The Kirby franchise recently turned 25, beginning on Game Boy and most recently featuring Kirby Star Allies, released for Nintendo Switch in 2018.
To celebrate, Shinya Kumazaki, the director of the pink ball's games since 2008, made a post on the HAL Laboratory blog, where he comments on the franchise's 25 years and the company's future goals for it. Shinya discusses how much the brand has expanded and how the company is trying to adapt:
Like everyone on the development team, those who create and plan these elements (from Kirby games, merchandise, and events) for HAL Laboratory are determined to expand the horizons of the Kirby brand in new and surprising ways.
Although this expansion can be seen around the world, it is especially large in Japan, where Kirby receives many products, themed stores, and live events.
Kirby Café in Tokyo
Shinya also discusses the reason behind this effort, explaining how HAL always seeks to ensure consumer satisfaction through excess:
These are the things we should continue trying to do as a company... otherwise we become too comfortable. When we create new products, we should always think: 'if we try so hard that we are basically overdoing it, our fans are bound to be happy.' This is an ethic we continue to follow even now.
This tactic appears to work, since Kirby's most dedicated fans notice that, although all the games are accessible to every audience, they also immensely reward longtime fans with tributes, references, and even a larger narrative that expands with each game and passes unnoticed by less experienced and dedicated players.
Kirby Star Allies (2018)
Kirby Star Allies is a great example of this practice, especially because its hidden narrative brings together elements from several games, and because its DLC brought a new story and numerous playable characters as Dream Friends who are iconic faces from across the franchise's history, giving each one a unique campaign. It is worth noting that all of the game's DLC was free.
Kirby and all the Dream Friends from Kirby Star Allies
As for the series' future, Shinya says something that will certainly please fans: as long as there are Kirby fans, games will continue to be made.
Every day, the team also grows and looks to the future. We will continue as long as there is at least one person who likes our games. As long as there are fans waiting to play a new game in the series, I believe we will continue to grow alongside the character and face these new challenges, both fun and serious, head-on.
The news may come as a relief to many, since although Kirby's worldwide fanbase is expressive and dedicated, it is still considerably smaller than that of several Nintendo franchises, such as Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon.
Kirby received the Best Character award at the 2018 Famitsu Awards. Shinya Kumazaki (right) accepts the award alongside Masahiro Sakurai (center), the character's creator.
