Originally named Kirby Bowl 64, the Japanese name of Kirby's Dream Course, Kirby's Air Ride was one of the earliest games shown for the Nintendo 64. The earliest screenshots showed Kirby rolling down hillsides as a ball, but with the name change came a change in gameplay style: Kirby now raced around on Warp Stars. The game was shown over a number of years before simply fading away without an official cancellation. The game resurfaced in 2003 as Kirby Air Ride on the GameCube.