HAL Laboratories is back with their newest entry in the Kirby franchise. Kirby and the Forgotten Land on the Nintendo Switch is a fresh take on the franchise and includes new abilities, features, and gameplay mechanics.
When first announced, the game appeared to be some sort of mixture between a Naughty Dog title and the lovable pink blob. It seemed confusing yet intriguing enough to check out. I mean, who would think that Kirby would show up in a postapocalyptic world? After the release of 2018’s Star Allies, there needed to be a hook that made the series more palatable and this defintely does the job. Looking back at Star Allies, though, it played things too safely. There were some interesting concepts, sure, but it wasn’t enough to make it a “must play” experience. Here, however, things finally have taken a turn for the better.
Open Level Design
Kirby is better than ever in Kirby and the Forgotten Land as there are so many major improvements provided to the game. For starters, the level design is superb. Major set pieces dominate the game and feel so huge in comparison to Kirby’s size. Each environment is demanding to be explored and have so much life to them. There’s depth at every turn and plenty to be explored off of the main path. It isn’t an open world game though so if you are expecting something akin to Pokemon Legends Arceus, you will be disappointed. it shouldn’t be disappointing at all though as the levels are three demensional. Think Super Mario Odyssey levels rather than Breath of the Wild‘s openness.
With that in mind, similar to Mario Odyssey, there are various challenges presented in each stage besides the standard “get to the end.” A main goal is to save as many Waddle Dees as you can with each stage granting three upon completion. There are, typically, at least nine others to collect throughout the levels with tasks ranging from finding hidden Waddle Dees, eating a specified number of donuts, and discovering hidden passageways. With these in mind, finding each secret and looking around every nook and cranny makes the levels much longer than past entries. You’ll be thinking that the level is almost over then realize, “oh this hidden Waddle Dee is only the second of four found.”
More to Discover
An issue that does arise from these are that levels can sometimes drag on for a little too long. I recently played this title for a few hours but had to take a little break to refresh myself. It’s not a horrible thing but if you play in long sessions, you’ll drain yourself of the enjoyment. Not only this, but you can’t go back in certain areas of a level. For instance, if you think that you’re heading on the secret path yet it’s the main path, you can’t return to the last section and go in the different direction. Instead, you’ll have to return to this level at a later time to discover any secrets. This can become tedious and a bit frustrating to those looking to 100%. Fortunately, after you’ve beat the level the first time, running through it quickly goes by quicker since you already discovered everything else.
It is required to get X amount of Waddle Dees to unlock the boss level for each section but there’s a little more to do than the standard levels. First, the Waddle Dees are intending to head back to rebuild their Waddle Town. After being scattered throughout the world, Kirby must rescue them and bring them back. Not the most encapsulating plot line but that’s not really why someone buys a Kirby game, so it’s okay. Anyways, in this town, many of the buildings have been destroyed and need to be rebuilt with the found Waddle Dees. With each unlock, there’s a lot to discover and do to help bring back Waddle Town to its former glory. Not to mention, the game features a boss rush mode that can be completed while you work on finishing the main storyline.
New Features and Inclusions
There are shops and areas that feature mini games with their own set of unlockables. A staple unlockable found are the gotcha machines. There are tons of figures to collect and it’s actually pretty fun to do so. I personally found myself spamming my coins on the gotcha machines to purchase the full collection but if you don’t want to do that, these figures can also be discovered throughout each level. With each volume, the price increases to buy from the machine and as the game goes on, new figures are added. Some are also only unlocked by completing special quests in Waddle Town so there is an element that yearns to be sought after.
Another aspect that helps to amplify Kirby and the Forgotten Land are item upgrades. While you’re out exploring the world, there are levels called “Treasure Road” where you complete different challenges for various abilities in order to earn a rare stone. These are used to upgrade abilities found throughout the game. Sometimes, though, it feels as if there’s a bit too many of these stages in each area. There are three stages of every ability with each adding more power and pizzazz to it. For instance, the bomb ability eventually turns into a chain bomb. In order to upgrade, you’ll need to seek out a blueprint which allows you to purchase it with regular coins and rare stones. It’s also helpful to know that if you think you missed a blueprint, there is a spot in Waddle Town that you can check. The upgrades are fantastic and make Kirby seem much more lethal than he ever has been especially with his new gun ability.
The biggest new inclusion is Kirby’s mouthful mode where he takes the form of various objects and can take on bigger and broader abilities. Most notable of these is, of course, the car which sees the lovable blob become an automobile capable of racing around the world and running over anything or anyone in sight. Yes, this is incredibly fun and creates unique obstacles to overcome in order to open up various passageways. Whether it’s becoming a traffic cone or a pipe, each is intentional and has its own way of adding to the level design.
Whether you’re picking up the game to commit violent crimes with Kirby or just enjoy the cuteness of it all, you’ll have a good time. There’s enough of a challenge present that makes this title worthwhile for each type of gamer. Wild Mode is the standard difficulty with regular damage and all the bells and whistles thrown at Kirby. Spring-Breeze Mode, however, is one that is more lax and allows the user to kick back and just go along for the ride. Regardless of which one you choose, the gameplay is going to provide a fun experience. The only downside of using Spring-Breeze Mode is that you won’t receive as many star coins as a reward but if you just want to have fun and relax then this is a miniscule bump in the road.
With so much to discover and do, this is easily the best Kirby title in recent memory. Kirby and the Forgotten Land brings a lot to the table and is an entry that should be played by any fan of the character or a newcomer to the series. Previously, I would have said that Planet Robobot is the best of the modern era but this easily takes the cake, or in Kirby’s case, inhales it.