Kirby and the Forgotten Land Review | 3D Kirby is a Dream Come True
Man, what can I say? I did not expect this game to knock it out of the park as far as it did. Way to go HAL! I am eagerly anticipating a…
Man, what can I say? I did not expect this game to knock it out of the park as far as it did. Way to go HAL! I am eagerly anticipating a sequel game already. If you’re on the fence about this game, I recommend you jump right in, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!
I’ve been a Kirby fan for a long time, not as long as the series has existed, but I have fond memories of Crystal Shards, Super Star, Nightmare in Dreamland, Air Ride, and even Canvas Curse. I love how there are a lot of Kirby games that experiment with different gameplay ideas and themes, and it seems because of this with each new Kirby title, you can tell that the devs had fun making the game, putting their heart and soul into it, and this entry is no exception! It’s another breath of fresh air into this long-running pink dude, and it deserves to live right up there with all of my nostalgic favorites.
I didn’t have a good opinion of Kirby and the Forgotten Land (KatFL), the thing that initially turned me off from the game was the lack of abilities… I think the first thing I’m always interested in when it comes to Kirby games is what kind of unique and interesting abilities there are, so when I went into the shop to upgrade my abilities for the first time I was a bit bummed! There are way fewer than you would expect. But the ability upgrades slowly make up for that! I do think it’s a cool idea to be able to upgrade your abilities, and not just that, but many of them start by mimicking the regular enemies, and after the first upgrade, the abilities mimic the bosses, and some go beyond that, and mimic other bosses, or just get even cooler. And unlike previous Kirby games, every single one of these abilities is fun to use. Even needle! A welcome thing for sure. So while the pool of abilities is small, the upgrades keep the game feeling new and fresh around every corner.
It’s such a joy to look for and find secrets in this game. I’d be curious about going to a certain spot or standing on a specific object and I swear, every time the developer puts something there. Sometimes it’s just coins that’ll pop into existence, other times it’s a gaacha capsule, and yet other times it’s a waddle dee or something. But it’s just so much fun to hunt for these secrets and find everything that needs to be found. I think it’s one of the most enjoyable games to 100% complete that I’ve ever played.
The level designs are amazing and the theming for each area is on point. I also think the length of the game is quite nice, and while at first, I was wishing for it to be more difficult, I think the difficulty ended up being just fine and in the end, landed in a place that was surprisingly challenging (especially for some of those harder to get Treasure Road times). I was also NOT ready for the Ultimate Z arena. That was KILLER. It was really fun defeating all of those amped-up bosses and was easily my favorite part of the game.
The only gripes I can think of: I don’t really like gaacha mechanics in games. So, in the end game, after I’ve completed everything KatFL has to offer, why can’t I buy them in greater quantities? Or outright “buy” the whole machine? I spent 15 minutes trying to win the capsules I didn’t have yet for my 100% completion status and I just think it’s a little unnecessary. I also wish there were more ways to earn those Rare Stones in the post-game beyond playing the arena to make upgrading abilities in the end game not as monotonous a process. And to reiterate, I love the abilities and their upgrade trees… but I still would have loved to see MORE.
Man. It is just such a good time. Super well done. The mini-games knocked my socks off too, The music is up there with the greats, and the cinematics were stellar… I just can’t believe we have a 3D Kirby game and it’s this good. It makes me excited for a sequel. Could they go full-blown, non-linear open-world a la Super Mario Odyssey? Could they add more abilities like I was hoping for? I don’t know! But if it’s anything like this, it’s going to be amazing. NameBrand.
If you’ve played through Kirby and the Forgotten Land and want to hear my friend and I continue to gush about it in greater detail, have a look at my videogame post-mortem podcast VOID ARCADE, where some friends and I talk about games after we’ve completed them (like some sort of book club). Thanks!
Kirby and the Forgotten Land - Let Him Eat Cake (ft. Jorddagreatest) by VOID ARCADE
Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a really good game that deserves to be talked about! In this episode, Brando and Jordan…podcasters.spotify.com
Originally published at https://backloggd.com.