The Kirby franchise has never been about creating immersive narratives for fans to sink their teeth into. The main games in the series, like this year’s Kirby and the Forgotten Land, do have stories but they aren’t that important. So, when creating Kirby's Dream Buffet, Nintendo opted to keep things simple and focus on the gameplay.
Kirby's Dream Buffet is a multiplayer gaming experience, both online and offline, that puts a new spin on the Battle Royale formula. As basic as the idea is, there are some complex strategies players can use to become number one easier. Let’s dive in and sort these tactics out.
8 It’s A Race, Treat It Like One
The main gameplay hook of Kirby’s Dream Buffet has players race through linear tracks. It’s like another popular racing series under Nintendo’s umbrella, Mario Kart, except with racers that look like rotund balls. There are food stops along the way to get bigger but the finish line has three giant deserts waiting for players at the end.
First place will reward them with fifty strawberries on the regular. Eating food along the way is a good strategy but it is most important to finish first to truly enjoy that giant leap ahead of everyone else.
7 Let Other Players Break Walls
There will be cookie barriers that spring up in levels. There are two ways to pass through them with the first using brute force. Once this wall breaks, there will be a slight delay due to recoil before players can pass through and continue on with the race. If you break the wall, that will give other players an opportunity to get ahead. However, a wise racer would hang back and let opponents break the wall instead.
The other way through is by using the jelly or drill power-ups which can allow players to either go underneath the wall or slip through the cracks.
6 Avoid Creams And Sauces
There are various hazards set up in levels to slow players down which is common for racing games. These obstacles can be familiar from the aforementioned walls to giant holes. There are also unorthodox obstacles like butter on top of pancakes or waffles.
Sliding into butter will be like getting a car stuck in the mud and the same is true for other creams and sauces like chocolate. As good as the food looks, don’t engage it.
5 Save Your Power-ups
There are several power-ups that players can use to even the playing field in Kirby’s Dream Buffet. There were the two previously mentioned power-ups of the drill and jelly which are more for traversal purposes. There are also more offensive ones like a pepper that will light Kirby on fire.
Running into an opponent while it is on fire will damage and knock them off course. The spin attack is also a good power-up to have. Once a power-up is acquired, save it for emergencies only like when someone tries to pass. This is a good tip for other whimsical racers like Mario Kart too.
4 Take Shortcuts
The best way to win a race in a video game or in real life is by taking shortcuts. The most dangerous routes in Kirby’s Dream Buffet are the best ones. If the path is narrow and avoids obstacles, take it even if the risk is high of falling into a hole. Thankfully Kirby can still float if this does happen.
Using holes to bypass packed lanes is also a good strategy. Floating will slow Kirby’s speed down significantly but if there are small gaps, it’s almost worth jumping into a pit. The overall tip is to think on the fly and to experiment with each level in the game.
3 Make Yourself Look Distinct
For a Battle Royale game, the player count is dramatically lower than other games on the market like Fortnite. Only four human racers can compete in an online match and the same is true for local gameplay too
Even though that’s the case, it can still be hard to keep track of your Kirby which is why it’s important to make it look distinct. Add a little color to it or snap on a hat. There will be AI opponents that join the race too to further confuse the race, making customization even more important.
2 Practice With The Difficulties
Those are all tips to help players win it big in the Battle Royale main mode. Testing merits against other live opponents is great but so is practicing with the single-player options. Players can go on full relays like in multiplayer or they can tackle individual segments from the racing part to the mini-games.
There are also four difficulties players can choose between. Start on the hardest difficulty as that should give players a true test of what to expect in an official match.
1 Test Out Powers
There is another more open option to practice in as well via the free roaming area. Here players can get a hang of controlling Kirby which isn’t as hard as some other spinoffs in the series. The controls are tight which is surprising given Kirby’s alternative form.
The coolest part about this place is that every power-up in Kirby’s Dream Buffet is accounted for. This is a great opportunity to test the limits of each power in the environment. Knowing what each power-up does before a race is a good advantage to have over opponents who may not realize the full capabilities of the power-ups they find.
Kirby's Dream Buffet was released on August 17, 2022 and is available on Switch.