Today’s Kirby Air Riders Direct introduced many new playable characters for the upcoming sequel to the GameCube cult classic.
The original Kirby Air Ride, released in 2003, only featured Kirby, King Dedede, and Meta Knight as playable characters. The trio returns, of course, but this time they are joined by a larger roster of characters from the Kirby universe.
All confirmed riders are listed below, arranged in the order they appear in the Direct and with official descriptions from the video:
- Kirby: A light and floaty friend to all! This well-balanced hero has no clear weaknesses.
- King Dedede: A heavyweight rider who rules the raceway! Hits hard with his powerful hammer.
- Meta Knight: A shadowy defender who slashes rivals with his sword and slices through the air on dark wings.
- Bandana Waddle Dee: A sturdy rider who builds Boost Charge quickly. His trusty spear stings rivals like a hornet!
- Chef Kawasaki: A culinary genius who always has a ladle handy! His trusty spear stings rivals like a hornet!
- Magolor: A sly spell caster who accelerates a lot after Star Slides. Attack rivals ahead of you with perfect landings!
- Gooey: An odd creature of mysterious origin. Makes skillful use of his long, wiggly tongue.
- Waddle Doo: Keeps an eye on nearby rivals, then hits ‘em with a peeper-powered arc of optic blasts!
- Knuckle Joe: A fierce fighter who jabs at riders that come too close. Charge up fully for a flurry of punches!
- Susie: A smug, shiny entrepreneur. Deploys a propeller to take off and float gently through the air.
- Starman: Excels at airborne maneuvers. Jump for a burst of speed and soar right over your rivals!
You can watch the full Kirby Air Riders Direct below. The presentation starts at the 26:20 mark.
Kirby Air Riders will launch worldwide on November 25th, 2025, exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2.
More Kirby
Leave a Comment
Written by Reece Heather
A lifelong Nintendo fan and a longtime editor at Zelda Universe, Reece will forever be grateful that he somehow dodged the Naughty List of Christmas 1998, when Santa delivered the life-changing gift of a Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie, and Mario Kart 64. When he's not playing games, Reece is usually reading Punisher comics, delving helplessly into the weirdest depths of anime and manga, or spending time with his cocker spaniel Gracie -- the goodest girl ever!
