Nintendo 64

The Nintendo 64 is a video game console created and produced by Nintendo. It was originally released in 1996 in Japan and North America and in 1997 in Europe and Australia. The Nintendo 64's two main competitors were the and the ; it sold fewer units than the former console but more units than the latter.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards is the only Kirby game to have been released for the Nintendo 64. There is one canceled Kirby game for the system, Kirby's Air Ride, although it was later released as a Nintendo GameCube title. Kirby's Air Ride was first shown at E3 1996, shortly before the Nintendo 64's release, so it was presumably set to be the first Kirby game for the Nintendo 64. Kirby is one of the playable fighters in Super Smash Bros., which released in 1999, making it Kirby's actual debut appearance for the Nintendo 64.