Superstar Sidestories: Drew's Starbright Battle

Superstar Sidestories: Drew's Starbright Battle is a platform video game developed for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System by Gamesoft in 1996. The first in the series' Sidestories spinoffs, this game focuses on Drew Baker as he uncovers the mystery of Aerial Carnival with the help of the Starbright Detective Agency.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Drew's Starbright Battle is similar to that of Superstar Mania. Players start out as Drew Baker, but as they progress through the game, can select the newcomers to the series: Haiji Jackal, Scraps Duster, Ivory Skeleton, and Marino. Each character has their unique abilities that can help fulfill a role in a quest: Haiji can perform double jumps to reach high areas, Scraps can absorb garbage lying across the stage and fire back at any enemies or obstacles, Ivory can use his bones to build certain contraptions, and Marino has a special lock-on ability to fire his missiles at enemies, in addition to perfect underwater mobility.

The primary objective of the game is mostly unchanged from previous Superstar titles. The player must reach to the end of each level and defeat the enemies along the way. The levels are divided into five worlds, referred to as "stations", each consisting of five different Areas. After every two Levels played, the time zone will change (morning, day, evening, and night). The time zone affects enemy placements and boss difficulty. At the end of Area 5, the player confronts a Mechaking boss. This time around, the player does not gain a special weapon that can exploit a boss' weakness like in previous games.

Synopsis
The plot starts out on the day before the opening day of Aerial Carnival, a huge amusement resort with the latest in high-tech rides and games. Drew Baker, who was surprisingly the sponsor of this event, was to make sure nothing went wrong before the grand event.

Behind the scenes, however, Alex Dawn was cooking up a new dastardly scheme. To fuel her latest diabolical device, Alex went to Aerial Carnival in search of a hidden specimen deep within the carnival. To further ensure that Drew and his friends would not interfere with his plans, she used her Gacha King to freeze Haiji Jackal, Scraps Duster, Ivory Skeleton, and Marino in time.

When Drew returned from patrolling the far end of the carnival, he found Alex alongside a huge alien she found underneath the carnival. Drew barely fended them off and found a Gacha King that contained Haiji, which he unlocked and saved. After that, Drew discovered that he could rescue his other friends one at a time by using Starbright, a power that has the ability to restore anyone to normal. Drew then set out with his team to save Aerial Carnival from Alex and her new alien partner before the grand opening.

Playable characters

 * Drew Baker
 * Haiji Jackal
 * Ivory Skeleton
 * Marino
 * Scraps Duster

Non-playable characters

 * Alex Dawn
 * Needel
 * Kelly Valentine

Bosses

 * Flash Brightbox (Boss of Shock Maze)
 * Lady Vespa (Boss of Growth Garden)
 * Manta Rocker (Boss of Deepsea Drive)
 * Coaster Creep (Boss of Dash Zone)
 * Circuit Kidd (Boss of Bit Mayhem)

Stages

 * First Fields
 * Growth Garden
 * Dash Zone
 * Shock Maze
 * Deepsea Drive
 * Bit Mayhem
 * Alex's Chaotic Carnival