Part nostalgia-bomb, part note-taking and part FAQ, what started in GameTrailers as a video game blog is now on Blogger. This blog is a look back at video games, both popular and obscure, from the video game industry's infancy all the way to the previous console generation.
In this short video, FreezingInferno heads south and east to take on Gluttony's forces.
South of Diligience is the town of Temponia.
Temponia
Temponia was once known for its abundance of food, but now the demon Gluttony has devoured everything. People are now starving and fighting one another for anything that's left.
Meanwhile, in the nearby desert of Modero, Cules has been attacking travelers.
Modero
Modero is to the east, and the people there have been turned into demons that are now part of Cules. There are also a lot of cliffs here.
When you start this area, you'll find out it's a literal graveyard. The eye monsters take one hit to weaken, but it's where you hit them that counts. Hitting them in the face will cause their legs to come at you. The legs will explode if they either follow you for long enough or if you strike them. If you strike the legs with a low attack, their upper bodies will leap at you with the use of their arms.
The spike pits are actually hungry demons that chomp their teeth repeatedly.
The giant birds will block your path. There is also a vulture that acts as a mid-boss, but you can easily defeat it with the orbs as long as you duck down when it dives.
The pit afterwards leads to the second section. You'll take an elevator ride where you can stab the mouths that spit fireballs at you. Watch out for the spikes that block your path as well as any other enemies that pop up such as the flying skulls.
The boss is a giant eye monster. Use the platforms to get close to this guy and attack him. Take out the eye monsters he summons, as well as the eyes that he creates. Use the energy orb magic to hit this guy from a distance and do a lot of damage, making this battle a lot easier.
When you clear Modero, the dead can now rest in piece and Temponia begins to flourish again. Your work here is not yet done, though. There is now an army of large ants taking all of the food and attacking the city now, and people are rioting. You'll have to stop the ants to save the town.
You'll have to go into the Palace and into the king's mind in order to fight Lust/Deception.
Enemies here include ghosts that leap forward at you and follow you, balls of light that try to track where you are, floating skulls that fly around in wide sine wave patterns, giant ghosts that punch at you and take multiple hits to kill.
The first section is straightforward and has a lot of enemies, but the second one has a whole bunch of platforms and spans infinitely in all directions. You have to look for a doorway, indicated by a tall rectangle with a black and blue-ish hue.
You'll face a mini-boss which happens to be a purple version of the big ghosts from the first section. He just tries to punch you and send out purple versions of the tiny ghosts that leap forward and follow you. He takes even more hits, but if you use the energy orbs at the beginning, he goes down in no time.
You'll then be able to enter the third section, where you ride on a platform of clouds and use the Control Pad to move through this strange cavern. The picture throbs back and forth and the whole area rotates constantly, rotating your controls around with it, making this harder than you would expect. The door to the boss is a long rectangle with a reddish-black hue.
You'll face Deception/Lust in the next area. Lust will teleport himself - and you - around. Avoid the spikes as you look for him, and use your energy orbs to do the most damage on him. Your dive attack also works. When you finally defeat Deception, you'll save the king.
Beating Lust will free the king's mind from a very dark force, and when you visit Lovaous, the people will learn the truth about Deception/Lust. There is another town to the southeast that you can save.
From here on out, you can play the levels in any order you want. Of course, FreezingInferno's fan vote decrees he plays the ice level immediately. Well, we might as well get it out of the way...
On the west coast, there is an icy area. There is a town called Lovaous. Head over there.
Lovaous
It turns out that the land was turned to ice after a demon defeated the king here, and since then, the king has lied sleeping until he can be woken up somehow.
Just northwest of Lovaous is the Palace. Head down there to fight off some demons.
Palace
You'll find out that the place is frozen. This is definitely going to be an ice level, so you'll have to be careful here.
Even though this place is pretty, there is quite a bit of danger, such as the ice worms that will pop up from the bottom of the screen. Hit then with ducking slashes to hit them. As for the flying green demon faces, stay away from the mace and strike it until it goes away, then go for the demon itself.
The demons that bounce back and forth are golems, who will stop to uncurl themselves. Use this as an opportunity to attack them. Check out the spaces to the sides to find HP and MP if you need them. The ghosts will move towards you in a sine wave pattern.
The crabs on the spikes act as platforms, but they'll stop and attack you with their claws every so often. Attack them with your downward stab to de-claw them.
Every now and then, there are ice platforms that appear and disappear. You have only a short amount of time to use them to get to where you need to go before they disappear.
There are a lot of power-ups in the second section. Most of them will be of the HP and MP-restoring variety.
The mid-boss here is a goat-man with wings who attacks you with a sword and shield. He flies around and tries to drop onto you, and he can even shoot fireballs at you. It is possible to trap him in a corner and wail on him until he dies.
The third section is short, but there are a lot of ice platforms and ice worms. Patience will win the day here, as well as skillful use of gliding and diving.
The boss here is an ice queen. Attack her when she gets close, then stay away from her as she turns into an ice crystal and separates into pieces that fly around and try to fly into you. The best attacks to use are the Phoenix magic as well as the energy balls that you used against Fatigue in Industen. To use the Phoenix magic, charge up your magic, then perform a dive and release Y when you see the Phoenix in the box in the top center. As for the energy balls, lure her over to the lower-right corner of the room and shoot them at her when she gets close. You may have to do some ice crystal dodging, but not as much as you would have if you used your regular attack alone.
When you conquer the Palace, you'll melt the ice...but the king is still sleeping. It turns out the demon Lust has entered the mind of the king, causing him to enter an eternal sleep. Strangely, Lust is known as Deception in the Western version of the game. Thanks for the unnecessary censorship, Nintendo.
There's still trouble in the town of Diligence. One of the Seven Deadly Sins must be stopped!
Benefic
When you head to Benefic, you'll find out that you need to defeat the demons there in order to cleanse the water there.
New enemies include worm-like creatures with spikes on their heads that spit fireballs, bats that home in on your position and fish monsters that will leap at you when you're close enough.
Be very careful treading the waterfalls, as they will push you backwards and into nearby spikes if you don't force your way forwards.
The blue spiked creature that moves back and forth will spit projectiles upwards. Hold Up on the Control Pad to block these projectiles with your shield.
The gargoyles will ascend a little bit before they quickly divebomb you. Be ready to strike them with an upward slash.
The mini-boss here is a snake. Jump over the fireballs and hit them with the diving attack to do more damage in less time.
The short second section has a bunch of fish monsters sliding down the waterfall. If you jump to the platforms halfway through and float to the left, you'll be able to refill health if you take to much death.
The boss here is a giant snail, based on the deadly sin of sloth. All of the major bosses are based on the Seven Deadly Sins, due to the influences of Paradise Lost and The Divine Comedy. Hold up to block the boulders that drop from the ceiling, then get up close to Sloth and hit it with the orb attack that you used against Fatigue. Sloth will go down in three hits.
When you beat Sloth in Benefic, Diligence will return to its former glory, but you'll hear a sad voice calling from the West Sea. This is your clue for where you want to go next, though at this point in the game you can take on any of the areas in any order that you want.
Ah, the sequel. The black sheep of the two ActRaiser games. Prepare for a bumpy ride.
The game begins with The Master, now with wings and a shield, watching over everyone from the heavens. Suddenly, Tanzra, the final boss from the previous game, shows up and attacks. The Master has a shield and a pair of wings now, and he has a couple of new moves to ward off Tanzra's offense, taking him down. But this is the icing on the cake: Tanzra's forces have struck again, forming a legion and ressurecting him. Now the legion of 13 deadly demons have been sent by Tanzra to terrorize the world.
"Again" may be a bit of a stretch, according to Wikipedia:
The storyline relation of ActRaiser 2 is not explicitly revealed; however, many plot details suggest that ActRaiser 2 may actually be a prequel to the original ActRaiser, or take place in another universe entirely. Otherwise, the given story draws concepts from the famous religious epics Paradise Lost and the Divine Comedy.
Unlike the original game, which alternately combined platform game sequences and god game sequences, ActRaiser 2 is only a platform game. It is believed that this game was made by request from Enix of America to Quintet, and that they also requested that the simulation segments be removed because players would not "get" them.
Yeah, the Sim Mode from the first game was totally as complex as Advanced Calculus. Thanks, Enix. Assholes.
The World
Once you start the game, you'll be introduced to the story. Tanzra's been resurrected by his minions, and now these minions are unleashed upon the world.
Just like last time, you have an angel that acts as an assistant, who will tell you what's going on in whatever location you're in.
You'll start out above the town of Diligence. Select it and you'll see what's going on over there.
Diligence
The town of Diligence was once a source of pride. The forest was beautiful, the air pure. But one day the people not only lost the desire to work but also to live. To find out why, you'll have to head to the town of Industen.
Industen is in the circle in the middle of the huge forest to the west. Go up to it, then select it when you see the name Industen. When you head there, you'll see that a strange cloud appears, drops rain, then disappears. But why? We'll have to head down there to find out.
Industen
You'll be in a huge forest complete with larger-than-life-size mushrooms when you enter this place.
You can now strike upwards by holding Up on the Control Pad and pressing Y to swing the sword. Sadly, crouching and swinging does not seem to give you a slightly longer range like in the last game.
You can also do some stuff in the air, too. You can double jump. To do that, press B twice.
When you double jump, you can also slow your descent on the second jump to make platforms a bit easier. Just hold Up and press B when you perform the second jump, then hold B down and move left or right. While you're gliding, you can dive downwards, slashing through enemies on the way down. To do that, Hold Down while gliding and you'll perform the dive. Press Y as you're diving and you'll be able to attack enemies on the way down. You can stop, of course, but you'll skid a little bit when you land, so be careful.
If you hold Down on the Control Pad and press Y while in mid-air, you can perform a downward stab like in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.
You have a shield this time around, and assuming you're facing the projectiles and said projectiles hit the shield, you'll be protected from them. To do that, just stand still. You can block low just by crouching. Holding Up on the Control Pad will allow to block things dropping from above.
The enemies here are pretty easy: there are worms that come out of holes in the ground that can be stabbed with a crouching strike. Wasps will fly towards you, and flea-like men will walk back and forth, providing the perfect sword fodder.
The small columns that look like a home stereo speaker work like the statues that gave you power-ups in the first game. The first one that you'll come across contains a small orange sphere that flies around in a circle. If you pick it up, you'll get two hit points back. There are other sparkles, such as a small blue one that gives you one HP and a big orange one that gives you five.
You start out with twenty hit points and three magic points in this game, assuming your playing on Normal. (Easy starts you with five MP and five lives, and Hard starts you with two of each and gives you less time to beat the stages.) You also start with three lives. Just like the last game, you don't have all the time in the world, either. The timer at the top center of the screen shows how much time you have left.
Not long after that HP pick-up, you'll face the first boss: some sort of Venus Flytrap-like monster. Jump over it when it charges, and when it shoots a three-way shot, duck down to block the low projectile and duck the other two.
To attack it, you can either perform the diving attack after double jumping over it when it charges, or you can jump over it and stab it as it shoots fireballs. It quickly rears back before spitting fireballs, so you can easily block the shots with your shield by pressing Up on the Control Pad.
The boss is easy, but the stage isn't: even if you beat the mid-boss here, you will be sent back to the beginning of the level if and when you die. This is where the game becomes discouraging: the game does not give you checkpoints, it removes the Sim mode that helped make the first game so awesome in the first place, and it's much harder than the first ActRaiser overall.
After the mini-boss, you'll be jumping on mushroom platforms that move back and forth to cross the muddy water here, which is crawling with frogs that will leap out and try to headbutt you. If you get sent into the water here, it will hurt you quite a bit.
To get to the entrance leading into the tree, you'll have to dive down towards it. Once you land on it, any frogs that may be following you (and there will be) will be destroyed. From there, you'll have to jump your way up the tree, fighting off archers. Block their arrows with your shield and strike them three times. The first statue you see here will give you an extra magic point, but more than likely, you'll be getting more practice with your upward stab and seeing how it works. Even the tip of the sword can do damage, so utilize that range on your way.
When you reach the top, you'll face the boss: some skeletons with scythes on a cloud. This is the demon Fatigue. Fatigue will throw scythes at you, and will also command his cloud to expand and blow wind at you. You definitely don't want to touch either of them or the scythes that Fatigue throws at you.
To block the wind currents that the cloud shoots out, face away from the boss and duck down. You'll block the low shots and duck the rest.
The best way to beat the boss is with your magic: hold Y to charge up your magic. The Master will glow red, and the timer will be replaced with a symbol. That symbol will be different depending on what you're doing. Your best weapon for fighting Fatigue is with the orb, which you can use while holding Up on the Control Pad and the Y button simultaneously. Just hold Up to look up, charge it up with Y, then keep holding Up and release Y to chuck three orbs upwards and forwards. You will use one magic point for every time you use the orbs, so be careful and time your orb throws carefully so that they hit them when Fatigue is right in front of you. Fatigue's energy, which is underneath the high score, will quickly be drained and he will go down in no time.
When you beat Fatigue, you'll find out that the rainfall, which was released by the cloud that Fatigue rode on, brought on the corruption of Diligence and drained the nature of the people. Diligence is back to normal, and if you go back to Diligence, you'll find that the people there are hard at work. However, your assistant is concerned about the upper part of the river that runs near town. Your work in Diligence isn't quite over yet, for at the very north end of the river is another area, Benefic, which seems to be just as ironic as the name "Industen."
If you select any place on the map that isn't a town, you'll get another assistant that will give you a password. Get one as soon as you beat a stage and copy the password down so that you can assure your progress is saved.
The path for this area is pretty straightforward. Adeline will give you a 1-Up, and Dedede will launch you in the sky to face Zero Two.
You'll be flying around with Ripple and firing at Zero Two with the Crystal. Shoot him in the eye and move around in a circle to avoid the projectiles he shoots at you. After some damage, Zero Two will be weakened and you can shoot at the bandage on its head so the halo turns different colors. After enough damage to the When the cactus-like appendage comes out of Zero Two's bottom, Zero Two will be on its back. Shoot at the cactus part and avoid the projectiles to directly damage Zero Two, and eventually Zero Two will be back to normal, and you'll do the attack cycle all over again.
After about three cycles of doing this (which isn't very difficult), you'll take down Zero Two and you'll save Ripple Star! You did it!
It's the final stretch, and we finally take on Dark Matter. But our work isn't done yet...
Level 6 - Ripple Star (continued)
Stage 3
You can tell by the music this is the final normal level.
At the first section, you'll get a bunch of stars you can collect.
In ever other room (even numbered sections) you'll fight off normal enemies. When you beat all the enemies in a room, you can continue. The second section will give you a Crystal Shard when you beat the normal enemies there, as will the second to last section.
The third section is a staircase, as are section 5 and section 7.
In section 6, there is a circle on the floor that is red and orange. You'll need Fire and Needle. Thankfully, two of the normal enemies will give you those abilities. Hit the center circle in that floor pattern to get the second Crystal Shard.
The final section has a ceiling full of darkness. To the right is the exit, which leads to...
Boss
...Miracle Matter.
This form of Dark Matter uses all the abilities, and you'll need to spit stuff back at it. That means you can't come into this battle with an ability, because it's going to be useless here.
Miracle Matter has a dodecahedron-like form that it goes into while switching from one form to another. You cannot damage him in this form, as it has a shield that will nullify all attacks.
You can only attack Miracle Matter with the projectiles that it gives you in its current form. If you have a projectile from one form and you spit it at Miracle Matter after it's switched abilities, it won't damage it.
As you do damage, the dodecahedron form will lose When you do enough damage to one of its forms, that form will disappear for the rest of the battle.
The patterns are as follows:
Ice: Miracle Matter turns into an ice cube with a bunch of triangular prisms rotating around it. Inhale one of the prisms and spit it back out at Miracle Matter.
Burning: Miracle Matter shoots fire in two directions, and you can inhale one of the four blobs made in its wake and spit it back out at Miracle Matter.
Spark: Miracle Matter shoots out lasers that bounce off it and turn smaller. After three bounces, the projectiles will be small enough to turn into spark balls that you have to spit at Miracle Matter.
Bomb: Miracle Matter becomes a blob with four smaller blobs spinning around. They soon disperse and split into two smaller blobs each, half of which will become solid enough to spit at Miracle Matter soon after.
Cutter: Miracle Matter turns into a series of green crescents that flies in a circle. Inhale part of the tail and spit it at the head. After a few go-arounds, the Cutter form will dig into the ground and move across the floor of the room before returning to the center of the screen to transform again.
Needle: Needle points pop out of Miracle Matter in eight directions. When they hit the floor, the spiked points detach and stick to the walls, ceiling and floor. You can spit these pointy ends back at Miracle Matter.
Stone: Miracle Matter becomes a hexagon-shaped rock with four smaller rocks of that shape surrounding it. Two of them will drop, Miracle Matter will move towards the center, then drop down after the other two rocks spin to its sides. When Miracle Matter hits the ground, the other two rocks will drop to the ground along with it, ready to be used as ammunition. The smaller rocks can be used as projectiles against Miracle Matter.
When you beat Miracle Matter, you'll get the last Crystal Shard. If you didn't collect them all, you get the "to be continued ending" where you find out one of the fairies is possessed by Dark Matter.
If you did get them all, that fairy gets zapped and Dark Matter escapes. Kirby will then call out a Warp Star, and he and his friends will pursue Dark Matter.
Ripple Star's stages are short and easy, but they're very fun.
Level 6 - Ripple Star
Stage 1
Go to the left to find some food if you need it.
The whole stage has the exact same layout at the first stage in the game, except with tons mre enemies. It's still just as easy, though.
You'll find the first Crystal Shard out in the open shortly after the start.
The second section has you facing a giant saw blade enemy. Kill it to get the second Crystal Shard.
Use Bomb and Needle in the rock in the stream in the third section to get the last Crystal Shard.
Stage 2
For this stage, you'll want to get Spark, because you won't find it here. Thankfully, there's one in the beginning of the last stage.
The first section is in a dark field, complete with ominous music playing the whole stage and darkness surrounding the castle in the background. Just walk forward and jump down the well. There's a star you can pick up past the well.
Inside the well, use the Spark power-up on the yellow block in the center to get the first Crystal Shard.
The third section is a cave area that has you swimming around at the beginning. Dedede will show up and break the rock that blocks your path so you can continue on.
The fourth section is more cave. Follow the path and you'll eventually go underwater. When you do, go all the way to the left to find the second Crystal Shard. Then go all the way to the right to exit this section.
The fifth section has Adeline giving you an invincibility lollipop. Use it to break the blocks in your path and open up the rooms blocked by the columns. Each column has a different color for the diamond pattern on them, easily indicating which power-up will break them. The green diamond column holds the third Crystal Shard behind it, and if you have Cutter, you can destroy it. Thankfully, you can find Cutter earlier in the level.
Heading right from here takes you to an elevator. Standing on it ends this stage.
After fighting a giant off-brand Transformer, there's only one world left...
Level 5 - Shiver Star (continued)
Stage 3
In the first section, you enter a building! At least there aren't ice physics. For the second section, you'll cross a series of conveyor belts. The first Crystal Shard is left of the Gordos at the top.
In the third section, you'll be further into the building. You'll meet a wide variety of enemies as you go from one floor to the next.
Combining Bomb and Needle turns you into a needle...and you'll explode, shooting out needles in eight directions after you explode.
In the fourth section, you'll face a giant cocoon enemy. The mini-boss will be in one of three sides of the room and is as easy as the other mini-bosses. Beating this mini-boss will net you the second Crystal Shard.
In the fifth section, Adeline will draw three fruits on the window in the background. The sixth section will give you a series of switches. The fruits are clues to which switches you need to stand on and press Down to activate as well as what order to do it in. Completing this puzzle will give you the third Crystal Shard.
The seventh section has a bunch of flowers and whatnot in the background at the beginning, and then you'll see a room with a bunch of bookshelves in the background. These bookshelves will tumble, and if they crush you, it's instant death. If you need to, fly over them to avoid being crushed. You'll do a little bit of swimming and dodging, but the series of rooms here is rather easy. Watch out for the purple claw enemies that come down from the nuts and bolts in the ceiling as well as the sparks that appears in the poles at the end.
The eighth section is another 2.5D area where you have to avoid being shot by Shotzos in the background. Use the transparent blocks near the floor you're walking on as shields if you need to. If you can make it to the elevator, you'll end the stage.
Stage 4
You'll need Rock and Needle for this area for one of the Crystal Shards.
The first section takes you into yet another indoor area. If you need food, go further to the right before dropping down the shaft.
The second section is the inside of some sort of factory. Watch out for the missiles that shoot out of the pipes as well as the Shotzos. To the right of the Shotzos in the second vertical corridor is a series of blocks you can destroy with the Rock/Needle combination. Break them, then head down and climb up the ladder prior to the conveyor belt to get the first Crystal Shard. You'll cross a conveyor belt before entering the third section, where you'll ride on King Dedede. Avoid the hammers in the background that try to crush you and use Dedede's hammer to break the door. All this time, you'll be fighting against the conveyor belt that pushes you back. At the end of the section, Dedede will toss you into the next section.
In the fourth section, you'll be in a series of conveyor belts where you'll see animals in tanks as well as a jigsaw pattern floor. Before you run past the crushing blocks, go up to get a 1-Up.
Combining Spark and Cutter gives you a double-headed lightsaber, similar to Darth Maul in the then-recently released Star Wars: Episode I. Pressing B will allow Kirby to swing it around. You'll need to combine these two powers before you enter the fifth section, where you'll fight a giant lava bird. When you beat it, use the Spark/Cutter combination to break the cage at the top of the room and get the second Crystal Shard.
The sixth section takes you back to the factory with shades of Valley of Bowser 2 of Super Mario World. Use the gaps in the floor to avoid the crushing ceilings, and avoid the shots from the Shotzos in the background.
The seventh section is even more of the factory. The spark plug enemies will try to shock you, and give you the Spark ability if you swallow them. You can climb up the grating to get up to the next floor of the room. Watch out for the crushing walls that follow you on your way to the other side of each floor. Near the top, you'll want to go right before going up to find the last Crystal Shard for this stage. At the top is the exit for Stage 4.
Boss
The boss here is a giant robot. Stand still at the beginning so the four missiles it shoots don't hit you, and inhale on the missiles. Avoid the robot's hands when it attacks you with them, and spit missiles at them whenever you can. When the head blinks, you'll need to jump to avoid the laser. When the boss hits the ground with both of its arms, it will create two rocks that you can use as projectiles.
When you deplete the boss' health, it will transform. Head to the left and stay away from the boss and its pincers. If it shoots any missiles, spit one at the black part with the green eye to deal damage. When the boss shoots one giant missile, inhale the yellow tip at the front of it and jump over the white shell so it doesn't hit you, then spit the tip at the boss. Beating the boss' second form will give you another Crystal Shard and another cutscene where the gang finally goes to Ripple Star.
In this episode, ThirdMarioBrother tackles the first two stages of Shiver Star.
Level 5 - Shiver Star
Stage 1
It should be noted that when you look at Shiver Star on the level select screen, it looks like a white Earth.
The first section will introduce you to the winter wonderland that is Shiver Star, and thankfully. Remember the fire birds from Neo Star? Well, you'll meet their ice counterparts here, and they pretty much attack the same way, except they obviously use ice crystals.
The second section has you climbing ladders leading up a mountain, and the third one is yet another Waddle Dee area where you go down a hill on an inflatable raft. Leap up the second igloo in order to get the first Crystal Shard.
The fourth section is a fight with a giant snowman enemy. Beat him up and travel up to the ceiling to get the second Crystal Shard.
The fifth section takes place on a frozen pond. There are two cracks that take you inside the pond, and if you dive down and go all the way to the right, you'll find the third Crystal Shard.
The sixth section is a rather craggy, mountainous area. The worms will push boulders at you, and you can defeat them rather easily. Watch out for the sky blue monsters with one eye and sharp teeth, as they will jump up and try to bite you when you jump over some of the pits near the end.
Stage 2
Really nice music here.
Start this stage with Spark and Needle, because you won't be able to get it here for one of the Shards.
The first section is a mountain that leads to a blob that launches you into the sky. Go all the way to the right before you ascend to get a Star.
The second section is cloud platforming. There's a witch in the background not unlike those in KDL3. There is a whole that leads to a darker platform underneath. Drop down to it and go left to find the first Crystal Shard.
The miniature platforms have wind currents that push you up and away from the bottomless pits.
The third section is you and the blobs. This time around, the slimes' faces rotate in eight directions and is similar to the Donkey Kong Country barrel cannons. At the second slime, shoot up and left to get the second Crystal Shard. Keep going up to continue with the level. Once you're out of here, you can't go back down.
The fourth section has new enemies: cloud drops that come out of the ceiling and fly downwards. The pastel-colored platforms expand and contract slowly, and it's pretty nice to look at. Going up at the end takes you to a narrow corridor for the fifth section. The cloud drops will fly around in arcs, and some of the pits with the wind currents will contain the blue guys with the jaws. If you can make it to the next section with the Spark and Needle combo and you can beat the giant cloud drop mini-boss, you'll be able to get the third Shard inside the box in the center and be done with the stage once and for all.
In this episode, ThirdMarioBrother finishes up Neo Star.
Level 4 - Neo Star (continued)
Stage 3
You'll be in the mountains for this one.
To get the first Crystal Shard, you'll need Needle. Break the orange floor above the Shard to get it.
Section 2 is more mountains and more of the same, but you will have to jump over pits.
The third section has Adeline and a picture. The picture is random and you'll have to break the blocks to match the shape of it. For the pizza, it's a bit of a circle shape with the lower-right portion cut out. For the umbrella, it's a triangle with a line in the center going down to the bottom. If you get it right, you'll get the second Crystal Shard. If you mess up, you can go between the third and fourth sections to reset.
For the fifth section, the yellow guys with the green heads pop out of the ground and spit bubbles. The mid-air platforms will drop when you stand on them.
After the huge rock with the holes in the wall that contain items, drop down at the right side for the final Crystal Shard.
The cliffs at the end spell the word "Kirby."
Stage 4
When you enter this stage, come in with Stone and Ice. You won't be able to get this combination in the level, and you'll need it for one of the Crystal Shards. Combining Stone and Ice turns Kirby into a curling puck that slides forward.
The first section has you falling volcanic rocks and jumping over streams of lava. Run to the cave!
The second section is the cave. Here, you'll meet birds that drop lava rocks and fireballs that jump in and out of the lava. These enemies give you Burning.
The third section has you riding on Dedede. Break the rock columns that block your path. The skinny ones are weak, but for the thicker ones, you'll have to hold B so Dedede winds up his hammer and release it to break them in one hit. Don't forget to hit the tops of these fat columns that remain, as one of the tops can be broken and contains the first Crystal Shard.
The fourth section is a bridge across lava. Avoid the lava spouting out of the wall.
The fifth section has a bulge in the ground. If you still have Ice and Stone after all this time, use the ability at the top of the bulge to get the second Crystal Shard.
The sixth section has you outrunning a wall of lava that will kill you if you touch it. The seventh section has you avoiding lava from below. If you stay to the left on your way to the top to get the third Crystal Shard. At the top is the end of the level.
Boss
The boss is a lava monster. If you don't have an ability, inhale one of the fireballs that pop up and sit them at the boss' fingers. You can also swallow one of the fireballs to get the Burning ability and attack the fingers with that. If the fingers curl over on the way towards you, get off the platform they're about to travel to. It should be obvious not to let the fingers touch you.
The boss will then follow you out of the lava. Spit the rocks that drop out of the ceiling back at him, and go all the way to the right and duck to avoid the fire breath. Again, having an ability makes this whole battle easier. After beating the boss, you'll get another Crystal Shard and another cutscene before getting access to Shiver Star.
We're halfway through the game now. Time for Neo Star!
Level 4 - Neo Star
Stage 1
The cavemen that chuck spears come back with a vengeance in this stage.
The first new enemy you'll meet is an ax with legs. If it get close, it will drop down to swing itself at you. It will also give you Cutter if you swallow it.
If you move through the strings that the cocoon enemies hang off of, you'll cause them to drop to the ground and explode.
Watch out for the light-colored spots in the ground. Standing on them will cause these parts of the ground to collapse, and some of these pits may have spikes. They don't kill you, but they do damage nevertheless. One of them contains the first Crystal Shard of the stage, however.
Drop down at the beginning of the second section for the second Crystal Shard. Here, you'll be climbing on the vines on the walls to avoid the enemies, such as the fire-breathing dragons and the purple pterodactyls from KDL3 that fly back and forth. If you hold them over your head after inhaling them and jump, you can glide a fair distance, assuming there isn't much in the way up ahead.
In the third section, you'll be swinging from vine to vine, and some vines will move back and forth. If you jump while the moving vines go forward, you'll be swept forward quite a ways, giving you some wicked distance.
The fourth section has you fighting a giant version of the red fire-breathing dragons. Beating him lets you enter Section 5, which has log platforms. Some of the platforms will swing back and forth to get you over the bottomless pit. Watch out for the cocoon enemies that will make a surprise drop-in on you. Halfway through, you'll find circle-shaped platforms that fall when you land on them. The third Crystal Shard will be above the very first one.
The sixth section has an invincibility lollipop. Grab it and plow through the enemies, including the new flower enemies that gently float down. You can use them like umbrellas if you hold them over your head, but not for long. At the end is the exit.
Stage 2
Go off to the left at the beginning to get the first Crystal Shard. If you need to, fly to the left and slowly glide down to find it. Once you do, drop down to enter the second section.
In the second section, you'll be in a mine cart and Waddle Dee will push you forward before joining you. The mine cart will plow through enemies, but you'll have to jump over the gems and gaps in the floor. Take the top path at the first fork in the road to get the second Crystal Shard.
You'll then drop down into the third section. The stones with the eyes will crush you like the Thwomps in the Mario games if you get close, and the background frogs also make another appearance.
The fourth section has some ceiling cannons and waterfalls that will slow you down. There will also be water blobs that drop down from the ceiling as you make your way to Section 5, where there are even more enemies and a ton of gaps in the floor. You'll have to have the Stone and Bomb ability near the end to blow a hole in the wall and get the third Crystal Shard. That's not all that's there, though: if you enter the hole above where you break the wall there, you'll get a 1-Up.
Combining Stone and Bomb gives you TNT. You have to hold Down to put on the hard hat and avoid taking damage from the blast. You can get this ability combination as early as Stage 2 in Pop Star, but this is where it immediately becomes useful.
Shortly after that and the gaps with the enemies inside is the battle with a whole group of water blobs. Destroy them all to whittle down the boss health meter and enter Section 7. Watch out for the black floors and ceilings that go up and down so you don't get crushed. One of them will hide a 1-Up. It won't be long until you reach the exit.
In this episode, we see some references to the third Dream Land game, one of which left some players confused back in the day.
Level 3 - Aqua Star (continued)
Stage 3
The first section starts you off on a beach. The guys with the maracas will block your projectile attacks if they swing their maracas towards you. The second section is more of the same, but you also have shallow water areas where Shotzos will shoot at you from the background.
The green fish that briefly puff up and charge at you when you get close give you the Bomb ability if you swallow them. If they execute their attack, they explode.
Combining Bomb and Cutter will help you get the first Crystal Shard. In the third section, you'll see more water as well as wooden bridges. Some planks on these bridges have geysers underneath that will send you upwards if you stand on them. In the middle of the third section, there is a cave you can enter from the top of a rock. Go in there, drop down, and you'll see a green and black rock on your left. Hit it with the Bomb/Cutter ability combination to destroy it and get the first Crystal Shard for this stage. There is a Maxim Tomato here if you need it. To get out, destroy the star block in the center and stand on the rock underneath.
Run through the second wooden bridge to avoid being launched into the Gordos, and continue until you meet King Dedede and a see-saw. Kirby will get on, and Dedede will launch him into the next section.
In Section 4, you'll deal with log platforms that will sink when you stand on them, as well as a underwater current that will push you to the left if you go into the drink.
Combining Rock and Cutter will turn Kirby into a clay cube that will transform into one of the six animal buddies from KDL3: Rick the Hamster, Coo the Owl, Kine the Fish, Nago the Cat, Chuchu or Pitch the Bird. It's completely random, and these ally forms act a bit differently compared to the real ones. Rick is like the Stone power-up, Coo and Pitch can fly for only a limited amount of time and fall like a rock, and Nago, Chuchu and Kine can only jump as their means of moving around, provided you guide them with the Control Stick. If you press Attack again, you'll become Kirby once more, and the shrapnel from the clay will hit enemies and damage them as you transform back.
You'll need it to get the third Crystal Shard, but for now, enter the hole at the end of the section to fight a giant version of the green Cutter bird. Get away from the mini-boss when you beat it so you don't accidentally drop down to the next section and make your way to the right. You'll be able to get the second Crystal Shard for this stage. You can fly back in there if you mess this up, but the Crystal Shard will not be there, so you have to get it after beating the boss.
The third one is in the next section. Drop down, then go left and grab the 1-Up. You'll need Rock and Cutter to go left and go for this. Keep transforming until you get Rick, as he has an ability you need for this: the ability to jump up walls infinitely. Yes, he still has that ability from KDL3, and since Kirby will get tired if he flies by himself for too long, you're going to need this ability to get the stage's third and last Crystal Shard. Just keep holding the Control Stick towards the wall, then keep jumping. You'll get the pattern down, and it'll take a little time, but you'll get there.
Continuing to the right, watch out when the wooden platforms tip forward so you can jump over the spiked logs. After one more drop downwards, you'll reach the exit.
Stage 4
In this first section, you'll be diving down. Avoid the enemies as well as the missiles that shoot out of the walls.
In the second section, head right and avoid the falling rocks so you don't get hit and crushed. They can be swallowed and used as projectiles, if you need to. There are projectiles near the missiles that fire upwards.
In the third section, swim all the way up and stay to the left. If you can mash the A button fast enough and fight the current so that you can go slower than usual, you'll be able to find the first Crystal Shard at the ceiling. The current at the top will push you into Section 4.
In section 4. follow the path and avoid the enemies. When you reach the pole, climb to the very bottom and head right. Position yourself so that you can maneuver yourself towards the second Crystal Shard.
Section 5 is another mini-boss, this time the giant green bomb bird. The four sea anenome enemies (whose name escape me) can continuously spit projectiles upwards if you pull them out and hold them over your head. Beating the boss opens Section 6, to the right.
In Section 6, avoid the rocks that move at you from behind. Between the second set of Gordos is the third Crystal Shard. When you head down into the pit in between them, the current won't push you around. At the end of this section is the exit.
Boss
The third boss is Acro from KDL3. Dump your ability, since it won't help you here. Spit the stuff he shoots at you, and when he loops around at either end of the room, you can spit one of the rocks he makes at him as well.
After beating him, you'd think you're done, but the screen will rumble and it becomes a vertical auto-scrolling section. Inhale the enemies and spit them at Acro when he swims upwards. He'll be untouchable when he's in the background. If he spits out missiles, avoid them and use them as ammo if you need to. As long as you can keep him away from you, this isn't too difficult, and you'll soon get another Crystal Shard and access to the fourth world after a brief cutscene.
Four parts in, and we're already on the third level...and the music here is pretty good!
Level 2 - Rock Star (continued)
Boss
After a short elevator ride, you'll see a red crystal firing a laser. You'll soon see a green crystal doing the same thing. These things will revolve around the room with a laser that extends to the platform. Then a third blue crystal will appear, and they'll attack together. The movement patterns are very linear, and you should be able to dodge their lasers very easily. Then the boss health meter will fill up, and you'll soon see crystals with small spheres matching the color of the gems attached. If you don't have an ability when the gems close in, inhale these crystals, then spit them at the crystals. If you match two like colors, you'll do more damage than when you don't. After enough damage, the gems will turn into wireframe models of their former selves, and once that happens to all three, you'll beat the boss and get the last Crystal Shard for the stage before getting another cutscene.
Level 3 - Aqua Star
Stage 1
Welcome to Aqua Star, where there's a lot of water. Now it's time for aquatic fun!
Music here is amazing, by the way. It's like a very nice re-imagining of the Float Islands theme from the first Kirby's Dream Land, but the arrangement is noticeably different.
The volcano rocks that spew out magma from their tops will give you Burning.
Combining Burning and Stone will allow Kirby to fire volcanic rocks out of his head. You can fire into the air and to the sides.
Below the bridge is a Maxim Tomato if you need it. To get under there, just press Down.
The second section is a cave that you climb to the top of. Jump into the green blobs, and jump again to be fired in the direction the blobs are looking. The first Crystal Shard is below a bunch of Scarfys.
At the top is the third section. The penguin will flee if you get near him, but if you swallow him, you'll get Ice. Watch out for the frogs that chomp at you from the holes in the background.
Combining Ice and Bomb creates a snowman bomb. You can still walk around, but you can also explode whenever an enemy runs into you or whenever enough time has passed.
If you jump into enemies from below, you'll stun them. Quickly do it again to destroy it.
The beginning of the fourth section introduces us to the caveman enemies that chuck spears at you.
The flying grey bat-like enemies will attack you with part of their face if you approach them too closely from above.
The fifth section is that stupid bubble with the Needle on its head from KDL3, in giant size and with normal-sized underlings below the bridge. If you've played that game, you know their M.O.: when you're directly above them, they'll poke you with their needle tops. These guys will obviously give you the Needle ability if you swallow them, and if you couldn't tell from KDL3, they can be annoying. Beating the mini-boss here will allow you to grab the second Crystal Shard directly underneath where the mini-boss was.
The sixth section more of those needle top enemies as well as a guy in a cloud that throws lightning balls. That guy will give you Spark if you swallow him. Press Down to go underneath the bridges as usual, and you'll find a blue-and-black checkerboard panel on the wooden bridge. If you've combined Ice and Bomb and you have that combination here, you can use the snowman bomb ability to blow this block up and obtain the third Crystal Shard for the stage.
At the end of the section, the green birds that chuck the spiked rings will try to attack you before you can reach the exit.
Stage 2
The first section is a forest stream. I'm liking this already!
Watch out for the crabs, which will attack you with their claws if you're close. They appeared in the last stage, but it looks like they just might get you on the bridge. They won't though.
You'll be in a cavern for the second section. Keep moving on the bridge so you don't fall along with the segments.
If you carry a Bronto Burt above your head, you'll be in the air temporarily, but only once.
The third section is a battle with a giant crab. If you have Burning and Stone, you'll be able to get the first Crystal Shard.
The fourth section has you swimming down the stream in a crate with Waddle Dee. When you see the yellow bubble with the exclamation point, be ready to jump over an obstacle or lose health. Be ready to jump carefully on the first waterfall to get the second Crystal Shard for this stage.
You'll eventually fall down into the fifth section. You'll see the invincibility lollipop for the first time in this game at the beginning, and as long as the epic music plays, you'll be able to run into enemies and absolutely destroy them. Look into one of the waterfalls to your left as you continue through this section to find the third Crystal Shard for this stage.
The sixth section has you dealing with spiked logs dropping down and rolling towards you as you go upstream. Use the platforms to avoid them as you make your way to the exit.
This time around, ThirdMarioBrother explores some temple ruins and enters some weird alien obelisk base.
Level 2 - Rock Star (continued)
Stage 2
The first section is the entrance to the ruins here. Watch out for the falling columns in the background.
Combining Spark and Needle turns Kirby into a living star. A needle pops out of his head and lightning strikes it, frying anything above him.
Combining Spark and Fire gives you a rather interesting attack: Kirby rubs his head with a plate and runs forward with his head on fire for a few seconds.
Nelly from KDL2 is back as a normal enemy again. Ditto for the Rockys, the rocks that drop down from the arches at the end. They'll give you the Stone ability for swallowing them, as always.
In the second section, you'll see even more Roman architecture as well as the Mummy Balls. Fly up into the air and spit the air pellet at them. You can also destroy them with abilities.
Not long into the second section, you'll find a 1-Up at the top. Take it, then work your way down. When you reach the center of what looks like the bottom, the ground will break under your weight. You'll then find the first Crystal Shard for the stage.
There is a food item above the entrance to Section 3.
The third section has ghost enemies that throw energy balls at you. At the center of the room, just above the bottomless pit, lies the second Crystal Shard.
Crossing to the other side of the third section takes you to Section 4, which has star block platforms as well as water. The green bird enemies that throw the spiked rings at you are back from KDL3, and they give you the Cutter ability just like last time.
The bottom parts of the white pillars will try to crush you into the top half if you put your weight on them, so be careful. Use the last one to enter the next section
The fifth section is a narrow bridge with a bunch of Shotzas and Bronto Burts in the background. The purple enemy with the propeller gives you the Ice ability.
Combining Ice with Needle turns Kirby into an ice crystal with six extending points. If any enemies touch you, they're gonna get frozen.
The red fire dragons will breathe fire at you if you get two close. Not surprisingly, they give you the Burning ability.
Section 6 is the first King Dedede section. Here, Kirby will ride on Dedede. It's standard platforming across a maze, and you can use his hammer to not only attack enemies but also break the darker walls to open up new passages in the maze. You'll need to do this to get the third Crystal Shard at the top-left of the maze and the exit at the top-right. Dedede is not as fast as Kirby, but at least the gameplay is still responsive here.
Stage 3
Before you head here, get two Stone power-ups. You'll need this to get one of the Crystal Shards. Thankfully, you can exit stages you've already completed from the pause menu and selecting "Try Again."
The first section is an underground sand section. There is a bone bridge with a brown spine segment, and if you break that segment with double Stone, you'll be able to head left and get the first Crystal Shard inside the scroll.
The skull bats will swoop at you, but they're easy to defeat. The guys with the skull heads
will throw bones at you.
In the second section, go left and drop down the whirlpool with the two stars above it to enter the third section. Here, you'll face a giant version of a new enemy: a triangle fish that shoots its head at you. Inhaling and swallowing the regular-sized versions of these gives you Cutter. Beating this mini-boss will give you access to the next section. If you inhale one of the triangle fish and hold it up, you can use its projectile heads against your enemies. This makes the boss hilariously easy.
You'll then be able to drop down to the fourth section. You'll be in the background section of this short room. Go to the left to get the second Crystal Shard, then head to the right.
In the fifth section, go left to get some stars, then take out the fish that just stand there and splash if you want.
Combining Ice and Cutter gives you ice skates that skate around. To damage enemies, jump into the air and Kirby will spin around, destroying anything that he touches.
Watch out when crossing the platforms above the sand pits, as the beetles will try to grab you. As long as you stay on the platforms, you should be okay.
Continuing to the right takes you to Section 6, which has more sand pits. The spiders here will crawl towards you, but they're easy. Avoid the bugs at the center of the sand pits.
Section 7 is underwater. While you're underwater, you can still inhale enemies, but if you have an ability it will be slowed down tremendously compared to when you're on dry land. Mash the A button quickly and use the Control Stick to swim around, and go down and to the right to enter Section 8. Here, avoid the bone vertebrae as you go up, and make your way to the very top to get the third and last Crystal Shard in the stage. The exit is to the right.
Stage 3
The first section put you in some sort of glowing black base floating in the sky. Enemies will come at you from both the left and right sides of the stage. Float above the platform taking you to the second section to find a star.
Take the platform to enter the inside of this area base and avoid the projectiles from the laser turrets in the elevator shaft. At the top, you'll then be dealing with the moving platforms of Section 3 that come in and out of the walls. Be careful not to get crushed here. You'll have to be patient to get the first Crystal Shard which is underneath the yellow platform. It doesn't seem like it moves, but it moves every so often, and not as much as the red one, but it does make way for you to get the Shard.
Now for Sections 4 and 5. In the next room, you'll see Adeline. You'll need Bomb and Spark to light the room. When you do, you'll find three paintings of things in the room that you wouldn't be able to see otherwise. In the room after that, there will be a series of buttons, three of which match the things that Adeline has painted. Step on them and press Down on them to hit them. If you follow the order that Adeline's paintings go in at the previous room, you'll find the stage's second Crystal Shard.
Section 6 is a maze. You'll be taking platforms that go back and forth, and you'll also see diamond enemies that give you the Spark power-up if you inhale them while they open up in an effort to attack you with projectiles. Your task is to make your way to the top, and thankfully, there is nothing hidden in this maze-like platforming section. Section 7 is just a mini-boss fight with a larger version of the aforementioned diamond enemy. Winning this battle gives you the third Crystal Shard for the stage.
Section 8 is more climbing. Watch out for the electric sparks that pop up on the poles when you climb on them. You can't eat them, but they're easy to avoid. The top of this section is the exit.
In this entry, Pop Star is polished off and coverage for Rock Star begins!
Level 1 - Pop Star (continued)
Stage 3
Stage 3 is where the 2.5D graphical elements of the game really come into play, and it makes me wish 2.5D would make a comeback of sorts.
The missile enemies will give you the Bomb ability if you swallow them.
Combining Fire and Bomb gives you the ability to turn Kirby into a living pyrotechnics machine. Not only can you hit nearby enemies with fireworks, you can also perform jumps with it whenever you attack. You can attack up to three times in a row before you're forced to drop back down to earth.
The first section takes you into a castle, and the second one is the castle entrance itself. The ghost with the shield and lance gives you the Needle ability.
Section 3 is a moving platform that you step on to get started. As it moves to the right, you'll want to avoid or attack the Bronto Burts that fly out of the background. When you reach the end, swallow a Sir Kibble, head into section 4, then combine the Cutter ability with the Sir Kibble that has just re-spawned to get the more powerful form of Cutter. If you want, you can get practice on breaking blocks below you with it in section 4 to get the three stars that are there.
Section 4 is the way out of the castle, and it has a few Gordos. Section 5 is the castle walls. If you need to refill your health, head left for a Maxim Tomato. If you jump over the entrance to Section 6, you'll find a sandwich to replenish one of your hit points.
Section 6 is a drop down to Section 7. If you have the double Cutter ability, you can break the floor with it to find the first Crystal Shard of the stage. Section 7 is just Adeline giving you a random power-up.
In section 8, fly up to the left before you go anywhere else. You'll find the second Crystal Shard of the stage above the entrance. This whole area is a staircase with the occasional enemy, including the saw blade enemy that gives you Cutter if you need it. When you climb up to the upper level, look for the chain with the rays of light shining from above. This one is the exit. The other ones have enemies that show up when you reach the top.
You'll reach King Dedede at the top of his castle. Once again, the penguin king becomes stubborn and refuses to give Kirby his Crystal Shard, and not surprisingly, Dark Matter possesses Dedede...again. To beat Dedede, stay away from him, inhale the Dark Matter bubbles that he shoots at you every so often when the eye appears on his chest, then spit them back out at him. Again, having an ability makes this faster and easier. After this, King Dedede (reluctantly) joins in.
Boss
The boss here is none other than Whispy Woods, but this time it's in 3D. Use the apples Whispy sends at you or whatever ability you have to attack his children. Watch out for the projectiles they spit out. When they all die, four of his roots come out of the ground. Use an apple or your ability to attack one of them to drain part of Whispy Woods' health bar, and they will all temporarily disappear. Whispy Woods will then get mad and shake out a lot of apples in hopes of hitting you. Inhale an apple as soon as you can if you don't have an ability, and be ready to attack one of the roots when they show up again. It won't be long before you beat this old tree for the umpteenth time and get a Crystal Shard. Congrats, you now have all the Shards for Pop Star!
After the battle, Ripple opens up a portal to Rock Star, the next world of the game.
Level 2 - Rock Star
Stage 1
The music for this stage is incredible.
The cacti in this area will roll toward you if you get too close. You can easily combine two Needle powers for the double Needle power-up that causes all those pointy things to pop out of Kirby's body when you attack.
You'll also start seeing the Kabuu here. All they do is just stick their heads upwards.
The second section is the inside of a pyramid. Keep to the ceiling and you'll find the first Crystal Shard here.
The third section is a giant cacti mini-boss. You've already fought two giant versions of normal enemies, and this battle isn't any different. Beating him will give you the second Crystal Shard for this stage.
The fourth section is a vertical auto-scrolling section, thanks to the sand that is flooding out of the floor. You can stand on the sand, but you'll have to use the ladders to avoid being crushed between the floor and the platforms, which will kill you immediately if and when it happens. When you reach the top, Waddle Dee will open a whole in the ceiling, allowing you to leave.
The fifth section leads to the exit. If you have the Stone ability, combine it with the Spark ability from the Spark enemy here so you can get the ability needed for the third Shard...if you can get past the Scarfys first! Yep, those floating brown guys are back, and they turn into one-eyed creatures with jagged teeth that chase after you when you move past them this time around.
Combining Stone and Spark creates a rock on an electric chain that you can swing back and forth above you. When you have it, you'll want to come back to the beginning of the section. At ground level, there is a rock with yellow and brown stripes. Attack it with these combined ability and you'll unearth the third Shard of the stage.
The green things with the teeth in the background near the end are Gobblins, and you can't defeat them. Watch out for when they lunge forward to attack you, and take down any enemies that are in your way. You'll meet the little enemies with the skull heads in this part, too, but they don't really do anything special.
After the sadly underrated and not very well-received third Dream Land game, Kirby returns on the N64.
No sooner does the game begin that Ripple Star, a planet populated by Fairies, is engulfed by the ever-returning and seemingly-not-wanting-to-die Dark Matter. A fairy named Ribbon try to save the Great Crystal, the sacred treasure of Ripple Star, but Dark Matter smashes the crystal into numerous pieces and sends them scattering all over the galaxy and sending Ribbon careening into Pop Star.
On Pop Star, our hero Kirby is watching falling stars in the night sky. Two of the crystal fragments fall, one of them landing in front of him and the other hitting him in the back of the head. Ribbon comes down along with the first one, and Kirby finds the second one. When they put the two pieces close to each other, they react by shining brightly and combining into one slightly bigger crystal. With day breaking and with a very clear understanding of what has to be done, Kirby is all too eager to help as he and Ribbon chase the rising sun to a brand-new adventure.
Level 1 - Pop Star
Stage 1
You know the drill here: you can inhale enemies and either spit them back out at other enemies or swallow them to steal their powers, assuming they have one. You can fly in the game, but unlike previous titles in the Kirby series, you can't do it forever.
Collecting stars will bring you closer and closer to a 1-Up, just like in the second and third Kirby's Dream Land games. Unlike those games, where you have to pick up a few and they aren't as commonplace, here they're much more easy to come across, but you'll have to pick up thirty of them to fill up the star counter at the bottom and get your extra life.
You'll be introduced to the Burning power as soon as you start the stage. It is one of seven abilities you'll be able to use in the game. Kirby 64 was also the first game to let you combine two powers, and sadly, no other game has allowed for it since. You can combine two of the same power for greater strength and effect or two different powers for interesting abilities. You can also take an inhaled enemy out of your mouth and throw them to do some damage to another enemy, or get abilities by having two enemies collide as well
Burning (red): This lets Kirby turn into a fireball that shoots forward. (Combining two Burnings makes for a bigger fireball.)
Stone (brown): This lets Kirby turn into a rock version of himself. If any enemies run into him, they'll take damage and/or die. Of course, Kirby will be slower than he usually is as a result. When in mid-air, you can use it above an enemy to squash them, as always. Cancel out of the stone form by pressing B again. (Two Stones makes an even bigger - and even slower - Stone Kirby.)
Ice (blue): This gives Kirby ice breathe that can freeze enemies into ice cubes, which Kirby can touch to send them forward and hopefully into another enemies.
Needle (orange): Kirby spawns a whole bunch of spikes around his body. He cannot move while he uses it. (Combining two Needles makes various sharp things like a bumble-bee stinger, a cactus and a Swiss Army Knife protrude from Kirby's body to make for a slightly longer range.)
Bomb (black): Allows Kirby to throw a bomb. (Two Bombs let Kirby shoot up to three homing missiles at once. Hold B to produce more than one.)
Spark (yellow): Kirby produces an electric force field that will zap anything that comes in contact with him. You can move around slowly while using it, but the field is slightly larger when you stand still. (Two Sparks allows foe an even bigger force field that works the same way.)
Cutter (green): Allows Kirby to turn the center of his body into a boomerang. (Two Cutters allow for an even bigger one.)
You can also ditch the power at will and turn it into a crystal, which you can toss at enemies, especially those with other powers to create a two-tone crystal.
You can lose your ability if you die or take too much damage. If the former happens, you'll be back to normal and you'll have to work to get it back. If the latter happens, you can still get it back, but you'll have to chase after it to get it and swallow it again to regain it.
The flame guys run back and forth and give you the Burning ability. The green spiky guys will roll towards you and give the Needle ability. The black guys with the white shoes just slowly pace back and forth. The pink enemies with the hair bows will bounce up and down. The Bronto Burts (the pink guys with the wings) can fly and can even be aggressive enough to fly right into you. The little green guys with the short red tentacles on their heads blow bubbles upwards and just get in your way. The yellow guys that shoot boomerangs are named Sir Kibble, and these series mainstays give you the Cutter ability.
Combining Flame and Needle turns into a bow with a flaming arrow. Hold the button down to dictate the angle that the arrow is shot. This can take down airborne enemies when used well.
Combining Flame and Cutter creates a giant burning zweihander. The swing is pretty fast, but Kirby can hold the sword by pressing Up. He'll move more slowly and be vulnerable from the sides, but anything that touches the sword immediately takes damage and/or dies. The sword can also be thrown forward, too, and Kirby can produce another one whenever you press B.
Along the way, you'll find Crystal Shards. These are shards of the Great Crystal, and there are three Shards per stage. The first one in this stage is in plain view towards the start. If you've already picked up a shard, it will be replaced by a blue star, which is worth 5 yellow ones.
The cabin at the end of the first section leads to a mini-boss battle for the second one. It's a larger version of the little black enemy from earlier, and he just stands there are normal-sized version of himself spawn throughout the room. If you don't have an ability, just inhale these guys and spit them back out at him. If you have an ability, this is a piece of cake. When the red life meter for the boss that replaces the star counter goes down, the boss is destroyed.
The third section takes you back outside and introduces you to Shotza, the indestructible cannon that fires cannonballs in one of eight directions. If you inhale or destroy the Star Blocks below them, they'll come down to ground level. The Star Blocks can be used as ammo to spit at enemies. The Poppy Bros. (the gys with the hats that throw bombs) give you the Bomb ability. Use it to blow up the rock in the stream near the end of this section to get the second Crystal Shard for this stage. The rock is color-coded black to hint that you need the Bomb power-up to blow it up.
If you need health, pick up a food item. They'll restore one unit of life. You have six hit points in this game like in the rest of series, and if you lose all of them, you lose a life. The Maxim Tomato (the red tomato at the end of the first section) is the only food that completely replenishes your health.
The fourth section is one-time only, and here, you'll meet Waddle Dee. He finds a Crystal Shard, and when he looks at it, he becomes possessed by Dark Matter. When Kirby and Ripple catch up with him, he has already transformed into Waddle Doo. Inhale the stars that Waddle Doo makes when he runs into a wall to damage him if you don't have an ability. Don't let him touch you. When you beat him, he'll be back to normal, and you'll get the third Crystal Shard for this stage. Waddle Dee will then tag along on your quest.
At the end of every stage is a mini-game. This is just like the mini-game at the end of every stage in [i]Kirby's Dream Land 3[/i], where you jump to the item that you want. Aim Kirby towards the item that you want, then gauge how far you want Kirby to jump when he starts swinging his arms. The further back his arms are, the longer the jump will be. Besides stars for your star counter, 1-Ups and healing items, there are collectible cards. Each card is a picture of a character from the game, both friends and foes, that also provide biographies. You'll be playing for a while to collect them all, but it's a huge badge of honor to do so.
Stage 2
Go to the left at the start for a star.
The enemies with the umbrellas will just gently float down. The rock enemies that are, well, made out of rocks will give you the Stone ability. The moles will dig out of the ground and scramble towards you, and they're fairly quick to boot. The spiked balls that move up and down are called Gordos, and they're indestructible. Get them out of your way if you can. The green tear-drop shaped enemies with the yellow circles for hands are Sparkys, and they'll give you the Spark ability.
Combining Bomb and Cutter gives you shurikens that explode upon hitting and stunning an enemy.
The second section takes place inside a tree, where you'll climb up to the second section.
The cocoon enemies will drop down and slowly make their way up. Be careful, because sometimes they can take you by surprise like they do during their first appearance. The snowman enemies give you the Ice ability.
Combining Rock and Cutter gives a drill projectile that will send you flying forward for as long as you hold B. Release the button, and it becomes a projectile that flies forward.
Combining Bomb and Spark lets Kirby turn into a walking light bulb, both figuratively and literally, whenever you hold B. You can only hold that form for a few times before the bulb breaks.
In the third section, Waddle Dee will help run the lift to the other side. Collect the stars, and when you see three stars leading downward, drop down to get the first Crystal Shard for the stage. When you're in the tree, drop down to reach the end of the fourth section. There's a Maxim Tomato and a 1-Up if you need them.
The fifth section is a giant version of that pink enemy with the red bow tie. It's just like the mini-boss from Stage 1, and when you beat it, don't leave the room immediately. You'll get the second Crystal Shard of the stage for your efforts.
You'll then meet Adeline the painter. A Crystal Shard falls, and when she picks it up, Dark Matter pops out of her painting and possesses her. The enemies that she makes will come after you, but if you inhale them and spit them back out, you'll kill them. She'll then produce a painting of the ice dragon boss from the second game. When it spits out ice cubes, inhale them and send them back at it. Adeline will then make a Dark Matter cloud. When it produces smaller clones of itself, inhale the clones and spit them back at it, and fly over the dive attack that it performs occasionally. When that's done, Adeline will come after you herself. You can either slide into her by holding Down and pressing A, or you can fly above her and let her run into the wall. Regardless of how you get her de-possessed, you'll get the third Crystal Shard. Again, if you have an ability, this is made simpler. Adeline will then join you in your quest.
