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Kirby (series) facts for kids

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Kirby
Kirbylogo
Genres
Developers
Publishers Nintendo
Creators
Platforms
First release Kirby's Dream Land
April 27, 1992
Latest release Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn
March 8, 2019

Kirby is an action-platformer video game series developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo. The series centers around the adventures of the a young, pink alien hero named Kirby as he fights to save his home on the distant Planet Popstar from a variety of threats. The majority of the games in the series are side-scrolling platformers with puzzle solving and beat 'em up elements.

Kirby has the ability to inhale enemies and objects into his mouth, spitting them out as a projectile or eating them. If he eats certain things he can gain the powers or properties of that object manifesting as a new weapon or power-up called a Copy Ability. The series is intended to be easy to pick up and play even for people unfamiliar with action games, while at the same time offering additional challenge and depth for more experienced players to come back to.

The Kirby series includes a total of over twenty games, and has sold over 34 million units worldwide, putting it in the top 50 best selling video game franchises of all time.

Overview

The series' main protagonist is Kirby, a spherical pink creature. Kirby resides on a distant five-point-star-shaped planet called Popstar in Dream Land. Much of Dream Land is peaceful, and its people lead laid-back, carefree lives. However, when the peace in Dream Land is shattered by threats both terrestrial and alien, it is up to Kirby to become a brave warrior and save his home. Despite his young and carefree personality, Kirby possesses many incredible abilities that he acquires them from the enemies he ingests - like breathing fire, wielding a sword, throwing sparks in all directions, or attacking enemies in melee.

Many recurring characters appear throughout the series as both allies and enemies, the most common being King Dedede: a gluttonous bird resembling a blue penguin and self-proclaimed ruler of Dream Land. King Dedede has appeared in all Kirby games except Kirby & the Amazing Mirror. King Dedede's selfish nature often leads him to clash with Kirby, but he sometimes teams up with Kirby when a greater threat emerges. Another major character in the series is the enigmatic Meta Knight, a chivalrous masked man who one day wishes to fight the strongest warrior in the galaxy and leads a group of like-minded warriors. Whenever he and Kirby fight, he will always offer Kirby a sword in advance so that the fight is fair. While his true face resembles Kirby's, his exact relationship with Kirby remains a mystery.

The main Kirby games are side-scrolling action platforms. Kirby has to run, jump, and attack enemies while traversing a number of areas, solving puzzles, and battling bosses along the way. One of the things that sets Kirby apart is Kirby's ability to inflate himself with a sip of air and fly. In most games, he can do this for as long as he wants, however, his attack options are limited.

Kirby games often contain a number of hidden items that unlock more parts of the game or are simple incentives to collect, and are usually required to reach 100% in-game completion. These special items are usually related to the plot of the game, most often used to create a special weapon needed to defeat the final boss. In some games, the special weapon is optional and can be used regularly in the game after defeating the final boss with it. These elements have remained constant in most series, with each game having its own unique twist to affect gameplay.

The fantasy world of Popstar includes many regions of different climates and terrains which are home to many different creatures. Each game features uniquely-named areas, but all games feature typical locations such as flaming mountains, open grasslands, water-filled or submerged areas, frozen snowfields, and similar natural locations.

There are also several spin-off games in the series, which involve a variety of different video game genres such as pinball, puzzle, racing, and motion-sensor-technology-based games. A number of these spin-off titles take advantage of Kirby's round, ball-shaped appearance.

Games

Main series in bold
Release timeline
1992 Kirby's Dream Land
1993 Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Pinball Land
1994 Kirby's Dream Course
1995 Kirby's Avalanche
Kirby's Dream Land 2
Kirby's Block Ball
1996 Kirby's Toy Box
Kirby Super Star
1997 Kirby's Star Stacker
Kirby's Dream Land 3
1998 Kirby's Super Star Stacker
1999
2000 Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble
2001
2002 Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land
2003 Kirby Air Ride
2004 Kirby & the Amazing Mirror
2005 Kirby: Canvas Curse
2006 Kirby: Squeak Squad
2007
2008 Kirby Super Star Ultra
2009
2010 Kirby's Epic Yarn
2011 Kirby Mass Attack
Kirby's Return to Dream Land
2012 Kirby's Dream Collection
2013
2014 Kirby: Triple Deluxe
Kirby Fighters Deluxe
Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe
2015 Kirby and the Rainbow Curse
2016 Kirby: Planet Robobot
2017 Team Kirby Clash Deluxe
Kirby's Blowout Blast
Kirby Battle Royale
2018 Kirby Star Allies
2019 Kirby’s Extra Epic Yarn
Super Kirby Clash
2020 Kirby Fighters 2
2021
2022 Kirby and the Forgotten Land
Kirby's Dream Buffet
2023 Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Kirby (serie) para niños

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