This article is about smaller separate game modes in various Kirby games, and should not be confused with the Minigame mode in Kirby's Dream Buffet.

A Sub-Game^[1] (also known as a Bonus Game,^[2] Sub Game,^[3] Mini-Game,^[4] Subgame,^[5] or Minigame^[6]) is a smaller separate game or activity contained within a game in the Kirby series. It typically has rules and gameplay completely different to the larger game it features in, and completing the Sub-Game typically is not required to complete the main game, but may offer bonuses like score or 1-Ups, or contribute to 100% completion. They may be accessed as bonus content within the main game itself, or be completely separate, and accessible from the main menu. Some Sub-Games have also been the source for larger standalone spin-off titles, particularly in later installments of the series.

Most games in the Kirby series include at least two Sub-Games.

Sub-Games by title[edit]

Kirby's Adventure[edit]

Kirby's Adventure is the first game to feature distinct Sub-Games with completely different rules to the main game. They can be accessed through doors in the level hubs. Completing a Sub-Game here rewards Kirby with either points or 1-Ups (depending on how well he did) and then blocks off the door until the game is reset. Once the main game is complete, the Sub-Games also become available on the main menu.

There are three different Sub-Games in Kirby's Adventure. They are:

• Crane Fever
• Quick Draw
• Egg Catcher

Kirby's Pinball Land[edit]

Each main course has a bonus game inset which can be accessed via Warp Star. There are three in all, which award extra points when played, and are as follows:

• Wispy-Woods Land features a Breakout-style mini-game where enemies and items move along the top of a series of breakable blocks. This would appear to serve as a precursor to Kirby's Block Ball.
• Poppy Brothers' Land features a game where Kirby has to punt himself into a goal on a soccer-themed course with a Squishy acting as the goalie.
• Kracko Land features a game where Kirby has to bounce food items up to a copy of himself on a cloud deck who will eat them for points.

Kirby's Dream Land 2[edit]

Main article: Bonus Chance

Kirby's Dream Land 2, in addition to its Goal Game, also has extra Sub-Games that can be played once by re-visiting the Bosses of each level (except King Dedede), referred to as a Bonus Chance. Instead of fighting the boss as usual, Kirby and/or his animal friends will instead play a bonus game with them, the rules of which vary with each boss.

Kirby's Block Ball[edit]

Kirby can play one of these if he touches a Warp Star found in the stages. The games are as follows:

• Air Hockey
• Star Catcher
• Up Cloud
• Up Down

Kirby Super Star[edit]

While Kirby Super Star is comprised of several individually selectable main story modes, there are a number of other smaller games, which do not follow the same gameplay as the others, and don't have a story. All Sub-Games are available from the start. These games are as follows:

• Megaton Punch
• Samurai Kirby

Kirby's Dream Land 3[edit]

Main article: MG-5

Each third stage in the main levels of Kirby's Dream Land 3 has a mini-game which involves guessing between various objects/sounds. Completing these is necessary to obtain the Heart Stars in the stages they appear in.

Once the game is complete, these minigames can be played in sequence in the menu, collectively called MG5. Completing this with a perfect score unlocks another game called Jumping, which is a challenge based on the Goal Game, having Kirby try to land as many times as possible without getting hit by a Tick.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards[edit]

There are three Sub-Games in this title, which are played completely separate to the main game, and support up to 4 players. They are:

• 100-Yard Hop
• Bumper Crop Bump
• Checkerboard Chase

Players in each of these games can choose between playing as Kirby, Adeleine, King Dedede, or Waddle Dee.

Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble[edit]

In Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble, if Kirby collects a Blue Star then completes the stage, he'll be taken to the "Bonus Star!" sub-game gallery where he can choose to play any of the following sub-games:

• Kirby's Burst-A-Balloon
• Kirby's Hurdle Race
• Do The Kirby
• Kirby's Roll-O-Rama
• Kirby's Chicken Race

Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land[edit]

In Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land, the Sub-Game structure works much like in Kirby's Adventure, now with the additional option to play the Sub-Games separately. The Sub-Games themselves are almost entirely different, and can be played with up to 4 players. They are:

• Quick Draw (styled after Samurai Kirby)
• Bomb Rally
• Kirby's Air Grind

Kirby & The Amazing Mirror[edit]

Like with Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, the Sub-Games present in this title are completely separate from the main game. They are:

• Speed Eaters
• Crackity Hack
• Kirby Wave Ride

These are also multiplayer-supported, with each player playing as a differently-colored Kirby.

Kirby: Canvas Curse[edit]

Main article: Boss Game

The Sub-Games in Kirby: Canvas Curse are unlocked by completing the second level of each in the Boss fights in the main game, and are similar to the Boss fights in question. Unlike in most games, Kirby will lose lives or get a Game Over if he fails these Sub-Games. They are as follows:

• Block Attack
• Cart Run
• Paint Panic

Kirby: Squeak Squad[edit]

The Sub-Games in Kirby: Squeak Squad are separate from the main game, and accessible from the main menu. They are:

• Speedy Teatime
• Smash Ride
• Treasure Shot

Kirby Super Star Ultra[edit]

Much like Kirby Super Star, Kirby Super Star Ultra features several Sub-Games in addition to the various main modes. The three new Sub-Games are available from the start, while the two from the original Kirby Super Star are unlockable. The Sub-Games are:

• Kirby Card Swipe
• Kirby on the Draw
• Snack Tracks
• Megaton Punch (unlocked after clearing 19 rounds in The Arena)
• Samurai Kirby (unlocked after clearing Meta Knightmare Ultra)

Kirby's Epic Yarn[edit]

In Kirby's Epic Yarn and Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn, there are a total of five unlockable Sub-Games that can be unlocked as more tenants are attracted to Quilty Court. Kirby may talk to a tenant to begin a Sub-Game with them. These Sub-Games are variations on regular stages, requiring the player to complete specific conditions.

The Sub-Games for Kirby's Epic Yarn are as follows:

• Zeke's Hide-and-Seek
• Beadrix's Run
• Carrie's Transport
• Buster's Training
• Mara's Race

Kirby Mass Attack[edit]

The Sub-Games in Kirby Mass Attack are unlocked in a separate menu by collecting medals and earning achievements. There are several, though some are smaller than others:

• Field Frenzy
• Kirby Brawlball
• Kirby Curtain Call
• Dash Course
• Strato Patrol EOS
• Kirby Quest
• Survival Rush

Kirby's Return to Dream Land[edit]

There are two primary Sub-Games in Kirby's Return to Dream Land, which can be played either from the main menu or from inside the Lor Starcutter. To unlock them from either location, Kirby and his friends must collect enough Energy Spheres to unlock each door. Playing the Sub-Games from the Lor Starcutter rewards Kirby with 1-Ups, thus functioning similarly to Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land.

The games are as follows, and can be played with up to 4 players:

• Ninja Dojo
• Scope Shot

In addition, there are a number of single-player Challenge Stages that are also unlocked using Energy Spheres, accessible only from inside the Lor, which task Kirby with using a certain Copy Ability (or items) to complete an obstacle course with as high a score as possible.

Completing these Sub-Games is a requirement for 100% completion, but not to complete the main game.

Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition[edit]

Main article: New Challenge Stages

The New Challenge Stages Sub-Game can be considered to be an expansion of the concept from Kirby's Return to Dream Land, and comes with its own little side-story and credits roll. In addition to the usual stages, Kirby can also race Magolor at the end of each level.

Kirby: Triple Deluxe[edit]

There are two primary Sub-Games featured in this title, and completely separate from the main game. They are as follows:

• Dedede's Drum Dash
• Kirby Fighters

Both of these titles must be completed to a certain satisfaction in order to achieve 100% completion of the game. These two Sub-Games were also used as the base to create the standalone spin-off titles, Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe, and Kirby Fighters Deluxe.

• 

  The main menu of Dedede's Drum Dash.

• 

  The main menu of Kirby Fighters.

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse[edit]

Main article: Challenge Mode

In Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, a set of 48 distinct extra stages can be played, which are unlocked by meeting various objectives throughout the game. These stages feature a set of single rooms where the goal is to collect a Treasure Chest in 15 seconds or less. Most stages consist of four such rooms in sequence, referred to as One-Minute Challenges due to the combined maximum length of the rooms in these stages. The remainder are Survival Challenges where 12 rooms need to be played in sequence and failing to get a chest in time at any point forces a full restart of the stage. After completing (or failing) a stage, a Medal is awarded for that stage based on how well the player did, from none to Gold.

Kirby: Planet Robobot[edit]

Like Triple Deluxe, there are two primary Sub-Games featured in this title, and are completely separate from the main game. They are as follows:

• Team Kirby Clash
• Kirby 3D Rumble

Both of these titles must be completed to a certain satisfaction in order to achieve 100% completion of the game. These two Sub-Games were also used as the base to create the standalone spin-off titles, Team Kirby Clash Deluxe, and Kirby's Blowout Blast.

• 

  The main menu of Team Kirby Clash.

• 

  The main menu of Kirby 3D Rumble.

Kirby Star Allies[edit]

This title features two very small Sub-Games, unlike its 3DS predecessors. They are as follows:

• Chop Champs
• Star Slam Heroes

Both of these need to have the third difficulty level completed to earn 100% completion in Kirby Star Allies.

In addition, Version 4.0.0 of the game adds a new more challenging adventure called Heroes in Another Dimension. This plays much like an Extra Mode, but features totally unique stages to the main story mode.

[edit]

In addition to the Quilty Court tenants' Sub-Games, Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn includes two additional Sub-Games, featuring King Dedede and Meta Knight, respectively. They are accessible from the main menu and are now required for 100% completion. They are as follows:

• Dedede Gogogo
• Slash & Bead

Kirby and the Forgotten Land[edit]

This title features three small Sub-Games. Due to Waddle Dee Town acting as the game's main menu, Kirby can freely walk up to and play them, provided he has already unlocked them. They are as follows:

• Waddle Dee Café: Help Wanted!
• Tilt-and-Roll Kirby
• Flash Fishing

Completing these Sub-Games at least once is required to earn 100% completion in Kirby and the Forgotten Land, which includes completing the Frenzy Gig in Waddle Dee Café: Help Wanted!, completing all three difficulties in Tilt-and-Roll Kirby at least once, and catching the Bling Blipper in Flash Fishing.

Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe[edit]

In Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe, Ninja Dojo from the original game returns alongside seven other Sub-Games from previous games and three new ones. The sub-games are available within Merry Magoland and are as follows:

New Sub-Games[edit]

• Magolor's Tome Trackers
• Booming Blasters
• Samurai Kirby 100

Returning Sub-Games[edit]

• Egg Catcher
• Samurai Kirby
• Checkerboard Chase
• Bomb Rally
• Crackity Hack
• Smash Ride
• Kirby on the Draw
• Ninja Dojo

All Sub-Games besides Samurai Kirby 100 can be unlocked and played on the Lor Starcutter and have local multiplayer functionality, and all besides Egg Catcher and Ninja Dojo necessarily include CPUs if there are fewer than 4 players.

Notably, Scope Shot is absent in this game, likely due to its cooperative nature as opposed to Merry Magoland's competitiveness. It has a spiritual successor in Booming Blasters, which has a similar Japanese name, uses the same motifs in its music, and bears some resemblance to Scope Shot in terms of theming. Additionally, Kirby on the Draw has very similar aim-and-shoot gameplay to Scope Shot.

Finally, two new Challenge Stages can be unlocked on the Lor Starcutter, corresponding to the newly introduced abilities: Sand and Mecha.

Recurring modes not considered to be Sub-Games[edit]

[edit]

Main article: Extra Mode

An Extra Mode may be considered to be a Sub-Game by some standards, but is effectively a re-playing of the main game with new rules and/or challenges. The first game to employ an Extra Mode was Kirby's Dream Land (then named "Extra Game"), which added more enemies to the game, reduced Kirby's maximum health, and gave the Bosses new attack patterns to increase the challenge.

Other forms of Extra Modes include time trials of the main story, most notably the series of Meta Knightmare modes that appear in three distinct Kirby titles, where the objective is to play through the main game as Meta Knight and win as quickly as possible.

Goal Game[edit]

Main article: Goal Game

The Goal Game is a Sub-Game of sorts that appears in numerous Kirby titles, starting with Kirby's Adventure. The Goal Game is effectively a mini game that is played at the end of each stage, where bonus points, 1-Ups, or other items can be earned. This typically involves having Kirby use a trampoline, cannon, or simply a jump and timing to land on the best space possible.

The Arena & other Boss Endurance Modes[edit]

Main articles: Boss Endurance, The Arena, The True Arena, Helper to Hero, Survival Rush, The Ultimate Choice and Colosseum

While technically Sub-Games, these modes are typically treated with more importance than typical Sub-Games are in the series. Each of these modes pit Kirby or another character against all of the Bosses in the game in question, one after another, with various restrictions usually involving limited-to-no recovery items in-between.

Names in other languages[edit]

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	サブゲーム sabugēmu ミニゲーム minigēmu ボーナスゲーム bōnasu gēmu	Sub game Mini game Bonus game
Traditional Chinese	小遊戲 xiǎo yóu xì	Minigame
Simplified Chinese	小游戏 xiǎo yóu xì
French	Mini-jeu	Mini-game
German	Minispiele	Minigames
Italian	Minigiocho	Minigame
Korean	서브 게임 seobeu geim	Sub game
Portuguese	Minijogo Sub-jogo[7] Subjogo[8]	Minigame Sub-game Subgame
Russian	Мини-игры[9] Mini-igry	Mini-games
Spanish	Juego secundario Minijuegos Subjuego	Secondary game Minigames Subgame

References