Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards is a 2000 action-platformer developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was later re-released on the Wii and Wii U Virtual Console, and added to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service on May 20, 2022.
Featuring a 2.5D perspective, players control Kirby across six distinct worlds, battling enemies and powerful bosses to collect 100 scattered Crystal Shards. The game introduces the "Copy Ability Mix" system, where Kirby can combine seven base abilities to create 28 unique mixed powers, boosting variety and fun.
The story is set on the distant Ripple Star, home to kind, peaceful fairies. When Dark Matter invades to steal the planet’s protective Crystal, fairy Ribbon flees with it, but the Crystal shatters into pieces scattered across worlds. Ribbon lands on Pop Star, meets Kirby, and the two set off on an adventure to recover all the shards.
The game supports single-player and up to four-player multiplayer, with three minigames for competitive play. It sold 1.07 million copies in Japan and 540,000 in North America. It holds a 77% aggregate score on Metacritic, and Japanese magazine Famitsu gave it a 32/40 rating.
![Play Murder on the Orient Express: Train Mystery [Kuge Electronics] (JP) [AVG] online](https://asset.easegame.com/screen/2/961/f6f0200bd4d0425d67b35b43a4b1b148.webp)
