Kirby and The Forgotten Land to Launch on March 25

Kirby’s newest adventure, a 3D, open-world romp, will launch on March 25 this year for the Nintendo Switch. A Kirby and the Forgotten Land trailer revealed the game’s release date, which is closer than expected, as well as new gameplay details highlighting Kirby’s iconic ability.

The upbeat trailer is serenaded with a cheerful song as Kirby illustrates new and old powers that are, of course, taken from his inhaled foes. We see the pink puffball rolling large balls to destroy boxes, swirling enemies up in a tornado, hitting switches with his classic hammer, burrowing underground with a head drill, and blasting enemies with an air gun. In addition to the powers, the trailer also introduced fans to the inclusion of 2 player co-op where players control a bandana wielding Waddle Dee. The co-op partner has spear-based abilities and can fly around like a helicopter.

Other portions of the trailer showed off the less-action-packed elements of Kirby and the Forgotten Land, like exploring a Waddle Dee town, participating in mini-games, going fishing, and talking to friendly AI. These elements infer more of an open environment, which can be seen later in the trailer when Kirby rides a star across the map. Here it looks like the world divides into zones, but it’s difficult to say for sure. As for the trailer, the Youtube description provides some insight: “fight back against the Beast Pack and explore a mysterious world to save the Waddle Dees.”

The description isn’t much to go on, but we can be sure that Meta Knight will play a part in the unfolding story. The trailer ends with the rivals clashing swords inside of a stadium. Kirby and the Forgotten Land looks to stack up Nintendo’s year along with Bayonetta 3 and, presumedly The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild sequel.

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