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Discussion Kirby and The Forgotten Land - How well will it do critically and commercially?

Deformed_Lunchbox

Deformed_Lunchbox

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Kirby-and-the-Forgotten-Land-box-art.jpg


....is it just me, or does this game look hype as hell? The last two trailers elevated my hype to new levels.
I don't know about the rest of you, but I was around for the N64 apex, and I got to experience franchises like Mario, Zelda, and Metroid transition wonderfully into 3D. As far as I can remember, this is the fourth major Nintendo franchise to transition into a new dimension, and it looks as if HAL/Nintendo went all in.

Everything about this title screams "this is Kirby's moment", but can this be Kirby's Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, or Metroid Prime moment.


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Let's review:

The Positives:

-It looks beautiful
-local co-op
-has a town hub with mini-games, unlockables, and more
-creative new abilities
-bosses
-environments that scream 'explore me'
-HAL doesn't even miss when it comes to Kirby music


The Negatives:

-nothing.


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This game looks like it's brimming with as much creativity as Super Mario Galaxy 2.
It also seems to wonderfully realize Kirby's gameplay in 3D. Part of just can't wait to run, jump, and float around as him in an open 3D space.
It also looks content PACKED (if you, ya know, watch all of those 'things you missed' videos on YouTube, you'll see what I mean).


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The Co-Op Play.

I was so happy when it was announced that the game had local co-operative play.

It's a big deal for me. I love 3D Platformers, and multiplayer in 3D Platformers is exceptionally, sensationally rare.
I think Super Mario 3D World is the best comparison we can make.

As much as I adore 3D World, there is this feeling that it's not quite designed for multiple players. Half the levels in the game are more frustrating with more players, and the later levels almost unplayable with more than a single person. It's fun, in a chaotic sort of way, but it doesn't feel very elegant or efficient. Should playing with a friend make the game that much harder?
I don't think Kirby and The Forgotten Land will have this problem at all. The slower pace, focus on exploration, less reliance on control dexterity, and lack of falling-to-your-death makes it seem way more approachable for multiple players. I'm sure there will be faster moments where player 2 can't keep up, but that won't be the majority of the game, and I have a feeling the camera will favour Kirby, and allow player 2 to kind of bubble back in when fast moments slow down.

Super Mario 3D World wasn't the kind of game I could play co-operatively with my partner. She isn't amazing at games, and anything with a higher skill ceiling just becomes frustrating.
That doesn't seem to be the case at all with Forgotten Land. I can't wait to play this with her -- and it seems like where 3D World and Tropical Freeze and NSMB failed at letting a skilled player be joined by a beginner player -- this is where Kirby and The Forgotten Land will soar (or, float extremely high!) I don't think this fact can be understated, this is the perfect game to play with a partner, a younger sibling, or a child.



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I've frankly never been so hyped for a Kirby game. Kirby in 3D is such a natural fit, it feels like it should have happened back on the N64. So, five generations later, it's finally happening! Kirby in 3D!

Everyone seems to agree the game looks great, but it doesn't have the hype meters of something like Elden Ring or BOTW2. I can understand that, but I am curious how excited you are for Kirby's 3D outing.


I am curious:

• How do you predict this game will do with reviewers? Metacritic predictions (I'm thinking 85+ for sure)
• How do you predict this game will sell? Will it top the NPD and Famitsu charts in March? Will it break 5 million? 10 million? (I would say 3 million+ is a very safe bet)


Thank you for indulging me and this pink menace. This is my first thread too, so, go easy on me!
 
I don’t know. But then to me, almost every Kirby game has been a 10 in my book, with Allies being the only weaker one in a while.

I do hope it gets the recognition the series deserves, but I also think one too many modern game writers are cynical snobs putting on a show because they want the “industry to be taken seriously” instead of enjoying gaming bliss.

The game so far looks great IMO. There is something so chill about playing a Kirby game, and combine that with their always fantastic designs and world building, it’s just a good time.
 
This game does look like it is exploring uncharted territory with its major focus on 3D. While the 3DS has the first 3D Kirby experience, this one expands it in new ways. It might also do well with critics for being a fresh Kirby experience, so I guess between 80 - 90. Despite this, I am not so certain that it would eclipse the first Kirby title in sales, though I have a feeling that it would eclipse Star Allies at the very least.

Thank you for reading.
 
I actually think there’s a surprising amount of hype for this, even among the mainstream video game critics. No doubt in my mind it’s gonna be the best selling Kirby game, I’ll go with 7 million.

As far as critically, I know this isn’t usually the kind of game that critics tend to gush over but if it’s as fun and creative as 3D Mario games tend be or something like Astrobot, and I think signs are looking good there, then there’s no reason it couldn’t score really well like those games tend to do. I’m thinking 90.
 
It's going to sell really good and it will have good legs. I think it can surpass 10M easily.

It will review well enough, around the low 80s, which is totally fine. There will be criticism aimed at its difficulty and its approach to platforming. I feel that platformers that deviate from the vanilla Mario formula and game-feel have a hard time scoring above 85 (Tropical Freeze was a victim of this). Despite of this, I predict that people will recommend the game a lot, even years after its release.
 
5 millon+ I bet. The game looks amazing, but I dont remember kirby to be a multi million game.
 
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winstein said:
This game does look like it is exploring uncharted territory with its major focus on 3D. While the 3DS has the first 3D Kirby experience, this one expands it in new ways. It might also do well with critics for being a fresh Kirby experience, so I guess between 80 - 90. Despite this, I am not so certain that it would eclipse the first Kirby title in sales, though I have a feeling that it would eclipse Star Allies at the very least.

Thank you for reading.
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You mean the eshop puzzle game? It was 3D-ish but not a platformer iirc
 
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Deformed_Lunchbox said:
Let's review:

The Positives:

-It looks beautiful
-local co-op
-has a town hub with mini-games, unlockables, and more
-creative new abilities
-bosses
-environments that scream 'explore me'
-HAL doesn't even miss when it comes to Kirby music


The Negatives:

-nothing.
Click to expand...

Great review!
 
Probably the best selling Kirby game if I had to guess. Reviews will probably land in the 85-90 range

There's a lot of hype behind this one, I've never tried a Kirby game before but I'm pretty interested in this
 
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I think it will be top 80's. Like 87-89. If there is one thing the Switch has shown, it's that a lot of should-be-classics just barely miss that high 90's bar.
 
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I wouldn't be surprised if it's the best reviewed Kirby game ever. Looks like most games in the series tended to top out in the low 8's. I could see this having a metacritic/opencritic score in the top half of the 80s somewhere (I'd bet closer to 85 than 90). In terms of sales I could see it being the best selling once since the first game in the series, assuming this 5 million copies number I quickly googled is correct. So basically I think it'll all around be the most successful game in the series.
 
if star allies can end up going into the multi millions i don't see why this can't at least match that

that said it's still a kirby game and i don't expect critical reception to be super hot, but still fairly positive. probably mid 80s
 
no idea but i'm actually kinda excited for it and I don't even care for platformers very much in general or play a lot of Kirby games
 
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I think it will both review and sell very well. It's got even me, who usually doesn't care at all about Kirby, interested. I foresee mid 80s critical reception, with it becoming the first or second best selling Kirby game.
 
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Looking at the critic score for the more recent Kirby titles (Metacritic/Opencritic):

Kirby Star Allies (2018): 73 / 74
Kirby Planet Robobot (2016): 81 / 84
Kirby Triple Deluxe (2014): 80 / 81
Kirby's Return to Dreamland (2011): 77 / NA
Kirby's Epic Yarn (2010): 86 / NA

It should have no problem beating HAL's best rated title Robobot, and I think it has a good chance of even beating Good-Feel's Epic Yarn which has the highest score for Kirby in recent memory.
 
It’ll be 86-88 critical reception. It’ll clear 5+ million with no issues. It’s on Switch, it’s a 3D platformer, Kirby and should have good wom
 
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SpookyTango said:
Looking at the critic score for the more recent Kirby titles (Metacritic/Opencritic):

Kirby Star Allies (2018): 73 / 74
Kirby Planet Robobot (2016): 81 / 84
Kirby Triple Deluxe (2014): 80 / 81
Kirby's Return to Dreamland (2011): 77 / NA
Kirby's Epic Yarn (2010): 86 / NA
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Yeah this is gonna easily beat all of those. I'm predicting 88/89 for this.
 
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SpookyTango said:
Looking at the critic score for the more recent Kirby titles (Metacritic/Opencritic):

Kirby Star Allies (2018): 73 / 74
Kirby Planet Robobot (2016): 81 / 84
Kirby Triple Deluxe (2014): 80 / 81
Kirby's Return to Dreamland (2011): 77 / NA
Kirby's Epic Yarn (2010): 86 / NA

It should have no problem beating HAL's best rated title Robobot, and I think it has a good chance of even beating Good-Feel's Epic Yarn which has the highest score for Kirby in recent memory.
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You know, in retrospect, it's pretty wild that the Kirby platformer that did best with critics is the one that's the least like traditional Kirby. Goes to show how far a charming presentation can take you.

I'm hesitant to say that "Traditional Kirby, but in 3D" will score higher than the mid 80s, but I love the little puffball a lot, so I'd like to see them prove me wrong.
 
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I'm thinking it'll score in the lower mid 80s and sell anywhere from 5 to 10 million units to become the best selling entry in the series
 
It'll sell well, probably better than any Kirby in a long time, potentially ever.

It'll get a metacritic in the 80s.

The biggest barrier the game will have is that Kirby fundamentally is a platformer that eschews both the ability to fail at platforming (flying being the default ability) and the ability to have any sort of real complexity in the platforming you can perform (e.g. All the crazy stuff that can be done with cappy in odyssey)
 
Best selling kirby game is my guess and high 80s metacritic. It looks solid and it's Kirby's first full 3d big adventure.
 
I think 5 million is easily doable and I expect a mid 80s review score.

More importantly though, I want a 3D Kirby Fighters after this.
 
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Linkstrikesback said:
It'll sell well, probably better than any Kirby in a long time, potentially ever.

It'll get a metacritic in the 80s.

The biggest barrier the game will have is that Kirby fundamentally is a platformer that eschews both the ability to fail at platforming (flying being the default ability) and the ability to have any sort of real complexity in the platforming you can perform (e.g. All the crazy stuff that can be done with cappy in odyssey)
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I agree but it still could surprise as a light-hearted action game and by the sheer volume of creativity at every corner.
The biggest barrier will be its light difficulty level and length for reviewers. Curious about the 2 difficulty levels and if going 100% will represent some kind of challenge.
 
Linkstrikesback said:
It'll sell well, probably better than any Kirby in a long time, potentially ever.

It'll get a metacritic in the 80s.

The biggest barrier the game will have is that Kirby fundamentally is a platformer that eschews both the ability to fail at platforming (flying being the default ability) and the ability to have any sort of real complexity in the platforming you can perform (e.g. All the crazy stuff that can be done with cappy in odyssey)
Click to expand...
I want to add that if both Astrobot games can reach 90 and 83 metacritic respectively, so can this Kirby. Afterall, the platforming complexity are very light in those games as well. There's only the hovering move + transformations if I recall correctly. The first one got bonus points for the VR wow factor though.
 
Phabh said:
I want to add that if both Astrobot games can reach 90 and 83 metacritic respectively, so can this Kirby. Afterall, the platforming complexity are very light in those games as well. There's only the hovering move + transformations if I recall correctly. The first one got bonus points for the VR wow factor though.
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Yeah, people are overestimating the difficulty factor. Games like 3D World are easy for most of their run but still review very well.

The game not being long enough will probably be the mark against it.
 
this is a fan site so we tend to exagerate in an optismistic way our prediction.....
MC 82 to 86
units sold= 2.6 to 3.6 million
 
I'm gonna go with 85 to 89 Metacritic, which is where lots of excellent Switch games and excellent games in general end up, and the best-selling Kirby title yet, so that means more than 5 million.
 
It's going to do really well I presume.
  • Fantastic technical and artistic looks;
  • Novel gameplay concepts;
  • Breaking the mould in a well-known series;
  • Follows in the wake of a 3D Platformer renaissance (Mario, Astrobot, Crash, Spyro, A Hat in Time, Yooka-Laylee...);
  • Fans have been asking for it forever.
I'm buying my first Kirby game, day 1.

Don't know much about sales, but if the game is a good as it looks like I can see it landing between 85-90 MC. Not that it matters much, I'm playing it anyways =P .
 
3D games automatically get reviewed better than 2D games and generally sell better than 2D games (unless it's a Mario game).

It's unfair, but it is what it is. So naturally, this will work in Forgotten Land's favour.
 
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manfromthedam said:
It's going to do really well I presume.
  • Fantastic technical and artistic looks;
  • Novel gameplay concepts;
  • Breaking the mould in a well-known series;
  • Follows in the wake of a 3D Platformer renaissance (Mario, Astrobot, Crash, Spyro, A Hat in Time, Yooka-Laylee...);
  • Fans have been asking for it forever.
I'm buying my first Kirby game, day 1.

Don't know much about sales, but if the game is a good as it looks like I can see it landing between 85-90 MC. Not that it matters much, I'm playing it anyways =P .
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It will be my first Kirby game day 1 as well.
 
I think it's gonna do great! If it weren't for the fact that I'm drowning in work and games at the moment I'd probably be picking it up, but I think I'm saving it for five or six years from now when I have kids. Not to dismiss Kirby as exclusively 'for children' or anything - I have a long history with this lil fella - but something tells me that's when I'll get the most enjoyment out of this one.

I really hope it exceeds sales expectations, though. Minus folk with no imagination questioning that new mechanic, I think people are gonna lap this one up.
 
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I won't be surprised in the slightest if it's the biggest Kirby critical hit in years if not a decade or two. And given how well almost anything sells on Switch, and Nintendo first party games in particular, I also won't be surprised if it becomes the highest selling Kirby game to date.

Speaking for myself, the only "drawbacks" I can think of for this game are the (seemingly) fixed camera and the fact that copy abilities don't seem to be available for Player 2. It's definitely the most I've been excited for Kirby in so long that I can barely remember when the last time was.
 
Kirby always locks number one spot in Japan but this time it'll do the same for Europe and NA too. I expect no less than 5m in first year sales. Nintendo needs to market it as if it's a Mario game though
 
5m would be a huge jump for the series but I can see that being reached with a 3D platforming direction. I think that's a sensible yardstick of success for its first year, anything on top of that would be a bonus. Not sure what the non-Mario 3D platformer sales market is right now though so that's worth thinking about as well.

Critically, I don't really know. Probably highest since Kirby's Epic Yarn based on what we've seen so far but you can never really tell what will resonate with an individual reviewer. Kirby games tend to trend easier than other series and that's something that people can either appreciate or something that they think it deserves to be dinged for, and there are probably other elements like that at play.

As we all know though at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is whether we enjoy it when we get the chance to play.
 
I honestly expect it to raise the ceiling on both fronts, it being a 3D game with no obvious caveats going by the trailers. I'm going with a low 80s score mainly due to short length, but 6m sales regardless if word-of-mouth is good.
 
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