Nintendo Switch owners are likely still making their way throughFire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopesor preparing forMonster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, and there’s no shortage of exclusives down the line. The June 28 Nintendo Direct Mini: Partner Showcase gave users even more to anticipate, like theimminent releases ofPersona 3,4, and5. With all of that coming down the pipeline, it can be easy to forget early 2022 releases such asKirby and the Forgotten Land.
The gaming industry’s focus on live-service titles likeFortniteorDestiny 2mean contained, (primarily) single-player experiences likeKirby and the Forgotten Landcan fall out of conversation quick - especially without the promise of DLC. It’s certainly possible thatHAL Laboratory is working onForgotten LandDLC, but even that might come-and-go with little fanfare. The game’s Present Code system could have been a good way to keep fans' interest over time if handled correctly, so the nextKirbygame should keep that in mind.
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How Present Codes Work in Kirby and the Forgotten Land
AsKirby and the Forgotten Landplayers make their way through the adventure, rescued Waddle Dees populate the hub area of Waddle Dee Town. After hitting certain thresholds, new buildings and services become available. Some of these are minigames akin to the series' usual side activities, such as theTilt-and-Roll Kirby stand, but others represent practical in-game functions like a movie theater to re-watch cutscenes. The post office is unlocked after rescuing 50 Waddle Dees, with Delivery Waddle Dee able to provide items if the player uses codes hidden around the town and Internet forums.
Rather than providing unique goodies, each Present Code gives Kirby a set of otherwise common items. Some codes offer food items that restore health, such as Car-Mouth Cakes or Maxim Tomatoes; others offer stat-altering items from the Item Shop, such as Energy Drinks. However, the main giveaways are Star Coins and Rare Stones, used to buy new copy abilities or upgrade existing ones. Rare Stones are particularly valuable resources given some copy abilities can be powered up multiple times, but players receive most of what they need bycompleting Treasure Road stages.
Some post-launch Present Codes were provided from places like the Nintendo of America Twitter account, and a few were only told to players who partook inKirby and the Forgotten Land’s demo. Yet none of these offered more unique items, despite that being a possible avenue to keep fans engaged.Nintendo’s recent sports games have a habit of launching somewhat incompletewith free updates planned, but in this case additional codes likely would have been a benefit givenForgotten Land’s adventure was complete at launch.
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What the Next Kirby Game Should Do With Present Codes
This isn’t to say HAL Laboratory should have hidden substantial content behind codes from outside sources like Twitter, but prior titles have included fun, relatively harmless collectibles that would fit a scavenger hunt release schedule. Two titles developed by Capcom subsidiary Flagship,Kirby and the Amazing Mirroron Game Boy Advance as well asKirby Squeak Squadon DS, provided a number of collectibles through in-game chests that could work here. Spray Paint colors that change the way Kirby looks and menu palettes are the most obvious, though if HAL really wanted to interest fans it could also add substantive items like Ability Scrolls that augment copy abilities with new techniques.
Going with the latter or benefits like additional health might lean too hard into seemingly being “cut content,” so HAL would have to be careful going beyond cosmetics. There’s also the risk that dataminers would immediately find all the secret items being saved to extend a game’s life. Even so, Present Codes have a lot more potential than how they were used inKirby and the Forgotten Land, as giveaways for resources are better in titles likeSuper Kirby Clashthat are built around microtransactions.
Kirby and the Forgotten Landis available now for Nintendo Switch.
