Kirby: Planet Robobot

A 2016 videogame directed by Shinya Kumazaki about a pink blob and his quest to destroy robotic alien invaders.

The planet Pop Star has been invaded by the Haltmann Works Company, an intergalactic corporation that wants to strip mine the world of its resources and mechanize it for fun and profit. King Dedede and Meta Knight try in vain to stop them, leaving Kirby (who was asleep during the initial invasion) to take care of business, kicking a lot of robot (and cyborg) ass in the way.

The game is a 2D platformer with 3D models with the usual features of the series: Kirby being able to devour enemies to absorb their abilities. However, this game also introduces the Robobot Armor, a Mini-Mecha that also can scan abilities and have access to tools not available to our protagonist.

Developed by HAL Laboratory. Published by Nintendo.

Tropes used in Kirby: Planet Robobot include:
  • Action Bomb: The Robobot Armour Bomb Mode spits out living robot bombs.
  • A Day in the Limelight: Meta Knight gets to shine in this game after sitting out for Triple Deluxe. Not only is he a Brainwashed and Crazy Recurring Boss, but he plays an important part in Star Dream's defeat. He also gets his own playable mode: Revenge of Meta Knightmare, an abridged version of the main game with a Boss Rush consisting entirely of returning villains at the end.
  • Advancing Boss of Doom: Clanky Woods is introduced as one in the game's very first level, where he chases Kirby down. While he seems impervious to any attacks you throw his way, you can actually kill him for a rare sticker if you're aggressive and persistent enough.
  • Advancing Wall of Doom:
    • In Area 5-2, Kirby has to run from... a giant ball.
    • Kirby has to run from giant balls again in Area 5-7.
  • Aerith and Bob: Previous villains in the series had names like Zero, Sectonia, and Magolor. The Big Bad of this game? A man named Max, whose Dragon is named Susie.
  • Amazing Technicolor Battlefield: Star Dream creates one of these after Kirby breaks its mask and it enters its third phase.
  • An Ice Person:
    • Holo-Ice Dragon, true to its name, uses ice-based attacks.
    • The Ice ability, as usual, lets you blow guts of icy wind to freeze enemies solid. It also regains the "Ice Ball" move that was cut in Triple Deluxe, which has Kirby encase himself in ice and plow through enemies.
    • Likewise, Ice is also one of the abilities that the Robobot Armor can copy, and it's basically Kirby's Ice ability on steroids. It fires massive bursts of icy wind that can freeze jets of water solid and dispel clouds of poisonous gas.
  • Apocalypse How: Star Dream decides after Susie fails to control it to end all organic life everywhere.
  • Attack Its Weak Point: Holo-Coily Rattler is mostly immune to attacks, except when you hit its shiny blue head.
  • Ax Crazy: President Haltmann. Just listen to his deranged laughter and screaming during his boss fight. And if that doesn't convince you that he has a few screws loose, him ordering the destruction of Kirby's planet shortly afterwards will. Seems to be a consequence of having a Mechanical Abomination warp the mind of an already grieving father.
  • Badass Mustache: Haltmann's got quite the impressive stache, and puts up a good fight when he and Kirby finally go head-to-head.
  • Band Land: The aptly-named Rhythm Route, the game's fifth world. It's a bustling high tech city with levels that have you avoid music note-shaped pistons that move in time with the background music, as well as go on a rampage with the Robobot Armor's Mic Mode.
  • Big Bad: President Haltmann, CEO of the Haltmann Works Company, and therefore responsible for everything that happens to Popstar and his inhabitants through the game.
  • Blob Monster:
    • Miasmoros, a recurring miniboss and a creature that looks like a mix between a glob of sludge and a cartoony dragon, specifically a Galbo from previous Kirby games.
    • Venog, a teal/blue creature that, much like Miasmoros, resembles a mix between a glob of sludge and a frog.
  • Boss-Only Level: Where the main bosses at the end of each world are fought.
  • Boss Rush: The Arena and True Arena are this, as per Kirby tradition. But there's also a special boss gauntlet at the end of Meta Knightmare Returns where instead of fighting Star Dream, Meta Knight gets to cross swords with clones of Dark Matter and Queen Sectonia, as well as Galacta Knight once again.
  • Breath Weapon:
    • The Holo-Doomers shoot fireballs at Kirby.
    • Miasmoros 2.0 shoots poison from his mouth, in several different ways.
  • Burning Rubber: The Robobot Armour leaves a trail of fire behind the path where it walks when using the Fire ability.
  • The Bus Came Back: Well hey there, Dark Matter Blade! It's been over two decades since you last showed up, how's it been?!
  • Call Back: The final boss is a big one to Kirby Super Star, specifically Nova from Milky Way Wishes. Star Dream is a Clockwork Star just like Nova, and looks exactly like it once its true form is exposed - only it's silver instead of gold. Its superboss form, Star Dream Soul OS, exchanges its silver paint job for a gold one and gives it a brand new phase that's basically an on-foot platformer version of the boss fight against Nova's Heart for good measure.
  • Casino Park: Both the fourth level of Resolution Road and the second level of Rhythm Route take place in gigantic casinos. Predictably, Kirby has to dodge obstacles like giant dice blocks and billiard balls.
  • Charged Attack:
    • C.O.G.S. launches three straight laser beams from its three main cannons after charging.
    • Many of the abilities scanned by the Robobot Armour give it charged attacks.
  • Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Between other little aspects, the Robobot Armour also changes colour when changing modes. It turns pink like its pilot Kirby when it was grey when piloted by an invader.
  • Combat Tentacles: Star Dream grows tentacles in its second phase and tries to strike Kirby with them.
  • Deadly Doctor: The Doctor ability, aside of giving a new cute doctor uniform for Kirby, also gives him the ability to attack with...pills. And clipboards. In the case of the pills, we can only assume it's a dose that will kill you.
  • Dishing Out Dirt: The Stone ability lets Kirby transform into an impenetrable rock (or one of many alternate stony statues), as well as uppercut enemies with a powerful stony fist.
  • Disney Villain Death:
    • Mecha-Knight falls off a ledge after you defeat him, though he's fine afterwards.
    • Sleepy Turtles fall off the stage when you defeat them.
  • The Dragon: Susie, President Haltmann's secretary and right-hand lady.
  • Eternal Engine: Considering the robotic nature of the game, several levels are like this, though with the extra aspect that natural environments of Pop Star have been mechanized.
  • Evil Laugh:
    • Susie lets out one of these when leaving after an encounter with Kirby.
    • Haltmann cackles madly as he attacks Kirby during his boss battle.
  • Evil Versus Oblivion: Susie helps Kirby after Star Dream manifests its intentions to destroy everything that lives.
  • Faux Affably Evil: President Haltmann conducts himself with the polite demeanor you'd expect from an esteemed businessman, but Kirby's continued defiance sends him into a frothing, screaming rage where he snarls that "filthy natives" like him need to know their place. Needless to say, said "polite demeanor" is only skin deep.
  • Goggles Do Nothing: When Kirby takes over the Robobot Armour, he gains a hat with goggles on it...and he never wears the goggles.
  • Green Thumb: The Leaf ability allows Kirby to fire razor-sharp leaves at his opponents, as well as hide under a pile of them to avoid taking damage.
  • Hartman Hips: Susie has a very curvy figure, and it's due to boasting a set of these.
  • Hologram Projection Imperfection: The monsters that Holo Defense API summons are colored green. They're purple in its 2.0 form.
  • Humongous Mecha:
    • The result of fusing the Robobot Armour to Meta Knight's Battleship Halberd.
    • Star Dream is already big by itself. Then it fuses with the Access Ark and it becomes colossal.
  • Immune to Flinching: You can hit Blocky with many Smash Bros. hit combos as you want; it will not stop him from attacking you even if he's losing health.
  • Interface Screw:
    • In Area 3-4, giant ice cream cones fall over and spill over the screen itself.
    • They reappear in Area 6-7.
  • Kamehame Hadoken: Kirby can launch energy blasts from his hands when using the Fighter ability.
  • Level Ate: Area 3-4, filled with sweets and ice cream.
  • Me's a Crowd: The Dedede Clone splits in three after taking a certain amount of damage.
  • Mecha-Mooks: Some enemies, and that's why the non-robot enemies are cyborgs.
  • Mini-Mecha:
    • The Robobot Armour isn't much taller than Kirby, though it's clearly wider, and many bosses are bigger than it.
    • Susie fights Kirby using her own drill-based Mini-Mecha.
    • Haltmann uses a mini-mecha similar to Susie to fight Kirby.
  • No Ontological Inertia:
    • If you defeat C.O.G.S. with a projectile still going towards Kirby, the projectile simply disappears in thin air.
    • The same goes for projectiles launched by a Security Force.
  • Parasol of Pain: The Parasol ability.
  • Planet Looters: The antagonists are actively drilling Popstar to extract resources with colossal drills.
  • Power Copying: Not only Kirby, but also the mini-mecha he pilots, through some kind of enemy scanning process that changes its appearance and weapon.
  • Psychic Powers: The ESP ability gives Kirby this.
  • Shock and Awe: One of powers that ESP grants to Kirby, involving the capacity of creating electrical fields.
  • Shoryuken: Kirby can attack with a jumping uppercut using the Fighter ability.
  • Shout Out: Star Dream references Francis Fukuyama by saying Kirby and Susie are about to witness the "end of history". Let's just say that doesn't involve replacing the reign of King Dedede with a liberal democracy.
  • The Sociopath: Susie doesn't have anything resembling a moral compass. Not only is she fully on board with looting and mechanizing entire planets, but she has no loyalty towards her boss, and tries and fails to steal a powerful world-destroying supercomputer for profit. Even when she helps Kirby at the end, it's not due to a change of heart: it's because Star Dream is going to destroy all organic life, and that includes her.
  • Summon Magic: Star Dream is able to bring weapons from apparently other dimensions to fight Kirby in the final battle.
  • Technicolor Toxin:
    • The Poison ability gives Kirby the power to manipulate bluish-purple globs and clouds of poison.
    • One of the environment hazards is clouds of green gas.
  • Transforming Mecha: Kirby's Robobot Armour transforms into different forms when absorbing abilities from enemies.
  • The Starscream: Susie tries to betray Haltmann to fulfill her own greedy objectives, but Star Dream rejects her command and decides to fulfill his own agenda.
  • Unwilling Roboticisation: Meta-Knight is transformed into Mecha Knight after being curb-stomped by the HWC.
  • Villain Teleportation: Telepathos can go from one side of the screen to another.
  • When Trees Attack: Clanky Woods, a cyborg tree that serves as boss.
  • Whip It Good: The Whip ability, obviously.
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