. We were nearing some cannons that would send us to the surface. I was just looking at it for a bit, but then my Burning Leo went and lit up the fuse.
None of my teammates were in the cannons. I didn’t even get time to prepare. I had to copy the fire ability before Switching out my Burning Leo.
This can also happen when you’re trying to combine abilities. Because all Kirby characters have elements and accessories. The game automatically assumes you’re giving one of your pals a new ability instead of yourself.
Kirby Star Allies Quest/Mission System
Your mission: eat and attack pretty much everything. Keep doing that until you finally reach the ultimate boss level. When you go against the Big Bad, all your moves have to be perfectly timed.
Without spoiling anything, the last batch of major bosses are actually the hardest. Forget what gamers said about how “easy” Kirby games are. Just be sure to collect as many lives as you can.
The whole adventure is exciting, story-wise. Yes, the beginning levels can get repetitive. And the mini-bosses don’t serve much of a challenge. But it’s all worth it.
As you continue playing, you unlock Dream Friends. With the DLC update already installed, more activities are featured besides story mode.
You get The Ultimate Choice. No repetitive journey. You just have to battle bosses until you reach the end.
If you’re a completionist too, then you’ll spend most of your time looking for extra puzzle pieces. Or lives because you like being prepared.
The certain room with the orange stars on top is my favorite of any Kirby level. There’s always something extra to find. Stars. Lives. Puzzle pieces. Or health items.
Repeating the same gameplay can be boring. But not if you’re looting.
World 1 levels are always the easiest. When I play the bonus level, I have to rely on observation. And not play dumb.
In it I’m required to get the hammer ability and smash a platform. But there are two of them. One leads to a safe route with stars. The other one leads to a battle with Scarfies (and you can’t defeat those with one hit).
Don’t get curious about turning on all the switches. The level features arrows for you to follow. I did a no-brainer and performed the opposite. I lost out on the possibility of getting another life.
At least those levels aren’t frustrating. But it’s a whole new mood when you start playing the Heroes In Another Dimension story.
It’s made for people who say Kirby is too easy. Once you start playing, you wish it was easy too.
Kirby Star Allies Graphics
Above: Kirby’s iconic victory has become more entertaining and lively with age.
Did I also mention the graphics are amazing? Much like Super Mario Odyssey, everything in Star Allies fits so perfectly into today’s gaming quality!
When I first picked up my copy, the design looked like it could pop right off the cover. Same feeling when I started playing the game.
It’s all so colorful and semi-realistic. There was a lot of love put into this game.Fighting looks a lot more well-animated. In the victory dances, characters aren’t limited in movement. They get to dance in a more fluid fashion.
Scenery is much cleaner. And more vibrant. When you interact with your surroundings, the animation is almost like something out of a straight-to-DVD film (the good kind).
One place I love visiting is space. The graphics become even more mesmerizing after you finish the Planet Popstar and Jambastion levels.
You travel on a star that shoots you into orbit. The menu becomes an interactive map. Move your star around like you would a mouse. The cosmic background and glittering quality make the entire experience even more exciting.
Kirby Star Allies Developer
When HAL Laboratory developed the game, they wanted to go all out for Kirby’s fans. 20-plus years of Kirby had been put in. References from Kirby’s Dream Land 2 and even Kirby: Squeak Squad are just a couple of many additions.
30 FPS aside, I can’t think of any time the game ever bugged on me. Playing it a lot, I can tell HAL pulled all the stops to make sure there would be no issues.
But there was one: it’s too easy.
I wouldn’t exactly call it easy. Depending on the mini-boss, at least one of my allies gets wiped out. And I end up dying at least a couple of times.
Seems for other gamers, it was a walk in the park. Now suddenly they think it’s a boring game.
I’m pretty sure HAL knew this was coming. Not too long after the game went world-wide, the developers delivered us new content.
And, boy, did they deliver.Throwing friend hearts is fun. Collecting them to ensure a happy ending? Yeah, it’s a lot harder than you think.
The levels are more difficult. The bosses are even tougher.
You wanted a hard Kirby game? You got it.
Heroes in Another Dimension can be pretty frustrating. When I first got the update, I was “Oh, this looks nice! All I have to do is collect the hearts!”.
I have to rely on planning in order to get them. On one level I have to open a floor so a heart can fall out. Unlock and getting it seems easy, right?
Nope.
I have to speedrun and hopefully catch it before it plummets into the abyss. If it does, might as well have to start over from the beginning.
Every new level in the update becomes a headscratcher. You find yourself wondering how you are supposed to open doors if you can’t find the key. And how are you supposed to get the key if you can’t open doors?
There is this one level where you must know which bombs to set off. I learned the hard way from setting them all off in one run. I got the key, but blew up the bridge I needed to cross over to the door.
I threw it over the edge. Fail.
I threw Kirby over the edge. Instant redo.
You either start all over again. Or kill Kirby and restart a certain section you missed.
You have to collect a total of 120 hearts. If you don’t, then victory will be bittersweet.
This is a new area where there is no easy mode. You’ll be repeating the levels for hours. But this is what HAL hoped for: that fans will keep playing.
Kirby Star Allies Price
The game costs $59.99, which I think is a fair price for the amazing stuff it holds. Especially the free updates. Being on Switch, you can have Kirby on-the-go and not on the computer.
Enjoy online gaming but hate emptying your pockets? Kirby doesn’t do you like that.
You can swallow as many enemies as you want. Instant power-up. You don’t have to pay anything to give Kirby more advantage.
That’s because friends are your advantage.
FINAL VERDICT: 9/10
Pros
- Co-op gameplay
- Option to choose characters
- Colorful graphics
- Addictive gameplay
Cons
- Star Allies Go! just repeats story mode
- Massive difficult collecting friend hearts in Another Dimension
