September 17, 2019

Super Kirby Clash

By Elliot Super Kirby Clash was released on Nintendo Switch on September 4, 2019. Except that’s a lie. Super Kirby Clash is a lie. It’s really masquerading as a former game, Team Kirby Clash Deluxe. That game was released on April 12, 2017 on the Nintendo 3DS as a free-to-play game. And you would think that would be the end of the discussion. But it’s not. That too is a lie. It is true that Super Kirby Clash is masking itself as Team Kirby Clash Deluxe, but Team Kirby Clash Deluxe pretending to be Kirby: Planet Robobot, released on June 10, 2016 in America. And here inlies the problem with our current game of the week, Super Kirby Clash. It’s a port, of a port, of a mini game.
    Sure they’ve added new bosses and maps, more maps to play on (if you can find enjoyment from a different background rom the last boss fight, the only thing a “new” map provides) There’s 54 unique boss fights to be had in game, you can level each of your four “heroes” 57 times, gaining new stats along the way. Super Kirby Clash also has countless upgrade options for items, weapons and armor, as well as powerups you can use on fights. But once you get away from knowing all that you are still just playing a bloated mini game. And it feels like a bloated mini game from the start.
You take the role of Kirby, in one of 4 colors, classic pink, yellow, blue, and green, along with a unique role based on your color, sword hero, hammer lord, doctor healmore, and beam mage. If, like me, you can not find three other human lifeforms to take on the other roles, you can use the in game AI to help battle. I didn’t find the AI to be the worst, but they were also useless at times, especially during big boss fights, where time is not on your side to defeat the boss on the clock.
This game is labeled as “free to start”. I know that’s just Nintendo’s way of saying free to play, but I do feel that free to start does fit this better than free to play. The micro transactions in the game are everywhere to be seen, but they are handled fairly well. In Super Kirby Clash you are only dealing with one in game currency, gem apples, and it is used to buy everything. From new gear, opening up levels to play, to refilling your vigor- a little of which is used in before every fight, refilling 1 vigor every 7 minutes. Earning gem apples just by playing the game is easy to do, and you start to gain a pile of them without even realizing it. They can also leave just as quickly, but fear not, buying them is simple, if not a little on the expensive side. I was able to play all week without feeling like I was running low on gem apples, but I doubt I would have the same opinion if I was to continue playing after our one week with the game.
Which leads me to my final thoughts. Is there a lot of content in the game? Yes. Is it worth pursuing for more than a week? No. You can’t beat free, and if you’re looking for something to play with friends in a couch co-op setting this isn’t the worst game, but it is very repetitive, the controls are not great, but saying all of that, there is fun to be had. It did not get my seal of approval, and it did not get Jeff or Scott’s either. Super Kirby Clash is not a Budget Arcade approved game.
 You can Listen on Anchor to this episode.
Elliot is a part of the weekly Budget Arcade podcast. Find him on Twitter at @Elliot_Argues You can also find his other podcasts; Tessa and Elliot Argue, and Wall Pull where you find podcasts.

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