Kirby and the Forgotten Land almost didn't have Copy Abilities at one point in its development.
One of the cornerstones of the Kirby series is its Copy Abilities, special forms that Kirby takes on by inhaling different enemies. They've been around for nearly as long as Kirby has, first being introduced in Kirby's Adventure, the second game in the series.
Considering how big of a role they play in Kirby, you might be surprised to find out that they almost weren't in the latest entry, Kirby and the Forgotten Land. This is according to Kei Ninoyima, a member of Nintendo EPD, .
When asked about how the team chooses with features carry over between Kirby games, Ninoyima said, " As we set forth to create a new game, we examine every element as much as possible, rather than assuming everything from the previous title will carry ovജer. We want to take various things into account, like the current times and available technology, as well as how players have changed, so that we can offer a better experience."
That seems like a pretty standard answer, but then Ninoyima revea♐ls that "With Kirby and the Forgotten Land, for example💝, we even debated whether to include copy abilities at one point. One existing feature we reevaluated is Kirby inhaling a copyable enemy, making the copy ability automatically activate and allowing you to press and hold a button to drop an ability."
Shinya Kumuzaki, general manager ꦡat HAL Laboratory, also discussed this process, saying, "Classꦆic Kirby elements are carried over to some extent, but even those are put to the test as we closely examine whether they are a good fit for the game we are working on. We want to make sure we keep challenging ourselves."
Of course, anyone who's seen the Forgotten Land will know that Copy Abilities ended up making it into the game after all, and two brand new ones were even added to Kirby's roster - Ranger and Drill.
