LogFAQs > #904443402

2. Kirby (Kirby's Dreamland)
When it comes to Nintendo characters, one has ALWAYS been my favorite. A little pink ball of fluff who is one of the most unlikely heroes ever. With all these characters of significant substance in my top 10 and especially top 5, it's hard to explain exactly what it is that draws me to Kirby so much that he can sustain a spot almost at the top, but I'll give it a try.

Kirby first came to the U.S. when I was just two or three years old, and wasn't playing video games, but I saw the commercials and thought he looked cute and funny, sucking up the big muscly guys and spitting them back out in little balls. I was 8 or 9 before we were allowed to have video games, so it was a long time before I actually got to experience any of his games. As a matter of fact I actually played him in the original Super Smash Bros. first... and without Ness around for a while, he quickly became my best and favorite character. I thought the copy ability was so cool, I loved maneuvering around the stage by floating, and most of all he was just so damn cute!

It wasn't long before I started buying and playing many of his games. Even though they were short and relatively easy, they were fun as hell. And I was very happy that his Smash Bros. character (whom today I consider the original "gimmick" character) stayed very true to his character in the games. Of course now I know that this is because Sakurai was the brains behind both. I began to wonder what a full 3D Kirby game would be like, and though I haven't gotten that in platformer form (and no longer want it), I DID get my wish a bit in Kirby Air Ride. Regardless, I continued playing and enjoying these games, and even watched a bit of the anime that was hilariously bad.

Now here's one of the best things about Kirby games - they are so easy to just pick-up-and-play. Most of them are really easy to just play one or two levels when you have five or ten minutes and still beat the game in a relatively short period of time. Even as the team behind the series adds in new gimmicks like in Planet Robobot or Star Allies, it doesn't take away from this aspect, and the new gimmicks are never hard to figure out. They are pretty easy and fun for gamers of any experience level.

And after all these years, Kirby STILL brings a smile to my face whenever I see him. Triple Deluxe might just be THE cutest game I have ever played, even by Kirby standards. The games all have such fitting music and scenery to make it just an overall happy, feel-good experience. Sometimes if I am having a bad day, I pick up a Kirby game because it's just impossible to be upset playing one of those (yeah, even when you're at the final boss and JUST WANT IT TO DIE ALREADY!!!). I'll always love my awesome pink ball.
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darkx