Given Kirby Star Allies received multiple waves of post-launch content like other tentpole Switch releases, there’s a good chance Kirby and the Forgotten Land will too. Star Allies was more a celebration of the franchise, with its added content including new “Dream Friends” based on major characters from across Kirby history. Forgotten Land is its own beast, so DLC could be more narrative-driven. One fun inclusion would be more copy abilities, with players able to see evolved takes on more fan-favorites.
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Kirby and the Forgotten Land’s Evolved Copy Abilities
Kirby and the Forgotten Land has fewer abilities than usual, with Kirby only able to don 12 basic hats: Ranger, Hammer, Crash, Fire, Cutter, Sword, Bomb, Tornado, Drill, Sleep, Needle, and Ice. Of these, only two - Ranger and Drill - are new additions. HAL adapts the combat to Forgotten Land’s 3D environments well, but mainly makes up for the deficit by letting players try unique variants.
Using Star Coins accrued through normal gameplay and Rare Stones awarded by Treasure Road stages (as well as mini-games like Tilt-and-Roll), Kirby can visit the Weapon Shop in Waddle Dee Town to upgrade abilities using blueprints found across various levels. These range in utility from “Deep Sleep” giving Kirby an additional buff to “Meta Knight Sword” adding new combo moves and a Zelda-style beam attack. The aforementioned Treasure Road stages require mastery of different abilities, so HAL gives players an excuse to try every tool in Kirby’s upgraded arsenal.
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Possible Copy Abilities to Bring Back in Forgotten Land DLC
DLC for Kirby and the Forgotten Land could focus on Meta Knight, who has a tertiary role protecting Waddle Dee Town off-screen. However, the end of the game suggests Kirby could return to Dream Land for a slate of new levels using the series’ classic aesthetic rather than Forgotten Land’s post-apocalyptic setting. If so, there would be plenty of returning enemies, which could open up a host of new evolved copy abilities.
Kirby has used dozens of abilities over the last 30 years, so those with more unique gimmicks should take priority. Laser or Spark might be too close to the “Space Ranger” and “Storm Tornado” abilities from Forgotten Land, for example. Kirby Super Star’s Mirror ability has more potential, often including projectiles from a wand as well as letting Kirby attack by splitting into multiple copies of himself. Water from Kirby’s Return to Dream Land may also offer a good standalone mechanic to iterate upon, letting Kirby ride bigger waves with more range that could take shapes akin to Sidon’s shark attacks in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.
Another fun possibility is packing thematically similar copy abilities into the same line, such as Fighter Kirby branching into Suplex or Beetle. The Yo-Yo and ESP abilities could also be brought together to drive home HAL’s reference to Ness from Earthbound. However, the developer would be remiss not to use some of the series’ more iconic abilities. Umbrella could differentiate itself from Sword by focusing more on the defensive potential of different materials, and UFO could negate Forgotten Land’s restricted floating to give players the power fantasy of blasting away with evolutions based on its usual attacks: a beam cutter and ranged laser beam.
If there are plans for Kirby and the Forgotten Land DLC, it would be a shame not to see more copy abilities. Many Kirby games have one-off gimmicks, like Triple Deluxe’s Hypernova and Planet Robobot’s mechs, so evolved copy abilities should get more time to shine before potentially being replaced. With HAL telling fans that 3D platforming may not feature in all future Kirby games, this outing should add more content to satisfy fans until the next one arrives.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land is available now for Nintendo Switch.
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Source: Nintendo
