Sakurai explains why he’s making Kirby Air Riders, breaks down gameplay

Read below for more about the features and gameplay spotlighted by Mr. Sakurai:

• Riding Techniques: Each Air Ride machine, or “machine” for short, has different forms and traits. They usually hover above the ground and move forward automatically – no need to press any buttons or tilt the left Joy-Con 2 control stick forward to accelerate. Use the left stick to change direction by tilting it left or right.
• Boost Charge: By pressing the B Button, your machine will hit the ground, and you’ll start a Boost Charge and brake. Releasing the button activates a Boost Dash. As Mr. Sakurai explained, this is more than just a speed boost – by tilting the left stick and holding the Boost Charge button through sharp corners, you can perform drift manoeuvres which help you gain even more of a speed advantage.
• Specials: It takes more than speed and deft manoeuvring to get ahead of the competition, however. The Y Button is your “Special button,” and it activates your character’s unique Special move. Attack your rival riders and enemies to fill up your Special Gauge and, once full, unleash your Special. While most characters have one distinct Special, Kirby has four different Special moves – one for each colour Kirby you can play as. Combine certain Specials with attack techniques like Quick Spin, which is activated by wiggling the control stick, and you’ll be on your way to victory.
• Riders: Kirby Air Riders adds a strategic element to its mayhem by adding more importance to your choice of rider. Each rider in the game has their own unique traits which can impact their machine’s performance, including weight, durability, Specials, close range attacks and more. These factors can either give them an advantage or cause more unpredictability during the action depending on the environment you’re in. In fact, this is why Air Ride mode has you select your course first, then the rider and machine you want to use. In addition to the well-balanced pink puffball, your roster of riders includes familiar faces from the world of Kirby, like Meta Knight, King Dedede, Bandana Waddle Dee, as well as enemies in the Kirby series like Cappy, Chef Kawasaki, Starman and more. And to keep you moving forward and keep your opponents on their toes, Kirby Air Riders also lets you mix and match riders and machines.
• Machines: Air Ride machines are built for more than just speed. Each machine, like the riders, can even sustain different amounts of damage. Most machines will also glide through the air if you jump from a ramp or other structure, and you can control your machine by tilting the left stick up or down to ascend or descend. Make a perfect landing and you’ll be rewarded with more speed. You can also perform rail grinds, drifts and other manoeuvres.
• Copy Abilities: To level the playing field, Kirby Air Riders gives all the riders the ability to inhale or capture to copy an enemy’s abilities. Use these newly acquired abilities to temporarily gain additional ways to attack or increase your speed.

Mr. Sakurai also unveiled the returning game modes and experiences that await players in Kirby Air Riders, including City Trial mode, which he described as “the main event.” The mode from the original Kirby Air Ride returns, this time expanded and enhanced with more room to explore:

• Skyah: City Trial is now located on a huge floating island called Skyah. Here, you’ll drive around freely collecting power-ups, attacking opponents to damage (and steal) their machines or cause them to drop power-ups you can then scoop up for yourself, all with the objective of upgrading your machine as much as possible. You start out with a small, weak machine, but through finding power-ups, attacking opponents and swapping to other machines, you can upgrade your ride. There are also random Field Events that occur throughout this phase. Some of these events pop up unexpectedly somewhere on the Skyah map, and you’ll need to hustle to that location to participate.Events include challenges like Short Race, where you’ll race through a sectioned-off area of the map, with power-ups awarded based on how you finish. There is also Dustup Derby, where the goal is to battle your opponents to knock them out and earn more power-ups. Be warned, these events may also involve the appearance of familiar bosses from the world of Kirby, including Kracko and Dyna Blade. This is only the first phase of the City Trial experience, and you’ll have five minutes of intense vehicle action to secure your machine and as many power-ups as you can. After that, it’s on to phase two…
• Stadiums: Take your powered-up machine to a Stadium and compete to be crowned the winner. Each Stadium includes a different challenge that players will strategically select based on the power-ups you or your opponents have gathered. Some Stadiums will even be recommended for you based on your machine’s stats, in case you have any trouble deciding which one to take on. In Kirby Air Riders, you can also battle friends via local wireless*¹ with up to eight players, or online*² with up to 16 players. Use GameChat*³ to connect with your friends via video or voice chat to enhance the fun.

In addition to City Trial, Kirby Air Riders features other returning modes with updated features, including…

• Air Ride mode: In this mode, up to six riders can compete to cross the finish line first. Attack opposing riders and by hitting them you’ll gain small stars that increase your speed. What makes this experience unique is that you’ll compete getting speed boosts by attacking. So, go ahead and cut loose on your rivals. You can also follow the Star Slide – you speed up by following behind other riders and collecting the trail of stars in their wake. These extra speed boosts will help you leave your opponents in the (star) dust.
• Lessons: With all the different riders, machines, techniques and game modes – you may want a little time to practice. The Lessons mode allows you to learn the basics of the game and try out some of the more advanced gameplay mechanics.