Thoughts on Kirby: Canvas Curse
By Filipe Salgado - August 6th, 2009
While the Mario series is where Nintendo refines the platformer genre, the Kirby series is where ideas are tried, played around with, discarded, and picked up again. Kirby Superstar, a half-forgotten title from the SNES era that was thankfully re-released on the DS, best exemplifies this. It’s a collection of small little experiments in form. Different types of games, different objectives, the only constant being Kirby. As a whole, it’s a series that should come with footnotes*.
So it was my surprise when I picked up Kirby: Canvas Curse, and found a unique game. Its base is a standard platformer, but its control scheme is really unlike anything out there. The premise is that Kirby is turned into a ball, and he keeps rolling in whatever direction he’s facing. Using the stylus, and only the stylus mind you, you can tap Kirby to dash, or you can create lines on screen that guide him. These lines can be used to avoid enemies, block their attacks, and be used as ramps. Basically, they eliminate the use of buttons altogether.
Sorry to draw on the comparisons again, but the Mario series is very deliberate. Everything in the game is where it is for a reason. Miyamoto and his teams build games and then endlessly tweak them until they’re just right. Canvas Curse is messy. Crisscrosses of rainbow lines fill the screen. You won’t be making the precision run jumps that platformers usually ask for. Instead, you will frantically scribble on the screen making your own platforms. On the better levels, this culminates in a frantic, fast-paced mess that’s as fun as the best entries in the platformer canon.
The Contra series will always have a special place in my heart, despite my being unable to play through the original due to lack of skills. But what’s not to love about a game where you get to run around blasting aliens with ridiculous weapons. 
