Throughout the Kirby series, there have been several secret acronyms players can discover in both the mainline and spinoff games by taking out the first letter of every stage and placing them in order of appearance. Kirby's Return to Dream Land on the Nintendo Wii originally featured one acronym, however, with the release of Deluxe on Nintendo Switch, that number has now been doubled thanks to the new Magolor Epilogue.
For everyone who did not spot these clever little easter eggs while playing the latest remaster, these are both of the secret acronyms you missed in Return to Dream Land Deluxe and what they reference!
Note: Spoilers to Return to Dream Land's main adventure and Magolor Epilogue: The Interdimensional Traveler are ahead!
Returning to a Rather Well-Known Secret
For those unaware, like the 2005 Nintendo DS spinoff Kirby: Canvas Curse, HAL put a secret acronym in the original Return to Dream Land's main adventure mode. When placing the first letter of this Kirby game's stages next to each other (and in their order of appearance), players will find that this acronym spells out the word "CROWNED". Have a look below!
Cookie Country
Raisin Ruins
Onion Ocean
White Wafers
Nutty Nooners
Egg Engines
Dangerous Dinner
CROWNED is a reference to Return to Dream Land's true main villain, the Master Crown. In Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Magolor becomes possessed by the Master Crown after taking the artifact from the defeated Landia. According to the game's lore, Master Crown was forged by the ancients of Halcandra and designed to grant its wielder great power. Magolor's final boss theme in Return to Dream Land also references this as the battle's song is titled C-R-O-W-N-E-D.
The Magolor Epilogue Hides a New Acronym
The epilogue chapter to Return to Dream Land Deluxe also contains a secret acronym for players to put together once they unlock every level location. As can be seen below, when placed in order, the epilogue's dimensions and final boss location create an acronym that spells out the word "APPLE".
Aerogree Dimension
Pyred Dimension
Poseiblu Dimension
Locandra Dimension
Ethereal Alter
In Magolor Epilogue: The Interdimensional Traveler, APPLE is a reference to the reward Magolor receives after completing his journey of penance. After vanquishing the Master Crown once and for all, Magolor is able to retake the same gem apple seed the artifact fused with to become a giant tree with blue leaves. As the epilogue's credits photos show, Magolor goes on to plant the gem apple seed in the Dream Kingdom to create the tree that provides players with currency in both Team Kirby Clash Deluxe for Nintendo 3DS and Super Kirby Clash for Nintendo Switch.
While Magolor's about page from the epilogue's pause screen does not definitively say whether the trickster intends to be a hero forever or not, in the current Kirby timeline the former villain has become a gem apple trader at his own cart stand called Shoppe... perhaps price hiking gem apple prices can be considered Magolor's only sense of evil left.
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