Kirby Air Riders Game - Review

When a game launches to such fanfare that it earns not one but two full Nintendo Direct presentations—each stretching well past the typical ...

When a game launches to such fanfare that it earns not one but two full Nintendo Direct presentations—each stretching well past the typical showcase length—you know it’s not just another release, but something deeply personal to its creator, and in the case of Kirby Air Riders, that creator is Masahiro Sakurai, a man who’s become both a legend in the industry for his work on Smash Bros. and a beloved teacher to aspiring game developers thanks to his YouTube channel, where he shares his insights and demystifies the art of making games for a new generation.

It’s clear from the moment you dive into Kirby Air Riders that this isn’t really a game for the masses in the way a Mario Kart is; it’s a project for the subset of players who care about Sakurai’s design philosophy, who track his career and the through lines that run from Smash Bros. to his latest work, and who are curious to watch a master tinker with his own rulebook in real time—everything from the announcer’s cadence to the KO animations to the tactile feel of racing and brawling is steeped in Sakurai’s signature style, making this game feel like a spiritual cousin to Smash more than a simple kart racer.

At a glance, you might expect Mario Kart with a Kirby skin, but the truth is much stranger and, in many ways, more interesting: Kirby Air Riders is a party game at heart, a collection of bite-sized races and brawls, unlockable machines, and customization options, all tied together by a one-button control scheme that’s both brilliantly accessible and oddly limiting, funneling you forward with invisible guardrails and asking you, above all, to have fun with your friends, whether you’re sitting side by side or connecting online.

For some, this simplicity is a blessing—a way to get everyone involved, from seasoned gamers to young kids who struggle with more complex racers, as the game does everything it can to keep you from falling off ledges or getting stuck, letting you focus on boosting, gliding, attacking, and mastering subtle mechanics like star trails and boost braking, all of which add a surprising amount of depth if you’re willing to dig beneath the surface and start chasing those perfect runs.

But for others—especially those who crave the tension and satisfaction that comes from truly challenging racing games—the rails are too tight, the events too short, and the sense of mastery, while present, doesn’t hit the same highs as nailing a shortcut in Mario Kart or outmaneuvering opponents in Diddy Kong Racing; instead, you might find yourself spending as much time in menus and loading screens as you do in actual gameplay, wishing there was just a bit more room for each event to breathe before being shuttled off to the next.

The variety of modes is impressive: traditional racing in Air Ride, rapid-fire isometric fun in Top Ride, chaotic brawler-style city exploration in City Trial, and a surprisingly robust solo Road Trip mode that strings together a playlist of everything the game has to offer, complete with stat-collecting, currency, boss battles, and narrative cutscenes—each tailored to showcase the breadth of Sakurai’s design sensibilities, even if the brevity of each event sometimes undermines the potential for sustained momentum or emotional investment.

Unlocking content is as gratifying as ever, with a mural of challenges and rewards to complete, and the customization options allow you to make each machine your own, from colorways and decals to sound effects and charms, all without a hint of microtransactions or cash shops—a refreshing reminder of how rewarding games can be when progress is tied to play rather than payment.

Ultimately, Kirby Air Riders feels like a passion project—a game that exists because Sakurai and his team wanted to make it, not because they were chasing sales targets or trying to capture the broadest possible audience, and that’s both its strength and its limitation; if you fall within its niche—if you have a group of friends to play with, if you love Sakurai’s design ethos, if you crave something that feels handcrafted and a little bit weird—you’re going to have a fantastic time and find endless value in its fast, frenetic, joyful chaos.

But if you’re looking for a racer that’s finely tuned for solo mastery, or a party game with more staying power and less time spent in menus, you might find that Kirby Air Riders, for all its polish and heart, remains just a little too niche, a little too breezy, and a little too short-lived to become your next obsession—though you’ll likely remember it fondly as the game that dared to be different, that wore its creator’s heart on its sleeve, and that, for a moment, brought a bit of Sakurai’s game-making magic into your living room.

And if you’re the kind of person who loves going deep on the games industry, don’t forget to check out this video’s sponsor, Lost in Cult, whose latest Design Works collection is a beautifully crafted deep dive into the development of another cult classic, packed with art, essays, and exclusive extras—a perfect gift for the discerning gamer or design aficionado in your life.