Kirby's Dream Land 3/Level 4-5

Stone pillars pierce the colorful clouds of Cloudy Park, forming a precarious pathway full of deadly drops. This high in the sky, it is very difficult to survive a missed jump, and most would prefer to puff up and fly over all the obstacles. A lone hamster longs to meet her friend Rick, but with such tricky terrain between them, can Rick and her be reunited?

Cotton candy clouds
The start of the level is nothing out of the ordinary, with the only interesting feature being the ground, which is made up of multiple stone pillars and thus makes the terrain quite jagged. There are plenty of enemies here, including Sir Kibble and Wappa if you're in need of a copy ability. In the following section, there are now gaps in the pillars, and falling in any one of the gaps without the ability to fly or hover will mean instant death. If you can hover or fly, be sure to drop down the gap to the left of the door, as you will eventually reach a Maxim Tomato hanging in midair.

Heart Star: Pillar climbing with Rick
After passing through the first two areas, you can choose between Rick and Coo as your partner. While Coo is the better Animal Friend due to the precarious nature of the stage, you must pick Rick instead if you want to get the Heart Star of this level. The challenge in using Rick is obvious, as Rick only has a single jump and the stage is littered with bottomless pits. This means you must be extremely careful not to fall in, as you not only lose a life if you do, but you also lose Rick, preventing you from getting the Heart Star. Thankfully, Rick has an emergency option if you ever fall into a gap, that is, his wall climb ability. If you do fall, immediately drift to the nearest pillar and spam the jump button to make Rick wall jump up the pillar. Remember this technique and it can save you a few lives.

The first area you enter after getting Rick is naturally pretty difficult without multiple jumps. You must first cross several gaps with Scarfies floating about, making it extra hard to cross the gaps without a ranged copy ability. You can safely stomp on the Scarfies, but the extra momentum from doing so can make Rick hard to control. Past the first set of Scarfies is a new enemy called a Klinko. It is pretty harmless, and its Parasol ability doesn't help Rick very much. After that is another set of Scarfies. Again, cross each gap carefully and use your copy abilities or Rick's stomp to deal with the Scarfies. At the final pillar with the door, you must use Rick's wall climb to reach the top.

Sky high platforming challenge
As you might expect, the rest of this stage is one big challenge to get Rick to the end. In the second section you go to after getting Rick, there are a bunch of pots lined up in a row spewing Wapods. You must use Rick's stomp to safely cross the gap. You don't have to stomp every Wapod in one swift movement, and it really pays to stay on one of the pillars to mentally prepare yourself for the next Wapod.

The section after that challenges your mastery of Rick's wall jumps. You must wall jump up one of the two pillars to reach the top, but there are Gordos scattered around that will force you to switch pillars as you climb. Switching sides is the key part of this obstacle, and it could be difficult to get the hang off. You must jump up one side of the pillar until you're as close to the Gordo as possible, then make sure to press the opposite direction as soon as you make your final jump to switch sides safely. The rest of the section is quite simple in comparison, featuring much easier wall jumping sections.

You will continue to rely heavily on wall climbing as you reach the final section of the level. You must jump from pillar to pillar as before, but now there is an additional obstacle. The Apollos that you encountered back in Grass Land has returned, and they're no longer a trivial annoyance. These enemies spin rapidly around various sections of the pillars, so you must time your jumps carefully to avoid colliding into them. The gaps between the main pillars are also pretty big, but there are small pillars between each indicated by the Bronto Burts hovering directly above them. Use these pillars if you're not comfortable with making a leap of faith across pillars. Eventually, you will reach the pillar with the exit door, letting Rick meet his female friend Pick and earning you a Heart Star!