Kirby's Dream Land 2/Dark Castle

You've made it across six islands, now it is time to conquer the final level. King Dedede awaits at the top of Dark Castle, powered-up by the Dark Matter that is possessing him. There are a whopping seven stages in this level, but uniquely, some of them are reused in devious ways. You must not only rely on skill in this level, but also your memory. Can you put a stop to the terrible reign of Dark Matter?

Section 1
Collapsing bridges cross over the huge gap towards Dedede's castle. Don't stay in one spot for too long, or you could find yourself plummeting into the abyss. Fortunately, the enemies in this area aren't very threatening, so you shouldn't have too much trouble making your way to the end. There's even a Health Drink halfway through the level if you do take any damage.

Section 2
While this section might look like a vertical climb, the screen automatically scrolls horizontally instead. As soon as you enter the section, quickly jump up the platforms to reach the top, then stay alert as the screen continues to scroll down a straight hallway. Running Waddle Dees as well as well-placed Bouncy Tys will attack you from the front and behind. Evading them is very difficult due to the screen scroll, so you can take a bit of damage if you're not dexterous enough. Go through the door when you see it before the screen scrolls too far right.

Section 3 - Mid-Boss: Efreeti
Efreeti is the first of seven mid-bosses that you will have to face on your way to King Dedede. There are no gimmicks here, so just defeat it like you've did countless times before to clear the stage.

Section 1
This stage begins with an underwater section. While the level layout is fairly straightforward, this section is filled with Glunks that can fill the water with their projectiles. Swim carefully and try to defeat them one at a time. Don't be too hasty once you surface, as there are icicles dropping from the ceiling on the hallway to the door.

Section 2
This is a rest area with every copy ability-granting enemy safely contained. Choose the ability you're the most comfortable with and move on further into the stage.

Section 3
This section has two halves, with Section 4 connecting the two together. The first half has you hopping over spiked floors, which is quite simple to do if you're just Kirby or is with Coo, but challenging otherwise. At the end, go through the top door to progress. Once you've made it to the right half of the section, be sure to go through the bottom right door for some nice rewards. Continue down the hallway, where icicles will fall from the ceiling and sections of the floor can collapse. Be fast and careful at the same time in order to make it to the end unscathed.

Section 4
There are three parts of section 4 that you can reach. The lower-left chamber, reached by the corresponding door in Section 3, is empty, while the lower-right chamber contains three 1-Ups. The top part contains a trapped Animal Friend, guarded by a simple Blade. You can actually reenter this room and defeat Blaze over and over again until you get the Animal Friend you want.

Section 5 - Mid-Boss: Master Green
Master Green is the second mid-boss that you must fight on the way to King Dedede. Like Efreeti, the fight with this oversized jellyfish takes place in a simple room. You should be quite experienced with it from multiple encounters from before, so you should have no trouble defeating it.

Section 1
Kabus are hidden everywhere along this mountainous path. Don't rush forward too hastily to avoid getting ambushed by them. They will materialize when you get near and drop down, so you should be able to avoid them if you take things slowly. Later in the section there are also Gordos and challenging platforming sections, but you should be quite adept at dealing with them by now.

Section 2
This is another auto-scrolling stage, but with more different paths to take. The screen will only scroll to the right, so don't be too worried if you miss a hallway or two, as they likely contain nothing. There is plenty of space to move around, so getting crushed wouldn't be too big of a concern. There are also a considerable number of Propeller Bombs here, so it's going to be really difficult to keep your Animal Friend.

Section 3 - Mid-Boss: Mr. Frosty
Mr. Frosty is the third mid-boss you must face. Again, the fight is in one simple room and the boss's attacks are unchanged, so just defeat him like you've defeated Efreeti and Master Green. The exit door will open once you do.

Section 1
If you have a strange feeling of deja vu, it's probably because this section is exactly the same as the first section of the island's first stage, only now you're going from right to left. However, instead of the simple enemies you encountered on your first pass through here, the enemies this time around are much tougher. Most of the knight-like enemies you can find here cannot be inhaled, and their attacks are difficult to dodge due to the lack of solid ground. Luckily, there are also plenty of Load Kibbles that you can get the Cutter ability from, letting you take out these tough enemies from a safer distance.

Section 2
Like the section before, this section is an exact copy of the same section from the first stage, but going from right to left. The screen now auto-scrolls in the opposite direction. You still have to quickly jump to the top level at the start, but now you will be going down the left hallway at the top. The Star Blocks make it harder to simply rush through this corridor, and there are uninhaleable enemies like Mumbies and Scarfies to further obstruct you. There is also a Flamer here, and the Burning ability it grants is very handy for tearing through the obstacles here.

Section 3 - Mid-Boss: Waiu
You've fought against three different mid-bosses to reach their respective stage's exits before, and this one isn't any different. Waiu is a bit faster and more unpredictable than the previous ones, though since you have fought it before, you should be able to anticipate its attacks and respond accordingly.

Section 1
This section is a mirrored version of the first section of stage 2. The enemies are more frequent here, and the Glunks are now replaced by Gordos. The Gordos move at varying speeds, so you have to be dexterous to navigate around them.

Section 2
Just like in Stage 2, there is a room filled with enemies that grant you copy abilities. Pick one that you want and continue into the stage.

Section 3
This section is the same as the third section of stage 2, except now you're going from right to left. Instead of Spikeys, Gordos now move around the Star Blocks above the spikes at the beginning. While you can simply float around them normally, it is going to be very difficult making past the area if you have Rick or Kine, who don't have multiple jumps. At the end of the right half is two doors leading to section 4. The bottom door has three 1UPs,and to get it you must destroy the normal-looking blocks, duck in the "hole" you made, then walk to the other room!! so go through the top door.

Once you get to the left half, go through the bottom door, and do the same like last time once again. Continue to the left. There are plenty of enemies that grant copy abilities down this hallway, as well as Scarfies and floors that collapse into spikes when you stand on them. It is nothing you can't handle by now, so just go down the path to the door.

Section 4
This section, like the similar one in stage 2, has three chambers. The bottom two chambers still contain 1-Ups, but their position will always shift to the chamber you aren't in. To collect the 1-ups, you'll need to find some hidden breakable blocks, and beyond them is a passage that'll allow you to reach them. The top is a trapped Animal Friend guarded by a Blade. Like in Stage 2, you can exit and return to this section and defeat the Blade until you get an Animal Friend you want.

Section 5 - Mid-Boss: Blocky
The fifth mid-boss you have to fight is Blocky. While its attacks are simple and predictable, its surprising speed and high health can make the fight hard. Still, nothing is different compared to the past fights you've had with it, so defeat it quickly to end the stage.

Section 1
As you might expect, this section is similar to the first section in stage 3. However, there is now a wind constantly blowing you to the left, and the enemies here are replaced by Gordos that can be hard to evade when you're carried by the gust. There is also a lot more items to collect, from Small Stars to healing items.

Section 2
This section is a copy of the second section of stage 2, with the screen scrolling from right to left. Now there is a reason the section seems to include a lot of dead end hallways. As the screen auto-scrolls, you must choose the correct path to take by recalling how you first went through here back in stage 3. If you make a mistake, you'll end up trapped as the border of the screen closes in on you and crushes you.

At the first set of branching paths, take the top path. Then, when the stage splits again, take the bottom path. At the next three-way path you come across, both the top and middle paths are safe. Finally, drop to the very bottom at the final split path to clear the section. Keep going along with the stage scroll until you see a door, then quickly enter it.

Section 3 - Mid-Boss: Captain Stitch
Yet another mid-boss battle awaits you in the final section of the stage. Like Blocky and Waiu, it is slightly harder to fight than the other mid-bosses, mainly due to its invulnerability while surrounded by spikes. Its attack pattern is as simple as ever, and the room has no odd quirks, so just defeat it as you've did before.

Section 1
The reused stage layouts end here. The stage begins with a vertical climb filled with several tough obstacles. There are both Gordos and Shotzos that you can bump into, as well as a very narrow vertical path lined with spikes on both sides. Since you can't destroy any of these obstacles, focus on evading them as you climb to the door at the top.

Section 2
This is a dark hallway filled with Glunks and Star Blocks. The Glunks shouldn't give you too much trouble. It serves more as a short rest area before the next portion of the stage, which you need to clear to reach the Rainbow Drop. If you bring Kine and the Spark ability into this room and light it up, you can see the correct order of abilities to use in the rooms leading up to the Rainbow Drop!

Section 3
For the sake of brevity, the series of rooms you will pass through to get the Rainbow Drop will be condensed into one section. To get to the Rainbow Drop, you must follow a very specific sequence which can only be found if you follow the code found in Section 2. There are two doors blocked by a special wall that can only be destroyed by a specific copy ability, but only one of them will lead to the next room in the sequence. To make things harder, you can't see the type of blocks you can destroy until after you have picked your copy ability. If you make a wrong choice, you will be forced to go through the top door, where you must go through another series of rooms filled with enemies.

First, take the Burning ability and use it to melt the ice blocks and go through that door. In the second room, take the Stone ability to break the rocky blocks and go through the door behind it. After that, take the Needle ability to destroy the corresponding blocks leading to the correct door. For the final two rooms, use the Ice and Cutter abilities respectively.

Section 4 - Rainbow Drop
If you followed the sequence of abilities correctly, you will end up in this room with the final Rainbow Drop right above you. Jump up and you can collect what could be your final Rainbow Drop in the game! Before you leave through the top door, you are even rewarded with a 1-Up. Going through the door brings you to a short climb to the mid-boss's door.

Section 5 - Mid-Boss: Jumpershoot
The final mid-boss you fight is Jumpershoot. Like all the bosses before it, there are no gimmicks in the stage layout nor is there any change in its attack pattern, so just defeat it as you've did before.

Boss: King Dedede
You have made it through seven islands of challenges and obstacles. Now it is time to defeat the villain that destroyed the Rainbow Bridges. You will start inside a tower. Drop down into the water to find a Health Drink to restore any health you lost, then climb to the top. Go through the door to confront Kirby's nemesis, King Dedede. This time, he is possessed by the evil alien Dark Matter. Can you free him from the grasp of the evil entity?

King Dedede doesn't seem to take the fight very seriously, since he often dozes off in the middle of the battle. While he might seem big and bulky, King Dedede is surprisingly fast. He will mostly try to rush and tackle you, or use his hammer to clobber you. He can also leap across the air to land on you, and even inhale you and spit you back out! King Dedede's attacks and movement can often make it hard to dodge his attacks. Be aware of your position at all times so that you don't get trapped into an attack. If you lack a copy ability, you must inhale the stars that King Dedede creates whenever he lands from a leap or slams his hammer.

Periodically, King Dedede will toss his hammer as a projectile, which explodes in midair and scatters harmful shrapnel. He will then start to vent air out of his head, indicating that he is angry. An angered King Dedede is even faster, and his attacks now produce explosions, making them a lot more difficult to dodge. His leaps are more accurate, often stopping dead in midair to crash on to your exact location. He even gains a new attack: if he fails to swallow you with his inhalation move, he will launch the air he inhaled as a quickly accelerating projectile. Without a copy ability, King Dedede is even harder to fight when angry, and you can easily lose your ability if you're hit by his attacks. More of his moves produce stars now, but they're often accompanied by explosions that make it hard to inhale them without getting hurt.

The End?
Once you've defeated King Dedede, but have yet to collect all the Rainbow Drops, Kirby performs a simple pose around the unconscious king. Kirby then walks home in the rain along with Rick, Coo and Kine. You can now see the names of every enemy in the game, from Waddle Dee to King Dedede. However, one final silhouette is shown, its name unknown. Kine stops to gaze into the sky. King Dedede might have been defeated, but the threat of Dark Matter can still be felt. Is this really the end of Kirby's quest?

The true final battle
Once you've obtained all seven Rainbow Drops, you must go and challenge King Dedede again. There is no Bonus Chance, you just go straight to the battle. King Dedede will be the same as before, but upon defeat, the seven Rainbow Drops gather around Kirby. They form the Rainbow Sword, a powerful weapon capable of vanquishing the evil that plagues the Rainbow Islands. At the same time, the true villain of this adventure, Dark Matter, exits its unconscious vessel and takes to the skies. Kirby follows after it, with the Rainbow Sword pulling him high into the atmosphere...