With a F-Zero game coming up later this year, but unfortunately much later, my hunger for another F-Zero X is becoming larger and larger. This SNES F-Zero game was the original; this is where Captain Falcon's career began. F-Zero has a frightening parallel to the Mario Kart series, with SNES and GBA games that resemble
each other, a N64 game that is one of the best racing games ever, and an upcoming GameCube game with much hype. While I've called myself a fan of the F-Zero series, I hated F-Zero: Maximum Velocity. Would F-Zero give me something to be proud of, or would I be forced to call myself merely a F-Zero X fan?
This is yet another game reviewed on
the 0-4 star scale. Yes, I'm going retro again with another SNES
classic; it's not going to hurt that
much having a SNES game Review, so this doesn't need to become a
problem (because I hear people don't
like when I review old games).
Graphics: ***
Well, I can't say the graphics blow me away like they do with Super Mario RPG and Donkey Kong Country, but they aren't bad. In fact, I'd say they rival the 32-bit F-Zero: Maximum Velocity's graphics. That's pretty good. You get somewhat of a 3D feel, though it's more like a Super Mario Kart feel (true, you can jump, but the "jumps" are almost flat, not like the ramps of F-Zero X). The graphics are adequate for the SNES, and no complaints here.
Sound: ***
If we were talking about the N64 or
anything better, I'd complain, but the tunes in this game are actually
pretty good. That includes the melodies
of Mute City and Big Blue, both of which sound similar to their
F-Zero X counterparts, but of course
not as high-quality as on the N64. Still, they're really good, and quite
a few of the other songs are pretty good as well. I can't say they're up
to the quality of Super Mario Bros. 3, or Yoshi's Island, for that matter.
On the whole, however, this category gets a good score.
Difficulty: *1/2
This game actually isn't all that hard. True, it's got a few tracks that are hard, but this isn't Maximum Velocity here. Somehow a 16-bit, SNES game was able to get turning right, and that 32-bit, GBA game was not. Since turning is nice and easy like in F-Zero X (like it should be!), you're able to win races, or at least stay in races, something you couldn't do in Maximum Velocity. I like games with about an average amount of difficulty, and this is actually a little easier for me. Now I know there are those who probably think this game is too hard. Then again, those are the same people who think Super Mario Sunshine is too easy. Go figure.
Characters: ***
At the time, this was one of the first-ever racing games that had racers with different stats than each other. Captain Falcon's ship (Blue Falcon) is for beginners with fast acceleration but a low top speed, while Samurai Goroh's ship (Fire Stingray) is for experts with slow acceleration but a high top speed. Before F-Zero, these type of things were unheard of (except perhaps for Super Mario Kart). The four different cars statistics-wise and color-wise make choosing a racer actually important.
On the other hand, there are only four racers. Super Mario Kart could handle eight. Still, it's not bad for a SNES game, to actually make choosing a racer important.
Controls: ***1/2
The controls are very simple: B is accelerate,
A is boost, Y is brake, and L and R are used in conjunction
with left and right, respectively,
to slide-turn around bends, and Down, on a jump, helps you jump farther.
Unlike Super Mario Kart, they are very responsive, and unlike Maximum Velocity,
slide-turning works, so you can actually get around bends without losing
tons of energy.
Tracks: ***
Here's a shocker: the tracks in this
game are actually more detailed than the ones in Maximum Velocity! This
is kind of sad to say, because you'd
think that a GBA game would be at least a little more complex than its
SNES predecessor. Enough GBA bashing,
though; this game's tracks deserve their props, because they
include jumps, mini-jumps, ice, dirt
(which slows you down), and electric energy-zappers. I don't like the
"pit road" energy-restoring place in
this game; there's an overhead ship that restores your energy, but it's
a second or two behind so you may only get a tiny bit of energy even though
you should get maybe 1/4 of a tank. All in all, though, I can't say too
much bad about these tracks, if I'm talking on a SNES level. They're better
than those in Super Mario Kart, and better than those in Maximum Velocity.
Gameplay: **1/2
The gameplay is a lot different from F-Zero X, to be certain. There's no attacking other racers, except maybe boxing them out. There's only one boost given per lap, none on the first. You can save up to three, or use them as you get them. They don't waste any energy. Things on the track like electric lines and boxes zap your energy; only the little circular mini-jump things which zap your energy were present in F-Zero X. Turning isn't as easy as in F-Zero X, while it's not nearly as hard as in Maximum Velocity. Overall, I give a thumbs-up to the gameplay, though it's lacking a lot, like attacking and multiple-boosting.
Grand Prix Mode: ***
The points system is a little more complex than in F-Zero X: you get points for positions in laps, not just your final standing, and a set number of points (I think 1000) gives you an extra machine. This actually ended up working for me big time; I got a new machine right before losing my final machine, then went on to finish first in that race with my new last machine and finished first overall. I'd like the new F-Zero for GameCube to give bonus points for standings per lap as well as per race, but of course it's much better to have bonus machines awarded when you record five kills in a race.
Another challenge: you must finish above a certain place to keep on going in the race. This means you must be 15th or better after one lap, 10th or better after the 2nd, 7th or better after the 3rd, 5th or better after the 4th, and 3rd or better after the 5th. This is more challenging, though I wouldn't like to see it in the GameCube F-Zero; finishing third or better is too big of a challenge on some really hard tracks, and it would be a shame to lose a machine just for having a bad lap.
With only five races per league (Knight, Queen, or King), you have to probably finish first in at least three races, but that can change from time to time. Also, five laps is too long for racing. I like six races per league, three laps per race. F-Zero X did it right, and I hope the new F-Zero keeps the F-Zero X way.
Overall, I like the F-Zero Grand Prix,
which really is the heart of this game. This is the best mode of this
game.
Practice: *1/2
There's only so much you can do in a
Time Trial mode. You can try for your best time! But seriously... who
cares? Unless you've got some competition
with someone else for the best time in a certain F-Zero track, I don't
think this is really that great. Sure, it's good to practice for a Grand
Prix race, but it's not something you'll spend that long on.
Replayability: 1/2
You'll have to play this game to beat
the Grand Prix mode, but you won't play for long because there's one
major problem: no multiplayer mode.
Why isn't there one? Super Mario Kart could handle it! This is
basically a non-issue to me because
my second controller hardly works (occasionally something will
happen, but only very occasionally).
But still, why couldn't a multiplayer mode be in this game, whether or
not I have a working second controller? That hurts this game quite a bit.
Fun Factor!: **
It is quite fun when there are exciting
races in Grand Prix mode. Aside from those, however, the fun is very
limited; with no multiplayer mode and
a very limited practice mode, you won't be throwing a party.
OVERALL: ***
For a SNES racing game, you can't get better than this. I overrated both Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart: Super Circuit, and this one's better than Super Mario Kart for sure, if not Mario Kart: Super Circuit as well. True, if you have a N64, there's no real reason to buy this game because F-Zero X is the best racer ever (at least in my opinion), and this is just the SNES original version of F-Zero. However, if you somehow don't have a N64 but do have a SNES, and you're still looking for SNES games, F-Zero is a good pickup. It's really good for a classic gamer like me who still plays his NES and SNES... admittedly more than I play any GameCube game besides NCAA Football 2003 and Super Smash Bros. Melee.
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