Ask Guru Gobbo #150

Not all of the Extra Game enemies were used. Mostly, of course, the ones that were absent were those who had their prior forms missing, too. Anyhoo, Revenge of the King had a whole scary, evil, and mega-serious tone to it. Everything was dark and sinister. Then, you have Blopper, who looks like a frosted jelly bean. Now, if you put that in the mix of twisted and nightmarish variations, it really doesn't fit in. Yes, I know that Scarfy was changed into an apple, but it's a creepy fruit. The cake would still be that. Plus, Blopper exhibited different behavior than Cappy with its frosting flinging. I don't think that the Revenge lot really did anything profoundly different if at all.

There's an endless amount of possibilities of what Bubble could do; however, in Squeak Squad, it's only worth over an identical ranged ability like Fire was its ability to encapsulate things for later usage. It's pointless and almost idiotic to go on a spree of what it could be made to do, especially when the concepts don't tote much weight. It was made for a system that used bubbles, hence how its piece fit into the puzzle. It already looks like they opted for a Water ability in the ever never coming out Wii title to lend credence to my "not really a chance" saying.

They pop up on eBay and other on-line stores now and then. And, hey, look, there's a ton of them there right now. Who'd would have thought that the biggest on-line selling place of used goods would have had it? They can also probably be found in second hand video game/CD stores. I mean, it's pretty much a "no duh" that games out over ten years ago wouldn't be in regular retail stores anymore. The systems those titles were made for haven't even had games made for them in longer than that.

1) Simply put, they suck. Those specific abilities you named are all highly specialized powers, and two outta three were rarely available in the next to only game that had them (I'm not too familiar with Hi-Jump's frequency in Squeak Squad). Mostly, the game has to be designed and planned around these powers. Ball only really has much worth in a certain layout of course, much like how Laser frequently appears around systems of slopes. Hi-Jump needs plenty of vertical space to have any worth, and vertically progressed levels work even better. Clean, as is its real name despite the I-really-gotta-change-that game page, was made to be a crippling ability needed for solving puzzles but little worth in game play. Much like the focal Kine, it made getting full completion a challenge.

So, two of them required specific level design and appeared rarely and Broom was made to suck. This is entirely not how the new games roll. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: the newer, "hatted" games are all run an' smash while the older ones were slower and focused more on charming attributes like rolling up to a ball and bouncing around. There are several reasons for some abilities to be left in the dust. I would see Missile as an improved Hi-Jump, as it can go more than just up (although Squeak Squad used that still...). The lackluster pizazz of Ball pales in comparison to something like multi-function Fighter or Sword. These abilities aren't universally useful in the game, and who wants that? If you're dishing out only twenty-some slots for prime time powers, they better count. You don't want an ability that no one will ever use. Even when presented with Ball for an obstacle course, I still might pass it up 'cuz, hey, why bother? Throw, however, is money in the bank. Gimme that briefcase!

2) The character embargo betwixt these seemingly fissured worlds in the Kirbyverse suggests otherwise.

3) Now, that's a baseless comparison. What does Joe have to do with Acro, exactly? The two have nothing in common other than being in the same game and water enemies. Sasuke and Popon were also in this title and the show but Pteran was only in a few games. Know what significance that has? None. There is no meaning to your question. If they had split up a recognized pair, like Pon & Con, then it would inspire inquiry, but Joe has nothing to do with Acro. The animated series just picked characters they wanted to have appear with no rhyme or reason. It's just who they wanted. Many were chosen. More were left out in the cold. No explanation. The way I see it, the less canon characters that were dragged through the dirt that is the animated series, the more it shows how much that cartoon was not really about Kirby.

1) In this case, "soul" is more like "ghost" to basically say, "He dead, yo." Although, I do see your point.

2) Lots of Dream Landers look alike. They all share from a pool of common traits, parts, and such, although this is more true of earlier enemies and those in Dream Land 3 than the more complex Super Star variety. Dees just share more than most. They are all Dream Landers. Saying one is a mutant of another is like saying someone from another country is a mutant human just 'cuz they look a little different. And that's racist. Shame on you, Kory. Shame.

3) I've never heard something so stupid in my life, especially when there's strawberries visible on the cake. Who is this "most" you speak of, as it is the first I've ever heard such a laughable blunder.

4) Much like Shadow Kirby in Amazing Mirror, despite being an inversion of the real Kirby, the overwhelming goodness that is in the pink puff overrides what should be a wholly evil being. So, it's a flip to what you suspect. The little bit of good in the doppelganger doesn't translate bad to the original; the utter purity in the prime taints what should be a bad apple by giving it a fleck of sweetness.

5) This is a moronic assumption. I've gone over numerous times how Squeaky Bogg was designed to fit into Kirby games both by appearance and behavior, but just because I designed intelligently does not mean I make sprite sheets. I don't even do any sprite work of any kind (ignore the Pixel Gobbo two questions up). I draw. Know who does do sprite work? Sprite artists. Big shock there.

Why would it be assumed, anyways, that an original character would have a sprite sheet readily laying around? If it was Kirby with hair and a paint job like 107% of Kirby fan characters are, then I could see the assumption. Most people who make such for their "original" characters are just recoloring a hedgehog green or some other equally unimpressive feat. Squeaky would practically need built from scratch, and, since as already stated I am not a pixel artist, this will never be done. Ever.

All of this is blatantly detailed on the Kirakira Kizzu game page. Due to the way the game was programmed, as is stated numerous places on the linked page, which probably boils down to how the text was presented, a "fan translation" ROM would be next to impossible to roll out. However, it's not like the game is anywhere near storyline driven. The pictures pretty much tell the story. "Look, stars need collected. Hey, that guy has 'em. Let's battle! Now, that guy!" Now, while a cracked ROM does not exist, this site does have a complete picture-guided transcript of the game on the obviously named Translation page, which also pretty much tackles the whole of this question with a nice, pink bow.

Spin-offs have their place, like I've said before. They are a nice balance to the series and, in my opinion, work better with a power toting ball than, say, an overweight plumber just looking for another means of churning out anoter buck.

As for difficulty, the platformers are, for the most part, supposed to be easy and can be played through with little difficulty. Most all of them can be "speed played" in one day, even Amazing Mirror and Super Star, which is the bulk of the idea behind Meta Knightmare Ultra. However, a title like Dream Course I have still yet to land all possible holes-in-one on, and may only have as high as silver in some courses. Pinball Land is tricky to beat without losing all your lives, and Tilt 'n' Tumble is a real challenge. These titles are, in my opinion, much more challenging than the action/adventure ones.

Think about it: does any area ever reappear in Kirby games? (forget remakes) No. The locations, and therefore the fauna, change title to title. You don't see many marsupials outside of Down Under, and you don't see any Como in Green Greens. Basic grade school biology and geography.

The listing page also says where the parodies appear, whether it is the entire episode or just some scenes. This is barely satire in the normal sense where the episode reflects these themes and is more like the store sign in the background with a funny pun based on another commercial retail store. Literally, all that is said is the title "Planet of the Apes" while showing a space ship with Dedede in a monkey suit. Wow! Satire! I don't know why that mention deserved more notice than the Star Trek one, but I didn't make nor care for the page.

1) This is an extra task. You know those, right? They're in plenty of games, even Air Ride to keep it in the series. They let you know more about the foes, such as what their names are and who gives what ability. You have to remember, this was all before wide spread internet-ness. No one knew this stuff then. This way, you wouldn't call them names like "Buzzsaw" or "Whad".

2) Why should there be a dog? You might as well as "Why isn't there an elephant?" There's no dog for what could a dog do? All of the friends have special niches they fill. The classic trio are all pretty basic. An octopus can do fancy things like cling to a ceiling. Felines are known for their agility and ability to triple jump (watch your kitty, you'll see it eventually), and Pitch is like an amped up version of Kirby. What fanciness would a canine fill? Probably a lot, if you sat down to think about it. But, you know what? They only went with six Animal Friends, and all of them are much more distinctive from one another than a dog would be. Well, except for Nago. Really, guys? You couldn't try a little harder to make it not at least look like Rick?

1) They never say. Why is it the case? Who is it? They never tell us and assume that no one will ever care. His mother isn't important. She's not a featured character in the show and has no interaction with any other characters, so why would her identity be crucial for the series? The answer: it isn't. Who is Parm's mother, for example. I don't care. It's not relavent to the story, so it's never told.

2) I'm going out on a limb here with a guess that, oh, I dunno, he took a picture of his son like so many parents do?

3, 4) They never say... again. Why does it happen? Why is it the case? Why is it important? The writing and consistency in the series is horribly lacking in several cases, and this is just another shovel full to dump onto the pile.

Yea- no. That's no reference. He's toting a wide variety of weapons, all just of Asian origin. It's no reference to that reknowned story; it's just saying "Weapons, weapons, weapons." Yes, those appear in the tale. You know where else they appear? Everywhere in China. It'd be like if I said, "This RPG is referencing King Arthur" just 'cuz it had swords and lances.