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HAL Laboratory thinks Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a turning point for the franchise

The game has been described as Kirby's "Breath of the Wild moment".
Ben Lyons Senior Editor 4 April 2023

Kirby and the Forgotten Land went down very well with fans and critics when it debuted last year (be sure to read our thoughts in our review here). But just how well exactly? Speaking with IGN, developer HAL Laboratory has compared the game to being Kirby's "Breath of the Wild moment".

Shinya Kumazaki, general director of the Kirby franchise, stated: "If we're talking about what Breath of the Wild perhaps did for the Zelda series in that it was a revolution, revolutionised the series, I think Kirby [and the] Forgotten Land was kind of at a turning point. And I think you can consider it as the first step in our kind of ongoing moving forward challenge of now also creating 3D Kirby games."

While this does suggest that there will be more 3D Kirby games in the future, Kumazaki did clarify that there will also be plenty of unique gameplay experiences still.

"Really, it's about the kind of gameplay experience that we can provide to the players, and how best to optimally bring that gameplay experience that really dictates how we kind of express that in the game. It's just that now we have this new genre of 3D as another method, another way, another form of providing that optimal gameplay experience through an optimal Kirby gameplay experience."

Do you agree that Kirby and the Forgotten Land was a turning point for the franchise, and likewise would you like more 3D Kirby games?

Senior Editor Ben was a Senior Editor at Gamereactor UK. When he wasn’t writing, editing or filming for Gamereactor, he could usually be found playing an FPS or getting lost in a sprawling RPG.
Full profile Gamereactor author since October 2020 · 18,588 published articles
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