Kirby Air Riders is the type of game that shouldn’t exist.
I’m not just talking about the divisive opinion of its predecessor, 2003’s Kirby Air Ride for the Nintendo GameCube. I’m talking about how it incorporates so many ideas, objectives, and collectibles into one package.
Look, I was going to be happy enough with the ability to play City Trial online, but as someone who has poured countless hours over the years into that mode, I have a confession to make: I haven’t played too much City Trial this time around, because I’m busy enjoying everything else Kirby Air Riders has to offer.
While, for better or worse, the gameplay remains fairly the same from its predecessor, Kirby Air Riders finds a way to perfectly balance the fun and chaos of a party game with the action of a racing game, and I can’t put it down.
Kirby Air Riders: How To Unlock Every Character
Here’s how you can unlock all 21 characters in Kirby Air Riders.
Kirby Air Riders Keeps Rollin’ Rollin’ Rollin’ Rollin’
The biggest issue with the GameCube’s Kirby Air Ride’s racing gameplay was its lack of depth and variety.
Of course, it’s easy to look at that one-button control setup and go, “Of course there’s no depth to it. You only have to hit one button!” However, the bigger issue is the lack of options for playable characters and machines. When everyone essentially has the same stats, every race feels the same. It’s like if Mario Kart only offered Mario and Luigi as playable characters who could only drive base karts.
Even going back to Mario Kart 64, which didn’t feature any kart customization, you can tell a difference between the game’s three weight classes. Yoshi and Toad feel different from Donkey Kong and Bowser, and that translates into how races play out on each course.
Kirby Air Riders finds a way to perfectly balance the fun and chaos of a party game with the action of a racing game, and I can’t put it down.
Thankfully, Kirby Air Riders offers a massive improvement over the original: 21 playable characters and over 20 machine options make a world of difference. That one-button control setup is still here, but I’ve been surprised at how little I care about it, especially since there are some races where the correct move is to never use the boost button at all (all hail the Wagon Star). Yet these races never feel the same for two reasons.
First, being able to mix and match your rider and machine means you can customize stat items. Certain setups will be better at taking turns, boosting, reaching top speeds, and so on. It helps create a meta where, yes, some setups will be better than others (praise be, Wagon Star). Still, it prevents every race from being the same, provided we avoid a Waluigi/Wiggler situation from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
The second reason is the role momentum plays in your races. Being able to manipulate the track to your advantage through jumps, ramps, and squeezing out little boosts, combined with a Super Smash Bros. feel to the races, means that no lead is truly safe.
The Super Smash Bros. Of Racing Games
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there’s a Super Smash Bros. look and feel to Kirby Air Riders; this is a Masahiro Sakurai game after all. Yet I still can’t help but be both surprised and blown away by its similarities.
Everything, from the game’s presentation, impressive amount of unlockables, stages, music, aesthetics, and course design screams the very best of Smash Bros. It’s something I expected from City Trial, but never imagined that feeling carrying over to the other game modes.
Air Ride races were never this much fun on the GameCube. Kirby Air Riders successfully uses the sum of its parts to deliver an incredible racing experience. One minute, I’m taking in the beauty and majesty of the courses, all of which look fantastic, and the next, I’m looking to swallow NPC riders on a track to obtain their Copy Abilities and destroy my opponents. This is where that simplistic control setup comes in handy and proves that its simplicity is actually deceptive.
Yes, on paper, a racing game that only has one button to press is, in theory, easy. Still, as I mentioned earlier, you have to know how to use everything that happens during a race to your advantage. Do you really need to slow down to turn that corner and use a boost, or can you just YOLO it and keep racing at top speed? Is it more important to use a boost pad, or could it be more beneficial to swallow a basic NPC and spit it out to hit and crash the person ahead of you? These are the types of questions that are always asked during Air Ride races, and the scenarios that keep things fresh, fun, and bring me back for more.
Kirby Air Riders: How To Unlock Every Course
Here’s how you can unlock every Air Ride and Top Ride course in Kirby Air Riders.
Road Trip Is A Very Welcome Addition To Kirby Air Riders, Even If It’s Not Perfect
Another big issue with Kirby Air Ride was the real lack of gameplay options.
Sure, City Trial gave the game impressive replayability, but it was really that, along with the underwhelming racing modes. Kirby Air Riders changes this with the introduction of Road Trip, which serves as both the game’s “story” mode along with it being a pretty simplistic roguelike option.
You’ll make your way through a variety of courses taking place on branching pathways as you progress through the game’s story. In each course, you’ll come across a couple of options that require a choice. Sometimes it’s something as easy as buying options from a shop or picking upgrades. Other times, it’s partaking in races, mini-games, and even boss battles.
Road Trip was one of my most anticipated additions to Kirby Air Riders because it gives players the option to experience more Kirby Air Riders content, promising to keep things fresh. It accomplishes this, yes, but it’s not a perfect experience. It’s not necessarily the most challenging thing, so diehard roguelike fans will undoubtedly be disappointed, though I wonder if they were the target demographic for this to begin with. The other issue is that one of Kirby Air Riders’ biggest problems is the load times that exist within the game.
Races and mini-games are so short that it often feels like you spend more time waiting than actually playing. Sure, you can speed up the driving on a course to get to the next event, but that’s still essentially a waiting room that transfers into a load screen before you experience 60-to-120 seconds of actual gameplay.
City Trial Is As Fun As Ever
The fact that the “traditional” racing modes of Kirby Air Riders are enjoyable is a pleasant surprise, but let’s be honest. City Trial is the main appeal here, and everyone wants to know how well it holds up, especially with the ability to play online with up to 16 players.
I’m happy to report that City Trial still rocks. If there’s any complaint I can make, it’s the fact that five minutes doesn’t feel like enough time to see and do everything before the mini-game begins, yet anything else feels like too much time. You can customize your options for local play, but online, it’s the standard affairs: five minutes of chaos, random events, and hoping for the best before you go into one of four available mini-games.
The option to choose between four mini-games is what makes City Trial truly shine. My biggest issue back in the day was that you could prepare for a certain style of mini-game, ie, something that requires flying for a long distance, only to be met with a drag race. Whoops.
Now, I’m no longer penalized for prioritizing certain power-ups over others. I can focus on building a well-rounded machine or be aggressive in hopes of participating in a specific style of mini-game. It’s a lot more fun this way and helps prevent some of the feel-bad moments I remember from back in the day.
Now there are even more random in-game events, such as short races and demolition derbies. This adds even more urgency to the game while encouraging players to interact with each other. That’s where City Trial is at its best, delivering a chaotic PvPvE experience leading into a random mini-game to see if all your hard work was worth it.
Kirby Air Riders: How To Reach The Floating Island in City Trial
Have you seen that floating island in the sky of Kirby Air Riders’ City Trial mode and wonder how to get there? Well, here’s your answer.
Kirby Air Riders Is A Completionist’s Dream Come True
There’s honestly a lot to love with Kirby Air Riders, but the thing that impresses me the most is just how much content exists in this game.
You have a total of four game modes: Road Trip, Air Ride, Top Ride, and City Trial. The latter three are all playable online. This alone would provide plenty of content to keep me busy for dozens and dozens of hours, but wait, there’s more.
There’s honestly a lot to love with Kirby Air Riders, but the thing that impresses me the most is just how much content exists in this game.
Air Riders offers a whopping 750 tasks to complete, which unlocks customization options for your online driver’s license, characters, courses, machines, and more. There’s also the fact that you can display your favorite machines in a customizable garage, interact with friends in the online Paddock lobby, and even create your own customizable machines that you can list online for others to purchase.
I know a lot of people joked about why we would need two 45+ minute Directs for Kirby Air Riders, but now we know: there’s a lot of content in this game that’s worth exploring. Not all of it is worth it; the Paddock feels a little underwhelming if I’m being honest. But there’s still enough here to keep fans busy through the holiday season and beyond.
Closing Comments:
I was one of the biggest Kirby Air Ride fans back in the day, so the fact that we’re getting a sequel to the divisive cult classic is a dream come true. Kirby Air Riders is everything I could have ever wanted and more. It’s a project filled with love, passion, and a celebration of all things Kirby. From the robust character roster, surprising depth of customization options, and an impressive amount of content to see, do, and unlock, Kirby Air Riders is easily my favorite racing game of the year. It’s a triumph from start to finish, and I can’t wait to spend countless hours in City Trial and beyond.
9 Kirby Characters That Should’ve Been In Air Riders
There are more Kirby characters to stick on an Air Ride Machine.
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Author: 360 Technology Group
