# Kirby's Dream Buffet

Kirby's Dream Buffet is a 2022 party and racing video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch as a spinoff title in the Kirby series. The game was announced via social media in July 2022 and was digitally released worldwide for the Nintendo eShop the following month.
Kirby's Dream Buffet revolves around four Kirbys, controlled by human players or artificial intelligence, competing in various dessert-themed minigames, with objectives ranging from reaching the end of a race course first to collecting the most strawberries. The game supports both local and online multiplayer.
Kirby's Dream Buffet received mixed reviews from critics, with criticism being largely directed toward its repetitive gameplay and online mode. Many reviewers compared the game to Fall Guys both before and after its release.

## Gameplay

Kirby's Dream Buffet is a multiplayer video game in which four ball-shaped Kirbys roll through dessert-themed courses and compete to collect the most strawberries. In the game's frame story, Kirby is suddenly shrunken down by the Dream Fork, causing him to land in the cake he was about to eat.
The player characters can be controlled by human players or artificial intelligence, with the latter having four difficulty levels. As characters consume strawberries, they increase in size and speed, though hovering becomes more difficult. Players can defeat enemies and use food power-ups on each stage to attack one another or expand their lead. For instance, chili peppers give characters a speed boost, while doughnuts temporarily turn them into wheels. The game can be played locally with up to two human players (four if more than one console is used) and online with up to four players, with the lattermost option requiring a Nintendo Switch Online account. Matches can be randomized or played in private lobbies.
There are three types of rounds, each with several different stages:
* Race: The stage is laid out like a race track. The first, second, and third players to reach the goal are granted 50, 20, and 10 additional strawberries, respectively.
* Minigame: Events that typically take place on a small stage, wherein players have 20 seconds to gain strawberries while avoiding obstacles and defeating enemies.
* Battle Royale: Similar to in minigame rounds, players compete on a small stage with abilities and strawberries dropping over time. Players can steal others' strawberries and earn bonuses by knocking opponents off the stage.
Rounds can be played separately or in the main game mode, Gourmet Grand Prix, in which players compete in a race, a minigame, another race, and then a Battle Royale. Afterwards, 40-strawberry bonuses are given out depending on random statistical conditions, such as collecting the most strawberries, knocking down the most barriers, hovering for the longest amount of time, or defeating the most players. The player with the highest strawberry count wins the game. Another game mode, Free Rolling, allows players to test out Kirby's abilities and customize their character.
After completing individual rounds or a Gourmet Grand Prix, players are awarded points to raise their "Gourmet Rank". There are 135 ranks in total, and each time the player's rank increases, they unlock a new costume, color, stage, or music track that can be used for customization. In online matches, every player can customize their character, while in local matches, only one player can customize their character. Players can also unlock "Character Treats", cookies based on characters from the Kirby series, which can be displayed on a cake.

## Development and release

Kirby's Dream Buffet was developed by HAL Laboratory. The game was revealed by Nintendo with an announcement trailer via social media on July 12, 2022, set to be released in the summer of that year. Upon reveal, the game was widely likened to Fall Guys, with similarities being noted between the games' obstacle courses. Moreover, the party game atmosphere was compared to that of the Mario Party series. Along with Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Kirby's Dream Buffet was believed to be part of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Kirby's debut.
The game's official release date was revealed in a new trailer shown during the Kirby 30th Anniversary Music Festival on August 11, 2022, which also revealed that standard Copy Abilities would be replaced with food power-ups. Kirby's Dream Buffet was digitally released worldwide for the Nintendo eShop on August 17, 2022. On the same date of the game's release, it was announced that both the Tokyo and Hakata-ku branches of Kirby Café would begin selling a dessert inspired by Kirby's Dream Buffet on September 1.
Despite not featuring a typical storyline, Kirby's Dream Buffet was adapted into a light novel in which a witch's magical fork grants Kirby's wish to eat even more snacks, shrinking down Kirby, King Dedede, Meta Knight, and other characters, thus beginning a race to the Gourmet King's throne on a snack mountain. The book was released on December 14, 2022, in Japan.
Tetris 99's 31st Maximus Cup event, which ran from December 15–19, 2022, featured a new theme that could be unlocked by earning a total of 100 event points. The theme included art, music, and tetromino designs inspired by Kirby's Dream Buffet.

## Reception
### Critical response

Aggregate score :
| Aggregator | Score |
| Metacritic | 67/100 |
Review scores :
| Publication | Score |
| Destructoid | 7/10 |
| GameSpot | 6/10 |
| Gamezebo | 70/100 |
| Hardcore Gamer | 4/5 |
| Nintendo Life | 8/10 |
| Nintendo World Report | 6/10 |
| NME | 3/5 |
| Shacknews | 7/10 |
| TouchArcade | 3/5 |
| VG247 | 2/5 |
| Common Sense Media | 4/5 |
| The Independent | 7/10 |
Kirby's Dream Buffet received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. The gameplay was widely compared to that of Fall Guys. Additionally, several reviewers likened the bonuses given out at the end of rounds to the post-game awards in the Mario Party series, with Nintendo Life's PJ O'Reilly also comparing the items to those in the Mario Kart series.
Nintendo Life liked the visuals and remarked that they were "pretty impressed with how smooth things run". Destructoid enjoyed how players grew physically bigger the more successful they were, "thus becoming a more obvious target". Nintendo World Report criticized the minigames, describing them as "overly simple". TouchArcade felt the game was lacking content, saying, "you'll likely have seen all that's worth seeing in a single session". Digital Trends criticized the game's online mode, while Eurogamer complimented the races.

### Sales

The download card for Kirby's Dream Buffet sold more than 7,000 units within its first week of release in Japan, making it the sixth-best-selling retail game of the week in the country.

### Accolades

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Kirby's Dream Buffet for Family Game of the Year during the 26th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards.