Is Kirby and the Forgotten Land an open-world game?

Nintendo fans have been treated to the revival of a longtime popular franchise with Kirby and the Forgotten Land. The game makes a ton of changes to the typical Kirby format expanding on gameplay while still maintaining the fun and vibrant feeling that Kirby games have been able to provide for the last 30 years.

Now in 3D, Kirby and the Forgotten Land gives players an extra dimension to explore which might have caused confusion. With the flashy promo material and comparisons to other Nintendo titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Mario Odyssey, things may not be clear about whether the game is open-world.

Is Kirby and the Forgotten Land open world?

No, Kirby and the Forgotten Land is not an open-world game.

The first adventure for Kirby in the 3D realm does expand on the typical 2D format that we’ve seen the character in, but it doesn’t switch up the style of level that players will need to conquer to progress.

Exploring the world is done by completing levels in different zones. This means you won’t be able to freely hop into a zone and travel to another, instead you complete one and unlock the next on your world map.

For longtime fans of Nintendo and older Kirby titles, this process will be instantly familiar, and even if you aren’t one of these people, it only takes a second to get a grasp.