Kirby's Air Ride Hands-On Impressions

HAL Laboratories' cutesy racing game starring Kirby, the lovable pink puffball, will be available in the US soon, and we got to spend some time with what seems to be a very far-along English version of the game at the recent Nintendo Gamers' Summit. Kirby's Air Ride seems squarely targeted at kids, since it's played with only the left analog stick and the A button. But of course, a simple and easily accessible game design doesn't mean older players can't have fun with the game too.

Not a whole lot has changed about Kirby's Air Ride since we took a look at the Japanese version, other than one thing: It's now all in English. In addition to all the menus and in-game text displays, Kirby's Air Ride now features a series of helpful tutorial videos that quickly explain all the game's mechanics. It certainly seems easy enough to pick up, but it also seems like it'll take substantially more time to master.

We had a chance to play two modes in the game: air ride and top ride. Air ride is the main mode of the game, where you race on a variety of colorful courses against several opponents. You don't have to accelerate--Kirby will do that for you. As you careen down the track, you can hold down A to make Kirby suck in his breath, like he does in his many platform games. This will have two effects: First, when you let go, you'll receive a quick speed boost that lets you slingshot yourself around turns, and second, you can suck in nearby enemies, which grants Kirby new attack powers. Of course, you'll be able to use these powers against your opponents in order to get a leg up on the race.

Top ride is an overhead racing mode that plants you in tiny tracks on which you simply steer your way through a series of turns and obstacles to win the race before your opponents can do so. There are a number of power-ups scattered around the track that give you extra powers--for instance, one arms your racer with a drill that can be used to forcibly remove other racers from your path. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot to the top ride mode, which is perhaps what makes it seem so charming--you can simply jump into a quick race and have fun without too much thought, and the fun ought to multiply as you add more players.

Kirby's Air Ride seems like a neat little game that should appeal to young and old audiences alike. The game will also support LAN play if you have multiple GameCubes, network adapters, and copies of the game, though we didn't get to try any networked games at the event. The game is scheduled for release this October.