My first time booting up a match of City Trial in Kirby Air Riders, I was overwhelmed as I was hit with a flurry of attacks from other players, constantly had to deal with mid-match events, and didn't know which machines or stat boosts were the best to pick up. By the end of the match, I managed to build a speedy Chariot machine with a high Turn stat. That allowed me to dominate the final Button Rush stadium challenge and win that match.

That's the most exhilarating I've felt playing a racing game this year, and it wasn't even as part of a race. While Mario Kart World was an impressive Nintendo Switch 2 launch title, Kirby Air Riders is even better, a thorough realization of a creative racing game idea first tested in a cult-classic GameCube title years ago. It's a perfect fit for Switch 2, and now one of my favorite games on the system.

Every part of Kirby Air Riders is built to keep the player engaged and having fun, no matter how down-and-out they may seem during a match in any of its game modes. At times, it can be too overwhelming for its own good, but ultimately, Kirby Air Riders is a masterclass in offering controlled chaos in a competitive game.

Price and Availability

Kirby Air Riders is a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive not slated for any other platforms. There is only one version of the game available digitally and physically, its $70 Standard Edition.

A racing game that only requires a couple of buttons

Its controls are simple, yet conceal a lot depth

Kirby Air Riders builds on the concept of an experimental GameCube game. Kirby Air Ride offered up a racing game experience where players automatically moved forward and just had to press that one button to boost or drift around the course. This long-awaited sequel takes every part of that concept and turns it up to 11 while also serving as a celebration of the entire Kirby franchise.

All three of Kirby Air Riders' gameplay modes are very distinct from each other, but they all share this control scheme: steer your machine as it moves forward and boost at the right time as you drift around corners or even glide through the air to come out in first place. At times, it can feel like a momentum-based sport, like skiing or sledding, more than driving.

On top of that, the Kirby series' copy abilities are also now a core part of the experience. If I dashed through one of these mid-match, I suddenly gained the ability to slash my opponents with a sword or roll through the course as a steel ball. On top of that, each rider has a special ability, activated with the game's second used button, that can help in a race.

Anyone can pick up Kirby Air Riders, play it, and have a good time, but it actually features a lot of depth. I didn't do well in my first couple of races, but got much better the more I played the game. It helps that this game features thorough tutorials that can teach you anything you'd want to know about every aspect of the game.

Kirby Air Riders feels like three games in one

And they're all equally entertaining

Air Ride, Top Ride, and City Trial are the three main gameplay modes of Kirby Air Riders. Air Ride is the most traditional of the three, presenting from a behind-the-racer camera perspective. It benefits from some absolutely beautiful course design. This is one of the best-looking and running Switch 2 games yet, and that's clearest in Air Ride.

Top Ride is like Air Ride, but played from a top-down perspective on shorter courses. While this was my least favorite of the three at first, I actually came to love Top Ride once I learned how to properly maneuver around corners and time copy ability use to my benefit. It's the simplest mode, but it allows for some thrilling comebacks and quick hits of satisfaction. Just don't get turned around, or you'll have some trouble getting back in front.

The most distinct mode of the bunch is City Trial, a battle royale-like mode where players, either alone or as part of a team, drive around the large city map of Skyah, gathering stats boosts and constantly changing what machine. After five minutes, players are tasked with completing a final stadium challenge. Those range from drag races to cooperative boss fights to diving through rings in the air for points.

Essentially, you're finding a machine and building up your stats throughout the chaos of City Trial before taking advantage of what you built in the final challenge. It's a really creative way to recontextualize Kirby Air Riders' racing game mechanics, and even with one map, things stay interesting due to the random world events that pop up. It's chaotic yet endlessly packed with replay value, and I'd consider it the flagship mode of Kirby Air Riders even though another shares the game's name.

You're always unlocking something in Kirby Air Riders

Sometimes to the point of exhaustion

Now you know the basics of almost everything Kirby Air Riders has to offer. If that were all the game had to show, it'd already be one of the best racers of the year. What really pushes it over the edge to be better than even the likes of Mario Kart World is the hidden depth behind it all. For having just three modes, there's a lot of extra content to give you a reason to keep playing.

There's the single-player Road Trip, a roguelite, story-driven experience where players complete bite-sized racing challenges to progress. It's a little too easy unless you're on the harder difficulties, but it's a real time sink for those who don't want to play the same three modes over and over. Then again, you can do just that with how each mode offers multiple styles of play and ways to customize each match you play.

All of this feeds back into completing challenges on a giant challenge board. Doing so can unlock new riders, machines, tracks, and customization options for your machines. Every time you finish any race in Kirby Air Riders, you'll likely unlock or complete some sort of challenge. At times, this can get overwhelming and intrusive to the main experience. It sometimes felt like I was playing a mobile game with a lot of pop-up ads, which kills momentum in an otherwise fast-paced game.

Despite my issues with that, it's an impressive way to offer a consistent treadmill of progression without resorting to common live service tactics like a simple leveling system or seasonal model. I'll be playing Kirby Air Riders online and offline for a long time to come. It's helpful that it runs amazingly well in both split-screen and online play. From the moment you first boot the game up, it constantly gives the player compelling reasons to keep playing.

Kirby Air Riders never struggles to find the fun

One of the most entertaining Switch 2 games yet

Racing games succeed or fail on how good they feel to play, and Kirby Air Riders is built to thrill. Its unique control setup allowed me to gain impressive leads over my opponents, while also offering the tools to quickly mount a comeback as I perfected how I drifted and boosted throughout a course. Every race in Kirby Air Riders shares the energy of a cheer-worthy comeback moment in a game like Mario Kart World.

While a sequel to a cult classic GameCube game might feel like an odd choice for a first-year Switch 2 exclusive, it continues Nintendo's stunning run of new games since the launch of its latest console. Whether you're a fan of Kirby, racing games, or just games that are flat-out satisfying to experience, you need to give Kirby Air Riders a shot as soon as possible.