We got our hands on Kirby's Epic Yarn and unravelled a truly joyous game. To find out what we thought of Kirby's Wii outing head inside.

Charming. If there's one word that describes Kirby's Epic Yarn it is most definitely charming. Kirby has always been a fun and harmless character who has plodded through life and the Nintendo consoles with a spring in his step but there is something about him being made of yarn that really brings out his appeal.

The demo that we played contained three levels - an introductory level, a standard level and a boss battle. These could be played alone or with a friend and we played both. Donkey Kong Country Returns was also on show at the event and likewise could be played alone or with a friend and the easiest way to compare their use of the two player mode is that while Donkey Kong Country Returns required you to work as a team, otherwise you could end up in bigger trouble, Kirby's Epic Yarn simply gave you a chance to take a nice journey with a friend.

One of the most amusing aspects of the two player mode was the fact you could pick up your friend, or they could even land on you, and just take them for a ride. There were times when you would accidentally grab your friend when you meant to grab something else but you can quickly throw them off or even use them as a weapon. Other than this there was not much use for the second person, but I do not mean that detrimentally.

For anyone who has watched the trailer or gameplay videos you will know what to expect from the game. Kirby, now made of yarn, can grab hold of enemies and unravel them. He can also grab hold of certain parts of the environment to interact with them by pulling sections together, removing parts etc (my favourite was grabbing onto a tree and shaking it to make the beads drop to the floor). As well as this he can turn into a car and other vehicles are promised, although the only one in the demo was a very large tank that shot rockets, or in two player mode one person controlled the rockets while the other controlled a large boxing glove.

The game is very simple to play. Using the Wii remote on the side you move with the d-pad and use the 1 and 2 buttons. While the controls are simple they are still intuitive as they allow for you to transform into a car, a parachute, an anvil and all the other things Kirby can now transform into with ease. There are occasional uses of the motion sensor, such as during the tank mode whereby you use it to aim missiles.

The demo was not particularly taxing and Kirby could not even be hurt, so this is certainly not one for anyone who likes a challenge. Furthermore the levels we played were all quite short and we finished them all in the space of about ten minutes, so initial concerns that the game may be short like previous Kirby titles may be with merit. But there is something really special and alluring about this title: the graphics, the way you interact with the environment, the sound Kirby makes when he's a car. There are a lot of nice little touches that make this game enjoyable while it lasts.

- Ashley Jones