Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a faithful and competent 3D adaptation of the traditionally 2D Kirby formula. The level designs are fun with unique secrets scattered throughout. It is held back by its slow pace and low difficulty, which is common in Kirby games, plus some very odd quirks when it comes to co-op play.
First the positives: I thought that the Mouthful Mode powers were clever and fun and I really enjoyed the ability to upgrade and select your preferred version of all the different copy abilities! The post-apocalyptic aesthetic was very surprising in a Kirby game but worked quite well, and the enemies all look good and their attacks are well designed. Cuteness factor is top-notch.
I also enjoyed unlocking new features in the Waddle Dee town, though it was kind of disappointing in the end that you couldn't really do a whole lot there. I don't have a ton of positive things to say simply because there wasn't a lot that was spectacular. It was all just good.
Complaints: First, the difficulty. Kirby games are never challenging. They are still fun, but this reduces the rating of them for me. KFL is particularly bogged down by this fact because the secret challenges ask you to defeat bosses without taking damage, but the mechanics of the game are not exactly designed for precise, quick inputs. Nor do you ever have to worry about getting hit in a regular playthrough so I just never really "got gud" because there is no need to. This made the "take no damage" bonus objectives kind of monotonous and frustrating as they require you to very purposefully become good at the combat instead of just allowing your skill to naturally develop over time.
The next problem arises from the fact that I played it co-op with my wife. We play a lot of games together and are used to games treating the second player as an afterthought but I was disappointed to the level at which KFL did this. Co-op was highlighted in the very first trailer for this game and Nintendo is all about playing with friends and family so I really thought that it would be better than it was.
- Why can the second player only use Bandana Waddle Dee who only has the spear ability? Why not just let the second player be another Kirby who can have their own copy abilities? Other Kirby games have had multiple Kirbys so it's not like there isn't a precedent for it. If I had played this game as a kid with my older brother, he would have gotten to be Kirby and I would have had to be Waddle Dee and I would've been pissed that I couldn't use all the copy abilities. Dream Land 3 had a player 2 that wasn't Kirby that could use all the copies just like him. Why change that?
- The Mouthful Mode sections are (usually) fun, but they make the second player entirely useless. Some forms literally allow player 2 to do nothing, but even the ones where P2 can attack from on top or even move freely, there is really no point in them doing anything at all.
Next: Camera issues. I really did not like the locked-in camera. They wanted you to see the set pieces that they wanted you to see, including expansive backgrounds that you could not traverse. It felt very limiting and there were invisible walls all over the place blocking you from exploring areas that looked enticing and interesting. This also made it difficult to tell when an area was off-limits or when it was secret.
The camera issues were also compounded by the co-op issues. The game has a VERY tight follow on P1 and P2 is just along for the ride and has to make sure they stay in view. If they even step foot out of the camera they are pulled to P1. Except when they aren't and instead the camera pulls them with it and off a ledge.
As you can tell the main complaints all have to do with co-op. Overall it's still a fun game despite its flaws and If you're playing it by yourself it's probably a 3.5 or 4 out of 5 instead of a 3, depending on your tastes.
Overall it was a fun game but I almost definitely would not play it again.
First the positives: I thought that the Mouthful Mode powers were clever and fun and I really enjoyed the ability to upgrade and select your preferred version of all the different copy abilities! The post-apocalyptic aesthetic was very surprising in a Kirby game but worked quite well, and the enemies all look good and their attacks are well designed. Cuteness factor is top-notch.
I also enjoyed unlocking new features in the Waddle Dee town, though it was kind of disappointing in the end that you couldn't really do a whole lot there. I don't have a ton of positive things to say simply because there wasn't a lot that was spectacular. It was all just good.
Complaints: First, the difficulty. Kirby games are never challenging. They are still fun, but this reduces the rating of them for me. KFL is particularly bogged down by this fact because the secret challenges ask you to defeat bosses without taking damage, but the mechanics of the game are not exactly designed for precise, quick inputs. Nor do you ever have to worry about getting hit in a regular playthrough so I just never really "got gud" because there is no need to. This made the "take no damage" bonus objectives kind of monotonous and frustrating as they require you to very purposefully become good at the combat instead of just allowing your skill to naturally develop over time.
The next problem arises from the fact that I played it co-op with my wife. We play a lot of games together and are used to games treating the second player as an afterthought but I was disappointed to the level at which KFL did this. Co-op was highlighted in the very first trailer for this game and Nintendo is all about playing with friends and family so I really thought that it would be better than it was.
- Why can the second player only use Bandana Waddle Dee who only has the spear ability? Why not just let the second player be another Kirby who can have their own copy abilities? Other Kirby games have had multiple Kirbys so it's not like there isn't a precedent for it. If I had played this game as a kid with my older brother, he would have gotten to be Kirby and I would have had to be Waddle Dee and I would've been pissed that I couldn't use all the copy abilities. Dream Land 3 had a player 2 that wasn't Kirby that could use all the copies just like him. Why change that?
- The Mouthful Mode sections are (usually) fun, but they make the second player entirely useless. Some forms literally allow player 2 to do nothing, but even the ones where P2 can attack from on top or even move freely, there is really no point in them doing anything at all.
Next: Camera issues. I really did not like the locked-in camera. They wanted you to see the set pieces that they wanted you to see, including expansive backgrounds that you could not traverse. It felt very limiting and there were invisible walls all over the place blocking you from exploring areas that looked enticing and interesting. This also made it difficult to tell when an area was off-limits or when it was secret.
The camera issues were also compounded by the co-op issues. The game has a VERY tight follow on P1 and P2 is just along for the ride and has to make sure they stay in view. If they even step foot out of the camera they are pulled to P1. Except when they aren't and instead the camera pulls them with it and off a ledge.
As you can tell the main complaints all have to do with co-op. Overall it's still a fun game despite its flaws and If you're playing it by yourself it's probably a 3.5 or 4 out of 5 instead of a 3, depending on your tastes.
Overall it was a fun game but I almost definitely would not play it again.