In spite of everything else revealed at the September 2021 Nintendo Direct,Kirby and the Forgotten Landwas arguably the most welcome surprise among them. Although theKirbyfranchise hasn’t stopped gaining new entries or spinoffs ever since 1992’sKirby’s Dream Land,Kirby and the Forgotten Landlooks like a return to classicKirbyfun, albeit with a couple of significant twists.Kirby and the Forgotten Landtakes the franchise wholly into 3D, for instance. It seems Kirby will be following the lead of his fellow Nintendo platforming star Mario, whoseSuper Marioseries started adding 3D entries a long time ago. In a way, it’s surprising that it’s taken this long forKirbyto get a wholly 3D entry in the main series.
There’s another major twist toKirby and the Forgotten Land,and it’s much more mysterious. The game appears to take place in a post-apocalyptic city of some sort.The Forgotten Land’s reveal trailershowed Kirby walking around all sorts of abandoned places, including an overgrown shopping mall and a crumbling skyscraper. Kirby has clearly found himself in a very mysterious place, but it’s also not Kirby’s first encounter with a post-apocalyptic setting.Kirby 64: The Crystal Shardsfeatured an abandoned planet called Shiver Star with some similar themes. MaybeKirby and the Forgotten Landwill lean intoThe Crystal Shardsvia its similarity to Shiver Star.
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Kirby and the Significance of Shiver Star
Although Shiver Star is only the fifth out of six worlds that Kirby visits inKirby 64: The Crystal Shards,it’s arguably the most memorable because of how mysterious and ominous it is. Looking at Shiver Star onKirby 64’s level select screen, players might notice that the frozen planet of Shiver Star looks an awful lot like the real Earth; the outlines of Earth’s continents are very easy to spot. Notably, in spite of its icy and abandoned state, Shiver Star is full of cityscapes and machines that continue to function in their makers' absence. Official descriptions of Shiver Star even suggest that its residents left the planet because it got too cold.
Much like howKirby and the Forgotten Landshows Kirby walking through a shopping mall, parts of Shiver Star look an awful lot like a human shopping mall, driving home the point that Shiver Star could be a ruined Earth. In other words, it looks likeKirby and the Forgotten Landwill liftThe Crystal Shard’s idea of Kirby discovering the ruins of human civilization and exploring that idea in greater depth. Shiver Star was only one piece ofThe Crystal Shards,but now it’s founda spiritual heir inForgotten Land,which puts the Shiver Star experience at the heart of the game.
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Kirby and the Forgotten Land’s Inheritance
It’s worth noting that the post-apocalyptic Shiver Star isn’t the only idea thatForgotten Landseems to get fromKirby 64.Notably,Kirby 64transitioned theKirbyfranchise from 2D graphics into 3D graphics, vastly changing the aesthetic of the series. Fittingly,Kirby and the Forgotten Landwill bethe firstKirbygame that’s wholly 3D, letting players run around in all directions and totally changing the experience of platforming as Kirby. It seems these two 3DKirbyinnovators have a lot in common.
Still, there’s a case to be made thatKirby and the Forgotten Land’s post-apocalyptic setting is the most important connection toKirby 64: The Crystal Shardsand the world of Shiver Star. Fans may never know the entire story behind Shiver Star, butKirby and the Forgotten Landis clearly all aboutthe ruined world that Kirby has discovered. As Kirby explores this strange city and whatever strange buildings or biomes it contains, he’ll inevitably brush up against the forces that made the universe forget this land in the first place. Kirby has a notable habit of running into scheming supervillains and cosmic terrors, so just as Shiver Star hints at a grim story of a collapsing world,Kirby and the Forgotten Landcould tell a compelling story about a civilization’s destruction.
Kirby and the Forgotten Landreleases in spring 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
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