While Kirby's Adventure is still a fun game, it feels empty and lacking with the more recent Kirby games
GRAPHICS AND 3D EFFECT:
The 8-bit graphics of this game are some of the best in the NES. They are very colorfull and can keep a lot on screen at once without frame droping. I do think that Super Mario Bros. 3 is the best looking game on the system (from what I have played), but Kirby comes really close. Kirby himself is now pink color, unlike the white from its first game, and he looks nice and animates well, just like everything else in the game.
The 3D effect of this version simply makes everything in the game pop up a bit. It is kind of hard to explain, but it makes the plataforms a bit more pronounced, and gives the background a darker tone and more far away feel. It is nice, but nothing really special, since it doesn't add much to the game, which is disapointing. 4.5/5
SOUND:
Once again, the music in this game is classic. It features many remixes from the GB game Kirby's Dream Land, which would latter become a tradition on the franchise, and they sound really cool. Sound effects are also good, and the game just comes overall as a very solid sounding game. 4.5/5
GAMEPLAY:
The game is a 2D plataformer. You have to play as Kirby in order to bring peace back to Dream Land, and you really don't need any more motivation than that, do you?
Like on his first game, you can jump and float, suck on enemies and spit them back, but new to this game are two of his abilities. First is the slide kick to kill enemies and just pass though them, and most importantly, the copy ability. It is this the game that introduced Kirby's famed ability to have different power ups from sucking enemies. Swallow up a fire guy and you get the fire power up. Swallow the ice guy and get the ice ability. And there are quite a few different ones to get in this game, so you are bound to find something you like. They are pretty fun to use, and add a much needed depth to the game that was missing in the first game.
You have to go though 7 worlds, and in each battle a boss at the end, so you can fight the real final boss at the end. What is great about this game is that this is one of the games in the series not to have a gimmicky collectable in order to reach the final boss, like Dream Land 3 and 64 had. You just play the levels and you have everything, which is very very nice. Many levels also have more than one exit, where you can unlock something else, like a bonus minigame, which are pretty fun to play, and getting the different exits is never too frustrating. With this amount of world to got though, the game is much longer than the 30 minute quest that Dream Land 1 was. While still clocking at a rather short 3-4 hours, it still is a nice length for this kind of game.
Now, while I have praised the game a lot here, I have now to tell that you really have to consire buying only this version of the game. The reason is that there are much superior Kirby games in the Wii Virtual Console, in the form of Super Star and 64. They are longer, and have more varied gameplay than this one, since in this game the levels are short and settle onto a patern easily, not really changing much up. But on the 3DS? There is already Dream Land 1, which is fun but too short, and should only be gotten due to some's nostalgia goggles. And while Dream Land 2 will eventually see a release, Adventure still is to me a more complete game, and more fun overall.
Also one has to have in mind what you are getting, since this version does not have anything else to give other than the subtle but effective 3D effect, so you are basicaly playing a really easy NES game. And since there is a remake of Adventure for the GBA, with longer levels and more to do, including multiplayer, there is no real reason to pick this version up in said scenario.
3.3/5
OVERALL:
For what it is, Kirby's Adventure still is a really fun game, but it pales in comparisson to the more modern Kirby games, and specially due to the existance of a remake of this game. This version is only recomended for being the best Kirby game on the 3DS Virtual Console, but if you can get the remake or is thinking about getting the game on the Wii's Virtual Console, there is not much reason to look here. It can be good for someone interested in seeing his older games, but still.
The good:
-Nice and colorfull graphics with good animations
-Music is really fun and cathcy
-Copy ability is a welcomed and fun addition to Kirby's arsenal of moves
-Much longer than its predecessor
The bad:
-Lacks in comparisson to most other Kirby games
-3D effect is cool but unecessary
-If you can get the remake, why get the original?