Nintendo has officially pulled the plug on the inaugural Halloween event for Kirby Air Riders following catastrophic performance issues that have rendered the game nearly unplayable. The sudden cancellation, confirmed via the company’s official Japanese support account on X, marks an abrupt end to the festive “Trick or Treat!” update that launched just two days ago.
The 10-month-old racing title—a passion project helmed by Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai—was intended to usher in its first spooky season with a suite of autumn-themed decorations and unlockable ghost-themed accessories. However, the update proved to be far too much for the Switch 2 hardware to handle. Almost immediately following the October 28 rollout, players began flooding social media with reports of the game freezing for several seconds at a time during high-speed races.
For a fast-paced title that relies on precision handling and momentum, these technical hiccups were game-breaking. Videos circulating online show the screen locking up during crucial turns, causing racers to crash or plummet off tracks, effectively turning a “bubbly” competitive experience into a frustrating slide show.
The gravity of the situation prompted Nintendo to intervene swiftly. “We have identified an issue in the currently ongoing ‘Trick or Treat!’ event, where the screen may temporarily freeze during gameplay,” Nintendo’s support account stated in a translated post. “As a result, we have decided to cancel this event.”
The “Trick or Treat!” event was originally scheduled to run through November 4. With the cancellation, all Halloween-specific assets and seasonal challenges have been scrubbed from the live servers. While the move ensures that the game’s core performance remains stable for the casual player base, it leaves many fans disappointed, particularly those who were looking forward to earning the limited-edition ghostie hats.
Nintendo has offered a glimmer of hope for completionists, though the timeline remains frustratingly vague. The company’s statement included an ambiguous promise that the event will return in some capacity. “Please note that we plan to hold the event again, allowing you to obtain the associated rewards,” the post continued. “We will provide further details as soon as they are finalized.”
It remains unclear whether the developers intend to patch the performance issues and relaunch the event before the season passes, or if they will delay the festivities until next year. Given the finality of the word “cancelled” and the complexity of addressing the underlying performance bottlenecks on the newer hardware, it is unlikely that the event will return in time for Halloween 2026. Nintendo has yet to provide further clarification on whether a technical fix is currently in active development or if the code for the Halloween update will require a complete overhaul to function correctly on the Switch 2 platform.
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