Kirby and the Forgotten Land: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World - A Delightful Mouthful
When Kirby and the Forgotten Land was released on the original Nintendo Switch, I reviewed it as “a source of pure joy and light” and remarked on how impressive it was that a game who sold itself on something called “Mouthful Mode” managed to be so wholesome. Three years later, the game is now available on the Nintendo Switch 2 and I would like to give it the same review – Kirby and the Forgotten Land is an absolute delight, and if you haven’t played the original game, picking it up on the Nintendo Switch 2 is an absolute no-brainer. It has some quality-of-life improvements, with faster loading times and a graphical upgrade, and it’s great fun for the whole family.
If you haven’t played the original release, I recommend checking out my original review and deciding whether or not it’s your jam. It’s a surprisingly wholesome game about our puffy pink friend Kirby, who takes on many different forms (or “copy abilities”) and swallows entire bits of construction equipment and utility objects in what is otherwise a fairly standard 3D platformer. It’s a joyful experience despite some relatively dark themes, and everyone should give it a go. For those who are already familiar with the base game, the exciting part of this latest release of Kirby and the Forgotten Land is the extra content, titled ‘Star-Crossed World’ – DLC that took its time getting here, but that offers a collection of new levels and a neat little side-story to complement the existing content.
Star-Crossed World begins when Kirby and Elfilin witness a dramatic meteor shower from the sky, and quickly learn that what has fallen is both concerning and reason for optimism. While investigating one of the fallen objects, they meet Astronomer Waddle Dee – an academic who has conveniently been reading up on the ‘legend of the meteor’, and who identifies the object before them as the ‘Star of Darkness’ which – if left unchecked – will bring darkness to the world. Thankfully, the legend tells that if the Star of Darkness is also accompanied by “stars of light”, then there is hope – and so Kirby and Elfilin must begin their journey to collect these stars of light and rebuild the ‘Sealing Crystal’ that once kept the darkness contained.
As Kirby and Elfilin track these stars of light across the world, you’ll see that the meteor shower has transformed the landscape, opening up new pathways and mutating the enemies into much sparklier, magical versions of their previous selves. These new ‘Starry Levels’ start off, in many cases, much like their regular counterparts, but upon activation of one of the new crystals scattered throughout the world, the levels will branch off and require new ways of navigation – including the use of several new ‘Mouthful Modes’. Though aesthetically different (and gorgeous, if you are someone who likes a shiny crystal vibe) the levels are functionally the same – it’s just more of what you enjoyed in the base game. These new modes (a gear, a spring and a… signboard?) add some fun new elements, allowing you to climb up walls and complete snowboard-style time trials, adding some freshness to otherwise familiar gameplay.
For the most part, Star-Crossed World is just more Kirby and the Forgotten Land, but with a slightly different aesthetic. Given it’s been three years since the initial release, it mostly gave me an excuse to jump back into a game I loved so much and experience some of that joy again – something I wouldn’t have necessarily expected after all this time. If you’re looking for some game-altering content of the likes of what Bowser’s Fury was for Super Mario 3D World, you won’t find it here. But if you’re ready to just treat Star-Crossed World as some extra DLC that’s more of the same, it’s an easy recommendation. Kirby will always be adorable and a beacon of joy, and Kirby and the Forgotten Land was (in my opinion) his best outing in the last few years – so I simply can’t say no to more joy.
Player 2 reviewed Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World on Nintendo Switch 2 using a code kindly provided by Nintendo Australia.
