Nightmare
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| “ | It all began when Nightmares appeared in the fountain. The Nightmares rode the currents of the Fountain of Dreams, wreaking havoc and tormenting the residents of Dream Land. | ” | — The narrator in Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land |
Nightmare is the main antagonist of Kirby's Adventure and its remake, Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land. Unlike King Dedede, he appears to have no redeeming qualities, being motivated by pure malice. His goal is to spread trouble throughout Dream Land by inflicting its denizens with unending nightmares in their sleep. He has two primary forms: he initially takes the form of Nightmare's Power Orb, a rotating magic orb with stars on it, and then transforms into Nightmare Wizard, a robed warlock with armor, sunglasses, and a pronounced chin. He also possesses disembodied hands, but bears no real body, instead consisting of a tornado under his robe, which happens to be his weak point.
Game appearances
| Nightmare's video game appearances | ||
|---|---|---|
| Game | Role | Notes |
| Kirby series | ||
| Kirby's Adventure | Main antagonist and final boss | |
| Kirby's Avalanche | Cameo | Appears as a background element on the Fountain of Dreams. |
| Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land | Main antagonist and final boss | As this is a remake of Kirby's Adventure, his role doesn't change. |
| Kirby: Canvas Curse | Reference | One of the paintings painted by Paint Roller in Paint Panic. |
| Kirby: Squeak Squad | Reference | Appears in one of the Graphics along with some other Final Bosses. |
| Kirby Super Star Ultra | Reference | Appears in one of the cards in Kirby Card Swipe. |
| Kirby Mass Attack | Final boss | Nightmare is the Final Boss of Strato Patrol EOS. |
| Kirby: Triple Deluxe | Reference | Appears as a keychain. |
| Kirby: Planet Robobot | Reference | Appears as a sticker. |
| Kirby Star Allies | Reference | Appears in the "Bad Boss Brothers" Celebration Picture. |
| Super Kirby Clash | Reference | Appears as a sticker. The main villain is the parallel version of him. |
| Kirby's Dream Buffet | Reference | Appears as a Character Treat. |
| Super Smash Bros. series | ||
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U | Assist Trophy and trophy | |
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Assist Trophy and spirit | |
Kirby's Adventure / Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land
In Kirby's Adventure and its remake, Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land, Nightmare serves as the final boss of the game, and is fought in The Fountain of Dreams right after King Dedede is defeated. Nightmare appears in his initial power orb form when Kirby attempts to return the reassembled Star Rod to the fountain, which prompts King Dedede to spit Kirby after Nightmare with the Star Rod in hand.
Nightmare's fight takes place in two phases. The first has Kirby clash with his orb form while airborne and slowly falling. Kirby has to repeatedly strike the orb with volleys from the Star Rod while avoiding Nightmare's own volleys. If Kirby takes too long to dispatch the orb, he will crash to the ground and be defeated immediately. Once the orb's health is reduced to 0, it flies off, prompting Kirby to give chase on a Warp Star. Kirby chases the orb to the moon.
Once there, the orb transforms into Nightmare Wizard and Kirby must then fight him on foot, still using the Star Rod. Nightmare attacks by teleporting, flying around the arena, and firing star-shaped volleys. Nightmare's only weak point in this form is his tornado-like "body" underneath his robe, which Kirby must hit whenever it is exposed. Nightmare is significantly bigger relative to Kirby in Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land compared to Kirby's Adventure, which makes it easier to attack his weak point, but also easier to get hit. Once defeated, he disintegrates with an ear-piercing screech, causing the moon to partially explode into a permanent crescent shape, while Kirby escapes and returns the Star Rod back to the Fountain of Dreams.
Kirby's Avalanche
In Kirby's Avalanche, Nightmare's Power Orb appears in the background of the Fountain of Dreams, but is not mentioned and can't be interacted with.
Kirby: Canvas Curse
Nightmare makes a cameo appearance in Kirby: Canvas Curse, being one of the paintings in Paint Panic.
Additionally, Nightmare (in his Power Orb form) was originally set to appear as a ball character in Kirby: Canvas Curse, along with other bosses from previous games, like Lololo & Lalala, Dark Matter, and Zero. However, the idea was scrapped, and he doesn't appear in the final game.[1]
Kirby: Squeak Squad
Nightmare makes a cameo appearance in Kirby: Squeak Squad, being featured in one of the Graphics using his Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land artwork alongside Dark Mind, King Dedede, Marx and Dark Matter Blade.
Kirby Super Star Ultra
Nightmare appears in Kirby Super Star Ultra as a card in the Sub-Game Kirby Card Swipe.
Kirby Mass Attack
In Kirby Mass Attack, Nightmare appears as the final boss of the Sub-Game Strato Patrol EOS, where he is fought as both Nightmare's Power Orb and Nightmare Wizard.
Kirby: Triple Deluxe
In Kirby: Triple Deluxe, Nightmare appears as two keychains, Nightmare's Power Orb (using the sprite from Kirby's Adventure) and Nightmare Wizard (using the sprite from Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land). Additionally, Kirby can make a Balloon Pop Art of the Nightmare's Power Orb while using the Circus ability.
Kirby: Planet Robobot
In Kirby: Planet Robobot, Nightmare appears as a sticker in the form of Nightmare Wizard using the artwork from Kirby's Adventure. Notably, while the sticker contains only artwork of his head, the original art had his full body. Additionally, the Circus' Balloon Pop Art of the Nightmare's Power Orb can also appear here.
Kirby Star Allies
In this game, Nightmare only appears in the "Bad Boss Brothers" Celebration Picture, along with other Final Bosses. He is seen next to Drawcia and Dark Matter Blade.
Super Kirby Clash
Nightmare appears as a sticker using his artwork from Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land. It is unlocked after clearing the "Tougher: Parallel Nightmare" Story Quest. A parallel version of him from Another Dimension also appears as the main villain, and is largely the same sort of entity.
Kirby's Dream Buffet
In Kirby's Dream Buffet, Nightmare Wizard appears on one of the Character Treats, using his artwork from Kirby's Adventure.
Super Smash Bros. series
Nightmare makes an appearance as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. His role is to enshroud the stage and fighters in complete darkness for a brief time, disallowing anyone from seeing, including the summoner.
3DS / Wii U trophy description
| Name | 3DS Image | Wii U Image | Appears In | American English description | British English description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nightmare |  |
 |
NES Kirby's Adventure (05/1993) GBA Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land (12/2002) |
This ball of nightmares came from the Fountain of Dreams, taking nightmares to all of Dream Land. King Dedede sealed it away by shattering the Star Rod, but it was revived when the Star Rod was restored by Kirby. In Smash Bros., it hides the stage and the fighters in pure darkness. | This terrible being came from the Fountain of Dreams, bringing bad dreams to all of Dream Land. King Dedede sealed him away by shattering the Star Rod, but when Kirby restored it, Nightmare was able to come back. In this game, he shrouds the stage in darkness, making it impossible for the fighters to see. |
Blue indicates exclusive to the Wii U version.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Nightmare appears as a spirit, along with his initial Power Orb Form (which transforms into Nightmare proper after 'Enhancing'). Both spirits are of the 'grab' type, with the Power Orb being 'advanced' level with 2 support slots, and Nightmare proper being 'legend' level with 2 support slots as well. The level one stats of the Power Orb are 1,003 attack and 711 defense, in addition to level 99 stats of 4,024 attack and 2,855 defense. It can be obtained either by battling it in the Spirit Board or by purchasing it from the Shop. The proper Nightmare spirit has level 1 stats of 2,380 attack and 2,027 defense, with level 99 stats of 5,950 attack and 5,069 defense. This version gives the user the Jam FS Charge ability, making enemy fighters' Final Smash meter(s) increase more slowly than usual.
In Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
- Main article: Nightmare (anime character)
Nightmare (referred to as eNeMeE in the English dub) is the main villain in the anime series Kirby: Right Back at Ya! and is responsible for the creation of Night Mare Enterprises, also known as N.M.E. He and his corporation dominate much of the universe. He creates legions of monsters that Kirby fights and the Star Warriors fought before most of them were killed.
Throughout the arc of the series, Kirby is forced to fight several of the monsters sent his way by Night Mare Enterprises. Over the course of the series, Kirby gradually becomes stronger, eventually leading to him defeating Nightmare in the final episode using the Star Rod.
Nightmare also makes a brief appearance in the Kirby of the Stars Pilot, where he antagonizes Kirby, the Dream Land princess, and King Dedede.
Nightmare in the Kirby of the Stars Pilot
Trivia
- Despite being the first true villain in the Kirby series, Nightmare has had little representation in the games beyond the ones in which he appears, with his only other substantial appearances being in Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Kirby Mass Attack, and (through his Parallel counterpart) Super Kirby Clash.
- He bears a slight resemblance to Dark Mind from Kirby & The Amazing Mirror, except Dark Mind has an eye on his torso in his wizard form.
- A Nightmare-inspired gear for Beam Mage was considered to appear in Super Kirby Clash; however, it was scrapped.
Gallery
Artwork
Artwork of Nightmare's Power Orb from Kirby's Adventure
Sprites
In-game appearance in Kirby's Adventure
Appearance in Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land
Keychain from Kirby: Triple Deluxe
Keychain from Kirby: Triple Deluxe
Screenshots
Kirby firing shots from the Star Rod at Nightmare's orb in Kirby's Adventure
The Kirbys fighting Nightmare's orb in Kirby Mass Attack's sub-game Strato Patrol EOS
Circus' Balloon Pop Art in Kirby: Planet Robobot (which also appears in Kirby: Triple Deluxe)
Others
Nightmare cameos in the "Bad Boss Brothers" Celebration Picture in his wizard form
Assist Trophy model in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Dedede Directory about Nightmare
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ナイトメア Naitomea |
Nightmare |
| Traditional Chinese | 夢魘 mèng yǎn |
Nightmare |
| Simplified Chinese | 梦魇 mèngyǎn | |
| Dutch | Nightmare | - |
| French | Cauchemar | Nightmare |
| German | Nightmare Albtraum |
- Nightmare |
| Italian | Mago incubo | Nightmare Wizard |
| Korean | 나이트메어 Naiteume'eo |
Nightmare |
| European Portuguese | Pesadelo[2] | Nightmare |
| Russian | Кошмар Koshmar |
Nightmare |
| Spanish | Pesadilla | Nightmare |
Nightmare's Power Orb
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ナイトメア パワーオーブ Naitomea pawāōbu |
Nightmare Power Orb |
| French | Boule Cauchemar | Nightmare Ball |
| German | Energiekugel | Energy Ball |
| Italian | Sfera del Mago Incubo | Nightmare Wizard's Sphere |
| Korean | 나이트메어 파워 오브 Naiteume'eo Pawo Obeu |
Nightmare Power Orb |
| Spanish | Orbe Pesadilla | Nightmare Orb |
Nightmare Wizard
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ナイトメア ウィザード Naitomea uizādo |
Nightmare Wizard |
| French | Sorcier Cauchemar | Nightmare Sorcerer |
| German | Albtraum-Zauberer | Nightmare Wizard |
| Italian | Mago incubo | Nightmare Wizard |
| Korean | 나이트메어 위저드 Naiteume'eo Wijeodeu |
Nightmare Wizard |
| Portuguese | Mago Pesadelo | Nightmare Wizard |
| Spanish | Mago Pesadilla | Nightmare Wizard |
References
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