Dating all the way back to 1996’s Kirby Super Star for SNES, The Arena has become a series staple. This mode pits players against every boss and mini-boss featured in the main game all in a row. You’re allowed to take a breather at a hub between each battle, but the healing items located here are limited. Beating The Arena was the final challenge in the Super Nintendo classic, but starting with Kirby Super Star Ultra, an even more difficult challenge was introduced. Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe is the latest in the franchise to feature this final obstacle: The True Arena.
The True Arena in Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe is the longest boss rush in the series, challenging players to survive 21 total battles. Although most of these battles are pulled from the game’s Extra Mode and Magolor Epilogue, the final boss fight has been reworked and there’s even one boss who only appears here in True Arena mode. If you want to see everything Return to Dream Land has to offer, you’ll need to survive this challenge. Here are the steps you’ll need to take to access The True Arena, listed in an order that should minimize your burnout on any one gameplay mode/style.
How To Unlock The True Arena
- Finish Story Mode
Simple enough, right? Just play through the main campaign from start to finish. You don’t even need to worry about gathering the Energy Spheres for 100% completion unless you’re interested in unlocking all the game’s masks. - Finish Magolor Epilogue
This newly added challenging chapter of Return to Dream Land‘s story is a highlight of the package, and you’ll need to finish it as well. Again, unless you’re worried about 100% completion and getting dress-up masks, you can blaze through this mode, enjoying the story and not worrying about your rank at the end of each stage. - Beat The Arena
In the standard Arena, you’ll need to defeat 13 bosses with the limited healing items available between stages. In my experience, the Sand and Spear powers were versatile enough to win a variety of these fights. Become King of the Arena and you’ll be one step closer to unlocking the final mode. - Finish Extra Mode
Extra Mode is a remixed version of Story Mode with a higher difficulty. There are new things to see, new bosses to face, and new dialogue to read. You’ll be rewarded for completing it with a few dress-up masks, but more importantly, if you’ve finished the previous steps, you’ll have unlocked The True Arena.
Your Toughest Challenge Awaits!
Finally, the True Arena is yours. I’d say congratulations, but you’ve still got to beat it, and that’s no easy task! You’ll need to know Kirby’s Copy Abilities well. Additionally, your dodging and blocking must be on point. In playing through Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe‘s other modes to unlock the True Arena, you’ll have encountered all but one of these bosses before. Use your experience from previous fights to take them down and become the grand champion!
Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe is available now on Nintendo Switch. A free demo is also available to download, featuring three story stages and two sub-games from Merry Magoland for players to try.
