darksnowman Posted March 24, 2022 Posted March 24, 2022 Ask the Developer Vol. 4, Kirby and the Forgotten Land Quote Ninomiya: There's a new ability in this game called Mouthful Mode. Kirby can now inhale large objects like cars or traffic cones, then change form and take on the characteristics of whichever thing he swallowed. Kumazaki: Near the beginning of development, we spent a lot of time discussing the kinds of movement and visuals we could add that might feel unique to Kirby – ones that you wouldn't find in other 3D platformers. Then we thought about Kirby's unique characteristics and realised that, to make a truly great 3D platformer, we should embrace his innate humour. He's this funny little puffball, always changing shape, squashing and stretching as he gobbles up everything around him. Ninomiya: Nintendo was also thinking about Kirby's moves at the same time, and they suggested having an ability where he can inhale objects that he can't normally inhale. Same idea, same time. Pure coincidence. When Kirby uses his new Mouthful Mode, he doesn't gain a Copy Ability to match what he swallowed like usual. He's unable to swallow the object in his mouth, so he takes its shape instead, then performs moves related to the object. It seemed like a quirky idea with equally quirky visuals. In other words, it felt like a good fit for Kirby. Endo: From the perspective of creating new gameplay experiences, Mouthful Mode had a kind of intuitive visual appeal for our players. There were all kinds of new possibilities, from swallowing a large metal ring so that Kirby can puff out gusts of wind to propel his boat, to swallowing a large pipe and rolling forward to defeat an entire line of enemies. Ninomiya: It was also appealing to us in terms of visual design. Because it would be in 3D, we imagined seeing Kirby in these bizarre shapes from all kinds of angles. What kind of discussions did you have about the objects Kirby could use in his new Mouthful Mode? Ninomiya: We wanted to pick objects that are common to humans but unknown to Kirby. So things with familiar forms of movement, like a car, or familiar things we can picture in our everyday lives, like pipes. I thought we should incorporate gameplay that has Kirby inhaling these objects and bringing them to life. That's where the concept of a world with a forgotten civilisation came from, with things like cars and pipes lying around. I see! So you determined the setting for this new game by finding a unique form of 3D gameplay for Kirby, then you built a world around it… https://www.nintendo.com.au/news-and-articles/ask-the-developer-vol-4-kirby-and-the-forgotten-land Always an insightful read. Nice to see another one. 3 1
Dcubed Posted March 24, 2022 Posted March 24, 2022 (edited) That's a great interview! Some really interesting game design talk throughout! I freaking LOVE this stuff!! I had never even considered this! Their solution for collision detection and hit box registration is really inginious... and sounds very abuseable for speedrunners! In short, they use a combination of proximity to the enemy, combined with camera position to create dynamically shifting hitboxes that give enough leeway so that the player "hits" the enemy if it looks like they should from the camera angle that they're facing towards at the time... This is SO getting abused by speedrunners! There's also an original language for fans to decipher... and even MORE insane Kirby Lore to discover! Can't wait! Edited March 24, 2022 by Dcubed 1
Ronnie Posted March 24, 2022 Posted March 24, 2022 I love the reason for it being set in a post-apocalyptic world. Quote We wanted to pick objects that are common to humans but unknown to Kirby. So things with familiar forms of movement, like a car, or familiar things we can picture in our everyday lives, like pipes. I thought we should incorporate gameplay that has Kirby inhaling these objects and bringing them to life. That's where the concept of a world with a forgotten civilisation came from, with things like cars and pipes lying around. Coming up with the gameplay first and then fitting a story around it
Dcubed Posted March 24, 2022 Posted March 24, 2022 3 hours ago, Ronnie said: I love the reason for it being set in a post-apocalyptic world. Coming up with the gameplay first and then fitting a story around it It's nice to see that the classic Nintendo-way of making games is alive and well 2
darksnowman Posted March 24, 2022 Posted March 24, 2022 The "auto-aim" was touched on in the Digital Foundry video @MindFreak shared on the previous page. Nice to see a concrete example of that appear in the developer interview today.
drahkon Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 Have played this for a while and completed the first world. It's a Kirby game, alright. Piss easy but oozes with charm. I mean, look at these guys: They're just too cute Game's made me laugh out loud twice after Kirby "turned" into certain objects ("YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT" SPOILERS AHEAD): Spoiler I'm gonna focus on Kirby and the Forgotten Lands for now, 'cause I borrowed my mate's Switch and he wants it back sometime next week, but I'll also keep playing Kena: Bridge of Spirits. Thank goodness for those two games. The cuteness, good vibes and charm both games throw at you are very welcome these days. 1
Glen-i Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 (edited) I'm on world 4 now, (125 Waddle Dees) and it's just so gosh darn cute! Kirby has a dedicated "Hi" button, and that's very important! The Treasure Road target times are quite strict. Completely optional, but I get some mad Kirby Dream Collection vibes from them. Edited March 25, 2022 by Glen-i 1
Ronnie Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 1 hour ago, Glen-i said: Kirby has a dedicated "Hi" button GOTY. I'm only half joking... 1
BowserBasher Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 My copy just arrived from Nintendo. love the massively thick notebook that came with it.
drahkon Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 Spoiler There are hidden Treasure Road levels. Just fly around and search locations that seem suspicious
darksnowman Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 Games brill. I only wish this sort of care and thought had been put into the Mario 3D World controls.
Dcubed Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 (edited) Holy cow! the Sword Treasure trial's par time is ridiculously harsh! I've tried more than half a dozen times now and still haven't cracked it! Edit: Just beat it! Found a sneaky way to skip the boss' second phase and kill it much more quickly! Edited March 25, 2022 by Dcubed
drahkon Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 Reached world 4 and it's starting to bore me a little. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid game but way too easy for my taste. Its charm's carrying it for now, but who knows if I'll see it through 'til the end.
Hero-of-Time Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 14 minutes ago, drahkon said: Reached world 4 and it's starting to bore me a little. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid game but way too easy for my taste. Its charm's carrying it for now, but who knows if I'll see it through 'til the end. From what I've read you look to be over halfway through the story already. It looks to be really short and so you'll probably have it finished this evening. Crack on and get it finished! 1
Dcubed Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 (edited) 22 minutes ago, drahkon said: Reached world 4 and it's starting to bore me a little. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid game but way too easy for my taste. Its charm's carrying it for now, but who knows if I'll see it through 'til the end. The difficulty will come in the optional challenges and post-game stuff. Just getting to the end of a Kirby game is easy, but mastering it is always very difficult! Oh and I am 100% certain that you will need to find all the hidden Waddle Dees/optional missions in order to get access to the True Final Boss and True Ending... I know Kirby, I know what's gonna happen lol. And undoubtedly, that True Final Boss (and the inevitable unlockable modes you get from beating it) is gonna be soul meltingly hard, in true Kirby fashion Edited March 25, 2022 by Dcubed
drahkon Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 (edited) 42 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: From what I've read you look to be over halfway through the story already. It looks to be really short and so you'll probably have it finished this evening. Crack on and get it finished! Will do. Thanks for the info. I will stay clear of this thread from now on, though. Some things just keep creeping up and thanks to a certain forum feature I was unable to ignore it, yet again. That's why I'll also refrain from talking about my thoughts on this game once I've finished it. Edited March 25, 2022 by drahkon
Hero-of-Time Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 5 minutes ago, drahkon said: Will do. Thanks for the info. I will stay clear of this thread from now on, though. Some things just keep creeping up and thanks to a certain forum feature I was unable to ignore it, yet again. That's why I'll also refrain from talking about my thoughts on this game once I've finished the game. Just PM me your thoughts on the game. I'll happily read them. We can have the banter that way.
darksnowman Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 CC me in, drahky! I died on the waterworks level as Stairby but hopefully I'm still worthy.
Hero-of-Time Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 3 minutes ago, darksnowman said: I died on the waterworks level as Stairby but hopefully I'm still worthy. 1 1
Glen-i Posted March 25, 2022 Posted March 25, 2022 Yeah, Normal is proper broken against bosses! A lot of them release multiple stars to swallow, crazy damage with some skillful positioning.
drahkon Posted March 26, 2022 Posted March 26, 2022 As soon as I read the title I knew it would be to the tune of Aesop Rock's song "Kirby" 1
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