Kirby Air Riders Direct 2 - everything announced including the online demo event start date
The hour-long presentation is showcased more on Kirby Air Riders
We're still covering the Kirby Air Riders Direct live now that it's over, giving you all of the info on everything announced.
Here's our live coverage of the Kirby Air Riders Direct. We'll offer key info on the game, including details on everything revealed during the event.
Kirby Air Riders Online Demo Event start date
An Online Demo Event for Kirby Air Riders will run at the times in the image above. These sessions go live November 8, and conclude on November 16.
Kirby Air Riders Direct start time
Kirby Air Riders Direct #2 started on October 23, 2025 at the times below:
- East Coast (United States): 9AM ET
- West Coast (United States): 6AM PT
- United Kingdom: 2PM BST
- Central Europe: 3PM CEST
- Australia (Sydney): 11PM AEST
- Japan (Tokyo): 10PM JST
This Direct event lasted one hour. This matcheed with the first Kirby Air Riders Direct, which aired on August 19, 2025, and lasted an hour and twenty minutes. You can watch this first Direct below:
Where to watch the Kirby Air Riders Direct on October 23
You can watch The Kirby Air Riders Direct #2 over on the official Nintendo YouTube channels. We've embedded a link below:
Make sure to arrive at the times detailed previously in this article, as there will likely be a short countdown before the show starts. From there, expect a full presentation from director Masahiro Sakurai, lasting 60 minutes in total.
Live coverage as it happens
That's a wrap!
Wow, that was a lot to take in. For me, the headline announcements were the Road Trip story mode, the inclusion of old tracks, and the total course list being 18 at launch. An online demo event is on the way too. You can check out the dates above.
Story Mode unveiled
Road Trip is the main Story mode in Kirby Air Riders. We're now seeing a cutscene that'll play at the beginning of the adventure. It's showing off some very nice visuals, highlighting Machines and Riders.
amiibo can be trained in-game
Just like in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, amiibo can be scanned into Kirby Air Riders to be trained as Riders. There's brand new Meta Knight, Chef Kawasaki, and Dedede amiibo too.
We're now going through the Options menu
Almost an hour in, the Kirby Air Riders Direct is now guiding us through the options menu. There's some Accessibility features too, which is very good to see. Color filters and UI element options are available.
My Music can be used to choose your own soundtrack
There's a My Music feature where you can adjust how often certain Music appears while playing. There's a Music Player too, where you can listen to the game's soundtrack whenever you like.
Headwear can be purchased with Miles
Kirby Air Riders features a currency called Miles. These are earned as you play, and can be spent in the Miles Shop in exchange for Headwear, Stickers and other items.
You can share custom Machine designs
Once you've customized via My Machine, you can share them with others. I think I saw an auction system, so perhaps there's incentive to create good designs. We'll have to confirm this later on.
I cannot believe how much is in this game!
Checklists, color variants, a robotic Dedede boss fight? I truly cannot keep up. We're now seeing My Machine, that let's you customize your own vehicle.
Vs. Boss mode lets you battle tough foes
Robo Dedede is just one of the bosses that's featured in Vs. Boss mode. You'll race around and battle a large enemy, using items and locking on for attacks.
Flight Star is exclusive to Free Run
There's an exclusive machine called Flight Star that's included in Free Run. You can use this to fly around tracks, perfect for solo play and learning the game mechanics.
You can change the voice announcer
The in-game voice announcer can be changed to different options, including several different languages. There's German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, and more options.
Machines are being showcased
Formula Star, Hop Star and Transform Star are available to use in Kirby Air Riders. There's a Wheelie Scooter too with a giant eye in the wheel, and a Bull Tank that looks straight out of Robot Wars.
New Riders include Taranza and Daroach
There's new Riders in Kirby Air Riders including Lololo & Lalala, Daroach and Taranza. There's a heavy hamster called Rick, and Marx is here too.
Team Battles split players into two teams for City Trial
More info on City Trial now, as Team Battle will split players into two teams. You'll share certain items between teammates. Looks like great fun for up to 16 players!
City Trial details announced
Now there's a breakdown of City Trial, which is the fan-favorite mode. There's new items, including Fireworks, Item Catcher and Laser Swiper.
Races includes tracks from the previous game
Tracks from Kirby Air Ride are available in Kirby Air Riders. This includes Sky Sands, Frozen Hillside, and Magma Flows.
Ranking is determined by the Class system
Online ranking comes in the form of Class. This is similar to how things worked in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, in that you're ranked above and below certain players, identified by a color. This hopes to match you with other players of the same skill level.
There's a lobby that you can explore before races
There's a lobby area filled with things to do before a game. You can walk and jump around, spectate, change music, and emote with other players.
You'll make your own drivers license
When playing online in Kirby Air Riders, you'll make a profile in the form of a drivers license. Backgrounds, titles and other visuals can be tweaked.
Road Trip mode adds challenges to complete
A new mode called Road Trip is being shown off. It offers small challenges as you drive around a track. It looks as though this is geared more towards solo play.
Top Ride is designed as a more casual, pick up and play experience
Mr. Sakurai describes Top Ride as a more casual experience, with shorter, more pick up and play races.
Courses for Top Ride include Flower and Flow
We're now getting a look at some courses that feature in Top Ride. There's Flower, Air, Flow, Steam, and more. The courses are wider this time around.
Top Ride mode announced
Kirby Air Riders harkens back to its predecessor with a Top Ride Mode, which plays out with a top-down camera view.
The show has started! Follow our reactions live, as the reveals happen
The Kirby Air Riders Direct is now live. Let's dig into what's being shown. Looks like we're kicking off with an overview on key details like release date and platforms.
Kirby Air Riders amiibo launch alongside the game
Two new amiibo will launch alongside Kirby Air Riders. These include a Bandana Waddle Dee & Winged Star amiibo, and the Kirby & Warp Star amiibo. Both have the potential to trigger in-game bonuses when held against the Switch 2's NFC tag.
30 minutes to go
We're now just half an hour away from the start of the Kirby Air Riders Direct. It's set to run for an hour, so expect a hefty amount of detail from the esteemed Mr. Sakurai. Honesty, even if you're not interested in the game, watching Mr. Sakurai present is an absolute joy.
My hopes for the Kirby Air Riders Direct
Now that we're just minutes away from the next Kirby Air Riders Direct, I'm thinking about what I'd actually like to see during the show. As someone that never played the first game, I'm finding the deep dives into gameplay mechanics a little bit overwhelming, so some basic overviews of standard races would be nice. I'd also love to see whether there's any story content tying the game together, even if it's just small lore drops for each racer, alongside some nice cutscenes.
Mostly, I need to decide whether there's a broader appeal to Kirby Air Riders, as currently it does look to be a bit of a niche offering. Having enjoyed Mario Kart World, but not as much as I'd expected, I'm definitely up for trying out a new racer on Switch 2, however.
Just one hour to go!
Boy, that's crept up on us - there's only one hour to go before the Kirby Air Riders Direct starts.
Strap in, and let's hope for a host of cool details and bits of info!
Just two hours to go!
The Kirby Air Riders Direct will go live in just two hours. I'm expecting some news on story content, and possibly a tease as to whether there will be post-launch support.
Where to watch the Kirby Air Riders Direct
You can watch the Kirby Air Riders Direct by heading to the Nintendo official YouTube channels. We've even embedded the streaming link above.
When does Kirby Air Riders come out?
We already know that Kirby Air Riders launches November 20, 2025 exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2. It's likely the very last major Switch 2 exclusive we'll see this year, as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond also launches on Nintendo Switch.
Here's when today's Kirby Air Riders Direct starts
The second Kirby Air Riders Direct begins later today at the times below:
- East Coast (United States): 9AM ET
- West Coast (United States): 6AM PT
- United Kingdom: 2PM BST
- Central Europe: 3PM CEST
- Australia (Sydney): 11PM AEST
- Japan (Tokyo): 10PM JST
Welcome to our live build up to today's Kirby Air Riders Direct
Welcome in Kirby fans! There's a Kirby Air Riders Direct airing later today, and it'll apparently last for a full hour. I'll be hear covering the build up live, giving you all the info revealed so far, before switching over to live impressions once the Direct begins.