20 KIRBY: 20 of My Favorite Copy Abilities

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It was until Kirby's second game, Kirby's Adventure on the NES that Kirby gained the ability to replicate the powers of inhaled foes. This became known as the Copy Ability. Swords, yo-yos, beams, wheels, the abilities Kirby can play around with are a large part of what make his side-scrolling escapes so much fun. In honor of Kirby's 20th anniversary, here's a list of 20 of my favorite Kirby Copy Abilities.

01. Mike 

Most heroes use some sort of bomb to dispose of every enemy on the screen. Kirby steps up to a microphone and belts out a mean tune. Exactly, what that tune is, well, who knows? It's been speculated that Kirby is tone deaf. No matter. As long as it kills everyone in sight, that's all I care about. The Crash ability is similar but I prefer the Mike.

02. Parasol

Mary Poppins might have made floating with an umbrella popular, but she has nothing on Kirby. Not only can Kirby float with the Parasol, it also sports offensive capabilities. The Penguin mostly uses hims umbrellas for weapons when hey are closed. Kirby uses his for a weapon when the thing is fully open. How's that for being adept?

03. Bomb 

This ability is about as old-school as it gets. The classic cartoon bomb can be hurled at enemies to explode upon impact. A good weapon to have in Kirby Super Star, it was made even more useful when you could aim it in Kirby's Return to Dream Land.

04. Wheel 

The first time I got the Wheel I fell in love. How can you not love this power? It lets you move fast as well as run straight through enemies. I'm especially fond of the sound effects it makes in Kirby's Adventure.

05. Needle 

The Needle ability let's Kirby unleash his inner porcupine. A simple press of the button and Kirby's body is covered with needles just waiting to inflict harm on any oncoming foes from all directions. Like all Copy Abilities in Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Needle was enhanced. You could fire off needles by shaking the Wii Remote, turn the needles on Kirby's helmet into a giant drill that stands straight up, and use a rolling attack.

06. Fighter 

Debuting in Kirby Super Star, the Fighter ability sees Kirby dawning a red bandanna similar to Ryu's. That is already cool in and of itself but the quickness of Kirby's attacks as a Fighter are what make it such an awesome ability. Further

07. Hammer 

Mario and Luigi are no strangers to using hammers as a weapon and neither is Kirby. Originally the Hammer was one of those not-so-common power ups, probably because of how powerful it was. It was certainly worth dropping whatever power you had to pick this one up in earlier Kirby games. Even in more recent titles like Kirby's Return to Dream Land, its still one of the best close range weapons to have.

08. Cutter 

This is another projectile based weapon, but the blade would actually return to you once thrown. It was a common, nifty ability to have in Kirby's Adventure and it really came into its own in Kirby Super Star with extra attacks like the Cutter Drop. Cutter was improved even more in Kirby's Return to Dream Land where it could be charged and thrown in different directions.

09. Double-Bladed Laser Sword 

Say what you want about Star Wars Episode I, but Darth Maul's double edged Lightsaber was 10 different kinds of awesome. So getting to use it in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards was quite a treat. It even makes the same humming sound Lightsabers make. This unique sword is formed when the Spark and Cutter abilities are combined.

10. Beam 

Appearing for the first time in Kirby's Adventure, the Beam is one of the most common Copy Abilities, present in just about every game where Copy Abilities are used. Its basic function is that of an electrified chain whip. The Beam's uses were expanded even further in Kirby Super Star when it could be charged and fired off for long range attacks.

11. Stone 

Squashing unsuspecting enemies flat is one of my favorite methods of attack in the Kirby games. If you transform into stone on a slope, you'll slide down, striking any foes in your way. While Mario and Luigi could turn to stone in a few of their adventures, there was a limit to how long they could remain in that form. Kirby's time as solid object is unlimited. Stone is worth having just to see the different statues Kirby can turn into. In Kirby's Return to Dream Land the number is rather high.

12. Spear 

One of the newer Copy Abilities, the Spear is one of the greatest weapons in Kirby's wide arsenal. It is an excellent weapon to have for quick, successive strikes at close range, and for long rang attacks, it can be thrown. You can also strike upwards and downwards with it. Charging the Spear up allows Kirby to fly with it like a helicopter for a short time and any enemies that touch the spinning Spear are toast.

13. Yo-yo 

The Yo-yo is one of those abilities I wish was used in more Kirby games. This Copy Ability hasn't made an appearance outside of Kirby Super Star. The yo-yo tricks Kirby pulls off with this ability are absolutely sick. And the Break Spin? Well, we all knew Kirby could break dance but using it as an attack? Too cool, too cool. I also really like the Yo-Yo ability for the hat Kirby wears.

14. Ninja 

OK, who doesn't like ninjas? Yeah, that's what I thought. You put ninjas in something and you've got win. Ninja is one of the fastest Copy Abilities of the Kirby series, but to get the best use out of it, you have to deal as many attacks as you can at a time because the kunai aren't all that strong when used solo. When using the Ninja ability, Kirby can also stick to walls.

15. Cook 

What's for dinner? Any poor saps that happen to be on the screen when Kirby uses the Cook ability, that's what. With this power, Kirby cooks enemies and turns them into food to resort energy. This ability is worth using just to see the Kirby play the role of a chef. But in a way, its kinda stomach churning. I mean, he's cooking foes and eating them. My word, sometimes I think Kirby needs professional help.

16. Hi-Jump 

It may not seem like a good ability but the Hi-Jump is pretty entertaining to screw around with. Any foe in the path that Kirby jumps through will be struck. In Kirby's Return to Dream Land you can control the direction Kirby Jumps in and use the Rocket Dive attack to come crashing down into enemies below.

17. Spark 

Kirby emits electrical sparks that damage foes that come near him. It was a cool ability in earlier games but in Kirby Super Star, under the title of Plasma it was given the added ability to form a force field around Kirby that could shock enemies. It can also be charged up and thrown as a projectile. Both of these abilities returned in Kirby's Return to Dream Land along with added functions. Given everything that can be done with Spark, it can be considered a game breaker.

18. Explosive Ninja Stars

Ninja stars are cool. Just throwing them makes you ten times more awesome. But you know what's better than ninja stars? Ninja stars that explode. Appearing only in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, the Explosive Ninja Stars are formed when Cutter gets combined with Bomb. Kirby is quick to throw this projectile and they explode on contact. Enemies hit with this weapon freeze in their tracks and explode a second later. If the weapon has a downside it's that you can't see the path that the Explosive Ninja Stars are thrown so you have to line yourself up with your target.

19.  Drill 

Combine Stone with Needle and you get the super cool Drill ability, another Copy Ability exclusive to Kirby 64: The Krystal Shards. You can either hold onto the Drill and travel forward with it or let go and watch it keep moving to drill through enemies in its path. Abilities like this one make me sad that combined abilities were never revisited in the Kirby games.

20. Sword 

My favorite Copy Ability in the entire series. The Sword allows Kirby to show off his master sword skills. And masterful they are. The strikes dealt from the sword are quick and deadly. Even in Kirby's Adventure, the Sword was a valuable ability to have. In Kirby Super Star it was given numerous homages to The Legend of Zelda series. If Kirby is at full health, he can fire off Sword Beams. Furthermore, the cap Kirby wears is very similar to Link's. Kirby can also charge the sword to unleash a Spin Attck, a move Link has been using since A Link to the Past. The Sword is just so freaking awesome to have and I love using it.

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