Legendary developer Masahiro Sakurai has officially revealed whyKirby Air Riderswas made, after the series had been dormant for more than 20 years.The game’s announcementwas surprising during a previous Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, but it was arguably even more astonishing that Sakurai was at the helm of the project after so many years of working onSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, and the game’s existence seemed to come out of left field.
During theKirby Air Riders-focusedNintendo Direct, Sakurai explained that he received arequest for a newKirby Air Ridegame from Nintendo corporate director Shinya Takahashi and former president of HAL Laboratory Satoshi Mitsuharawhile Sakurai was working on the DLC forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate. Sakurai was busy, but drafted a proposal for the game, which was an unknown project he mentioned on his YouTube channel previously.
Masahiro Sakurai Shares How Kirby Air Riders Became His Next Game
Another Racer From Nintendo
The extensiveDLC forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimatekept Sakurai too busy to work on the game at the time, but when the final character, Sora fromKingdom Hearts, was released in October 2021, he wasthen free to startKirby Air Riders. Sakurai also confirmed that the co-developers ofKirby Air Ridersare Bandai Namco Studios and Sakurai’s own company Sora Ltd.
When Sakurai developed his proposal for the game, he was also quick to bring up thatthe game may be too similar toMario Kart, something that was echoed to fans during the presentation. Sakurai stated he asked Takahashi and Mitsuhara if they still wanted to do it, and then Sakurai was quick to point out thatKirby Air Ridewas not ever about the actual racing.
Kirby Air Riders Direct Reveals A Lot About Nintendo’s Next Game
A Kirby Celebration With Battle Elements
Unlike the first game,Kirby Air Riderswill use two major buttons for its controls, instead of just one. One of them is a Boost Charge button that helps with drifting around corners, and the other is a Special button, which unleashes riders' unique moves. The game is less about intense racing and more about managing resources and properly drifting around corners and landing from glides.
Kirby Air Ridershas one of the simplest control schemes in modern gaming, and the ease of use will likely appeal to all ages. Nintendo has previously claimedKirby Air Ridersisahead of its timeand is a game that will impress Switch 2 owners. The game releases on November 20.
