Players use the Wii U GamePad to help Kirby, who is stuck in a ball form, move across the level by drawing rainbow colored lines on the touchscreen to guide him.

[7] Each level contains several hidden treasure chests, some of which require solving a puzzle or clearing a timed room, which unlock viewable clay figures and music tracks, as well as diary pages detailing Elline's journey.

Elline, a paintbrush fairy from the land of Seventopia, goes through the portal in order to escape several "grab hands" and uses her powers to bring color back to Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee.

In the last world's final boss stage, it is revealed that Claycia had been possessed by an evil force known as the Dark Crafter, who has the urge to drain all of the color in a specific place.

Waddle Dees were chosen as the multiplayer characters because the developers felt that Meta Knight or King Dedede were not as well-suited to protect Kirby.

"[23] Giant Bomb's Dan Ryckert gave Kirby and the Rainbow Curse two stars out of five, comparing the title negatively to its DS predecessor.

Ryckert preferred to play as a Waddle Dee, whose traditional control scheme afforded more reliable platforming and boss fighting than the "unreliable stylus paths" provided.

Sliva thought that the visuals were "absolutely gorgeous," praising details like fingerprints in the clay and the stop-motion movements of the bosses, but was disappointed that he had to focus on the GamePad instead of an HDTV.

He found the game "charming" and its visuals to be "the prettiest [...] on Wii U so far," but was disappointed that the clay aesthetic did not influence the gameplay like the fabric did in Kirby's Epic Yarn.

[33] Hardcore Gamer's Dermot Creegan gave the game a 4.5 out of 5, calling it a "constantly creative adventure that offers players something they won't find anywhere else."