Last year, Kirby and the Forgotten Land showed that a fully-൲fledged 3D adventure was the kick in the ball the pink popstar needed, giving us the best game in the series yet and setting a solid foundation for Kirby’s future. With that in mind, it might seem a little reductive to then shine a spotlight on the 2D formula we’ve only🔯 just escaped from instead of barrelling forward with more of what made Kirby exciting again.
Thankfully, that doesn’t end up mattering too much because Return to Dream Land Deluxe is still one of Kirb🦩y’s best 2D outings thanks to its souped-up Copy Abilities, improved co-op play, and the best piece of post-game content the series has seen to date.
For the most part, Return to Dream Land is exactly what you’d expect from a 2D Kirby game - simple but satisfying platforming across your standard g🔯rass, ice, and fire lands while Kirby swallows everyone in sight to steal their powers with no remorse. So far, so Kirby, but Return to Dream Land does have a few key things that set it apart from the rest of the series.
The main thing setting Return to Dream Land apart is its four-player co-op which, unlike The Amazing Mirror’s first clunky attempt, features everyone working together in the same space at all times. I only messed around with co-op a little but I found it to be an instant improvement over the other multiplayer outings in the series. The Forgotten Land’s co-op felt tacked on ౠby only letting the second player control Bandana Waddle Dee, while Star Allies was just a mess of random characters and abilities at all times. Return to Dream Land lets everyone control Kirby if they want to, meaning other players aren’ꦰt ju🉐st stuck with one simple moveset for a whole adventure. It’s a simple change, but one that makes a big difference.
The other big thing that Return to Dream Land introduced, which other Kirby games have built on since, was expanded Copy Abilities. Rather than jus💖t giving Kirby one or two unique attacks, the Abilities here have two or three pages worth of moves that make them feel more robust and worth experimenting with - no more sticking to Sword.
There are still some stinkers like Leaf, and some iconic abilities that don’t show up at all (I’m begging for Wheel to make an overdue comeback soon), but Copy Abilities have never be🦹en better in a Kirby game. This also ties into another of Return to Dream Land’s main gimmicks - Super Abilities. These extra-powerful variants only show up occasionally to help with puzzles so they don’t feel as impactful as Mo🍎uthful Mode, but they still add a bit of variety. They’re better than Star Allies’ whole heart thing, at least.
Deluxe also adds two brand-new Copy Abilities: Sand and Mecha. Sand is a bit of a letdown🦄 and plays a bit too close to Leaf and other elemental moves, but Mecha is an instant classic thanks to its wildly overpowered combination of flying and turrets. It’s also Kirby as a mech, how could you not love it?
As great as Mecha is, the best addition added in Deluxe is the Magalor Epilogue, a new mode that unlocks after beating the main game. You take control of a weakened Magalor as he wakes up in another dimension without his powers. S🅠ince Magalor doesn’t use Copy Abilities, he instead has his own unique moveset that ends up rivalling some of Kirby’s more advanced movesets. It doesn’t start off that strong, though, as the main goal is collecting magic points from defeating enemies and beating levels that can then be used to level up Magalor’s moveset to make it more powerful.
As you go through the 20 new levels, Magalor can collect magic points by defeating enemies and🅰 finding them throughout the stages. These magic points can then be used to upgrade Magalor’s different abilities and slowly build him back up to his former glory.
Initially, you can only level up a few different areas, like how long Magalor can float and how stron🗹g his main shooting attack is, but eventually you’ll be able to upgrade his health, combo potential, and a variety of special moves. It may be a short epilogue, but it’s surprisingly in-depth and the lack of Copy Abilities and focus on tighter platforming initially makes things a lot harder than the main game.
I was expecting Magalor Epilogue to be like most Kirby side content and feel unnecessary (how many boss rush modes do we need?), but it ended up being one of my favourite parts 🐼of the whole adventure, and something I’d love to see fleshed out into its own game a la Kirby Fighter✨s and Kirby Battle Royale. It’s a little on the short side but is far and away the best bit of side content in a Kirby game to date.
The other big main new feature added here is Merry Magoland, a new area featuring minigames from♛ across the series. As great as it was to see The Amazing Mirror’s Crackity Hack return, thi꧑s carnival, much like most of Kirby’s side content, is pretty skippable and only worth checking out a few times. The collectible masks featuring a range of Kirby characters are a nice touch though.
Additions like Magalor Epilogue, Mecha, and the cel-shaded visual overhaul make Return to Dream Land Del▨uxe the best way to play one of Kirby🥃’s most important 2D adventures. It may be a bit simplistic compared to more experimental games in the series and its main gimmick isn’t much to write home about, but the impact it had on one of the main tenets of Kirby, Copy Abilities, is undeniable.
Mostly, Return to Dream Land Deluxe is a reminder that no matter what🎉 dimension he’s put in, Kirby is on🐻e of Nintendo’s most consistently brilliant series.
Score: 4/5. A Nintendo Switch code was provided by the publisher.
Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe brings the beloved Wii classic platformer to the Nintendo Switch. It features solo play alongside four-player local co-op, new features, and a whole bunch of minigames.