There once was a time when a guaranteed way to make a sequel/spinoff/prequel for something was to focus on either the character’s child or a younger version of themselves. While it hasn’t completely fallen out of vogue (Young Sheldon exists), kiddy versions of popular characters just aren’t hits like they used to be — which is why this cancelled SNES Kirby title, “Kid Kirby,” is a blast from the past in more ways than one, featuring a younger version of Kirby with a strange pink hair antenna thingy sticking out of his head.
[THREAD] Hello, and welcome to the Kid Kirby Archive Twitter account! This short-lived SNES entry in the Kirby series has received very little attention over the years – we'll be working hard to find all that we can about it! What do we know about it so far? Well… pic.twitter.com/7bgpfcgekP
— Kid Kirby Archive (@KidKirbyArchive) June 13, 2022
Twitter account @KidKirbyArchive has devoted itself to cataloging the game, revealing a number of details about its existence. Developed by DMA Design, which would later become Rockstar North (yes, THAT Rockstar North). It was going to involve using the SNES mouse to flick Kirby across the screen (like a very rudimentary Mass Attack), but production was halted presumably due to a mixture of poor SNES mouse sales and slow development. This was all around 1995, close to the end of the console’s lifespan.
Pages 4-7 of the manual. Page 7 includes some cheeky 90s satire in the newspaper clipping, and notably page 4 has a never-before-seen logo! We also get a glimpse of Kirby's Kidspeak in action. pic.twitter.com/9uGnr5XE0J
— Kid Kirby Archive (@KidKirbyArchive) June 13, 2022
Ex-DMA design dev Steve Hammond provides a couple more snippets. Young Dedede would have been in the game as “Prince” Dedede. Kid Kirby would utilize something called “kidspeak” in the manual, using speech bubbles filled with hieroglyphic-like fruits and vegetables. There was even a little story for the start of the game, though it was a pretty standard Kirby opener. It’s all delightful to read about, even if seeing Kirby in SNES 3D falls pretty heavily into the uncanny valley.
Lost media is always a fascinating discovery, and we wish the archive all the luck in documenting this mysterious product for all to see.
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Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
