King Dedede
King Dedede plays the role of a protagonist in "" (2000), helping Kirby in certain areas after Kirby once again saves him from possession by Dark Matter, who shattered the titular Crystal. Additionally, King Dedede is a playable character in the game's three minigames. Images of the game's beta show that Dedede was originally a playable character from the game's beginning. In "Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble" (2001), Dedede steals all of the stars from the sky for himself and Kirby needs to fight him to get them back. After his absence from "Kirby and the Amazing Mirror" (2004), King Dedede appears as the first boss in "Kirby Squeak Squad" (2007) and is identical to his appearance in previous games, except his new ability to summon Parasol Waddle Dees. In Kirby Super Star Ultra (2009), King Dedede returns in his own gamemode, Revenge of The King, which is a spin-off of the Revenge of Meta Knight subgame. Whenever faced off, he dons a new title, Masked Dedede, as he dons a silver mask with 3 horns, and a new hammer that features the ability to shoot missiles and able to spin frantically with the hammer.