In this review, we find ourselves seeking the star rod in the Game Boy Advance. We find out how well this adventure game plays.
This game was released in 2002.
Basically, this game is just a port from the NES title Kirby’s Adventure. Since these games are so similar, this review will mostly focus on the differences.
One of the changes is that some of the mini-games found throughout have been changed. One game enables players to glide along rails. The idea is that you grind the rail with “A”, then let up when you make it to a grey part of the rail. Have “A” depressed when you touch the grey rail and you’ll lose speed. You compete against three other computer players. Finish first and you get three lives. Second place nets you two lives. Third place gives you one life.
Another game is basically playing hot potato with a bomb. The idea is that you whack the bomb with a pan to pass it onto another opponent. The longer the round lasts, the faster the bomb travels. The idea, of course, is timing your “A” taps so you don’t have the bomb hit you. Much like the rail grind race, first place gives you 3 free lives, second place gives you 2 free lives, and third place nets you one free life.
Beyond that, the game is largely the same. There are some minor tweaks to the game, but non are really all that worth mentioning as they are so minor.
What I did find that the games controls have a small lag. As a result, you have to play more conservatively because the responsiveness isn’t the most amazing.
The graphics haven’t really changed much other than the fact that everything has been ported to this handheld console. Some of the effects have been updated, though it often is a bit more muted than what the NES console could pull off. In addition to this, other games on the market have been improving during this time period. Examples include Yoshi’s Island – Super Mario Advance 3, Advance Wars, and Doom. While the original port was certainly impressive on this front, stiffer competition in this context means this game is actually struggling to keep up.
The audio is also pretty much left the same. The exception, of course, is where new mini-games are found. The music winds up being decent enough. The thing is, handheld games are incorporating plenty of voice samples by this stage. This game barely takes advantage of this capability. It’s still a good effort, but it’s not as impressive in the handheld context of 2002.
Overall, if you missed out on the NES console version of Kirby’s Adventure, this is likely going to be the next best thing if you happen to have the Game Boy Advance laying around. With more sluggish controls, more average graphics, and more average sound, this game surprisingly struggles to keep up with what is already on the market. Still, there’s plenty of fun to be had with this classic and it is worth checking out – especially with some of the interesting tweaks that were made. So, a very solid game to be had here.
Overall
Furthest point in game: Beat the game.
General gameplay: 21/25
Replay value: 8/10
Graphics: 7/10
Audio: 3/5
Overall rating: 78%
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.
