Kirby Air Riders review: a breezy, quirky racer with bright ideas

Kirby Air Riders is an overwhelming game. Overwhelming in the speed and colour of its many quirky race tracks, and overwhelming in the sheer array of modes, mini-games, and surprises in store.

It feels like a game that began as one thing – perhaps a simpler racer starring Kirby and his pals – that evolved over concerns of its depth. There’s a cavalcade of esoteric modes and mini-games packed in that reduce coherence, but add compelling quirks. It makes for a game that’s an odd jigsaw of ideas, fit together with a bit of force.

Racing around in Air Ride mode

The core gameplay is fairly familiar – this is a racer starring Kirby, and his closest friends and allies. As with Mario Kart, you pick a racer and their ride, and then you may set off to conquer various themed tracks, while unlocking new ones, as you advance.

Each track is bright and colourful, with varied segments that demand care, then fling you across high speed rails, leaving you at the game’s mercy, as colours and shapes fly past.

Even in this Air Ride mode, you can see quirky, creative ideas. Each racer you pick has their own set of abilities – auto-hit, auto-steal, healing, speed, strength, or other advantages. Each ride also has its own abilities, for better or worse.

A Vampire Star can ‘bite’ enemies who come too close, and steal their copy abilities. The Winged Star has good gliding speed, and can get you more air time. There’s also various scooters that let you manoeuvre around corners easily. But then, some rides are detrimental to progress, unless you work out their unique twists.

Rides like the Bulk Star rely on Boost Charges, and while this one is tougher and stronger, you’ll need to be constantly charging to keep it moving forward. Another ride only lets you teleport along straight lines, forcing you to think quickly about your next moves.

Kirby Air Riders really is a different sort of racer, in this mix. You don’t need to control forward movement, as this happens automatically, but you will need to reckon with the quirks of your particular ride to keep moving forward. It means racing is more strategy-based. You’ll want to boost forward and drift around corners wherever you can, to gain a speed advantage. You’ll also need to spin and attack enemies, or absorb their abilities, to ensure you gather speed boosts, and can eventually unleash your special move.

In a sea of sameish racers, the complexity of Kirby Air Riders, and how it transforms racing, is wildly compelling. It demands your attention and requires your ingenuity, so that you stay locked in to every race.

Kirby Air Riders isn’t only a racing game

Importantly, this isn’t the only main mode of Kirby Air Riders. As compelling and moreish as racing in Air Ride mode is, there’s actually far more to discover here. In addition to this more traditional racing mode, you can also experience toy-like races in the ‘Top Ride’ mode.

Here, you’re controlling your ride from a top-down view, using a ‘flinging’ mechanic to throw yourself forward, and make your way around various, winding pathways. Top Ride is the least consequential part of Kirby Air Riders, but with its cute, mini presentation, it remains an endearing inclusion.

What’s more impactful in this game is City Trial mode. This is an entirely different experience from the rest of Kirby Air Riders, and the most out-there.

Here, you’re sent into a small, open world city biome populated by various racers, and decorated with all sorts of power-ups. Over a five-minute period, you roam through this world collecting these power-ups, as well as contending with an array of ultra-random events.

Sometimes, a giant storm cloud boss (Kracko) appears, and you must defeat him by shooting your ride into his large eyeball. Sometimes, flat images of delicious food will appear, and you must collect them to increase your power. You’ll be asked to run over giant buttons, or to collect large-sized power-ups, or to defeat your fellow racers.

When the five-minute experience is over, you’ll be tossed into one of a dozen mini-games which typically involve you racing your car, or flying through obstacles. In one mini-game, you’ll attempt to land your car through prize circles with the most value. In another mini-game, you’ll be attempting to defeat the most enemies in a set time.

It all gets very Mario Party, very suddenly, as you’re dealing with laser beams, melee battles, and hyper-realistic food items. It’s so bizarre in parts that you’ll feel transported to an entirely different game.

Even in this confusion, Kirby Air Riders manages to be sweet and endearing – and it’s that nature that encourages you to go along with its strangeness.

But that’s not all… Kirby Air Riders has a story mode

Perhaps the greatest surprise in Kirby Air Riders is that even after bouncing through these various modes, you’ll still find more reasons to play – because this game actually has a campaign-based story mode, complete with a surreal, compelling narrative.

Heading into its ‘Road Trip’ mode, you’ll find a campaign that charts some of the stranger corners of the Kirby universe, introducing a new eldritch threat. It’s couched in an ‘endless runner’ type adventure where you encounter a variety of races and mini-games from other modes, with each being a pitstop in a journey to completing new stages.

In each stage, you might also earn a special memory crystal which reveals a new cutscene advancing the story, and eventually, you’ll make your way to a set ending.

Road Trip mode actually turned out to be the best way to play through Kirby Air Riders, because it gives you a taste of every mode, in palatable fashion. You choose one of three challenges to tackle as each stage advances, and eventually, you’ll work towards unlocking everything this game has to offer, whether you’re looking for new tracks, new rides, or just the chance to play as fan-favourite hamster, Rick.

The verdict on Kirby Air Riders

As mentioned, there’s a lot in this game. It’s not quite the simple racing game that it first appears to be, and there are layers of depth that expand gameplay in new and often strange ways. In stages, Kirby Air Riders is perhaps a bit too weird and esoteric, but it always brings you back in, thanks to well-designed tracks, moreish mini-games, and its cast of cutesy characters.

Oddly incoherent at times, with modes that feel creative but weirdly placed, you may find yourself scratching your head, at times – but then you’ll conquer a new track or City Trial adventure, and the glory of victory will sweep this feeling under the rug.

Don’t think too deeply about Kirby Air Riders, and you’ll be swept away, quirks and all.

_{A copy of Kirby Air Riders was provided by the publisher for the purposes of this review.}

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