Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a really good game that deserves to be talked about! In this episode, Brando and Jordan explore just about every aspect of the game, its design, and why it's an easy recommend for anyone who plays Nintendo Switch.
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Show Outline
Intro
Blown away from start to finish and even went back for a little more once I had 100%ed the game.
Agreed! I was also blown away. So good.
How did you feel about the automatic camera movement?
Personally I really loved it. I very seldom felt like I had any issue with the camera and I think it really helped the level and boss design.
At first it kind of bothered me, and I think that’s because I was hoping for a “Mario Odyssey” approach, where the levels would be non-linear. But after the first few levels, I didn’t mind it at all to the point where I haven’t really thought about it until now. I think I’m just consciously realizing that the “zelda” like “Z-Targeting” was just done so well with those big bosses that I never had a problem with it, which I think is kinda a huge W.
A recent game that hasn’t won any awards yet lol! Basic info from google
Narrative
Touch on the Story Beats in the game?
Distilled story
Dimensional rift sucks Kirby into a seemingly empty (or forgotten) world
bunch of waddle dees are captured, so kirby sets out to save them
meets a creature called elfilin, they become friends and traverse the game together
as you save waddle dees they start to build a little town or hub area
One of the waddle dees offers to upgrade abilities if you give him blueprints and currency (which resemble boss items)
Eventually you find Dedede who is being mind controlled (again) and you beat the tar out of him, only for him to get brainwashed again by a mask (also not the first time), and then kirby makes it to a facility where you find Elfilin’s other half, which was captured by the people who used to exist in the forgotten land
But first you have to beat up Leongar, king of the beast pack, but then Elfilin’s other half wakes up and absorbs him and a bunch of beasts, and eventually Elfilin, and then you face the final boss Fecto Elfilis who has crazy dimensional powers
Semi related but as far as interdimensional god beings go I thought that the design of Elfilis was kinda weak? (Sonic OC lookin’ thing). But dang. Has so many abilities and is definitely in the god-tier range of beings (found someone who went nuts and wrote it all out) Could be fun to tierlist the Kirby final bosses if we wanted lol, but could also just be fun to read out this bosses abilities (and discuss what in the world kind of civilization had the technology to contain such a powerful creature????)
https://tiermaker.com/create/kirbys-main-final-bosses-1992-2022-15105116
realizing I really only know about like 7 or 8 of these dudes from the games I’ve played lol (and I know fewer names than that)
Canon in the mainline lore.
There is sooooo much lore that covering all the past entries might be for naught, watched like 5 videos on all the lore and they’re soooo long…
I think Forgotten Land was serviceable enough for what it was (in regards to the lore) and really the most I can hope for is the final boss having god-tier powers paha
talk about characters
Elfilin as a side character
Dedede
Meta Knight
Beast gang
Gameplay
Abilities
Thoughts on the new upgrade system and ability count?
Ever since Crystal Shards I’ve always hoped for another “combination” ability Kirby game... but I’ve always loved exploring all the abilities in the other games (UFO ability is OP lol). So, while the ability count is low in this game (which originally bummed me out), I grew to really like the upgrade system and how everything is done in this game. It is so cool that you get to wield the same items as the mini-bosses, and some final bosses!
There are 12 standard Copy Abilities, two of which are new (Drill and Ranger). In addition, each Copy Ability has at least one Evolved Ability; most abilities have two evolutions, Sword and Hammer have three, and limited-use abilities have only one.
ability list
Bomb
Chain bomb
homing bomb
Crash
Time crash
Cutter
Chakram Cutter
Buzz-Saw Cutter
Drill
Pencil Drill
Twin Drill
Fire
Volcano Fire
Dragon Fire
Hammer
Toy Hammer
Wild Hammer
Masked Hammer
Ice
Frosty Ice
Blizzard Ice
Needle
Clutter needle
Crystal needle
Ranger
Noble Ranger
Space Ranger
Sleep
Deep Sleep
Sword
Gigant Sword
Meta Knight Sword
Morpho Knight Sword
Tornado
Fleur Tornado
Storm Tornado
Favorite abilities?
My meme pick is definitely Time Crash (where are the Jojo fans at??), Space Ranger carried me through a lot of content, but Morpho Sword is just... so cool lol
Gotta touch on the fact that all of them are just really well designed, even Spike, which has previously kinda sucked in basically all the other Kirby games lol
Mouthful mode
Surprisingly fun! Favorite was; [spoilers] the semi-truck lol, but I always enjoyed being the car and the vending machine
I think they helped break up the gameplay to keep the platforming and the fighting from feeling too same-y.
Level to level
Map traversal
The Levels & their Design.
theming was top notch! (in proper Kirby fashion).
6 base “Worlds”
Natural Plains
Everbay Coast
Wondaria Remains
I think this place was my favorite! Had a lot of variety, the theme park theming was ominous and cool, and had a lot of interesting moment to moment stuff going on.
Winter Horns
Originull Wasteland
Redgar Forbidden Lands
Saving Waddle-dees
The rescuing WaddleDees gameplay.
The Home Base.
The minigames. (at home base, but could also touch on the moment to moment “mini-games” that are just in the levels, and how that’s just a part of the level design)
Treasure road challenges.
loved these. Were really fun but also rewarded me for understanding the mechanics of each ability, mouthful mode, etc, in the game.
The Boss fights.
Dodging, perfect dodging, and how it is a secret mechanic, lol.
Main game bosses
Gorimondo
Tropic Woods
Clawroline
King Dedede
Sillydillo
Forgo Dedede
Leongar
Fecto Forgo
Fecto Elfilis
Post Credits, Collectables, Conclusion & Outro
The post credits content.
Kirby separates Elfilin from Elfilis and then rams a semi-truck into Elfilis before Elfilis can crash planet Popstar into the forgotten land through a dimensional portal
Elfilin absorbs Elfilis and then closes the dimensional portal
Kirby and Elfilin collect pieces of Leongars soul in a dream-like dimension existing in the memories of Elfilis (??)
Leongar is restored, but soon becomes a vessel for Elfilis, but you defeat the both of them and with a few more pieces of soul Leongar is restored to his former self
(Ultimate arena X is supposed to be cannon?), Elfilis is consumed by a butterfly (pause to talk about how absolutely insanely powerful butterflys are????) and is transformed into morpho knight, and you also face Fecto Elfilis, who is able to be whole without Elfilin because of the butterfly
Kirby rips Elfilis soul out of its body and then fights its soul, eventually killing it
6 post game isolated isles:
Forgo Plains
“” Bay
“” Park
“” Horns
“” Wasteland
“” Zone
Post Game boss fights
Phantom Gorimondo
“” Tropic Woods
“” Clawroline
“” King Dedede
“” Sillydillo
“” Forgo Dedede
“” Forgo Leongar
Morpho Knight
The colosseum/the post post credits content.
The Gatchapon collectables.
The path to 100%ing the game and the reward.
Final thoughts and recommendation?
social media plugs, etc.
