| “ | Turn into a wheel and roll around at high speed!” |
| — Kirby Battle Royale - Kirby's 25th Anniversary Copy Ability Poll |
Wheel is one of Kirby's Copy Abilities who first appeared in Kirby's Adventure.
General Information
The Wheel ability is made for getting to places fast and taking out enemies along the way. Normally wearing a backwards red baseball cap, Kirby can turn into a big pink wheel that zooms along the ground, destroying nearly any foe or obstacle and making Kirby almost completely invulnerable - he is susceptible to damage only when turning. An obvious downside to this is that although he is fast and damages enemies on contact, he is very hard to control, especially because he is incapable of jumping in some games. The Wheel ability is best used on flat terrain and in places where projectile-throwing enemies are sparse.
The Helper for this ability is Wheelie. Kirby can board this Helper to become Wheelie Rider, a pseudo-ability that behaves very similar to the regular Wheel ability.
In Kirby's Dream Course, Wheel is an ability to be used with planning and caution, though it has a built-in safety feature that no other ability possesses. When activated, Wheel Kirby will continuously drive in a straight line towards the same direction that regular Kirby was moving, and he cannot be controlled in this form. Sand bunkers and water hazards will be ignored and treated the same as regular terrain. It is a risky ability, as Kirby will not stop before driving off the edge of the course, or stop at all without falling off or hitting something immovable. However, when Wheel Kirby hits a bumper or wall, he will immediately lose all speed, then jump and spin in the air before coming to a rest. This makes it a somewhat safer ability than Burning in Kirby's Dream Course.
With the Copy Scroll in Kirby: Squeak Squad, whenever Kirby drives over sparks, flames, or ice, he will take on the properties of the element. Ice Wheel can freeze water he rides over, Fire Wheel can burn bushes, and Spark Wheel generates sparks on water and metal. If Kirby is colored using Spray Paint, the Wheel will change to match that color.
In Kirby: Triple Deluxe, Wheel received a charge move which increases Kirby's speed. The ability hat was given extra detail as well; it now has white lines and a star on it.
Wheel is a Mode for Robobot Armor in Kirby: Planet Robobot.
Move Set
| Move | Controls | Description | Element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dash | B/Y |
Kirby rolls forward rapidly as a Wheel. When his path is obstructed by a wall or dangerous obstacles like spikes, he crashes and his roll ends.  |
None |
| Turn Jump | B + → (Repeatedly) | Kirby jumps a little when rolling
  |
None |
| Brake | B (Moving) | Kirby stops rolling. | None |
| Slow Down | B (Held) (Moving) | Kirby slows down. This attack also takes away some of his invincibility frames. | Fire* Ice* Electric* |
Downshift
  |
↓+↓(in mid-air) |
Kirby drills straight downwards before continuing to dash. | None |
| Rocket Start
|
↓(Held)(Moving) | Kirby charges up, then dashes forward at a high speed. | None |
| Sky Wheel
|
A (during Rocket Start) |
Kirby sends himself soaring through the air, doing flips. | None |
Robobot Armor Mode
| Move | Controls | Description | Element |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo Accelerate | B | The Robobot Armor accelerates forward for as long as the B button is held. | None |
| Speed Burst | B + A | The Robobot Armor jumps forward and accelerates. | None |
| Burn Rubber | B repeatedly | The Robobot Armor spins in a circle for as long as the B button is repeatedly pressed, creating fire. | Fire |
| 3D Spring Hopper | ↑/↓/Left trigger/Right trigger | The Robobot Armor jumps from one plane to another. | None |
Kirby Air Ride
In Kirby Air Ride, Wheel can be obtained by inhaling a Wheelie (or Wheelie Bike) in Air Ride mode, or by collecting its patch in City Trial and in several of its Stadiums. As it is a Copy Ability, only Kirby can transform, and not Meta Knight and King Dedede.
While in Wheel Form, Kirby turns into a faceless wheel with two circles containing a star on both sides. He has above average speed, and is slightly less maneuverable than most Air Ride Machines. The player can pick fast machines to cover straights and use Wheel (or Wing) to cover sections with turns - this is especially important in checking off several time attack checkboxes.
In Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
Wheel Kirby in the anime
Wheel Kirby appeared in both racing-themed episodes of the anime,where it's naturally the most useful. It keeps the same look, with Kirby turning into a pink tire with a green and yellow hubcab with a yellow star on it, but gains no extra powers - just pure speed. Even when it looks like all is lost, Wheel Kirby can zoom past all opposition. It's his fastest ability after Jet, though he does still get tired after a while.
In the transformation sequence, Kirby waves a checkered flag around until a tire hits him and he spins around, then the tire appears on his head where it turns into the red cap, which Kirby fixes so it's on backwards.
Kirby in his alternative Wheel form.
Transformation Sequence
| Wheel transformation English version |
|---|
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| Wheel transformation Japanese version |
|---|
| 7gqc1IULNkg300250px010iframe |
Flavor Texts
| Game | Flavor text |
|---|---|
 | Kirby turns into a wheel and can move at super speed! But watch for obstacles and excess speed! |
 | Roll over your enemies! Call a helper and ride the Wheel. Watch out for thorns and don't speed! |
  | I ride like the wind! Fast! Too fast! |
 | Use lines to turn sharply! |
 | I ride like the Wind FAST! TOO FAST! |
 | Roll to be nearly invincible or ride a Wheel Helper! Beware thorns and holes. |
  | Put pedal to the metal, and surge ahead with a Dash! As long as you've got speed, you're invincible, baby! Just watch out for potholes! |
Related Quotes
| “ | The legendary racer zooms down the track. 3, 2, 1... Turbo Accelerate!” |
| — In-game description for the Wheel Mode of Robobot Armor • Kirby: Planet Robobot |
Trivia
- Wheel Kirby's hat looks similar to the hats of Yo-Yo, ESP and Paint Kirby, but with a different color palette in each case (Yo-Yo's is purple, ESP's is blue, Paint's is gray).
- Wheel Kirby's artwork for Kirby's Adventure shows the wheel that Kirby turns into as gray instead of pink. The wheel also has a face in the artwork, which is not present in any game.
- Like other Copy Abilities in Kirby & The Amazing Mirror and Kirby: Squeak Squad, part of the ability's color is affected by Spray Paint (in this case, the tire Kirby transforms into).
- In Kirby: Squeak Squad, when Wheel Kirby is standing still, every few seconds he will fix his cap.
- While Wheel did not appear in Kirby's Return to Dream Land, Needle can roll into enemies with a dash attack similar to Wheel.
- Wheel is the only Copy Ability in Kirby: Triple Deluxe that returned from a previous game that does not make an appearance in Kirby's Return to Dream Land.
- In Kirby: Triple Deluxe and Kirby: Planet Robobot, Wheel Kirby is completely invincible when using attacks. This includes Turn Hops, which keep Kirby in place, allowing him to constantly attack opponents from one spot. This is very useful for speedruns in The Arena and The True Arena. The only two bosses that are difficult to beat using this method are Dubior and the fourth and final phase of Star Dream Soul OS. This is because they are too high above the Turn Hop´s height, and the player must wait for them to reach the ground.
Artwork
Gallery
Sprites
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