NOTE: This is Virtual Console review. As such, there's none of the usual scoring at the end.Just text and a quick verdict.

The second game released this week is 1993's Kirby's Adventure, the second game in the Kirby franchise. It saw a very late release in the life of the NES and, visually, it shows. If you've never played a Kirby game (or even Super Smash Brothers), this is how it goes: Certain enemies you face have unique abilities and Kirby has the capability to suck these enemies in to gain them. This unique style of gameplay that pretty much separated Kirby from all other platformers back in the 8-bit days making it very different from the big two: Mario and Sonic. Kirby also uses a different damage system. You don't die when you've lost all your rings or when you get hit in your lowest form; you have 8 energy blocks which can be refilled by items, which more resembles Zelda or Metroid.

Like other platformers however, Kirby is incredibly short. The game only has 8 worlds containing 6 to 8 levels in each, which are mostly themed and named after foods. They all end in a boss battle also. The game also features 4 mini games: Quick-Draw, Crane, Egg Catcher and Arena. Kirby was originally aimed at the lower aged gamers when it was originally developed; the game is much easier than any of the three Mario's on the NES due to its simple level design and life system. That doesn't mean there aren't problems however. This game has horrific slow down and since I've never played the original NES game so I'm not totally sure if it's not just bad emulation. But going by previous VC titles, I'd say it has to be the original game. The sound effects and music are also ear wrenchingly tinny meaning you might want to play this one at a low volume. However the music is reasonably catchy, if you've played any previous Kirby game you'll have heard most of the music before.

So, does this game live up to other VC games? Not really. The fact is Kirby's Adventure is quite past it. Kirby: Canvas Curse/Power Paintbrush is a far better game on the DS or failing that Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland on the GBA is a complete remake of Kirby's Adventure and it's a much better version to boot. I'd save your money on this one, unless you're an avid Kirby fan.

Verdict: 5/10