The pink hero’s history with horrifying monsters
Kirby is arguably the cutest video game character of all time. He’s pink and squishy, more like a cuddly pillow than the brave hero of a massive franchise. But his world isn’t as adorable as it first appears. Sometimes, the sickly-sweet exterior of the Kirby universe gives way to something just bone-chilling, an eldritch core that sits in direct contrast to the eponymous protagonist’s cheerful persona.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ’s World of Light — the game’s single-player story mode — gives us a glimpse of the same darkness. In the mode’s intro, monsters lead by the unknown villain Galeem descend upon Nintendo’s most notable characters, vaporizing everyone in a comically extended sequence — except Kirby. Was this because Masahiro Sakurai, Kirby’s creator and longtime Super Smash Bros. director, has a soft spot in his heart for the pink puffball, or did Kirby’s experiences with his universe’s elder gods given him a sort of survival instinct against their powers?
Kirby was first introduced — albeit without his signature power-stealing abilities — in 1992 with Kirby’s Dream Land. This first game was more simplistic than the installments that followed, and while the creepiest facets of the Kirby world still lurked over the horizon, they were teased through a regular enemy known as a Scarfy. This floating, cat-like creature puts on a cute face, right up until Kirby attacks. As soon as Kirby unleashes his vacuum attack, Scarfy transforms horrifically into an exploding, one-eyed demon.
Dream Land ’s primary antagonist, a penguin known as King Dedede, returned in the 1993 follow-up Kirby’s Adventure. Dedede lifts a magical artifact known as the Star Rod and breaks it into several pieces, essentially robbing Dream Land of its dreams. This doesn’t sit right with Kirby, who sets off to gather the fragments of the Star Rod and make things right.
It’s only natural that Kirby (and, by extension, the player) assumes King Dedede is simply trying to be a jerk, but his intentions are revealed after he’s defeated by the pink puffball. As Kirby returns the repaired Star Rod to its rightful place in the Fountain of Dreams, Dedede desperately pleads with him to stop, only to be rebuffed. Dedede watches in horror as Kirby accidentally releases an entity known as Nightmare, whom Dedede had attempted to trap by destroying the Star Rod.
