Kirby and the Forgotten Land Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World is wonderful. It may have delivered gaming’s latest tongue twister, but the pink puffball’s already outstanding 3D platforming adventure has deservedly been treated to an upgrade pack that helps it shine even more on the portable home console’s successor.
After Kirby and Elfilin witness a colossal heart-shaped meteor tumble from space, crystal shards scatter across the world while a volcanic island emerges from the depths of the ocean on impact. Soaring on a Warp Star to its location, they soon meet Astronomer Waddle Dee (wearing a magnificent hat), who, having studied the mysteries of the universe, fears that the meteor could be the Star of Darkness, which legends say will unleash something horrifying upon the world.
Luckily for us, we quickly learn that such a disaster can be prevented. The adventure continues for the pink hero and his latest sidekick, who must reunite the lost Starries to restore the Sealing Crystal and stop the Star of Darkness from coming back to life.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World isn’t, say, what New Super Luigi U was to New Super Mario Bros. U. HAL Laboratory hasn’t remixed the entire game’s content, but has instead added 12 Starry Levels and a cataclysmic final boss encounter. The result feels like smaller-scale downloadable content, but, unlike Super Mario Party Jamboree Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV, this has been layered into the main adventure rather than having been tagged on.
This means that the Starry Stages are accessed through the same World Map, appearing where other meteors have fallen across the forgotten land. There are two Starry Stages per region, that each hides 10 Starries for you to rescue. Their whereabouts are hinted at through stage missions, in the same way that many will have used to reunite the Waddle Dees in the original game.
The Starry Stages themselves are based on existing stages, now remixed thanks to Starryflowers that bloomed around where meteors fell. When these are touched, anything can happen. From shining crystal pathways that lead to undiscovered areas to the sea parting and crystallising so that you can run along the seabed, this playful reinvention delivers eye-popping surprises that captivate, whether playing in Handheld Mode or on your TV screen.
If you find it confusing to know where to go next on the World Map to find the new content, HAL Laboratory has looked to help dispel that through adding Star Guide Waddle Dee in Waddle Dee Town. They can immediately warp you to the next Starry Stage in which you still have Starries that need to be rescued. It seemed like an insignificant addition at first, but I soon came to appreciate the time that it saved me.
The crystal’s power has also transformed the Beast Pack, strengthening their abilities and unlocking more varied attacks. These encounters were certainly trickier to overcome, but not to the extent that they ever felt insurmountable. There are also new enemies for you to conquer that are introduced like the Galactal, which the evil meteor had created to eradicate the Starries that have sealed it away.
Star-Crossed World also introduces three new Mouthful Mode abilities that you will get to use. Spring-Mouth Kirby can jump super high to access out-of-reach places, or smash down below you to break open cracked terrain or squish enemies. Becoming a fast favourite for me, Gear-Mouth Kirby can roll along and climb walls. Whereas Sign-Mouth Kirby sees the pink puffball gulp down a pavement sign, turning him into an awkwardly-shaped board to slide down snowy slopes and perform spin attacks to eliminate foes in your way.
Beyond your Starry-saving quest, you can exchange the Starry Coins that you collect with Astronomer Waddle Dee. Kirby can dip his hand into his Gotcha Machine EX contraption to retrieve a new figure for his collection, with 85 new figures for you to amass. Aside from hunting out any Starries that you have missed in the Starry Stages, you can also test your combat skills further in The Ultimate Cup Z EX back in Waddle Dee Town, as a new boss rush gauntlet.
Nintendo had promised that this Nintendo Switch 2 Edition would deliver “improved graphics and frame rate,” which was later confirmed would see the game now run at 60 frames per second (compared to 30 frames per second on Nintendo Switch), at 1080p in Handheld Mode and 1440p when docked in TV Mode. The benefit from the frame rate boost is unquestionable, and the game is even more joyous to play. The uplift in resolution is appreciated, too, but I had hoped for more. As charming as it looks, there are technical shortcomings that detract, such as object pop-in and environmental blurring, that I would have hoped Nintendo Switch 2’s extra oomph could eliminate.
Star-Crossed World should be seen as the icing on the cake to what is already among the heroic pink star’s greatest adventures to date. Its brevity once again left me wanting more, but the new content is meaningful and a worthwhile distraction even for those who have beaten the game before. For newcomers, this is an enviable opportunity to experience Forgotten Land’s kaleidoscopic greatness running at its triumphant best. I can’t wait to see what adventures HAL Laboratory take Kirby on next.
Version Tested: Nintendo Switch 2
Review copy provided by Nintendo
