There is something special about Kirby games, with the pink puffball always having something unique to his titles. Kirby Air Ride was a unique game for the Nintendo GameCube that was a fun twist on the racing experience. By all accounts, the finished game was not what Masahiro Sakurai intended, but now Sakurai, coming off his fame from the Smash Bros series, has a second chance to create the ultimate Kirby racing game with Kirby Air Riders for the Nintendo Switch 2.
The best way to describe Kirby Air Riders is that Sakurai took the formula he perfected with Super Smash Bros. and applied it to the Mario Kart concept. This is a fast paced experience that calls to mind some classic arcade racers but with modern ideas. The game starts out simple enough, and walks you through the mechanics so you get the idea of what to do, and like with Smash Bros, everything has controls that are simple but have a surprisingly large amount of depth to them.
Tilting the stick and using mainly one button, can take a while to get used to, but it is worth it, even as you learn the other button to get the full experience. This is a game that will send you off at high velocity into what is essentially a cute deathrace at times, while taking full advantage of what Kirby has to offer. And yes that full advantage includes the well known abilities.
You start off by picking a racer and vehicle, and each has stats that need to be taken into account as they will influence how the game plays in major ways. Everything from gliding capability to offensive power and defense is reflected, and these vehicles can get a bit zany. But that is not all as Kirby of course has his trademark copy abilities, but now so does the rest of the cast of characters.
The use of copy abilities in Kirby Air Riders really helps give the game an identity that is at once familiar and unique, as on the surface it reminds you of Mario Kart, but ends up being deeper. In fact all of Kirby Air Riders feels like a battle, especially when you are waiting to unleash an ultimate attack. As you dodge intense obstacles and try to survive, you will slowly come to understand that Kirby Air Riders is very much its own beat, and handles combat in a way that is nothing like Mario Kart.
There are battles done in open areas as well, but unlike Mario Kart, everything is tied to not just power ups, but also your driving methods and speed to not only take out opponents, but also get more power for yourself. As intense as the races are, Kirby Air Rider has a quirky rule set that you will be able to take advantage of to perform not just arcade racing like maneuvers, but also fighting game style attacks, showing Sakurai bringing in ideas from Super Smash Bros. For instance, the races have you accelerate automatically, but mastering the break and boost will enable you to perform amazing combos, and I am not just talking about a wild spin, which is done via the stick wiggle. No, what I mean is you will be able to innovate and realize new strategies to defeat other racers in ways that would be completely unthinkable in other racing games. Just racing against others online or locally, genuinely feels like a fight more than any other vehicle game, with the exception of Twisted Metal, and this can now be Nintendo’s top friendship ender in many ways.
The intense battles in races are nothing when compared to City Trial. This was a mode beloved in the original and Sakurai brought it back in a big way with the new area called Skyah that gives you a few minutes to race around and get new loot, power ups and vehicles, while taking out other racers. Skyah is a diverse area full of amazing features, and there are many mini scenarios that will show up and affect how the City Trial will play out, including booby traps. Once the timer ends, you will start a mini game and these are a bit of a mixed bag admittedly, but the ones that are good are very good and are a blast to play with friends.
Top Ride is a top down mode that has smaller circuits and different play aspects, but is perfect for those just wanting a small play session rather than an intense time. It is fun, but not a main draw. No, the big draw here is Road Trip, which acts as a story mode, where you pick a rider who then goes on the road on their machine, encountering other riders that present different bite-sized gameplay experiences. You can collide with them to go into their game mode and get power ups and these modes have a lot of variety that genuinely adds to the replayability of the game, with dozens of microgames that all fit perfectly to the experience.
Once you come to the end of a road section, a boss will become available and they will also set up a different game mode that will shake things up. There are also stores along the way and ways to upgrade your rider and machine, and this is important to do in order to succeed. Road Trip has a fantastic narrative to it as well, and shows that Sakurai can be a great storyteller even in a racing game, with this being one of the best story modes in a racing game, period.
Sakurai also brought back another idea from Super Smash Bros with the checklist that acts as the game’s achievement method. You either love it or you hate it, but I myself am a bit mixed on it to be honest even with the rewards it brings. I did like unlocking the Gummies, which acted as trophies of sorts even if they are ultimately pointless. It just felt like a very Kirby thing to have in the game.
Ultimately, Kirby Air Riders feels like the culmination of many things Masahiro Sakurai has been trying to accomplish in game development for a long time. This is more than just a Kirby racing game, but a deep experience that fans of video games as a whole will enjoy. It may take a bit of time to get used to the controls, but once you do, everything clicks and you realize that Kirby Air Riders is an experience like no other, and one that stays with you for a long time. Highly recommended.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
