AIR RIDE RETURNS!!!

 Kirby Air Ride is one of my all-time favorite games—it's honestly my second favorite game ever made, and it holds such a special place in my heart. It’s brought me so much fun and joy, and I still think it’s one of the most amazing spin-offs out there. It’s a simple yet incredibly fun racing game, but it’s also unique in a way that makes it stand out. The game design is really smart, and it’s full of little details that make it shine.

Air Ride is a major landmark for the Kirby series too, as it introduced some of the key developers at HAL, like Kumazaki, who was a designer on this game. He would later go on to play a huge role in the Kirby franchise, eventually taking the lead on the series. It's also significant because it was the last Kirby title directed by Masahiro Sakurai, the original creator and director of the series. Sakurai would go on to head up *Super Smash Bros.* under his independent game company "Sora," with his wife, Michiko Sakurai, who’s also a former HAL employee and has worked on the UI for almost all of Sakurai’s games since *Smash Bros.* He’s also worked as a designer and director on other games, like the brilliant *Meteos* for the DS, and the cult classic *Kid Icarus: Uprising* for the 3DS, which he also wrote the scenario for.

Even though Sakurai hasn’t worked directly on the Kirby series for years, his design philosophies are still evident in his other projects, and *Kirby Air Ride* is a perfect example. Modes like *Subspace Emissary* in *Smash Bros.* play very similarly to Kirby games, especially *Super Star*. Even *The Great Maze* in *Subspace Emissary* is clearly inspired by *The Great Cave Offensive* from *Super Star*. And if we look at *Smash Bros. for 3DS*, the *Smash Run* mode was basically *City Trial* from *Kirby Air Ride*. It took the same concept—throwing players into a sprawling, open battle royale-style map where they collect items and level up before facing off in a final random "stadium" game—so you can see the spirit of the Kirby series carried over into his other works.

After the release of *Smash Ultimate* and its two fighter passes, Sakurai took a break to make YouTube videos on game design with a series called *Making Games with Sakurai*. This lasted for about two years and covered a wide range of topics related to game design. Then, towards the end of last year, he mentioned in the final episode that he was working on a new game. He didn’t give too much away, of course, as it was confidential, but he hinted that we’d hear more about it soon. Well, now we know what that project was: *Kirby Air Riders*, a sequel to *Kirby Air Ride*—FINALLY, after 22 years!

There have been so many Kirby spin-offs over the years, and some of the best ones, like *Canvas Curse* and *Fighters*, have gotten sequels. Even some of the less popular ones, like *Kirby Clash*, got sequels. But *Air Ride* always stood out because of how unique it was. And for the longest time, it never got a sequel, despite the fact that it sold well and became an iconic game, not just within the Kirby fanbase but outside it too. I hear so much talk about *City Trial*, especially, so it’s exciting to think that this new game might bring all that talk back into the spotlight.

The trailer for *Kirby Air Riders* doesn’t show much, just a slow build-up to the reveal that this is indeed an *Air Ride* sequel, followed by some brief CG footage of the Kirbys racing in their Air Ride machines before the logo appears. There’s also music, and I have a feeling that the theme we hear is composed by Yuuta Ogasawara, who directed the OST for *Kirby and the Forgotten Land*. But I’m not entirely sure. Once more details are announced, I’ll definitely talk more about *Air Riders*. I’m especially curious about how involved HAL is with the project and how they managed to bring Sakurai back for a sequel. I’m sure we’ll get those answers in time, but I’m really excited to see what the team at Bandai Namco Studios and Sakurai have in store for us!