Nintendo has announced the second Kirby Air Riders Direct with director Masahiro Sakurai. It’s set for October 23 at 6am PT / 9am ET / 2pm UK time.
This one’s even longer than the 45-minute Kirby Air Riders Direct we saw in August. Expect roughly 60 minutes of information on the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive, Nintendo said.
August’s showcase divulged a release date for Sakurai’s new game, offered a first look at gameplay, and saw the legendary developer compare Kirby Air Riders to Mario Kart in what was a Smash Bros.-style Direct.
“You might be asking yourself if it’s basically Mario Kart,” Sakurai said. “You race and battle with familiar characters around courses with different features, or so they say. Ok, so it basically is like Mario Kart. I even mentioned this when I received the request to make the game. I asked them if they still wanted to do it. But as fans of the original know…the appeal of the game is not actually the races!”
Kirby Air Riders is out on November 20, 2025 for the Nintendo Switch 2 and features a wide roster of Kirby characters including Waddle Dee, King Dedede, Gooey, Chef Kawasaki, Metaknight, and more. Catch up on everything announced at the first Kirby Air Riders Nintendo Direct right here.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
