Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards Cheat Codes & Secrets
Complete collection of cheat codes, passwords, unlockables, and hidden secrets for Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (2000).
True Ending & Final Boss Unlock
Kirby 64’s most significant “cheat” is also its core secret: the game has two different endings depending on how thoroughly you play.
Normal Ending: Complete all 7 worlds without collecting every Crystal Shard. You fight a standard final boss and get an incomplete ending cutscene.
True Ending (0² Boss Fight): Collect all 3 Crystal Shards in every single stage across all worlds. This unlocks the true final boss, 0² (Zero-Two), an upgraded form of Dark Matter. After defeating 0², you receive the full ending sequence and a completed save file marker.
There is no shortcut or code to skip this collection requirement — every shard must be obtained legitimately.
| Requirement | Effect |
|---|---|
| Collect all 3 shards in every stage | Unlocks 0² boss fight on Pop Star |
| Defeat 0² | Full ending cutscene + star on save file |
| Complete game normally (missing shards) | Shortened ending, no 0² encounter |
Multiplayer Mini-Games
Three multiplayer mini-games are available from the Sub-Games option on the main menu and support up to 4 players. These are accessible from the start without any unlock code.
| Mini-Game | Description | Players |
|---|---|---|
| 100-Yard Hop | Racing game across a side-scrolling course | 1–4 |
| Checkerboard Chase | Tile-flipping board competition | 1–4 |
| Bumper Crop Bump | Bumper-car vegetable collecting | 1–4 |
To access sub-games from the title screen: select Sub-Games from the main menu, then choose your game and set player count using the N64’s controller port assignments.
Sound Test
Kirby 64 includes a built-in Sound Test accessible through the Options menu (reached from the main title screen). From Options:
- Navigate to the Sound Test entry
- Use Left / Right on the Control Stick or D-Pad to cycle through music tracks
- Use Up / Down to cycle through sound effects
- Press A to play the selected audio
This lets you listen to all in-game music including the 0² boss theme, world map themes, and jingles — useful for confirming you’ve accessed areas you haven’t reached in normal play.
Crystal Shard Hidden Locations (Key Examples)
Several Crystal Shards require specific Power Combo abilities to reach. These are the most commonly missed:
| World | Stage | Shard Method |
|---|---|---|
| Pop Star | 1-2 | Bomb + Cutter — cut a specific ceiling block with the combined ability |
| Rock Star | 2-3 | Stone + Fire — melt a frozen block near a lava pit |
| Aqua Star | 3-2 | Ice + Needle — freeze enemies in a specific underwater alcove |
| Neo Star | 5-3 | Electric + Fire — power a generator behind a destructible wall |
| Shiver Star | 6-2 | Bomb + Ice — blow up an ice wall then freeze the gap to cross |
| Ripple Star | 7-1 | Spark + Cutter — reach a high platform using the electric boomerang combo |
Each world also hides one shard gated behind the Dedede series of cutscene areas — these trigger automatically during normal progression and don’t require special inputs.
Power Combo Reference (All 28 Combinations)
Kirby 64 allows combining any two swallowed abilities. Some combinations that unlock hidden paths and secret rooms:
| Combo | Result | Secret Use |
|---|---|---|
| Fire + Fire | Fireball (large) | Burns certain walls in Rock Star |
| Ice + Ice | Snowball | Reveals a hidden shard room in Shiver Star 6-1 |
| Bomb + Bomb | Giant Bomb | Destroys reinforced blocks in Neo Star |
| Electric + Electric | Thunder Storm | Hits enemies through walls; useful in Ripple Star |
| Cutter + Cutter | Double Cutter | Reaches high platforms missed by single Cutter |
| Stone + Stone | Tank | Rolls through special breakable floors |
| Needle + Needle | Porcupine | Extended range hits hidden switches |
Duplicate abilities are obtained by swallowing two identical enemies in sequence without using the first ability.
GameShark / Action Replay Codes (N64)
These codes work with the original GameShark v2.0+ and Action Replay cartridges on real N64 hardware, as well as emulators that support cheat code entry (Project64, Mupen64Plus).
North American (NTSC-U) Version
| Code | Effect |
|---|---|
8109BA60 0050 | Infinite Health |
8109BA6C 0009 | Max Lives (9) |
8109BA70 0063 | 99 Stars collected |
D009BA60 0001 + 8109BA62 0000 | One-hit kills on all enemies |
8109BB20 FFFF | All Crystal Shards collected (flags set) |
Entry method in Project64:
- Open Cheats menu → Add New Cheat
- Enter the code in the value field exactly as shown
- Enable the cheat and reset the ROM
Japanese Version note: Japanese ROM codes differ by offset. The NTSC-U codes listed above apply to the US cartridge (NUS-NK4E-USA).
Beneficial Glitches & Exploits
Ability Retention After Taking Damage
If Kirby takes damage while mid-animation on a Power Combo attack, he sometimes retains the combined ability star without consuming it. This allows reuse of rare combinations when enemies of that type are scarce. Trigger intentionally by walking into a weak enemy (1-damage hit) during the final frame of a combo attack.
Out-of-Bounds in Aqua Star 3-4
Near the vertical water shaft midway through the stage, swimming diagonally into the upper-right corner while holding Up + Right on the Control Stick causes Kirby to clip through the ceiling into an out-of-bounds area. This skips a small room section but does not skip the Crystal Shard — the shard spawns on re-entry through the normal path. Primarily useful for speedrunning route demonstration, not competitive skips.
Mini-Game Score Rollover
In 100-Yard Hop, reaching a score of 9999 causes the counter to roll back to 0000. This does not affect win/loss determination (the game tracks raw position), but it resets visual score displays and has been used to create “0-point wins” for challenge runs.
Dedede Float (Multiplayer Only)
In Bumper Crop Bump, if King Dedede’s bumper car collides with a wall at the same frame another player’s car hits Dedede from the opposite side, Dedede briefly enters a floating state where his car ignores the floor collision for approximately 1–2 seconds. This is a display quirk with no scoring impact.
Completion Rewards & Post-Game
| Milestone | Reward |
|---|---|
| Beat the game (any%) | Credits, basic ending |
| Collect all Crystal Shards | 0² boss fight unlocked |
| Defeat 0² | Full ending + star icon on save slot |
| 100% all mini-games (high score) | No in-game reward; bragging rights only |
There are no unlockable characters, alternate costumes, or New Game+ modes in Kirby 64. The save file star is the only persistent indicator of full completion.