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Dufniall

August 21 N-E Game Club: DS Edition - Kirby: Power Paintbrush

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On 16/08/2021 at 8:25 AM, Glen-i said:

Little tip for anyone else who's gonna play through this though. The Medal Swap Shop has 3 health boosts you should get as soon as you can, because 4 health is not a lot in this game. They're behind the 7 medal panel and the two panels at the bottom that are available at the start.

The credits have just rolled for me & ONLY NOW do I discover this!?!! 🤦🏻‍♂️🤪
 

Those health boosts would’ve been useful...

Edited by WackerJr
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On 27-8-2021 at 3:19 AM, WackerJr said:

The credits have just rolled for me & ONLY NOW do I discover this!?!! 🤦🏻‍♂️🤪
 

Those health boosts would’ve been useful...

I can imagine the final boss being a challenge with 4 hearts! It already was for me with 6. Anyway, credits rolled here as well so I'll write up a short impression here soon, and after your input I'll throw it all into the blender for a Throwback Thursday article!

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A solid demonstration of the DS’s key features and how useful stylus control and a second screen can be, and so how to make a game that could only really be experienced on a DS.  I don’t think I was as much of a fan as others though.
 
I found the basic controls simple enough, with drawing my lines and tapping Kirby being responsive.  The only aspect of control I wasn’t good with was tapping the corner to remove a power-up (so Kirby could collect a different power).  I rarely saw the need to actually use the power-ups though.  Despite this being one of Kirby’s key abilities, it felt as though they were included for that reason, without really adding to the game.
 
The game was one of the early DS titles and it shows.  Graphically I thought it looked like a GBA title, with Kirby and enemies looking unremarkable, but at least obvious.  The rainbow effect of your lines stood out which was good.  By the nature of having to use the stylus to tap both Kirby and the enemies meant that the screen was quite zoomed in to ensure everything was large enough to be tapped.  The downside to this is that it was often difficult to see upcoming enemies and obstacles, especially as you started to actually build Kirby’s momentum.  As such I endured a lot of ‘Sonic frustration’ where my momentum was often abruptly halted by the sudden appearance of an enemy or wall.  This meant glancing at the map, permanently located on the top screen, was a must.
 
In typical Kirby fashion, completing the levels were, for the most part, fairly simple.  The challenge was in locating the three medals hidden within each.  I often find I’d notice them after passing them, or just as transferring from one area to the next, so if I wanted to go back and collect it I’d need to start the level again, which I found a little frustrating.
 
I foolishly hadn’t really paid attention to what the medallions did.  Thanks to our forum users I discovered that they could, importantly, be used to buy extra health.  Sadly I found this out AFTER completing the game… Still, it provided me with an extra challenge trying to complete the final levels with minimal health… (in other words I’m a fool!)
 
Ultimately I think it was a good title for early DS adopters. I feel time has hurt it, as playing it now feels a little short and basic.  It’s technically solid and controls well, but was it ‘fun’?  I came away with the impression of it being distinctly average.  Nothing terrible, but little particularly memorable for me. Sorry pink puffball!
Edited by WackerJr
Reducing my rather over-exuberant font size
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