Review: Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe

destructoid.com:

My review: Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe is Kirby’s Return to Dream Land, with more stuff. You’ll probably dig it because Return to Dream Land ruled. Goodnight everybody!

Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe (Switch) Developer: HAL Laboratory Publisher: Nintendo Released: February 24, 2023 MSRP: $59.99

Whoa, this thing is 60 bucks?! Well, you probably want a full review. It’s worth 60 bucks. Goodnight again! But seriously folks, it’s worth it. Over a decade ago, it could be tough to explain to people why I was originally so drawn to Kirby’s Return to Dream Land, and barely anyone even asked. Maybe it was because it released at the tail-end of the Wii’s lifecycle, but people barely talked about it back then, or since, in my circles. Hopefully that’ll change with this re-release on Switch.

If it had to describe it in brief why this game works so well, I would say that it’s just a plain old “clean” Kirby experience. There’s not a lot of nonsense here, and the hook of fixing up newcomer Magalor’s ship is a tad more interesting than “Dedede or some other upfront big bad most be stopped again.” There are a few hiccups that are still present. I’m not a big fan of the “Super Ability” mechanic (where Kirby basically goes Super Saiyan in select sections and destroys everything on-screen with the press of a button), especially in multiplayer where the other three characters are taking a backseat. But those sections are usually at the end of an already great stage, and bookended by a dimensional challenge room that you can open up with said Super Ability.

That’s the beauty of the Kirby formula. Most of the lows you’ll encounter are over in a flash, and it’s time to move to the next thing. With the ability to have four players