At their very core, futuristic racing games should have visual flair, and there was already an early history of this sub-genre before F-Zero released – including Nintendo's Mach Rider on NES in 1985, Powerdrome on 16-bit computers, and Atari's arcade S.T.U.N. Runner in 1989. Following these games, late 1990 became an exciting time for futuristic racers, partly as SEGA's A.B. Cop coin-op released a month after the launch of F-Zero on the shiny new Super Famicom, but predominantly because Nintendo's console game was striking as it sped around in style.
As one of the earliest Super Famicom launch titles – released in Japan on November 21st, 1990 alongside the less graphically flamboyant (but equally beloved) Super Mario World – it's fundamental in analysing the first F-Zero to highlight the impact of Mode 7. To illustrate this point, during an interview on Nintendo.com commemorating the release of F-Zero as part of the SNES Classic Edition, F-Zero's game director Kazunobu Shimizu explained in regards to Mode 7 that, "I thought if we used that to make a racing game, it would shock everyone!" It turned out that Shimizu-san's thinking was entirely accurate.
Early in the SNES's lifespan in June 1991, Rich Leadbetter reviewed F-Zero in Issue 9 of the UK magazine Mean Machines, and predicted in a 90% scoring review that, "there’ll never, ever be anything to touch this graphically on the Amiga or Mega Drive." Even amongst the 20 SNES titles initially available to Nintendo Switch Online members in September 2019, the smoothness of F-Zero's Mode 7 still stands out. It's a party trick that will have sold many people on the console, and it still has an impact even after all this time.
Although 16-bit consoles adopted the sprite scaling effect for roads similar to SEGA's arcade Super Scaler graphics, F-Zero's swooping camera after winning a Grand Prix was only possible due to Mode 7's rotation ability. Mode 7 was simply a jaw-dropping pseudo-3D marvel to experience in 1990, in the context of console capabilities at that time. The game is eye-blisteringly bright as if Nintendo intended to showcase the SNES's colour palette superiority over the Mega Drive through bold colouring from the outset.
The longevity of F-Zero's visual design is prevalent in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's stages – including Big Blue and Port Town, while the sights and sounds of the iconic Mute City stage are directly based on the SNES game's graphics – and all three originated in the SNES original. Choosing from four futuristic racing hovercar vehicles (Blue Falcon, Golden Fox, Wild Goose and Fire Stingray) – differentiated by max power, max speed and weight, as well as a curve graph that displays acceleration ratings – you take part in a Grand Prix, or learn track layouts in Practice mode. The tension builds as you must achieve a set rank within each lap.
If you jump from Beginner to Normal, and then to Expert Class you can feel the exhilaration and frustration increase with more aggressive opponents – unfortunately through cheap, rubber-banding AI on harder difficulties. You develop skills from mastering the smooth handling system, including using the shoulder buttons to corner more effectively, and the strategy to search for boost arrows, or shortcuts. It's with experience that you learn the best course positions to time where to use the three speed boosts in each race, and discover intricacies like longer hang-time on jumps being faster than regular driving. Fast reflexes are essential for avoiding hazards such as explosive mines, bumping opponents, disruptive gales and rough roads, as well as steering into skids on slippery track coating – plus avoiding magnetic rails that drag you towards them to wear down your Power meter.
Course design throughout the 15 tracks is excellent, as during the first Grand Prix's Knight League Silence circuit the game empathises the importance of skillfully navigating hairpins and sharp turns. However, the final Fire Field course does feel like a difficulty spike, and if you ever hope to unlock the fierce challenge of Master Class, firstly attempting to beat Expert Class is not an easy task. The main disappointing part of F-Zero's gameplay, which affects its lastability, is that it doesn’t spark pangs of nostalgia in the way that Super Mario Kart ignited memories of competitive play, because it's a single-player only game.
However, a large amount of nostalgia is triggered by Yumiko Kanki and Naoto Ishida's F-Zero soundtrack, and just hearing the futuristic bleeps of the title music will rekindle memories of first owning cutting edge technology in the early 1990s. The music for Mute City, Big Blue and Silence is all unforgettable, but special mention must go to Yumko Kanki for writing one of the most killer basslines on the SNES in the tune for Death Wind. The bass in Death Wind is amongst the most awesome, funky tunes crafted using the SNES's S-SMP audio chip, alongside the 'Bust up the Railway' music in Final Fight 2, and the Banglar final boss bass in The Ninja Warriors Again.
F-Zero achieved 11th place in Issue 119 of Retro Gamer's readers vote on the 'Top 25 SNES Games', although some gamers may be surprised that Pilotwings was awarded a higher position. However, this was not the case in Nintendo Life's 'Guide: The 20 SNES Games On Nintendo Switch Online, Ranked By Us', where F-Zero zoomed ahead to ninth place. That speaks volumes.
Conclusion
F-Zero's game director Kazunobu Shimizu stated that he thought the Mode 7 effects in a racing game "would shock everyone", and he was correct, because during the November 1990 launch of the Super Famicom gamers' jaws dropped at the colourful visual's track rotation, and impressive scaling effects. Combined with a fantastic Yumiko Kanki and Naoto Ishida soundtrack that grooved along with bass-heavy rhythms, and melodic futuristic bleeps, F-Zero's presentation was cutting edge in the early 16-bit era. With smooth handling, tight track design for 15 circuits, and accessibly addictive Grand Prix gameplay, F-Zero is a game to repeatedly revisit, no matter which format you choose to play it on – even if it is only a single-player title. Despite the infuriatingly confrontational opponents on harder difficulties, it's predominantly retro fun whooshing through tracks in this futuristic racer.
Comments 82
I'm a little surprised at the score. F-Zero is a good game, but I personally think F-Zero GX is still by far the best in the series.
Amazing game, still love playing it now. Mode7 was such a cool thing and blew me away. I've been enjoying playing it again...
Thanks for the review, I've been waiting almost 30 years to hear if this game was any good. I might check it out now.
Captain Falcon will always prevail, sending the Forces of Darkness away!
Thank Heavens he's on the right side, or else there'd be nowhere to hide!
Give it up for the Capitán! Three cheers for the Falcon!
It is good but damn hard. X was better
Just give us a hd pixel remake of this already but with better 3D environments.
Some games come and go but F-ZERO stays with you your whole life. That is all there is to be said really.
I was a Sega kid. I sold my NES to get a Genesis. When the SNES came out I would rent it here and there to play certain titles. But one thing was always certain, when my family would go to the mall my butt would be at KayBee Toys playing F-ZERO on the demo kiosk. Then playing it at friends' houses and onto when I came back to the Nintendo with the 64 and F-ZERO X and finally to the unrivaled experience that is F-ZERO GX. Simply put, my favorite racing franchise of all time. (Burnout is a close second) Please Nintendo give us F-ZERO GX HD....
This game never gets old
I hope that if they continue releasing (SP) versions of these games as they did in the NES app, they'll release one with all the tracks available in Time Trial mode, instead of the random 7.
I only ever played this briefly back in the day, Super Mario Kart I never played at all but both games have held up extremely well. F-Zero especially. I was playing it last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. It would be incredible if we could play this and SMK with 8 players online.
I do love scaling rotating sprites, still magical to my eyes
So has Damo’s F-Zero review been replaced in the archives?
I actually played it for the first time on the SNES classic this past year, and I fully agree with the score. It was a really fun game and one of my personal favorites from the SNES classic.
Why this review? 9? NO way! Ok, in next VC review, I will pass.. Don't even bother reading it..
The game only exists while playing as samurai goro (pick the fire stingray car). Otherwise the physics are too finicky.
@RedderRugfish I prefer Maximum Velocity too. Had me hooked for a lot longer than the SNES version of F-Zero.
@nkarafo Well as someone without any nostalgia for F-Zero, being a Sega kid in the 90's, after playing it on Switch it gets a 9 from me. For a 29 year old racer, it's held up remarkably well.
I imagine it's obvious from my review, but I have tons of nostalgia for F-Zero as a SNES launch game. I've been playing it lots recently, especially because it's so convenient to jump around playing the 20 classics on Switch Online's SNES app.
I've been thinking about how at first in the early 1990s I didn't approach the more simple tracks like Mute City I and Big Blue correctly. I got used to taking my finger off the acceleration, and using the shoulder button for tight corners on later tracks – I still blow up too often from the ruthless AI and Power meter damaging walls on Fire Field, by the way – but I wasn't using my three Super Jet speed boosts effectively.
I thought that the simple tracks didn't require much skill, but I remember feeling a sense of revelation on tracks like Big Blue after getting in the zone using the Fire Stingray, and keeping it at a constant top speed of 478km/h.
The trick is to unleash a Super Jet speed boost in portions of track where you don't have to lift your finger off the accelerator, so you can slide around tracks like Mute City and Big Blue at a constant 478km/h top speed for a long time. You have to make sure that you don't touch any sides, you must avoid the rough patches, and don't bump into any opponents, but it's a thrill to constantly maintain your maximum speed sweet spot.
Man, I love SNES F-Zero! I’ll keep an eye out on everyone’s comments, and check back here if anyone has any questions. Cheers!
Controversial Opinion: I can play the game well enough, but I can't help but think that it has really unsatisfying controls. I've tried to have fun with this one and the GBA version, but they're both like Ice Levels: The Racing Game. I think it was Miyamoto who talked about the ergonomics of gaming, where it should feel satisfying when you press a button and get a result on the screen, you press, Mario jumps. This game is more about fighting with the absence of satisfying ergonomics than enjoying the controls, I think.
This was one of the first games I booted up when the SNES games were added last week. It’s still really fun.
@PurinPuff so F-Zero GX would get a 10 then.
Imagine a modern update for Switch...
A 9? Well okay. But personally for me it was never more than a 5.
@Dodger Same here.
Still a great game. Holds up better than Mario kart. Only real downside is back to back Iceland's with that giant stupid jump in the second.
I'm not a racing game guy, but F-Zero is awesome. And after playing almost the entire series... This first one might be my favorite.
So are you guys planning to review every single NSO SNES game? If so do review them according to how they are play in the service and not when they first came out on original hardware. This will help Nintendo update them if any issue shall arise. Stuff like do they had lags, do the online play is smooth or if any experience is better on the service compare to if you play them on the original console or SNES Mini, does having save-states helpful, etc?
@tendonerd Apologies if I'm explaining F-Zero control details that you already know about, but always make sure that you're holding down on the D-pad for further jumps, and much longer hang-time.
Holding down on the D-Pad is essential for the long jump in White Land II.
Combining a Super Jet 'S' speed boost, while holding down on the D-pad is lots of fun for the jump to bouncy blue arrow in the Red Canyon II shortcut, too.
@OorWullie The problem is that how this rating is? Is the reviewer judge from the past or from the present? But anyway it doesn't really matter. We have 2019, close to 2020 and these reviews do not make any sense. If you want to read classic F-Zero review go ahead and read a 1991 magazine's review. You don't even need to buy it as a single game, so that the review could theoretically help you to decide. These reviews are unnecessary.
Honestly I’m surprised @antdickens didn’t hard-code the site to give this an 11/10
@Woomy_NNYes Mode 7 is a hardware feature of the SNES that enabled it to rotate backgrounds, and to create a scaling effect, which acted as a solution to pseudo-3D console graphics in the early 1990s.
This was before the big boom in 3D polygon graphics when the 32-bit consoles arrived in the mid-1990s.
Therefore, Mode 7 made the graphics on the SNES stand out compared to the Mega Drive and PC Engine, especially for rotating tracks around in racing games, but also for hurtling towards the ground in Pilotwings, and in special effects like throwing enemies out of the screen with scaling in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time .
Hey, thanks @JamieO
Thanks for that bit Wikipedia (initially, the best looking search result) didn't make it clear if the different modes where software or hardware.
@Nanaki just wait until we review F-Zero X
It's a solid 7 for me. Love the Gamecube game and I think the N64 one is great. Fantastic review, though.
This was my favorite in the series and still is. If they make a new one I'd hope they try to match this one as much as possible.
F-Zero gameplay and Super Mario Kart gameplay, both stands out fantastic. It's weird but to me the gameplay of these two super nes titles are still better than any of the successors.
So you guys review this game AGAIN while skipping games people likely never played like Vice, Joe & Mac and Stunt Race (sigh).
I will say that F-Zero holds up WAY better than Super Mario Kart in both controls and graphics. I don't want to sound entirely negative.
@JamieO It is a persistent myth that throwing the Foot Soldiers at the screen is Mode 7 in Turtles in Time. It is actually fake scaling, simply showing the same sprite at a few different sizes in succession. And you can see the individual steps. When I say fake scaling, I don't intend that as a knock to the SNES. In fact, it's a clever way to do it in an easy way and is convincing enough. And you can find examples of fake scaling on the NES, Genesis, PC Engine, and probably other systems. If you compare the SNES version to the arcade game, you can see the Foot Soldiers scale much more smoothly in the original because it is true scaling. Finally, as Mode 7 is scaling and rotation applied to only a single background layer, there's no way I can see of doing true Mode 7 in that instance with the backgrounds retaining all their detail. The SNES doesn't have enough sprite ability to compensate. There's a reason Mode 7 usually has a solid color as background when used in side-scrolling games.
@Shiryu but only to people who are into that type of games. I like racing game but only Mario Kart and Rage Racer on PSX. F-Zero looks cute but it didn't get me. Just my game. I won't be lost without it that's for sure
Brilliant game. Still brilliant! And why the hell is there not a new version on Switch now!!!!!
It is the most obvious choice for a new game!!!!
@sdelfin Wow, you learn something new every day!
I've been thinking for the last 27 years that throwing the Foot Soldiers out of the screen in TMNT: Turtles in Time was all handled by Mode 7 trickery.
There was even a feature in Retro Gamer magazine called 'Mode 7 Heaven' where they celebrated Turtles in Time by saying, "Though this SNES port features a great Mode 7 recreation of the arcade game's thrilling hoverboard stage, it's the Foot Soldier-towards-camera fling that stuck in our minds most."
Cheers for sharing your knowledge about the fake scaling with me, because I love learning smaller details about retro games.
Nice one, bud!
I look forward to all the updated SNES reviews. The new Joys and Cons summary at the end is cool.
@Alucard83 One has to be born into it, raised by it and suffer along with it.
@retro_player_22 Yes, mate, Nintendo Life is planning to review the 20 SNES app games on Switch Online. I played lots of F-Zero on the Switch Online SNES app, so I can answer your questions in the comments.
First of all, F-Zero plays very smoothly on Switch, and yes, the Switch Online's ability to create a Suspend Point can make F-Zero considerably easier. For example, you could create a Suspend Point on every lap of Fire Field as long as you’re performing well and your Power meter is high, and then return to it if you lose a place or blow up.
The sharpest display option on Switch Online in the Pixel Perfect mode, but 4:3 is more true to the original SNES aspect ratio and the CRT Filter ‘Game screen’ scanlines option looks a bit fuzzy.
The EU version of F-Zero on Switch Online runs in 60Hz, which is always for the best, too.
@brandonbwii The idea is for Nintendo Life to review the 20 Switch Online SNES app games in chronological order of when they originally released on the Super Famicom or SNES.
This way the reviews can combine to provide a small history of the evolution of SNES games, and discuss how aspects like the graphics and gameplay mechanics may have improved from the launch to later games in its lifespan.
Therefore, we will get around to reviewing other SNES app games that you've mentioned. For example, Joe & Mac 2: Lost in the Tropics and Stunt Race FX both released later on in the SNES's life in 1994, so it will take a bit longer to review those games based upon the SNES's chronological release order.
@WhiteTrashGuy
Wow my favourite comment ever!
I couldn't agree more with everything you just wrote! Cheers mate.
F Zero was the best back in the day it looked amazing on the snes display booths in the shops. It blew my 16 year old mind.
Oh nice, it's Mario Kart Zero!
F-ZERO is Super Mario Kart's prequel after all.
Actually, chronologically F-ZERO is number 0001 out of the 1400 Nintendo games I own. It was the first game I ever plugged into my first Nintendo console. I still love it and still have it for SNES, Wii, Wii U, and Switch.
Obviously I also got F-ZERO X on Nintendo 64, and F-ZERO GX on Gamecube (I love those two even more).
Now where's my F-ZERO 99 Death Race X-Cup + Expansion Kit (incl. non-LABO Captain Falcon VR Helmet)?
By today's standards, hardly great. But the impact of the game is undeniable, and it still has a lot of charm. It's just plain fun, albeit not nearly as fun as its sequels.
I wish this series was as successful as Mario Kart, because futuristic hardcore racing always appealed to me more than go-karts hurling mushrooms and shells.
Wish you would review Switch games with little to no reviews online rather than do 20 reviews of games most of us have played and already have 100s of reviews online and even have reviews on this site.
F-Zero actually holds up quite a bit better than most racing games form the 16 bit era. But if you have access to X or GX, you should just play X or GX.
I would give this a 10. One of my favorite racers then and now. I just wish Nintendo would have done more mode 7 games. Zelda mode 7 would have been awesome!
@Wavey84
Add in these too and that would be excellent:
Custom track editor
All tracks, music, and pilots/vehicles from F-Zero AX as unlockables
It's a testament to the absolutely groundbreaking quality of the original F-Zero that I not only played it to death at launch on SNES, it's the first game from the SNES -> Switch games I fired up - and to date, only 1 of 3 that I've played at all. A lot has been said about F-Zero GX and even F-Zero 64. Sure, they're both utterly fantastic and I'd even give the overall nod to GX, but the original SNES classic is easily a 9/10, possibly a 10/10. When we're rating the quality of games relative to one another, we don't have to reserve a perfect rating of "10" only for a single game in a given series - it's possible, however unlikely, that more than one games deserves a perfect rating. For me, F-Zero is one of the few. It feels as amazing to play today as it did all those years ago, and in looking back, it was the title that clearly defined (for me at least) what the SNES did that the Genesis/MegaDrive did not - and I say this as a huge Sega fanboy back in the day.
If we can also have some Uniracers on Switch, I'll be happy for some months to come.
For fans of Digital Foundry, and the UK's retro gaming magazines, the June 1991 Issue 9 of Mean Machines that I refer to here with the 90% scoring review of Super Famicom F-Zero on page 48 has an Editorial paragraph — presumably by Jaz Rignall — earlier in the magazine titled 'Who Are Those Mugs?', which states that "If you haven't already noticed, there’s a new boy in town!"
It explains that Richard Leadbetter was new to Mean Machines in Issue 9, but also details that "Leadbetter (for it is he) will be very familiar to regular readers of CVG magazine, where he has been a reviewer for yonks."
As a further tidbit for retro mag fans, the Issue 9 editorial also introduced Paul Glancey as a Mean Machines guest reviewer, saying that "CVG's Associate Editor managed to stop wiggling his joystick long enough to put together the Wrestle Wars review."
I collect old video games mags, so I'm interested in the history of how games like F-Zero were reviewed when they were first released, and about the game reviewers of the day covering the freshest new releases in a bygone era.
Never mind the fresh review!
Where's our Fresh GAME!
They better add online multiplayer when they add F-zero 64 or GX
when they release N64 or NGC games
@JamieO Neat. Very fancy 😄😉
Perfect score for this wonderful game. I have many fond memories of it. Heck, it's on display with F Zero X, right next to my desk. Love the heck out of those games!
Do any of these SNES games have online (with friends I imagine) multiplayer like the NES games did? I haven't had a chance to boot these up yet as I am knees deep into Spyro and don't want to quit my game lol.
I hope they some have multiplayer!
Its articles like this that make me now visit this site more than Push Square, even though - controversially - I do play my ps4 a lot more than I play my switch...
Yep, a classic. And it's held up through the test of time better than wipEout, which came out just a few years later, but with half the frame rate. Obviously the gameplay is excellent here, but the 60fps graphics really help this game shine brightly. F-Zero is amazing.
My SNES (US 60Hz import model in the UK way before the UK model was released), was picked up for me by my friend, he had it for 2 weeks before I could collect it off him. F-Zero was one of my first titles. He set loads of times on Death Wind, an amazing time attack track. I can't count the amount of hours spent on this game trying to set faster and faster times.
I still have a nostalgic soft spot for the original F-Zero, I play it from time to time. It's mega-tough for a Nintendo game and I love the sense of speed. There's not one track I truly dislike, as well. Oh yeah and major props to the awesome soundtrack too!
I was one of the lucky kids in my neighborhood to get an SNES at launch. Until that Xmas, I only had Super Mario World and F-ZERO. The graphics were amazing for the time. It truly felt like arcade quality graphics on a home console. Things like parallax scrolling and mode 7 were jaw dropping coming from the NES. So many SNES games have aged so gracefully. F-ZERO remains an excellent game and an example of what the SNES was capable of.
@JamieO thank you for that gentle refresher. You are indeed correct. If only they had instruction booklets.
I will absolutely be diving into this once since I have hardly ever played it. Even as a kid I always spent more time with the other Super Nintendo classics. As a grown adult, it is time to change that.
@jongred
I really appreciate it. I love this community so much. Always awesome to see all of the F-ZERO love.
One of the more innovative games of all time. I still remember renting this at a Blockbuster and taking turns playing F Zero with my sister. Great Times — Brilliant game!
@PurinPuff I fully agree that GX is the best in the series, but you can't compare the two... they are generations apart. For its time F-Zero was simply the best console racing game ever made. It's probably the SNES game I return to the most, probably at least once a year, and I still own the copy I bought in 1990.
@SmaMan Why not do the SP thing to give us the Satellaview sequel tracks and cars as well?
Sadly we only have the ROM of one league of F-Zero 2 around, but I'm sure I've seen a video once of a second league (don't remember if it was emulator or someone's VHS recording of an original broadcast), which means they probably made a third as well.
I love the Megadrive loads, but games like this on the SNES made the system the power house it was and is.
Love this and f zero X but the GameCube version stunk the place out so bad it killed off the franchise. Thank you Sega!
I've played all the games and I would say that F-Zero and F-Zero Maximum Velocity are incredible games. GX, AX, and GP Legend are easily avoidable, and X is terrible.
I'm new to Nintendo, when is this coming out?
Will it have a season pass or does the game include all courses?
@LoveEmpath its well worth the nine. The gameplay is deep and takes time to master it
@SmileMan64 haha mmm. That stunk the whole crpn falcon thing. Is he a mutant?
@ryobi85 https://youtu.be/GqkIYyxqVxg
@Handy_Man
Top Gear for SNES is better than both.
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