F-zero - Retro Racing for the Virtual Console

Platform – SNES/Virtual Console

Number of Players – 1-2

ESRB- E (Suitable for everyone)

Release on Virtual Console (EU) – December 8^th 2006

Release on SNES (EU) June 4^th 1992

In 1992, Nintendo’s F-zero was released in Europe for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. This release spawned a number of sequels and the successfulness of the F-zero series as it is today. F-zero was also the first game to introduce characters from the F-zero series that are familiar with gamers today, the most famous of these being “Captain Falcon” who has been featured in the successful Smash Bro’s series, although I’ve seen him more in “Falcon Punch” abortion jokes. Many also see the SNES release of F-zero as setting the standard for the racing genre, which seems fair as the game still plays well today, despite the massive amount of racing games that have been released after (See; Burnout 1, Burnout 2, Burnout 3, Burnout Revenge, Burnout Legends, Burnout Dominator, Burnout Paradise etc.).

The first thing to surprised me when playing F-zero is the quick transition from selection screen to actual gameplay, despite being an old game and with limited technology, the loading process is surprisingly quick, even with the 3D graphics that F-zero boasts. The use of sprites in the game creates an almost realistic 3D experience, which is surprising as the game is over 10 years old. A small point could be made that the variation in car colours makes it easy to differentiate cars from a distance, whether they are zooming ahead of you, or passing behind you, although I found 3 or 4 that were the same and were not playable, which confused the hell out of me.

As mentioned before, F-zero has excellent gameplay that stands up through time. I found myself able to pick up and play this game almost instantly, and the races were truly exciting and fast paced. I myself am not a great fan of racing games, the idea of spending 3 minutes racing round a track and being beaten at the last minute isn’t my idea of fun, and causes frustration, however I still enjoyed F-zero. Most of the races are short and sweet, and there are various speed boosts and obstacles that can help you to maintain a spot at number 1, whilst still making the gameplay balanced.

The tracks that appear in the game are very varied and each has different obstacles, gaps and problems that keep the gameplay fun. Mute city is a personal favourite of mine, as the music accompanying the track is brilliant, and really makes the gameplay more exciting.

A minor gripe I had with F-zero was with the controls, as breaking and accelerating aren’t as smooth as they could be, and cause some problems, especially when playing with a SNES gamepad. I was also surprised at the lack of choice you had when selecting a car, there isn’t much variety, although each car has its own set of advantages and disadvantages.

Overall, F-zero is a great game and I’d recommend anyone to buy it on the Virtual console, whether they like racing games or not. If you can ignore the small gripes and appreciate the gameplay and graphics, then you’ll enjoy this. I rate it 8/10.