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Inhale

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Inhale
Image
Artwork of Kirby inhaling from Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe.
Details
First gameKirby's Dream Land (1992)
Latest gameKirby and the World Beyond (2027, upcoming)
Other game(s)All main-series games
Kirby Air Ride
Kirby's Epic Yarn
Kirby's Dream Collection Special Edition (New Challenge Stages)
Kirby's Blowout Blast
Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn
Kirby Fighters 2 (Gobble)
Kirby Air Riders
User(s)Kirby, various others
RelatedStar Bullet, Copy Ability
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Inhale (sometimes called Vacuum or Swallow) is one of Kirby's main abilities, debuting in the first game, Kirby's Dream Land. It is his primary form of attack, and he is able to use it in all of the mainline Kirby games. Kirby performs this ability by opening his mouth wide and sucking in air, which creates a vortex, dragging nearby enemies or other objects toward him and into his mouth. From there, Kirby can either swallow them (which removes them from the playing field) or shoot them back out as a Star Bullet which shatters on impact. In the majority of appearances, Kirby obtains a Copy Ability after swallowing an enemy or object with an applicable ability.

Details[edit]

Assuming he is not interrupted by another action, Kirby can inhale indefinitely as long as the player holds the attack button. Any enemy or object in front of Kirby will then be drawn toward him until it reaches his mouth, at which point Kirby will stop inhaling automatically. When Kirby has something in his mouth, he becomes larger than usual, and he cannot hover or swim. The player can then press the attack button again to exhale a Star Bullet, or crouch to swallow, obtaining a Copy Ability if applicable.

In most games in the series, Kirby's Inhale can work through walls, allowing him to nab enemies through them (and even items like food and keys, in some cases). Oftentimes, doing this is necessary to solve certain puzzles. Kirby can also inhale multiple enemies and objects at once. If he spits them out, it creates a more powerful star projectile known as a Blaster Bullet, which can pass through multiple targets. In some games, the Blaster Bullet grows proportionally to the number of objects inhaled.

The main caveat to inhaling is that Kirby generally has to hold still. He usually cannot walk around while inhaling; only Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards and Kirby and the Forgotten Land let him do this without a power-up. He also cannot jump while inhaling (though he can inhale in midair), and he can never inhale while hovering. As a result, it is usually difficult to inhale airborne or highly mobile enemies. Kirby also cannot inhale while underwater in most cases — Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards is the only game where he can do so without Kine's assistance — with his main form of underwater attack instead being the Water Gun.

According to series director Shinya Kumazaki, enemies are not killed when Kirby swallows them; instead, they "poof" and are teleported elsewhere in the world.[1] In certain games, Kirby can inhale his allies and use them as projectiles, though this does not "poof" them like it does the enemies. While carried inside Kirby's mouth, allies automatically share consumable items. Swallowing an ally has different effects depending on which character they are: ability-bearing Kirbys will have their ability stolen, friends will have their ability copied, and other characters simply reappear nearby with no effect.

Inhale works on most enemies in the Kirby series, but some enemies are immune to this technique. The most common examples are Gordos, Shotzos, Scarfies, and Mumbies. While there may be a large number of reasons as to why Kirby cannot inhale these entities, the English manual for Kirby's Dream Land states that such enemies are simply "too nasty" for Kirby to swallow.[2] Additionally, mid-bosses must be defeated first before they can be inhaled, and most bosses simply cannot be inhaled at all.

Super Inhale[edit]

Image
Kirby making use of the Super Inhale to swallow many blocks at once in a pre-release version of Kirby's Return to Dream Land.

In Kirby & The Amazing Mirror onwards, Kirby can perform a Super Inhale. This technique is often necessary to take in large, otherwise uninhalable objects/enemies or move around heavy blocks. In Kirby & The Amazing Mirror and Kirby: Squeak Squad, Kirby begins a Super Inhale automatically after he inhales continuously for a short time, but Kirby will get tired and stop inhaling if he uses it for too long.

In Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Kirby no longer Super Inhales automatically; the player must either shake the controller or mash different directions on the + Control Pad while inhaling to perform the technique. Also, when performing a Super Inhale, Kirby no longer grows tired, and Kirby does not stop inhaling until the inhale button is released, allowing him to inhale multiple objects simultaneously for the first time in the series.

The tweaks to Super Inhale remain in all mainline titles starting with Kirby: Triple Deluxe; however, it instead occurs simply by inhaling for a short time. This action is not referred to as Super Inhale in Kirby: Triple Deluxe or Kirby: Planet Robobot, but it is in Kirby Star Allies onward.

In Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Super Inhale functions similar to how it does in 2D games, but it also activates if Kirby inhales immediately after a successful dodge, in a similar manner to how some Copy Abilities receive a boosted attack if used after dodging.

In Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe, Super Inhale functions much the same as the original game, but it can also be activated simply by inhaling for a short time (akin to Kirby: Triple Deluxe onward), in addition to shaking the controller or pressing different directions on the + Control Pad or Control Stick.

Notable game appearances[edit]

Kirby's Dream Land[edit]

Image
Kirby inhaling a Mike in the third stage, Float Islands.

In Kirby's Dream Land, inhaling is Kirby's primary method of dispatching enemies, either in swallowing them, or spitting them back out. Against bosses, the usual strategy was to inhale any projectiles thrown his way and spit them back. Kirby cannot gain a Copy Ability from inhaling an enemy, as this feature only appears in later Kirby titles.

Kirby's Adventure / Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land[edit]

Image Starting with Kirby's Adventure, Kirby can obtain a Copy Ability from inhaling then swallowing an enemy. Additionally, the Throw and Backdrop abilities utilize Kirby's inhale to allow him to grab enemies before tossing them (in Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land, Backdrop instead utilizes a lunging grab).

Kirby Super Star / Kirby Super Star Ultra[edit]

In Kirby Super Star and Kirby Super Star Ultra, Kirby can swallow in midair by pressing the Helper button with something in his mouth.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards[edit]

Image
Kirby using his inhale to save his Waddle Dee friend in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards

In Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards alone, Kirby is able to use his inhale underwater without assistance from another character like Kine. This is also the first game where he can combine two Copy Abilities together, allowing for combinations like Cutter-Cutter, Bomb-Cutter, and Burn-Needle. This game is also the first instance where Kirby can move forward or backward while inhaling, an ability which would not be seen again until the introduction of Hypernova.

Strangely enough, in this game alone, it is possible for enemies to get 'stuck' on platforms when Kirby is attempting to inhale them. In this case, they will stay in place, spinning around for a moment before being 'defeated' and vanishing.

Kirby & The Amazing Mirror[edit]

Kirby & The Amazing Mirror is the first game in the series where Kirby can Super Inhale. Often, he needs to team up with the other three Kirbys to move large objects.

Kirby: Squeak Squad[edit]

In Kirby: Squeak Squad, Kirby can store up to five objects that he has swallowed in his Copy Palette for later use. Kirby is also able to combine certain abilities he has stored away, like combining Sword with Spark to create an electric sword, or two otherwise incompatible abilities to get a random new ability. The Copy Palette feature did not return in later games, though similar features would appear through the Assist Star in Kirby: Triple Deluxe and Kirby: Planet Robobot and Stock Items in Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe.

Kirby's Return to Dream Land / Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe[edit]

Image
Kirby using his Super Inhale in Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe

In Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Kirby is able to inhale his friends and spit them out as part of his projectiles. This does not hurt them, making it sometimes a useful strategy to use Kirby's friends as ammunition. If a Kirby swallows another Kirby with a Copy Ability or Super Ability, he can steal that ability for himself and take it away from the other.

In Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe, the option to turn on Auto Swallow returns from Kirby and the Forgotten Land, but it is turned off by default.

Kirby: Triple Deluxe[edit]

Kirby: Triple Deluxe introduces Hypernova, an ability that functions as a souped-up version of Kirby's inhale, which can be acquired by eating a Miracle Fruit. Using Hypernova, Kirby can inhale massive objects in large numbers, and he can also walk forward and backward while inhaling, which allows him to move massive objects and activate devices that he otherwise could not. Near the end of the game, Kirby uses it to inhale an entire boss, defeating it instantly. He also uses it to defeat the final boss of Story Mode.

Kirby's Blowout Blast[edit]

Image
Official art of Kirby inhaling three Waddle Dees at once, from Kirby's Blowout Blast.

Kirby gets particularly big when he inhales a bunch of enemies in Kirby's Blowout Blast. When he releases them, the star that results is referred to as a Blaster Bullet, and can wipe out enemies in a huge area.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land / Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World[edit]

In Kirby and the Forgotten Land and its Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Kirby is once again able to move around while inhaling, this time in all directions. He's also able to inhale while swimming above water. An option for Auto Swallow is available so Kirby will automatically swallow an enemy or a hat that gives a Copy Ability, which is on by default.

When near an object that can be used for Mouthful Mode, Kirby can inhale it even with an active copy ability. Elfilin will point this out to Kirby if he repeatedly discards his abilities near a "mouthful" object.

Kirby Air Riders[edit]

In Kirby Air Riders, while Kirby uses inhale as normal, most other riders instead use a variation of the move called Capture. It works essentially the same as inhale, and riders are able to capture and throw enemies as Star Bullets, or capture ability-granting enemies to copy abilities. Most riders simply gesture their hands forward as a vortex similar to Kirby's own inhale appears when performing Capture, though other riders such as Gooey have other means of capturing enemies.

Non-Kirby games[edit]

Super Smash Bros. series[edit]

Kirby uses Inhale as his neutral special move in all of the Super Smash Bros. titles. This allows him to copy his opponents' neutral special attacks when swallowing them. Naturally, Kirby does not destroy his opponent when he does this, though it does deal damage. He can also spit his opponent out as a Star Bullet by pressing the special attack button - said Star Bullet travels a short distance before the opponent returns back to normal; how far it travels depends on Kirby's and the opponent's damage percentages.

Two custom moves can be used in place of the original once unlocked in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U. The first, Ice Breath, functions similarly to the Ice ability's attack of the same name and can temporarily freeze opponents solid for a time. In return, Kirby cannot swallow opponents or spit them out. The second, Jumping Inhale, lets Kirby leap forward a ways while inhaling, but any Star Bullets he spits out won't deal any damage.

Games where Kirby does not inhale[edit]

The following are games where Kirby either cannot or does not use his inhale, with further explanations given where appropriate:

Other entities that can inhale[edit]

Image
Whispy Woods EX trying to inhale Kirby in Kirby's Return to Dream Land
Image
Star Dream Soul OS inhaling Kirby in a cutscene in Kirby: Planet Robobot

Kirby is not the only one who can inhale. The following is a list of other entities that use an inhale to attack, though most of them cannot copy abilities or even swallow:

Gobble[edit]

Image
Kirby attempting to use his Gobble in Kirby Fighters 2

In Kirby Fighters 2, Kirby does not have the ability to inhale (due to utilizing Copy Abilities). However, he can use a different technique called Gobble which allows him to eat his opponents and then spit them back out to deal damage. The only functional difference between this and a regular Inhale is that Kirby does not use suction (meaning he has to be up close to catch someone), and he cannot swallow. Gooey and King Dedede also make use of Gobble in this game.

Gobble/Grab controls  
Skill Button execution Description
Gobble/Grab
Y (or L/R + B)
 The chosen character attempts to gobble or grab an opposing character within a small range in front of themselves. This move can break through opponents' guards. Kirby, Gooey and King Dedede gobble the opponent, while Bandana Waddle Dee, Magolor and Meta Knight grab the opponent.
Change Direction
Left/right after Gobble/Grab
 After gobbling or grabbing, the user can change the direction they're currently facing.
Spit/Throw
Y (or B) after Gobble/Grab
 The user spits or throws the given enemy forward a set distance. If an affected character crashes into a wall, they take a small amount of damage. If an affected character crashes into another opposing player, both players take damage. If another teammate or the user who initiated the spit or throw hits the affected character again, that character takes massive damage while they're sent bouncing across the screen.

Trivia[edit]

Gallery[edit]

Image
From Kirby: Planet Robobot
Image
From Kirby: Planet Robobot

Artwork[edit]

Other[edit]

  • Tip image of Kirby inhaling a Blade Knight from Kirby Star Allies
    Tip image of Kirby inhaling a Blade Knight from Kirby Star Allies
  • Tip image of Kirby inhaling an allied Waddle Doo from Kirby Star Allies
    Tip image of Kirby inhaling an allied Waddle Doo from Kirby Star Allies
  • Screenshot of Kirby inhaling in Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
    Screenshot of Kirby inhaling in Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
  • LINE animated sticker from "Kirby's Puffball Sticker Set"
    LINE animated sticker from "Kirby's Puffball Sticker Set"
  • "Inhale" Card stand from the "Kirby Desktop Figure" merchandise line, manufactured by Re-ment
    "Inhale" Card stand from the "Kirby Desktop Figure" merchandise line, manufactured by Re-ment
  • "Waddle Dee & Kirby" figure from the "Swing Kirby" merchandise line, manufactured by Re-ment
    "Waddle Dee & Kirby" figure from the "Swing Kirby" merchandise line, manufactured by Re-ment
  • Set 11 of the Kirby hanafuda cards, featuring Kirby inhaling.
    Set 11 of the Kirby hanafuda cards, featuring Kirby inhaling.

Names in other languages[edit]

Inhale[edit]

Language Name Meaning
Japanese 吸すい込こみ
suikomi 		Inhale
Chinese 吸入
xī rù 		Inhale
Dutch Opzuigen Sucking up
French Aval'tout Swallow all
German Einsaugen Sucking in
Italian Risucchio Sucking up
Korean 빨아들이기
pparadeurigi 		Inhale
Portuguese Aspirar
Inalar[4] 		Vacuum
Inhale
Russian Вдох
Vdokh 		Inhale
Spanish Absorber
Tragar 		Absorb
Swallow


Super Inhale[edit]

Language Name Meaning
Japanese がんばり吸すい込こみ
ganbari suikomi 		Enduring inhale
Dutch Super opzuigen Super sucking up
French Super aval'tout Super swallow all
German Mega-Einsaugen Mega Suction
Italian Super risucchio Super sucking up
Korean 힘차게 빨아들이기
himchage pparadeurigi 		Inhale Strongly
Portuguese Superaspiração Super Vacuum
Spanish Superabsorción Superabsorption


Swallow[edit]

Language Name Meaning
Japanese のみこむ
nomikomu 		Swallow
Dutch Inslikken Swallow
French Avaler Swallow
German Schlucken Swallow
Italian Inghiotti Swallow
Portuguese Engolir Swallow
Spanish Tragar Swallow


Gobble[edit]

Language Name Meaning
Japanese ほおばり
hōbari 		Mouthful
Traditional Chinese 塞滿嘴
sāi mǎn zuǐ 		Mouthful
Simplified Chinese 塞满嘴
sāi mǎn zuǐ
Dutch Opschrokken Gobble up
French Gober Gobble
German Verschlingen Gobble
Italian Bocca piena Mouthful
Korean 머금기
meogeumgi 		Mouthful
Spanish Zampar Devour


References

  1. ↑ ‘What happens if Kirby swallows a hot man?’ His directors give answers, Polygon
  2. ↑ "Some of the enemies are just too nasty for me to swallow. See if you can find other ways to beat these guys!" –Kirby's Dream Land instruction manual (page 12, North American print)
  3. ↑ Kirby's Dream Land - Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games
  4. ↑ Kirby Super Star Brazilian manual
v • d • e
Moves
Main series
Boost • Copy Ability • Emote (Kirby Air Riders only) • Gliding • Hover • Inhale • Quick Spin • Special (Kirby Air Riders only) • Star Bullet • Star Slide (Kirby Air Riders only)
Copy Ability (Kirby: Canvas Curse only) • Star Dash (Kirby and the Rainbow Curse only) • Touch Dash
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Kirby game design and development
General elements
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Recurring Kirby elements
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