Review – Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World

Over three years since its release, Kirby and the Forgotten Land still stands out as one of the best (and one of my personal favorite) Switch games around. It took the pink puffball in a new direction while expanding to the third dimension, delivering dilapidated environments and the sight of Kirby inhaling an entire car with a backbone of stellar gameplay. If you’d have asked me back then, I’d have assumed we’d see some kind of post-launch content for the game. What I wouldn’t have guessed, is that it’d take this long and be on a whole new console. 

Yes, Forgotten Land joins the list of titles with an Upgrade Pack on Nintendo Switch 2. I don’t think it really needed more polish or better performance, and after revisiting I stand by that. The Switch version is perfectly playable and the same great game as it always was. The Switch 2 upgrade is an improvement, just not one that really stands out when stacked against a game changer like Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s (free) update. If you’re checking in specifically regarding the base game, give our original Kirby and the Forgotten Land review a read — everything there will still hold in its even more buttery smooth, crystal clear Switch 2 version.  

That isn’t all you’re getting with your $20 Upgrade Pack though. Kirby’s gotten himself a full DLC expansion, bringing new stages, Mouthful Modes, and story to explore. Star-Crossed World is embedded right within Forgotten Land itself — no separate menu or file to concern yourself with. You simply have to clear the game’s first world and you can start diving into the extra content either at your leisure or as you progress through the game, depending on if you’re returning to a completed file or going in fresh.  

 

 

As far as the story goes, Star-Crossed World is a bit lighter than I’d have liked. A crystal meteor has landed in the ocean, with Kirby and Elfilin investigating. There they meet Astrologer Waddle Dee, who gives some quick exposition about the meteor’s outer casing housing some kind of cosmic horror. Typical Thursday for Kirby. You also meet the Starries. These silent space sprites are your new collectibles à la Waddle Dees in the base game. It’s up to you to find them and contain the evil meteor once again. It’s standard fare for modern Kirby, albeit a lighter portion.

Forgotten Land managed to work some solid world building across its adventure. That came courtesy of set pieces in its stages, but the bulk of its plot was at the beginning and end. The DLC goes with the same “bookend” approach, just without anything in the middle to hold you over. In terms of setting, Star-Crossed World’s stages are alternate versions of existing ones, and while from a gameplay standpoint they’re as well crafted as the rest of the game they don’t have that same feeling of discovery the base game carried throughout. 

How much that summary affects your perceptions of the DLC may come down to how into Kirby Lore you are. If you’re just here for satisfying 3D platforming starring Nintendo’s cutest character, you’ve got nothing to worry about! Just like in the base game, each stage will have hidden collectibles (the Starries) to find via light puzzle solving or challenges. You’ll face off with powered-up midbosses and float on through blue-hued extra dimensional areas, but nothing is really changed about the experience. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” at its finest.

 

 

The biggest additions are three new Mouthful Modes — Spring, Gear and Sign. Like past Mouthfuls they bring shades of Copy Abilities not in the game (Spring is a stand-in for Hi-Jump, for example), and all three get multiple chances to carry the action. Almost all the existing Mouthfuls are back as well, though it’s unfortunate not a single new Copy Ability or upgrade for already present ones was included. I sincerely hope HAL finds ways to reintroduce or grow upon Copy Abilities in the future, as even their usage here feels more complimentary than inventive. 

In proud Kirby tradition, you’ll at least be treated to a standout boss fight with an unfathomable galactic calamity. That’s both in the climax of the Star-Crossed World storyline and as an optional encounter in the DLC’s new Arena difficulty. No new sub-games, but you will have quite a few new capsule toy figurines to find in stages and purchase from Astrologer Waddle Dee. 

 

 

And… that’s really it. For $20 you get more Kirby and the Forgotten Land. For me this was a fun weekend of 100%ing an all-new slice of a fantastic game, and in that way I’d say it’s worth it. As a total, $80 package I think there’s plenty for people to enjoy in the Switch 2 version, though if you’re opting for just the base game you can rest easy knowing you aren’t missing anything revolutionary or distinct from a gameplay perspective. 

It’s all too fitting for Kirby that when it comes to Star-Crossed World, you don’t need to overdo it with changes to the recipe — just pile on what you already know is delicious. If anything, this is a great way to keep your appetite at bay until Kirby Air Riders gives the system its first from the ground up game in the series courtesy of Masahiro Sakurai. Past that, it’s up to HAL to carry on the stellar reputation Forgotten Land has earned with a proper platforming followup. 

 

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