A few more thoughts on Ivy the Kiwi? (No, that's not a question)

I spent some additional quality time with the Wii version of Ivy the Kiwi? this past weekend, and as a result of that experience I've decided to expand upon my earlier impressions of this Prope-made platformer.

* For starters, forget what I said earlier about the colorized backdrops that appear in the North American iteration of this game. Not only have they grown on me, but I think I now prefer them to the mostly monochromatic ones found in the Japanese version.

* Although I'm not willing to do a similar 180 on what I said a few days ago about the title's background music--I still think it's too loud compared to the sound effects--I am willing to augment those thoughts by saying the tunes are pretty spectacular. I especially like the moodier tracks, which remind me, in a way, of some of the music found in the Professor Layton series.

* Speaking of Professor Layton, this game's difficulty curve, much like Level-5's popular puzzler, is a bit like an up-and-down roller-coaster ride. Sometimes you'll lose a whole slew of lives trying to finish a level--such as 5-3, if you're like me--and then breeze through the follow-up with nary an issue. It's more of an interesting fact than an annoying one, though, so don't worry about it if you're on the fence about the game.

See also: 'No question about it ...'