Everyone is familiar with Kirby, but before this game he was more of a legend than anything else. His last truly good game was on the Super Nintendo; his appearance in Game: Super Smash Bros. was certainly memorable, his one N64 starring role, in Game: Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards fell a bit short in most respects, and Game: Kirby Air Ride was forgettable. Nintendo chose the DS for Kirby's next attempt at stardom, and if it doesn't perfectly replicate his glory days on the original Game Boy, it comes damn close.

The game's plot starts with an evil witch named Drawcia breaking into Dream Land and turning everything into a living painting. Alongside this, she curses Kirby, turning him into a shapeless mass of..well, more of a shapeless mass of marshmallow, removing his limbs and relegating him to living the life of a billiard ball. Being the brave little blob he is, Kirby doesn't merely let a little quadriplegia stop him. He rolls out into the greater world, determined to bowl over his enemy without mercy (it had to be said). Here is the point where the player steps in to save all of Dream Land from further paintification.

Canvas Curse is a sidescrolling platformer, but in a deviation from scripture, the player does not have direct control over Kirby. Rather, one uses the stylus to draw a rainbow-like line around the screen. Kirby will follow this line when he comes into contact with it, but otherwise rolls around in whatever direction gravity and physics takes his cueball form. This line also functions as a solid object--it can be used to block such things as fireballs and buffeting winds, protecting Kirby from damage. There is a limited supply of paint to draw the line with, however, prompting the player to come up with novel ways to lead Kirby over large gaps. It's an innovative approach to the classic platformer, and it's executed just right.

The stages in Canvas Curse play up to the game's concept with brilliant design, presenting the player with such obstacles as large chasms, magma-covered walls and deep water to navigate, not to mention the myriad opponents scattered throughout said zones. The style of the zones harkens back to the days of the first Kirby games, with each stage divided into several parts, connected by doors, that ultimately lead to a boss battle before Kirby can move on to the next zone. Everything is designed to make the player make the most use of what little paint they have available, presenting a challenge without making things too difficult.

All this eye candy is complemented with a retro-sounding, fast-moving, complex soundtrack. Most of the sound effects, such as Kirby taking damage or absorbing an enemy's ability, are carried over from the original games, lending a bit of nostalgia. The background music follows this lead, with a fast, ADD-ized mashup of 8-bit sounds that encourage the player to get along with the mission.

And the topping on the strawberries, the perfect addition to an action-packed marshmallow adventure: Replay value. Even after the many stages are completed and the game's story mode completed, there are other things to go back for. Each stage has a number of coins scattered throughout, which can be redeemed to unlock extras like music and bonuses. There are also bonus modes that challenge the player to complete stages under the constraints of limits on time or paint, which also award coins and bonuses.

Though the plot feels like a flimsy pretext for the game's play style, the aforementioned style itself has no issues, and in fact introduces a new dimension to platforming that will wake you mind up to new possibilites and challenges and leave you wanting more. Canvas Curse is one of those games that draws on the hallowed traditions of the old days of gaming, but with a new testament twist.