Kirby's Dream Land
Encyclopedia
Kirby's Dream Land, known as in Japan, is a 1992 third party developed platforming
video game developed by HAL Laboratory
and published by Nintendo
for the Game Boy
handheld video game console
. It was first released in Japan, and was later released in North America. It is both the first video game in the Kirby series
and the debut of the Kirby character. Kirby's Dream Land was designed by Masahiro Sakurai
, then an employee of HAL Laboratory. Sakurai intended for Kirby's Dream Land to be a simple game that could be played by beginning gamers. As the inaugural Kirby title, Kirby's Dream Land created many conventions that would appear in later games in the series, including Kirby's basic moves. However, Kirby's trademark "copy" ability would not appear until Kirby's Adventure
, released less than one year later. Kirby's Dream Land was re-released for the 3DS's Virtual Console service.
The gluttonous King Dedede has stolen all of the food from the inhabitants of Dream Land for a midnight feast, so Kirby, a resident of Dream Land, goes to retrieve the food and stop Dedede. Kirby's Dream Land plays like other platformers of the 8-bit
and 16-bit era of video games
: Kirby must use various natural abilities and occasionally external abilities or items while heading toward the goal at the end of each level. Like many 1980s-era platformers, the player can accumulate points, with an extra life granted when the player has enough points. However, because Kirby lacks a save function, scores are not recorded. Also, there are no save files, so the player has to start over again when the Game Boy is turned off, if the player chooses to return to the title screen after a Game Over, or if the player resets the game. All levels are played on a two-dimensional plane, letting Kirby move only left, right, up, and down. Kirby can walk, jump, and fly. Kirby can also inhale objects and enemies, swallowing them or spitting them out as projectiles.
After completing the extra game, the code Down, B and Select is given, which gives access to the config mode, where number of hit points and lives can be changed, as well as a sound test.
Kirby's Dream Land was developed by Masahiro Sakurai
of HAL Laboratory
. Kirby was a dummy character that the developers used until they could define a more sophisticated image. The designers grew to like Kirby so much that they decided to keep him instead of using a more advanced character. He was originally named , and Kirby's Dream Land was titled . Eventually, he was renamed Kirby after the Kirby brand of vacuum cleaners and the game was renamed Hoshi no Kirby (literally Kirby of the Stars). During the development of what was then referred to as Twinkle Popopo, Popopo/Kirby's colour had not been decided upon. Masahiro Sakurai wanted him to be pink, while Shigeru Miyamoto
felt that he should be yellow. Eventually, Nintendo decided to make him pink. Although pink is still Kirby's main colour, later games have shown Kirby in a wide variety of colours, including yellow. When Hoshi no Kirby was first released in Japan, it featured Kirby in pinkscale. However, Nintendo of America designed the North American box art and advertisements with a white Kirby based on the game's grey-scale visuals.
The visuals are presented in two dimensions using pixel
ated sprites and environments. They are in black and white, like all Game Boy video games. The grey-scale visuals caused confusion with the North American box art, resulting in Nintendo of America presenting Kirby as being white. However, playing this cartridge with a GameBoy Color or GameBoy Advance let the player choose between different basic color palettes (as possible with every other monochrome GameBoy-cartridge). The music was composed by Jun Ishikawa. He was the only composer for this game, and has been a regular composer in the Kirby series. His most recent work was on Kirby Super Star Ultra in 2008. Certain songs were also reused in the Super Smash Bros. series as the background music of the Dream Land stage in Super Smash Bros.
and the Green Greens stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee
.
with six reviews, making it the 13th best Game Boy game and the 7,279th best video game. By May 28, 1995 Kirby's Dream Land had sold 1.3 million copies, making it the fourth biggest Game Boy
release. To date, it has sold in excess of 5 million copies worldwide; Gamasutra
cited its new style of gameplay for its success. At the time, it was HAL Laboratory
's most successful game. Gamasutra
's Osamu Inoue attributed the game's success to Satoru Iwata
, formerly an employee of HAL Laboratory
, who Inoue comments has a "simple-minded passion for creating games". Author Wendy Despain used Kirby's Dream Lands plot as an example of how early platform games' plots, which she collectively described as "the main character needing to reach a villain to put right a wrong." Humongous Life's Jonathan Wahlgren called it a strong game, but felt it to be "too elementary". GamesRadar
's Brett Elston did an article on its music, specifically giving praise to the final boss music, stating that it is the "only song in the original Kirby that had a sense of challenge or conflict instead of skipping through a field of floating cakes." Nadia Oxford of 1UP.com
praised it for its unique platforming mechanics, describing it as the start of a "gluttonous legend". Allgame
's Joshua Crystal called it a "great game for beginner players and ones that enjoy a fun, but short, experience."
In an article detailing various Kirby series video games, IGN
stated that it was a decent platformer, but also very basic compared to later titles. IGN
's Lucas M. Thomas and Craig Harris included Kirby's Dream Land in their wishlist for a hypothetical "Virtual Console
" for the Nintendo DSi
, commenting that its inclusion would be based on nostalgia rather than it feeling "new and sensational". They also added that original characters like Kirby
were the stars of the Game Boy
rather than established characters such as Link, Mario
, Samus Aran
, and Pit. They would again praise Kirby's Dream Land for being an original game in their "History of the Game Boy" article, adding that while "attitude" was common in new platforming mascots, Kirby was cheery and adorable, while the game featured "breezy, casual gameplay and lighthearted atmosphere". GameSpy
's Gerald Villoria, Brian Altano, and Ryan Scott called it "basic" compared to later titles in the series, adding that it lacked a sense of danger because Kirby could fly. Nintendo Power
editors George and Bob shared roughly similar opinions of the game; George stated that it is a really fun game, owing its quality to its excellent play control and well thought out concept, while Bob stated that it is deceptively simple looking, when it in fact features a decent challenge for more experienced gamers. GamesRadar
listed Kirby's Dream Land and its sequel as two of the titles they want in the 3DS Virtual Console
.
Kirby's Dream Land has since spawned dozens of sequels across more than a half-dozen video game consoles. The second direct sequel was Kirby's Adventure
, which was released on the Nintendo Entertainment System
console. It introduced the ability to steal powers from enemies, an ability which has been used in the majority of games following it. It was followed by two more Dream Land titles: Kirby's Dream Land 2
and Kirby's Dream Land 3
. The series has featured several spin-offs, including the racing game Kirby Air Ride
and pinball game Kirby's Pinball Land
. Several other games have featured Kirby's Dream Land in one way or the other. In Super Smash Bros.
and Super Smash Bros. Melee
, a stage called "Dream Land" appears, taking elements from Dream Land.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
video game developed by HAL Laboratory
HAL Laboratory
is a Japanese video game developer that was founded on February 21, 1980. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Its name comes from the HAL 9000 computer in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The company is most famous for its character Kirby, the protagonist of the eponymous game series, as well as...
and published by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
for the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
handheld video game console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
. It was first released in Japan, and was later released in North America. It is both the first video game in the Kirby series
Kirby (series)
The series is a fantasy video game series developed by HAL Laboratory and Nintendo, and produced by Nintendo. The gameplay of a majority of the games in the series consists mainly of action, platform and puzzle-solving elements...
and the debut of the Kirby character. Kirby's Dream Land was designed by Masahiro Sakurai
Masahiro Sakurai
is a Japanese video game designer, the creative force behind both the Kirby and the Super Smash Bros. series on Nintendo platforms. He is currently Director of Software Development for the video game developer's Sora Ltd. and Project Sora. He is also the author of a weekly column for Famitsu...
, then an employee of HAL Laboratory. Sakurai intended for Kirby's Dream Land to be a simple game that could be played by beginning gamers. As the inaugural Kirby title, Kirby's Dream Land created many conventions that would appear in later games in the series, including Kirby's basic moves. However, Kirby's trademark "copy" ability would not appear until Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Adventure, known as in Japan, is a platforming video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System video game console. It was first released March 26, 1993 in Japan, and was later released in North America on May 1, 1993, and in Europe on...
, released less than one year later. Kirby's Dream Land was re-released for the 3DS's Virtual Console service.
Gameplay
History of video game consoles (third generation)
In the history of computer and video games, the third generation began on July 15, 1983, with the Japanese release of both the Nintendo Family Computer and Sega SG-1000...
and 16-bit era of video games
History of video game consoles (fourth generation)
In the history of computer and video games, the fourth generation began on October 30, 1987 with the Japanese release of Nippon Electric Company's PC Engine...
: Kirby must use various natural abilities and occasionally external abilities or items while heading toward the goal at the end of each level. Like many 1980s-era platformers, the player can accumulate points, with an extra life granted when the player has enough points. However, because Kirby lacks a save function, scores are not recorded. Also, there are no save files, so the player has to start over again when the Game Boy is turned off, if the player chooses to return to the title screen after a Game Over, or if the player resets the game. All levels are played on a two-dimensional plane, letting Kirby move only left, right, up, and down. Kirby can walk, jump, and fly. Kirby can also inhale objects and enemies, swallowing them or spitting them out as projectiles.
Extra Game and config mode
After beating the main game, players are given the option to play an extra game by pressing up, A, and Select. The game is very similar to the main game, featuring much the same story but more difficult bosses and enemies. It is presumably the basis for the Revenge of the King game featured in 2008's Kirby Super Star Ultra for the Nintendo DS.After completing the extra game, the code Down, B and Select is given, which gives access to the config mode, where number of hit points and lives can be changed, as well as a sound test.
Development
Masahiro Sakurai
is a Japanese video game designer, the creative force behind both the Kirby and the Super Smash Bros. series on Nintendo platforms. He is currently Director of Software Development for the video game developer's Sora Ltd. and Project Sora. He is also the author of a weekly column for Famitsu...
of HAL Laboratory
HAL Laboratory
is a Japanese video game developer that was founded on February 21, 1980. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Its name comes from the HAL 9000 computer in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The company is most famous for its character Kirby, the protagonist of the eponymous game series, as well as...
. Kirby was a dummy character that the developers used until they could define a more sophisticated image. The designers grew to like Kirby so much that they decided to keep him instead of using a more advanced character. He was originally named , and Kirby's Dream Land was titled . Eventually, he was renamed Kirby after the Kirby brand of vacuum cleaners and the game was renamed Hoshi no Kirby (literally Kirby of the Stars). During the development of what was then referred to as Twinkle Popopo, Popopo/Kirby's colour had not been decided upon. Masahiro Sakurai wanted him to be pink, while Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
felt that he should be yellow. Eventually, Nintendo decided to make him pink. Although pink is still Kirby's main colour, later games have shown Kirby in a wide variety of colours, including yellow. When Hoshi no Kirby was first released in Japan, it featured Kirby in pinkscale. However, Nintendo of America designed the North American box art and advertisements with a white Kirby based on the game's grey-scale visuals.
The visuals are presented in two dimensions using pixel
Pixel
In digital imaging, a pixel, or pel, is a single point in a raster image, or the smallest addressable screen element in a display device; it is the smallest unit of picture that can be represented or controlled....
ated sprites and environments. They are in black and white, like all Game Boy video games. The grey-scale visuals caused confusion with the North American box art, resulting in Nintendo of America presenting Kirby as being white. However, playing this cartridge with a GameBoy Color or GameBoy Advance let the player choose between different basic color palettes (as possible with every other monochrome GameBoy-cartridge). The music was composed by Jun Ishikawa. He was the only composer for this game, and has been a regular composer in the Kirby series. His most recent work was on Kirby Super Star Ultra in 2008. Certain songs were also reused in the Super Smash Bros. series as the background music of the Dream Land stage in Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros., known in Japan as , is a fighting game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan on January 21, 1999, in North America on April 26, 1999, and in Europe on November 19, 1999. Super Smash Bros. is the first game in the Super...
and the Green Greens stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBM or simply as Melee, is a crossover fighting game released for the Nintendo GameCube shortly after its launch in . It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 game Super Smash Bros., and the predecessor to the Wii game Super Smash...
.
Reception and legacy
Kirby's Dream Land has received generally mixed to positive reception. It holds an aggregate score of 64.83% on Game RankingsGame Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
with six reviews, making it the 13th best Game Boy game and the 7,279th best video game. By May 28, 1995 Kirby's Dream Land had sold 1.3 million copies, making it the fourth biggest Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
release. To date, it has sold in excess of 5 million copies worldwide; Gamasutra
Gamasutra
Gamasutra is a website founded in 1997 for video game developers. It is owned and operated by UBM TechWeb , a division of United Business Media, and acts as the online sister publication to the print magazine Game Developer...
cited its new style of gameplay for its success. At the time, it was HAL Laboratory
HAL Laboratory
is a Japanese video game developer that was founded on February 21, 1980. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Its name comes from the HAL 9000 computer in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The company is most famous for its character Kirby, the protagonist of the eponymous game series, as well as...
's most successful game. Gamasutra
Gamasutra
Gamasutra is a website founded in 1997 for video game developers. It is owned and operated by UBM TechWeb , a division of United Business Media, and acts as the online sister publication to the print magazine Game Developer...
's Osamu Inoue attributed the game's success to Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata
is the fourth president of Nintendo, succeeding the long-standing previous president of the company, Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002. He was responsible in great part for defining Nintendo's strategy both before and during the release of its Nintendo GameCube video game console in 2001, a vision which...
, formerly an employee of HAL Laboratory
HAL Laboratory
is a Japanese video game developer that was founded on February 21, 1980. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Its name comes from the HAL 9000 computer in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The company is most famous for its character Kirby, the protagonist of the eponymous game series, as well as...
, who Inoue comments has a "simple-minded passion for creating games". Author Wendy Despain used Kirby's Dream Lands plot as an example of how early platform games' plots, which she collectively described as "the main character needing to reach a villain to put right a wrong." Humongous Life's Jonathan Wahlgren called it a strong game, but felt it to be "too elementary". GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
's Brett Elston did an article on its music, specifically giving praise to the final boss music, stating that it is the "only song in the original Kirby that had a sense of challenge or conflict instead of skipping through a field of floating cakes." Nadia Oxford of 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
praised it for its unique platforming mechanics, describing it as the start of a "gluttonous legend". Allgame
Allgame
Allgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
's Joshua Crystal called it a "great game for beginner players and ones that enjoy a fun, but short, experience."
In an article detailing various Kirby series video games, IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
stated that it was a decent platformer, but also very basic compared to later titles. IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Lucas M. Thomas and Craig Harris included Kirby's Dream Land in their wishlist for a hypothetical "Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
" for the Nintendo DSi
Nintendo DSi
The is a handheld game system created by Nintendo and launched in 2008 and 2009 in Japan, North America, PAL territories, and other regions. It is the third iteration of the Nintendo DS, and its primary market rival is Sony's PlayStation Portable...
, commenting that its inclusion would be based on nostalgia rather than it feeling "new and sensational". They also added that original characters like Kirby
Kirby (Nintendo)
is the main protagonist of Nintendo's Kirby video game series created by Masahiro Sakurai and developed by HAL Laboratory. The Kirby series is one of Nintendo's many well-known game franchises, spanning nearly twenty games since 1992...
were the stars of the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
rather than established characters such as Link, Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, Samus Aran
Samus Aran
is the protagonist of the Metroid video game series. Introduced in the 1986 video game Metroid, Samus is a female ex-army soldier bounty hunter usually fitted with a powered armor suit with weapons that include beams and missiles...
, and Pit. They would again praise Kirby's Dream Land for being an original game in their "History of the Game Boy" article, adding that while "attitude" was common in new platforming mascots, Kirby was cheery and adorable, while the game featured "breezy, casual gameplay and lighthearted atmosphere". GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
's Gerald Villoria, Brian Altano, and Ryan Scott called it "basic" compared to later titles in the series, adding that it lacked a sense of danger because Kirby could fly. Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
editors George and Bob shared roughly similar opinions of the game; George stated that it is a really fun game, owing its quality to its excellent play control and well thought out concept, while Bob stated that it is deceptively simple looking, when it in fact features a decent challenge for more experienced gamers. GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
listed Kirby's Dream Land and its sequel as two of the titles they want in the 3DS Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
.
Kirby's Dream Land has since spawned dozens of sequels across more than a half-dozen video game consoles. The second direct sequel was Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Adventure, known as in Japan, is a platforming video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System video game console. It was first released March 26, 1993 in Japan, and was later released in North America on May 1, 1993, and in Europe on...
, which was released on the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
console. It introduced the ability to steal powers from enemies, an ability which has been used in the majority of games following it. It was followed by two more Dream Land titles: Kirby's Dream Land 2
Kirby's Dream Land 2
Kirby's Dream Land 2, known as in Japan, is a platforming video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy handheld video game console...
and Kirby's Dream Land 3
Kirby's Dream Land 3
Kirby's Dream Land 3, known as in Japan, is the fifth platformer video game starring Kirby. Specifically, it is the third game under the Kirby's Dream Land name. Although the first two games were largely unrelated, Dream Land 3 features many similar characters to Dream Land 2...
. The series has featured several spin-offs, including the racing game Kirby Air Ride
Kirby Air Ride
Kirby Air Ride,or カービィのエアライド in Japan, is a racing game video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube video game console starring Kirby, one of HAL's characters....
and pinball game Kirby's Pinball Land
Kirby's Pinball Land
Kirby's Pinball Land, known in Japan as is a 1993-1994 pinball video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy. It was HAL Laboratory's third pinball video game after the MSX and NES title Rollerball and the Game Boy title Revenge of the 'Gator...
. Several other games have featured Kirby's Dream Land in one way or the other. In Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros., known in Japan as , is a fighting game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan on January 21, 1999, in North America on April 26, 1999, and in Europe on November 19, 1999. Super Smash Bros. is the first game in the Super...
and Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBM or simply as Melee, is a crossover fighting game released for the Nintendo GameCube shortly after its launch in . It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 game Super Smash Bros., and the predecessor to the Wii game Super Smash...
, a stage called "Dream Land" appears, taking elements from Dream Land.