The Nintendo Switch has been a huge success following the company’s Wii U era, and a large part of that has been on the shoulders of franchises experimenting with their core formulas.Super Mario Odysseyreturned to a 3D sandbox formatwith expansive movement andThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildturned Hyrule into an open-world playground, marking two of the most notable examples. HAL Laboratory’sKirby and the Forgotten Landis the next adventure on the docket for a major Nintendo mascot, and it has a lot of the same potential.
Forgotten Landis the series' first true foray into 3D, going all the way with a traditional adventure as opposed to the 3D puzzle spin-offKirby’s Blowout Blast. Trailers leading up toKirby and the Forgotten Land’s March release have impressed fans, especially after 2018’sKirby Star Allieswas a safe 2D platformer centering fanservice elements. This makes it similar to Game Freak’sPokemonfranchise, which released multiple “safe” titles on the Switch before really breaking the mold withPokemon Legends: Arceus. The success ofLegends: Arceusfollows a pattern set by other Nintendo IPs, which bodes well for Kirby’s future.
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The Nintendo Switch As Franchise Kingmaker
Super Mario OdysseyandBreath of the Wildare just two examples of Nintendo franchises experimenting and becoming break-out successes on Switch - the latter inspiring numerous open-world games in the following years. For example,Fire Emblem: Three Housesleaned into life-sim elements more than its predecessors, andAnimal Crossing: New Horizonswas more about free expressionwith terraforming and outdoor decorating. Other titles that took more expected approaches likeLuigi’s Mansion 3andMetroid Dreadalso become huge successes, outselling most games in their respective franchises.
The first fewPokemongames released on Switch have likewise been successful, but seem to get diminishing critical and audience receptions.Pokemon Let’s Go, Pikachu!andEevee!remade the Kanto region withPokemon GOmechanics, butSwordandShieldwere bog-standard adventures to kick off Generation 8.SwordandShieldare now the second-best sellingPokemongames, which is nothing to sneeze at, but audiences craved something more unique. The safe remakesPokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlby ILCA did not deliver on that front, though they’ve also sold well since November 2021.
Pokemon Legends: Arceusis that shake-up fans have been waiting for, taking the series in an open-world direction alaBreath of the Wildwith a unique setting and various tweaks to the formula like real-time monster catching. This innovation has already paid dividends, withPokemon Legends: Arceus becoming a massive sales successin just over a week.
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Kirby and the Forgotten Land’s Time to Shine
Kirby and the Forgotten Landdoesn’t appear to have as many franchise-defining shifts as a game likeLegends: Arceus, but taking the mascot into 3D with an evocative post-apocalyptic setting is a far cry fromKirby Star Allies. In the wake of games likeBreath of the WildandAnimal Crossing: New Horizons,Forgotten Land’s unique hook may be just enough to crown it an achievement on Switch alongside various titles this generation.
The fact thatPokemonandKirbyare following a similar path with their Switch releases also suggests the pink puffball’s next adventure has potential. Many are raving about a fresh, open-airPokemongame, and they could do the same for a 3DKirbyadventure as its titular protagonist battles the Beast Pack. Even if it doesn’t explode in popularity,Nintendo has multipleKirbyprojects in developmentfor this mascot’s 30th anniversary, which means there’s bound to be a lot to celebrate.
Kirby and the Forgotten Landlaunches March 25, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
