UK Charts: Kirby And The Forgotten Land Gobbles Up The Top Spot

Rune Factory 5 not even getting a look in the top 10.

NSMBU is back, but why?

Well deserved. I've never played a Kirby game before but I'm having an absolute blast with it.

I've actually never played a Kirby game in my entire life.

This one looks pretty cool. If I like 3D Mario games am I likely to find this interesting?

Awesome! We'll Deserved! Kirby is Incredible!

@Max_the_German why is wwe still alive, that's the real question! All the Legends moved on or sadly passed away.

Probably the most fun game I’ve played since Mario 3D world.

I wish it ran at a reasonable frame rate so I could play it.

Wow what happened to Ghost wire Tokyo??? That’s got to be one hell of a flop it’s not even in the top 10. Massive well done to Kirby though.

Unlike Japan, Kirby is more niche than Metroid in the UK.

If you include digital sales, Forgotten Land is probably the 2nd or 3rd best selling game in the series in the UK after it's launch week alone.

Unless Forgotten Land has unexpectedly terrible legs, it's safe to say the future of the Kirby franchise is in 3D. I doubt Nintendo is going to return to developing 2D entries (outside of ports, remasters, or remakes) when the new 3D title is by far and away the biggest launch in the series.

Awesome, Kirby and the Forgotten Land is one of the best games this year and among the best in the series. Hope to see Nintendo continue with this style in the future.

King Kirbington!

Well deserved and already one of my favourites on the Switch, its just fun to play in a world where that is seemingly forgotten by some publishers

@HamatoYoshi I also find the framerate not acceptable for a platformer. Since Super Mario Galaxy, all Mario platformers except 3D Land were 60 fps games. It is hard for me to go back to 30 fps, especially since I got a PS5 in 2020. All of my new Switch games since then were 60 fps. There is only one game I will buy despite its 30 fps nature, and this is BotW2.

I am loving this game and I just hit 2%. Wow.

It's by far the best Kirby game ever made. And it's extremely adorable.

@Marios-love-child It's more 3DWorld than a proper 3D.
Give the demo a try!

I hope all the praise and sales (if strong) encourage Nintendo to make 3d Yoshi and Donkey Kong games 🤞🏻

@Max_the_German your loss, I regularly play games at higher framerates than the PS5 is capable of but have no issues playing this at 30fps. I get the 3d Mario comparison but this isn't built around the precise platforming those games often aim for

Amazing performance. I don't believe Kirby has ever had much presence in the UK...could this be the first time the series has topped the charts?

YEAAAAH KIRBY. Forgotten Land is incredible!

Totally deserved, having great fun playing this.

I feel obligated to report that if you like the WWE brand at all, 2K22 is a huge step up for the series and fun to play. Also, Kirby and the Forgotten Land looks really good, and hopefully good sales of this will drive more 3D platformers from Nintendo.

I don't like the way NL promote the sale of Switch games from Amazon. I understand you collect a fee but surely showing the best price is more beneficial to your readers.

Its amazing can't stop playing, love everything about it. When I play games this good, it reminds me why I love gaming. This is why i love Nintendo the best 👌

@syrupdash Has Rune Factory ever cracked a top 10 in any major market? Seems extremely niche.

Fully deserved. It’s the first full price Switch title I’ve bought in quite a while.

Kirby at #1 proves difficulty is not a factor in a good game. Well deserved for such a great title!

@Marios-love-child In the best way possible if feels like a re-skinned 2.5D Mario game.

@Marios-love-child yes! I would give it a try!

@Marios-love-child The style of this game so far is very much a "get from a to b" platformer, but the addition of some 15 to 20 different powers that Kirby can use, imo, makes Kirby like the improv jazz version of Mario. There are lots and lots of ways to approach the game. I'd say difficulty is about on par with most Mario games. Not really tough in early stages, some of the optional content is challenging enough that it'll take several attempts, and you might need to go back to the drawing board a couple of times until you get it down. It can also be a challenge to meet the target times or to set new coin collection records in each level. I personally don't feel like the game is lacking for challenge, but the difficulty really is what you make of it. The challenge certainly isn't in progressing the base content. The base content is hard enough that my son, who is new to video games and is completely obsessed with this one, struggles to get through world 3.

Comparisons to improv don't really stop with "difficulty level is what you make of it." It's also got more of an improv feel in the moment to moment gameplay. You want to use your volcano hat in a level where you really have no reason to? Nothing's really stopping you. No time limit for any level means you can explore as thoroughly as you want, or just try several sections over again. The game will feel different with abilities that change your mobility versus those with higher attack power. Miss a jump? As long as you're not asleep at the wheel, you should be fine to float back to safety.

That said, there are several times in various levels that you'll be encouraged or required to use a specific power in order to collect up each stage's hidden waddle dee (equivalent of power stars, shines, moons, etc.).

I'm getting vibes just a little bit of Super Mario Odyssey and a little of Super Mario 3d world too. But I wouldn't rely too heavily on the metaphor, Kirby games definitely have their own sort of flavor and this is 100% a Kirby game.

@MostHandsieBoy Considering how niche RF is, I’m not surprised. I’m personally LOVING the game (it’s a ton of fun once you get going), but I can see how the performance issues, sub-par graphics and middling reviews might discourage people who are not long-time fans of the series to jump in.

@lolwhatno smash bros, mario kart, mario odyssey. If these games can run at 60 then surely others can too. I didnt see the comment you're referring to, looks like it got removed.

You could have mentioned that Rune Factory 5 sold 80% more copies than Rune Factory 4 Special in it's opening week.

@syrupdash niche anime game that had a lot of negative word of mouth with how bad it looked and ran so not surprised.

@Jooles_95 I'm a long time fan and unfortunately those things all stopped me from picking it up. Maybe if they bring it to steam or another home console I'll look into it but I did the same with Disgaea 6.

Kirby top! What a time to be alive!

And Tiny Tina? Never heard of it.

@Ironcore Imagine not playing a great game because its 30fps.

My best friend got me Kirby and the Forgotten Land as a late Christmas gift and I'm loving every minute with it.

Zelda BOTW sequel will take the christmas top spot this year in the uk im hoping.

Lol looks like Bethesda's Ghostwire Tokyo flopped hard

Not too surprised that rune factory 5 isn't there as its a niche anime game, runs like crap and looks like crap, it says something where the PlayStation 3 game Rune Factory Oceans looks and performs better and that came out in 2011

@HeeHo Well thats me, I cant play any 30fps game (excluding games where the framerate could be 1 and make no difference ie chess games etc). I can only play for around 1-5 minutes before the headache sets in. I know I am less forgiving than most but there is not a single person who would play on 30 if 60 was an option. If HAL updated the game, everyone would update and everyone would prefer it no doubt.

@HeeHo It’s not that strange, lots of people get motion sickness from playing in 30 fps.

@syrupdash Rune Factory 5 is at #12.