Review: Kirby Fighters Deluxe

The word ‘Deluxe’ gets thrown around pretty loosely in today’s society. I can guarantee that any burger I have consumed that bore the name ‘Deluxe’ was very far from; although I do quite enjoy an amber beverage from an establishment bearing that description, as do many of the other Stevivor crew. A prime example of this descriptor failing is certainly the newest fighter on the Nintendo 3DS, starring Kirby.

Humour me for a moment while I attempt to play out the way I envisaged the round table discussion that brought about the birth of Kirby Fighters Deluxe:

“Hey! You know what? The 3DS needs a good fighter in its catalogue!”

“What? Excuse me, Super what Bros.? Nah… never heard of it.”

“Did you say a long running series? Sorry, doesn’t ring any bells.”

“So how are we going to do this? Hmmm… I don’t really wanna assign an entire group to nut out a new game.”

“Hey! That Kirby game that we released last year? Yeah… let’s take the mini-game out of that, pad it out a little and market it as a stand-alone product!”

“Brilliance, I tell you! Sheer brilliance!”

Now that may or may not have been the way the meeting went, but the results are a much less spectacular than my comedic genius.

So yes, as described in the fictitious re-enactment, Kirby Fighters Deluxe has been plucked from last year’s Kirby Triple Deluxe. The mini-game was given a spit ‘n polish and was pumped out to the Nintendo faithful as another possible purchase. In single-player mode, the game lacks direction, filling the player with very little motivation to steer our spherical, pink hero onward to victory other than to achieve your best time. Although there are a variety of weapons to compete with, each run through just seems repetitious. Adjustable difficulty levels do give single player mode a little longevity, but it won’t be long until it all seems the same.

Even in single-player, not all fights are one on one. At times you will be pair with an AI buddy and other times you will have the odds stacked against you. You can assist buddies with health regeneration and also combine to pull off special moves when special equipment presents itself. If you run out on energy during a buddy fight you will become a ghost and be able to continue to battle, with only basic moves at your disposal, until your buddy can revive you. As always, all battles lead to a boss who is, of course, King Dedede. The battles against him don’t feel as epic as they should be, but that just reflects the overall feel expelled by the game. Not even the reward for completing battles brings hope, as they are nothing more than outfits for Kirby to wear.

Multiplayer is a solid addition, offering the ability to join in via Download Play and is probably one of the very few saving graces this game has. Colour me impressed that not everyone has to purchase a copy of the game to take part. I managed to get in a little one on one and there appeared to be no real lag between systems. Maybe having four players go at it will pump some life into this game, but that wasn’t an option for me. Even if I did manage to scrounge up some friends, each with a 3DS, I couldn’t imagine Kirby Fighters Deluxe being at the top of their must playlists.

There is a Training option available from the Main Menu, but with the difficulty set on easy, the main campaign should give you enough breathing space to learn the moves. Of said moves, there are many; an average of sixteen for each weapon, really, including your basic ghost moves.

It’s not that Kirby Fighters Deluxe isn’t playable, it’s just that there’s probably better things out there to play on your Nintendo 3DS. Aside from being a die-hard Kirby fan, I really struggle to understand why anyone who already has either Kirby Triple Deluxe or Super Smash Bros. on the 3DS would purchase this title. Funds, time and talented staff should have been used elsewhere instead of creating or rehashing this game. Personally I think you’re better off spending $9.10 AUD on a decent coffee and muffin instead of purchasing this game from the Nintendo eShop.

Kirby Fighters Deluxe was reviewed using a promotional code on the 3DS as provided by the Publisher.

• Review: Kirby Fighters Deluxe