"Sakurai got us": Nintendo fans praise Smash Bros. creator for delivering a final Kirby Air Riders patch that could have easily been DLC

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"Sakurai got us": Nintendo fans praise Smash Bros. creator for delivering a final Kirby Air Riders patch that could have easily been DLC News By Scott McCrae published 27 January 2026

No Rick buffs though...

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After the possibility of one final update was raised, Kirby Air Riders has received a massive new patch that adds some huge features to the game.

Late last year, Masahiro Sakurai announced that the Kirby Air Riders team would soon disband and that version 1.2.0 could be the game's final iteration. However, he did say, "I think we might be able to tweak it one more time," and as foretold, Kirby Air Riders received its version 1.3.0 update. Sakurai also asked that players "please enjoy the balance of the game as a definitive version," after this hypothetical patch, and thankfully, it looks like it will be a patch that people can enjoy.

In an update posted to the Nintendo website, the details of Kirby Air Riders version 1.3.0 were fleshed out. Most notably, a brand-new game mode, Grand Prix for Air Rider, was added, but in perhaps the most confusing Nintendo move of 2026, it's only available via the game's online Paddock lobbies. You can play these with CPU, but the lack of availability offline is frankly bizarre. Another great change is that two players can now join online games from the same Switch 2, meaning you can do online City Trial with splitscreen.

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This update has also brought GameShare to Kirby Air Riders, allowing you to play with friends locally or via GameChat, with Switch 1 owners also able to play the game via this feature. And of course, there's a host of other changes, including extensive lists of character adjustments and bug fixes included.

And after Sakurai requested that players enjoy the balance as definitive, it looks like his wish has come true, as players seem really happy with it. One Reddit user says "Oh shit Grand Prix and two player online with one console is a game changers [sic] for me." Meanwhile, over on Twitter, user @corybuckley adds, "Casually dropping gameshare and a new mode is wild," while @unfunnymeat adds, "Sakurai got us. He said 'no dlc' but he never said 'no updates that add a whole bunch of shit that could be compared to DLC.'"

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Scott has been freelancing for over three years across a number of different gaming publications, first appearing on GamesRadar+ in 2024. He has also written for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, VG247, Play, TechRadar, and others. He's typically rambling about Metal Gear Solid, God Hand, or any other PS2-era titles that rarely (if ever) get sequels.

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