January 25, 2011
Adorable.
Besides having a fantastic soundtrack and amazing presentation, Kirby’s Epic Yarn is also a video game that you can play. However, so much of the appeal of the game comes from the presentation that is can’t be overlooked.
I mean, the game is gorgeous. It looks fantastic. The entire world really subscribes to the “yarn” thing and it uses it all over the place. In the Snow Land, enemies are throwing snow balls that are actually cotton balls. Cannons shoot buttons. The sparks coming from an electrified floor can be pulled taut so that they’re just a floor. They don’t just pick the look to have a look, but they let it affect how the game works, and that’s really great.
The story, too, is presented in a way that makes me grin. I mean, it’s a Kirby story, so it’s not great. What it is is a children’s story, so that’s how the game presents it. You have a nice-sounding narrator who reads the story like it was a storybook, and does special voices for each of the characters, dropping down low for Dedede, talking a little higher for Kirby, and so on. It makes you feel like you’re sitting on the floor, listening to story time, and it’s exactly what the game needed.
The gameplay is different, but still very Kirby. Kirby, instead of inhaling enemies, grapples them with a string of yarn and balls up the yarn they’re made of to make projectiles. It’s actually kind of like Klonoa with longer range and without the jump-aiding capabilities. He can float by holding the jump button, and if you press down in the air, he does a sort of ground pound. It’s all very basic, but they use everything he can do to great use. Some levels, for instance, have wind that affect Kirby when he’s floating as a parachute. There are buttons around for him to use his string like a grappling hook and swing around. They take the mechanics about as far as they can go in the game, and it’s fun.
It is a Kirby game, meaning it is easy. You can’t die, really. When you die, you just drop the beads you’ve collected for that level and keep going. If you just wanted to blaze through the levels, it wouldn’t be difficult at all. However, there are treasures to find on each level, and Gold medals to get for having a certain number of beads when you beat the level. This gold medal is especially important on bosses, because getting over that score nets you access to additional levels in that world. These sorts of things offer up challenges if you are the type to want them. Still, from what I hear, if you want a platforming challenge, go see Donkey Kong Country Returns. This isn’t your game.
The whole game can be played in a co-op mode, which is fun enough, but to be honest, creates problems. It’s way too easy to accidentally pick up your co-op buddy when you mean to hit an enemy or grapple point, and it’s way harder keeping enough beads when you have two people who can be hit. It’s like the dickishness of New Super Mario Brothers Wii is there, but since there’s no penalty for dying, there’s no fun in actually screwing your partner over, so it just creates issues. Still, it’s a nice addition, just not as amazing of one as the co-op was in, say, Kirby Super Star.
Epic Yarn isn’t revolutionary. It isn’t trying to be. Instead, it’s going for being an insanely polished game, and it definitely is that. If you’ve played previous Kirby games, you’ll know if this game is for you. They pumped some production values into one of my favorite franchises, and frankly, I enjoyed it a ton.