I'm not exactly what you would call a big F-Zero fan, I do enjoy the games, but I'm not a huge advocator for the series, nor I'm one of the many people that was genuinely waiting for its grand return. So, if even I felt emptiness and even a little bit of anger inside when I saw the word ''F-ZERO'' alongside the number ''99'', I can only imagine the sheer pain real F-ZERO fans must be feeling.
But look, despite the sheer disappointed and kinda mean way it was shown, I still wanted to at least give it a fair chance. After all, I do really enjoy Tetris 99 and the different takes Nintendo has done on it during all these years, and this was yet another spin I really wasn't expecting, and hey, a racing battle-royale is not the worst idea on the world, so let's ignore, for just but two paragraphs, that this is the new home console F-Zero game after 20 fucking years, let's ignore that unless it does really well, it will probably shut down after a year , let's ignore ALL of that for but a fleeting moment, and focus on the real important question: Is the game, at the very least, good?
...Meh, kinda.
I think the best thing that can be said about F-Zero 99 is that it is, in fact, F-Zero. From the original game, it was clear that behind its presentation as a high-speed racing game with minor combat elements, the series wanted to create a clear resource management based gameplay that rewarded quick thinking and skill, and it very much succeeded at that. The original game in particular made clear that it was no mere technical showcase, it was a really fun game that established a really fun foundation, and it's that foundation that F-Zero 99 embraces and upgrades. With much clear UI's (albeit with much less personality) and brand new mechanics, like the speen and the skyway, this game expands every possible aspect of the original in a... actually fun way? It's pretty fun and balanced, honestly, especially for a 99 player setting, and that coupled with fun modes like the team races and the mini and grand prix, this game is not that terrible or mind-numbing way to pass the time. There’s a ton of strategy at play, you really need to consider you position and power meter at all times, so you don’t get eliminated or destroyed. It is F-Zero, and I’ll admit, it’s fun to spin at other players and defeat the ‘’rivals’’ a mechanic I do think it’s pretty good on paper; at its core, this game does work… but it is with its problems, don’t get me wrong.
While having more racers with the introduced mechanics sounds fun, is not 98 player fun; the races feel EXTREMELY cluttered, specially at the beginning, they do try to mitigate this with an introduction before some courses, but it just devolves into absolute chaos after a moment. It’s pretty impossible to keep track of any specific player, which is kind of important considering the ‘’rivals’’, you’ll almost never actually actively defeat them, and it just seems like you beat them by mere chance of simply racing, or by other players intervention. The side modes are fun, but the fact that they are all rotating is absurd to me, specially the Prixes; like, I already need the tuckets to participate in them why do you also add the time restriction? So that I don’t blow them in one go? This is a game that you’ll play in small bursts, so that is a dumb reason if that’s the case. Also, I was gonna praise the sound, music and visuals of the game… until I realized it was all lifted from previous games or promotional material, and all new stuff clashes really hard with it and feels extremely generic.
The game IS good, it IS functional, it IS F-Zero, but it ISN’T more. It’s just a funny little idea that wasn’t really fleshed out as much as it could have been and came out at the worst time possible (see? I told you, only for two paragraphs), it doesn’t even justify its existence by being amazing, it’s just… good, and not even Tetris 99 good. I’ll probably boot it up from time to time since it does lend itself to fun moments, but the fact I say ‘’probably’’ and not ‘’surely’’ it’s a huge fault in the game’s part; I really hope it finds its audience, I’d hate to see the newest piece of F-Zero content being gone soon, but still, I would also understand if people just gave up on it after a while.
Well, at least it’s the latest apparition of Samurai Goroh, so it does have really good stuff…
But look, despite the sheer disappointed and kinda mean way it was shown, I still wanted to at least give it a fair chance. After all, I do really enjoy Tetris 99 and the different takes Nintendo has done on it during all these years, and this was yet another spin I really wasn't expecting, and hey, a racing battle-royale is not the worst idea on the world, so let's ignore, for just but two paragraphs, that this is the new home console F-Zero game after 20 fucking years, let's ignore that unless it does really well, it will probably shut down after a year , let's ignore ALL of that for but a fleeting moment, and focus on the real important question: Is the game, at the very least, good?
...Meh, kinda.
I think the best thing that can be said about F-Zero 99 is that it is, in fact, F-Zero. From the original game, it was clear that behind its presentation as a high-speed racing game with minor combat elements, the series wanted to create a clear resource management based gameplay that rewarded quick thinking and skill, and it very much succeeded at that. The original game in particular made clear that it was no mere technical showcase, it was a really fun game that established a really fun foundation, and it's that foundation that F-Zero 99 embraces and upgrades. With much clear UI's (albeit with much less personality) and brand new mechanics, like the speen and the skyway, this game expands every possible aspect of the original in a... actually fun way? It's pretty fun and balanced, honestly, especially for a 99 player setting, and that coupled with fun modes like the team races and the mini and grand prix, this game is not that terrible or mind-numbing way to pass the time. There’s a ton of strategy at play, you really need to consider you position and power meter at all times, so you don’t get eliminated or destroyed. It is F-Zero, and I’ll admit, it’s fun to spin at other players and defeat the ‘’rivals’’ a mechanic I do think it’s pretty good on paper; at its core, this game does work… but it is with its problems, don’t get me wrong.
While having more racers with the introduced mechanics sounds fun, is not 98 player fun; the races feel EXTREMELY cluttered, specially at the beginning, they do try to mitigate this with an introduction before some courses, but it just devolves into absolute chaos after a moment. It’s pretty impossible to keep track of any specific player, which is kind of important considering the ‘’rivals’’, you’ll almost never actually actively defeat them, and it just seems like you beat them by mere chance of simply racing, or by other players intervention. The side modes are fun, but the fact that they are all rotating is absurd to me, specially the Prixes; like, I already need the tuckets to participate in them why do you also add the time restriction? So that I don’t blow them in one go? This is a game that you’ll play in small bursts, so that is a dumb reason if that’s the case. Also, I was gonna praise the sound, music and visuals of the game… until I realized it was all lifted from previous games or promotional material, and all new stuff clashes really hard with it and feels extremely generic.
The game IS good, it IS functional, it IS F-Zero, but it ISN’T more. It’s just a funny little idea that wasn’t really fleshed out as much as it could have been and came out at the worst time possible (see? I told you, only for two paragraphs), it doesn’t even justify its existence by being amazing, it’s just… good, and not even Tetris 99 good. I’ll probably boot it up from time to time since it does lend itself to fun moments, but the fact I say ‘’probably’’ and not ‘’surely’’ it’s a huge fault in the game’s part; I really hope it finds its audience, I’d hate to see the newest piece of F-Zero content being gone soon, but still, I would also understand if people just gave up on it after a while.
Well, at least it’s the latest apparition of Samurai Goroh, so it does have really good stuff…
2 Comments
@C_F Yooo, thank you so much for sharing this, I'll give it a look in the future for sure, I plan to play the entire series and I'll try this when the time comes. And thank you so much for the kind words! :D
C_F
6 months ago