Nintendo has cancelled the Halloween-themed Trick or Treat event in Kirby Air Riders on Nintendo Switch 2 after confirming a technical issue that caused the screen to temporarily freeze during gameplay. The limited-time event was scheduled to continue into early November 2026, but Nintendo has ended it early and announced plans to bring back the associated rewards through a future event.
The cancellation was confirmed on October 30 through Nintendo’s official Japanese support account on X. In its announcement, the company acknowledged that players were experiencing temporary screen freezes during the ongoing event and apologised for the inconvenience.
Nintendo also confirmed that it intends to hold the event again, allowing players another opportunity to obtain its exclusive rewards. However, the company has not announced a replacement date or provided a timeline for resolving the underlying issue.
The Trick or Treat event introduced special Halloween-themed rules for Kirby Air Riders’ City Trial mode. Players could earn event points to unlock seasonal customization items, including a ghost-themed hat for their riders.
The event also changed how certain gameplay mechanics worked. Attacking rival players could produce additional items, while players could recover health by collecting sweets. These modifications created particularly chaotic matches, with large numbers of items appearing during multiplayer encounters.
Players began reporting severe performance problems shortly after the event launched. Gameplay footage shared on social media showed the screen repeatedly freezing during matches, interrupting movement and making it difficult to react to opponents or obstacles.
Although the unusually high number of items appearing during matches has raised questions about the game’s performance, Nintendo has not identified the technical cause of the freezing. There is currently no official confirmation that item density, hardware limitations or network conditions are responsible.
The cancellation means players who had not finished earning the Halloween rewards will no longer be able to complete the event during its originally planned period. Nintendo’s announcement nevertheless confirms that another opportunity to obtain the rewards is planned.
The incident adds to recent discussions surrounding technical problems affecting Nintendo Switch 2 games. Performance and stability issues have also emerged in other releases, including crashes reported in Cyberpunk 2077 following Update 2.5, although there is no established connection between those problems and the Kirby Air Riders event.
For now, Nintendo has not announced whether the returning Trick or Treat event will feature adjusted gameplay rules or technical changes. The company says further details will be shared once its plans are finalised.
