Kirby: Planet Robobot

Kirby: Planet Robobot is an action platform video game. It was published by Nintendo and developed by HAL Laboratory. It was released for the Nintendo 3DS on April 28, 2016 in Japan and on June 10, 2016 worldwide.

The game was revealed during a Nintendo Direct on March 3, 2016.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Planet Robobot is like the last game, Triple Deluxe. It uses the Nintendo 3DS's 3D system by having Kirby move into the background and foreground in levels. Like most games in the series, Kirby is able to eat enemies and spit them out to attack. He can also swallow them to get their powers. Players can also get items and abilities by using Amiibo figures. The game adds a mech suit called the Robobot Armor that Kirby can use, allowing him to break some things, lift heavy things, and defeat big enemies. Like Kirby, the Robobot Armor can get versions of these abilities by scanning enemies. This can be used to attack enemies and solve puzzles. Code Cubes are hidden in every level. They are needed to beat the game and unlock bonus levels. They can also be used to get stickers. These stickers can be put on the Robobot Armor.

Minigames
Planet Robobot has two minigames: Team Kirby Clash and Kirby 3D Rumble. Team Kirby Clash is an action role-playing game in which up to four players pick a character class and work together to fight big bosses. Kirby 3D Rumble is a single-player game in which Kirby must move through a 3D area to kill enemies as quickly as possible. Beating the main game unlocks two more modes. One is Meta Knightmare Returns, where players play as Meta Knight in a harder version of the main game. The other is The Arena, where players fight multiple bosses with limited healing. The game also supports StreetPass and Miiverse.

Plot
A very big spacecraft called the Access Ark takes over and mechanizes Kirby's home, Planet Popstar. King Dedede and Meta Knight try to fight back, but Dedede's castle and Meta Knight's airship are both blown up. Kirby is sleeping the whole time. He wakes up and sees that his planet's energy is being stolen and goes to take care of it.

Kirby breaks the Access Ark's five legs all over Planet Popstar. He gets the Robobot Armor while doing this. The Robobot Armor is a mysterious power suit that makes his ability-copying power stronger. Kirby also finds an alien secretary named Susie. She claims to be taking natural resources from the planet's ecosystems for her boss, President Max Profitt Haltmann. He is the person in charge of the Access Ark, and has been following the business plans of a supercomputer named Star Dream.

After breaking all five legs and making the Access Ark unable to move, Kirby goes into the Ark and meets Haltmann. Haltmann fires Susie for not stopping Kirby. He then fights Kirby in his own power suit but is beaten. Haltmann then attempts to use Star Dream to kill Kirby, but is stopped by Susie. However, Star Dream becomes self-aware, takes over Haltmann's body, and attacks Susie. Star Dream then says that all living things are in the way of their plan and tries to destroy a bunch of galaxies. Meta Knight then comes back with a repaired version of his airship and Kirby combines it with his Robobot Armor to fight Star Dream.

Kirby fights and breaks Star Dream, but it comes back and takes control of the Access Ark. Star Dream goes on a rampage and damages Meta Knight's airship, but Meta Knight shoots Kirby out of it. Kirby then breaks the supercomputer with a very big drill. After Star Dream falls apart, Kirby's dying Robobot Armor uses the last of its power to send him back to his home.

Reception

Kirby: Planet Robobot received positive reviews. GameSpot said that they liked the gameplay, level design, characters, art, music, and extra modes, but didn't like how easy the game was. IGN's Brendan Graeber liked the 3D-based puzzles in really nice-looking worlds, boss fights, the Robobot mech, and additional modes, but disliked the game being so easy. Ollie Barder of Forbes gave it a good review, saying it is like the mecha anime series Gurren Lagann.

It had sold 300,479 copies in Japan by June 2016. It sold 1.36 million copies by the end of March 2017.

References

Other websites
Offical website 
Official North American website

Category:2016 video games
Category:Kirby
Category:HAL Laboratory games
Category:Crossover video games
Category:Nintendo 3DS eShop games
Category:Nintendo 3DS games
Category:Nintendo Network games
Category:Video games about alien invasions
Category:Video games developed in Japan