Review: Magic

Ability : Magic

Title : Kirby & the Amazing Mirror, Kirby: Squeak Squad

Reviewer : Bimblesnaff


The history of Magic is almost like a strange coming-of-age film. In first debuted in Amazing Mirror as a simply one-shot ability in the same vein as Crash or Cook. In fact, it was little more than a combination of these two with an added roulette to determine its exact function. The -- ugh -- "Galaxia" icon summons fan-favorite Meta Knight to whiz by and slash about the screen, slaying foes and generally reacting any environment features (like cutting strings, pounding stakes, etc.). More importantly, this happens to all four players, meaning that you could get a visit from masked misfit when you weren't even expecting it. A cherry transmutes any enemy into the very same fruit. The 1-Up and Invincible Candy award the respective items. Otherwise, a question mark tile awards the player with a randomly determined new copy ability.

Magic was, and still is, only offered by the mini-boss Boxy, and was presented in a fashion where it was expected to be used immediately. It was a fun mix-up to the established system of single use K-cups (here, the "K" stands for "Kirby"; coffee humor! ... too adult?). However, with its primary functions being little more than a standard two-enemy gulp and resulting Mix with a heavy lean towards screen killers, being fun and chancy wasn't enough to keep it around after the novelty wore off.

The following action/adventure title sought to reinvent Magic, like an awkward teenager going to an out-of-state college where none knew of his penchant for coin-stamp collecting. Yes, coin-stamp, not coin and stamp; literally, exclusively stamps of coins. Pushing the past (mostly) behind itself, the player found that Kirby now donned the ludicrously sized magician's hat at all times with the ability and not just when the wheel is spinning as before. This mention of headgear probably doesn't seem like the most important alteration to mention, but I open with it as it clearly illustrates the point: the hat is ever-present as the ability sticks around.

No longer confined to a single use, the player can find an assortment of skills unrelated to the previous incarnation but perfectly relevant to the source name. The standard action is to release a trio of doves from the gargantuan top hat (honestly, we knew you were hiding something in there, just look how goofy and oversized it is!). They drift upwards in three different arcs and do a fine job at clearing out the screen from pesky stray bad guys. Since this attack focuses more up than over, holding left or right and attacking fires a quick volley of playing cards from the hat. These speed forward in a straight line, each at a slightly different elevation, and possess the sharp quality that allows tall grass and other scenery to sliced.

As fine and good those are, the best part of Magic is the Jack-in-the-box clown head, executed while pressing up and attacking. Holding out the hat -- as with every usage of the power -- a massive head springs up and out, bobbing a bit up and down and showering confetti before retreating. Interestingly, the coloring of the clown changes with the color spray currently chosen by the player, an neat touch. The other attacks dissipate upon striking a target, but this bobble head remains active and even pierces terrain, staying out a few full seconds before enigmatically fitting back into the now seemingly too small hat. It is no small thing, standing about four to five times the puffball's height. Releasing this painted-up monstrosity is perfect for hitting switches that you shouldn't be able to reach or wiping out a cluster of overhead star blocks. This hard-hitting attack is strong enough to break even metal blocks, too! The downside to this action is that it leaves the player both immobile and vulnerable throughout the duration. Any nearby foes -- mostly one's behind you -- may attack, and using this skill around cliffs and pitfalls may leave little time to inflate and not plummet to certain doom.

Upon procuring the Copy Ability Scroll, the player gains access to a return of its one-shot function, were either the screen is cleared by fireworks, a random ability, or some item is acquired. Doing so, of course, expends the power itself, so I never once bothered to perform this. I'll keep my wacky, bouncing clown head, thank you very much. Seriously, it is about all I ever do with this power. You'll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands! ... or present me a situation where I need a different ability to actually do something involving a treasure. Or a mini-boss. In a sense, however, this power never truly needs to be abandoned in favor for another. It should always be used to give something back rather than bouncing away, dejected and jilted by the saccharine hero.

While great in the day-to-day faring of levels, Magic does dreadfully against most stronger adversaries. The bulk of its offense is more vertically aligned, the damage rate is low, and the single hit projectiles are rather weak. Even against the few aerial bosses, the time spent frozen by the clown head technique makes it impractical to use if the targets aren't defeated immediately in its silly swathe. The exception, I found, is when fighting against the Squeaks inside one of their lairs. The multiple layers allow the player to stay low while striking high and take out the not-so-nice mice in relative safety.

This, overall, is a great ability -- after its debut only. Prior, it was a showy and derivative. It became well rounded, offering more than just the standard "attack right in front of you" mentality while having solid pros and cons. Yes, cons are good to have. Flaws make a character interesting, which is why no one likes a Mary Sue or, or Tornado in this same title. It isn't challenging to the point of frustration but doesn't overwhelm the game to the point of invincibility. It sits somewhere in the center, and that's where things normally have delicious creme filling, so who wouldn't like that?


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Last Updated - June 16th, 2016