A Whole Lotta Iwata: Kirby's Dream Land

As you may recall from my last post, I had a lot of conflicting emotions about Satoru Iwata's death. Sure I felt terrible, but just who was it that I was feeling terrible for, exactly? Since I didn't really know the man personally, it felt like mourning his passing (and by association, what it meant for me as a Nintendo fan) was selfish. However, when I took those concerns elsewhere, someone pointed out that all mourning is by its nature selfish, and that instead of dwelling on that fact, I should celebrate what gave Iwata's life meaning. "He liked making fun things. So why not appreciate those fun things, and regret that he's not around to make more fun things?"

(Image from NintendoLife, as you could
probably tell from the watermark)

So that's exactly what I'll do, and I know just where to start! On a trip to Tucson a couple of weeks ago, I had the good fortune to find a bowl full of clearance priced cartridges for the Game Boy Advance. Many of these titles were licensed garbage... a Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen game here, a Nicktoons game there. However, mixed into the bowl were a handful of early releases for the original black and white Game Boy. Now, I don't make it a habit to collect for that system... it was never a personal favorite of mine, and I like the Game Boy Advance a whole lot more. However, I found a copy of Kirby's Dream Land buried in the bowl, and for two dollars and some change I figured, "Why not?"

That was a smart move... not only because Kirby's Dream Land is a great game, but because it's a fascinating history lesson. Everything you love about the Kirby series had its roots right here, from the jaunty "didn't I hear this tune on a game show...?" soundtrack to the familiar cast of enemies to those silly little animations that introduce each stage. However, Kirby's debut was an extremely basic game, leaving lots of room for expansion. Swallowing foes gives Kirby... nothing, and what look like the entrances to hidden rooms lead only to disappointment. At twenty minutes from start to finish, it's just the right size for an original Game Boy game, but I'm glad the series evolved along with the industry over the last two decades.

Kirby... brought to you in COLOR!
(Thanks to Game Boy Crammer for the image)

Oh yeah, there's one other thing! Playing Kirby's Dream Land on a Game Boy Advance adds rudimentary color, with all the characters taking on a shade of pink and the backgrounds adopting different hues depending on the stage. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't- Whispy Woods looks like he's wearing lipstick!- but the injection of color does add welcome contrast. Beyond that, it just feels right for Kirby to be pink, you know?

Wait wait, there's something else! Why's Kirby always fighting with former HAL Laboratory mascot Lolo? In the first game it was just an amusing cameo, but now I'm just wondering why they hate each other so much.

Okay, one MORE thing. According to USGamer's Nadia Oxford, Kirby's original name was "Tinkle Popo." I know I should be showing Mr. Iwata the proper respect here, but...