If there was one name I wasn’t expecting to see crop up in the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal Direct, it was Kirby Air Riders amiibo.
Smash Ultimate and its DLC fighters had propped up the amiibo release schedule for the best part of five years, and its conclusion lined up so neatly with us all boarding the Switch 2 hype train that I couldn’t imagine a better way to tie a bow on the toys-to-life fad, albeit roughly 15 years later than the rest of the industry.
But no. If the first six months of Switch 2 have taught me anything, it’s that amiibo are here to stay. Nintendo seems determined to keep pushing these things out, and they’re coming at a frankly staggering cadence — we’ve had 13 newbies enter the fray since the console’s launch, with another five already slated for this year (plus that Mineru’s Construct model that everyone seems to have forgotten about).
My shelf space can’t keep up, but I’ve got to respect the grind. The figures themselves keep getting more and more detailed, and with additions like the Air Riders collection and its swappable components, Nintendo is still innovating on an increasingly expensive product that I assumed was firmly in the rearview.
The big question, then, is where have all the bright ideas gone when it comes to the figures’ in-game unlocks? I’m not going to pretend that amiibo’s scannability has always been its biggest draw, but are you really telling me that in the year of our lord 2026, a short Metroid jingle is considered a valid scan reward? Come on.
This is a bugbear that has been brewing for a few months now. Nintendo was pleased to announce that the pricy new Super Mario Galaxy amiibo (launching six months after the game, might I add) unlock a Life Mushroom or a 1-Up Mushroom when scanned — because those are hard to come by in the base game — while other figures in the collection cough up a few measly coins. And as cool as the Kirby Air Riders range is, who really wants to use it to train up a league of computer racers?
The Donkey Kong Bananza amiibo gave you a head start with the Diva Dress before you unlock it as standard at the end of the game, but every other relevant figure unlocked a lump of terrain. You can see my point here.
Yes, amiibo unlocks have often felt inconsequential at best, but TOTK Paraglider Fabrics, Splatoon gear, Mii racing outfits, and those stunning Mario Maker pixel sprites all felt like a neat little ‘thank you’ for picking up the new figure. Dropping £24.99/$39.99 on a Rosalina model for a 1-Up feels like a slap in the face.
But hey, at least features aren’t being locked behind amiibo purchases in the Switch 2 era. That’s a reli— oh wait.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond arrived with three new amiibo to boot. Scanning the Sylux figure instantly unlocks a special flashback cutscene otherwise accessed only by getting 100% completion (scan entries and all), and that’s the least grating of them. Both the new Samus and the Samus & Vi-O-La amiibo unlock features that, if it were up to me, should have been in the game right from the jump. What do you mean, bike skins and an in-game radio are only available to those who have coughed up an extra £40/$70? Those feel like the kind of features that it would have been nice for everyone to play with, no?
The best part is what happens when you scan other Metroid figures into the game. In a move that even makes Galaxy’s gold coins look attractive, whacking another amiibo onto your Joy-Con in Prime 4 rewards you with… you guessed it, a tiny little jingle! Oh, to be a fly on the wall during that amiibo integration meeting.
The only example that feels like it’s hitting the right balance in the Switch 2 generation so far is Mario Tennis Fever, where scanning relevant amiibo will unlock unique ball designs based on that character. It’s a paraglider fabric-level of inconsequential, but it’s a nice touch — albeit one that isn’t tied to any new amiibo (that we know of).
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is in a similar boat, now that I think about it. Tapping basically any Zelda or Splatoon amiibo gives you the chance to invite one of the new ver. 3.0 crossover Villagers to your island. It’s a little on the ‘locking content behind amiibo side’, perhaps, but the unlock is tied to so many different figures that I find it easier to overlook.
It’s a tightrope that all amiibo have to walk, and I don’t know that I can see the exact tipping point. Lean too far one way, and you fall into the trap of scan rewards feeling pointless; too far the other, and you start locking neat features behind yet another paywall — and lord knows Nintendo has had enough pricing drama this generation already.
Rewards should be attractive, but not so desirable that the base game feels marginally worse without them. Inconsequential, but not downright boring. It’s a classic rock-and-a-hard-place situation for Nintendo where the ‘rock’ is a Disappointed Jim and the ‘hard place’ is an Angry Jim, but both Jims are a part of the problem because they’ll pay the entry fee every time. Gosh, trying to please gamers must suck.
I hope that the upcoming 2026 releases can strike that sweet spot. Monster Hunter Stories 3, Resident Evil Requiem, and Pragmata are all getting in on the fun, each with a mystery unlock of their own, while Nintendo itself has the aforementioned jumbo Mario Galaxy figures, another three Kirby Air Riders racers, My Mario wooden blocks, and presumably the Mineru’s Construct amiibo lined up in the next 12 months.
I’d like to think that the latter will give us something sweet, like a new weapon skin in Age of Imprisonment, or fresh Auto Build designs in Tears of the Kingdom, but I’m braced to hear a chirpy Direct announcer gleefully read the line “scanning Mineru’s Construct amiibo in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment for the Nintendo Switch 2 will refill your Zonai battery charge once per day!”
All of those yet to come will look delightful, no doubt about it, and knowing me, I’ll probably end up buying some of them, too. I just hope that purchase isn’t tinged with the guilt that I’ve just spent 25 quid on a Power-Up Mushroom.
