Collection essentials #153: Kirby’s Dream Land 2 (Game Boy)

It’s called Kirby’s Dream Land 2, but this is actually the third game in the series. Kirby’s Adventure for NES came out second in 1993, while Dream Land 2 followed in ‘95. And this certainly is a huge step up from Dream Land 1.

Kirby’s Dream Land 2, not surprisingly, like every other future Kirby game brought back the copy ability from Kirby’s Adventure, so Kirby can eat certain foes in order to gain their powers. Dream Land 2 has fewer powers than Adventure did, but it does sort of make up for it with a new feature. There are three animal friends here this time to help Kirby out: Rick the hamster, Kine the fish, and Coo the owl. Upon meeting them, Kirby can team up with them, which not only can change the way Kirby controls a bit, but it also changes how all the power-ups work. So each power-up in the game has four different variations, one type of use when Kirby is alone, plus a different one for each of the three animal friends. 

Dream Land 2 is one of those games that want you to revisit the levels you've already beaten to go for 100% completion to get a "true ending". See, in seven particular levels scattered throughout the game, there are hidden “rainbow drops” that can be difficult to find and require utilizing Kirby’s powers in different ways. You gotta replay and explore the levels well in order to find them all and get your good ending! A lot of future Kirby games would have some kind of true ending like this, and platformers that clearly want the player to try for 100% completion started to become more of a thing in general around this time period.

While I do think Kirby’s Dream Land 2 is inferior to most future Kirby games, it’s still a quality title that’s definitely worth a ride for any fan of the series. It’s a standout in the original Game Boy’s library and easily an essential.