F-Zero GX

By Tom Bramwell Published 8 August, 2003

Tom goes hands-on with the Japanese version of the Sega-developed futuristic racer.

One arcade pod. If we were Nintendo, we would have bought a whole row of the things and plastered slogans like "the fastest and more exhilarating futuristic racer ever conceived" all over E3. And if we were Sega, we'd rehouse Amusement Vision in a palatial gold-plated workshop and mark it "do not disturb" until its next masterpiece is complete. Forget Wipeout - after a few hours with F-Zero GX, designed by the Japanese Monkey Ball geniuses, we certainly have.

Battle Royale

'F-Zero GX' Screenshot 1

Were we ever sceptical? No, not really. Nintendo's habit of farming out old franchises for GameCube development has proved very successful so far - and by giving them up to new development teams, has opened the door to hitherto unexpected levels of reinvention. Metroid Prime gave Samus a new lease of life, and Namco seems to be doing wonderful things with Star Fox after Rare arguably botched it up on the way to its current business of making the Stamper clan houses out of pure gold, or whatever it's up to these days.

F-Zero GX doesn't aspire to the same level of reinvention as those two. Graphically it's a fantastic progression of course, but what we have here is more like Kinji Fukasaku redirecting the car chase from Bullitt - you know it sounds good, you know it looks good, and you know it feels like a riot, you just wish you could put your finger on exactly why it's so much better than it was.

It's got everything you could want, starting with an enhanced version of the Monkey Ball engine, with that same flawlessly smooth aesthetic as its simian sibling, gliding along at a lightning 60 frames per second throughout. It's packed with beautiful background effects like giant worms arching over the desert tracks, breathtaking weather effects and dazzling ignition and boost effects on every handsome racer, each of them visually molested by weapons damage and barrier contact at regular intervals, and appreciably beefed with every subsequent addition of custom parts.

X marks the spot

'F-Zero GX' Screenshot 2

The vehicles have made their way happily over from F-Zero X - bound to their original performance characteristics - along with 10 from the AX version of this iteration, although you only get four (Falcon, Goroh, Pico and Stewart) to begin with. The others are all waiting to be unlocked by tickets earned in the various game modes, which can also be employed in the brand new Customisation mode.

Customisation is one of GX's biggest draws, and we only wish we understood more Japanese so that we could really get to the bottom of it [where's Rob when you need him? - Ed]. A layman's overview of it seems to be that you can build new vehicles out of hundreds of combinations of bolt-on parts, each contributing one aspect to a grade system. By picking and choosing carefully from the various body, engine and cockpit bolt-ons at the shop, you can build a racer that strikes a perfect balance between cornering, body, boost and acceleration statistics, then take your new speed demon through any aspect of the game.

Creating a balanced racer is no mean feat (particularly when you're doing so against a language barrier), but it's obvious that you have to take into account things like the weight of the car affecting acceleration - it's no use building a racer that tops out at 2000kph, soaks up more damage than a nuclear testing facility without batting an eyelid, and corners like an Apache Longbow, if it takes 14 seconds to shift half an inch off the line. Once you get the hang of it though, this should prolong your enjoyment of GX no end, particularly as you can smear your handiwork with custom logos designed using a pretty decent paint tool to give your accomplishments a signature aesthetic.

What's the story?

'F-Zero GX' Screenshot 3

And there is much to stamp your authority upon, and it won't be easy. The familiar Grand Prix mode throws up various contestable trophies, with Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald cups to be fought over at the start. There's no Death Race option to complement it in GX, but then there are 30 racers on every track, so we can get over that. It's a shame you can't go for a multiplayer GP, but the VS Battle mode is sufficiently entertaining - and although it sacrifices the extraneous off-track detail, it does so in order to retain that wondrously smooth frame rate.

Like Customisation, Story Mode is a new addition, padding out a series of increasingly WaveBird-breaking challenges with cheesy FMV sequences (although, honestly, nothing in GX is as hilariously cheesy as the Japlish racer "interviews" at the end of a Grand Prix) and this is likely to hold your attention for tens of hours as you run each of the game's gauntlets. Like a series of futuristic Gran Turismo license tests, these automotive battles require dedication and practice to complete, whether it's collecting icons scattered around the track and completing three laps within 60 seconds, or beating a particular rival through a boulder-strewn canyon (Anakin would be proud), and you can buy more and more challenges as you progress through them.

Further to Story/Grand Prix and VS Battle, there are of course Time Trial and Practice modes. It's an old cliché, we must confess, but it's genuinely true that Time Trial brings out the best in both the racer and the tracks, and will dominate speed demons for months after the rest of the game is thoroughly clocked.

The Fast and the Furious

'F-Zero GX' Screenshot 4

Truly, the tracks we've seen so far are works of genius. The opening few don't offer much resistance, but then the game throws in twists, turns and jumps, rolls back on itself, corkscrews all over the place and scatters boost pads around in awkward places. In some sections, it even separates recharge pads and boost sections, so you're forced to consider the need for speed and the relative need for repair as you clamour for podium positions.

The tracks actually remind us more of the SNES F-Zero than the N64's inferior X version, and but they're a lot wider than we're used to on the whole. Fortunately, this is made up for with the addition of a lot more racers, and decent, competitive and not too cheaty AI pilots - and it's plain to see that each and every circuit is built on an intricate knowledge of what made F-Zero/X great to begin with. Given Amusement Vision's attention to hardcore detail in Monkey Ball, it will come as little surprise to discover subtle nuances throughout the game, and conscientiously constructed tracks that don't reveal their full potential until you're zooming around them in a top car for the sixtieth consecutive time trial lap.

This is something you will need to do, because F-Zero GX is a surprisingly hard game. Maybe we've been spoilt by overly easy modern racers, but GX feels pretty hardcore, and we've yet to really make our mark on the Master difficulty level. Anyone used to breezing through championships the first or second time isn't going to enjoy vying for the real prizes to start off with, but the practice is well worth the pay-off in our view.

Old and New

'F-Zero GX' Screenshot 5

At this stage, those of you with any experience in an F-Zero racer are probably chomping at the bit in anticipation of GX's European release (who are we kidding? It's out in the US soon...fire up Freeloader, chaps), but before you fetch your pre-order hat and break out your long suffering credit card, you'll probably want to hear about the controls and handling. Suffice to say, it's very similar to the N64 version, with A for acceleration, B for standard brakes, L and R for airbrakes (offering increased braking and steering response for hairpins and the like when fully depressed), and Y bound to the familiar boost - which behaves much as it always has done, offering an infusion of high speed at the expense of rechargeable energy.

Attacks are bound to X (side attack) and Z (spin attack), and with so many vehicles on the track they play quite a significant part - a carefully measured side attack can actually send a rival right off the track and into the zero points bracket for that race - so it's a good thing the handling is spot on, allowing you to leave driving to your reactions and strategise a little. As long as you don't take an unexpected leap and have to contend with steering back towards terra firma - floating and diving aren't as pronounced as they were in F-Zero X, but they can still prove vital.

In short then, F-Zero GX handles just as you would expect, with racers turning sharply (or at least as sharply as your own custom stats dictate), rendering the negotiation of right-angled turns and the avoidance of drag strips tricky but fair. It's not too different, and it's not too much the same. It definitely requires relearning, which is the important thing.

Gone in 60 milliseconds

We have a feeling that few will argue that F-Zero GX is tremendous fun, and it's the sort of game that the GameCube desperately needs. Sega's Amusement Vision chaps really knows what it's doing with this series, which retains its incredible sense of speed and feverish excitement. F-Zero X or even just plain old F-Zero fans will embrace the familiar feel and distinctive new challenges, and we honestly can't find much to fault it for after 15 hours' play. That's not to say we won't turn up some issues when we can read the text and work out more of what's going on, but at this stage it's on a collision course with brilliance at 2000kph.

We just can't wait for the US version so we can really appreciate it.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (31) Latest comment 9 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Nemesis #1 9 years ago

    1st! \o/

    /coat

  • lost_soul #2 9 years ago

    Gimme, gimme, gimme!

    Sounds excellent!
    Glad to hear the tracks are a little more like the SNES version than the N64 one.

  • Alastair #3 9 years ago

    Cue Nintendo Europe forgetting to advertise it when it finally makes it over here.
    A well run TV marketing campaign could really make the difference for this, but sadly I don't expect we'll see anything.
    :o(

    Still, I'm pretty excited about it!
    :o)

  • Blerk #4 9 years ago

    Looks really nice, etc. but.... meh. I really don't like this kind of game.

  • #5 9 years ago

    Hmmmm, can't help but feel the corners of my mouth turn up at the thought of whizzing around (once again!) at those insane speeds :)

    Hope this grips me the way the original wipeout did (different kind of game I know, but really had that "one more go" factor).

  • Alastair #6 9 years ago

    Blerk: 'Looks really nice, etc. but.... meh. I really don't like this kind of game. '

    That's how I feel about Soul Calibur 2....

  • Blerk #7 9 years ago

    That's how I feel about Soul Calibur 2...

    Funny! That's how I feel about Soul Calibur 2 as well! :-)

  • Dizzy #8 9 years ago

    Strangely F-Zero didn't sell in Japan...

  • pjmaybe #9 9 years ago

    Hrmmm....I looked forward to Wipeout on the PS2 but it turned out to be a bit lacking, now I've been looking forward to this for absolutely AGES (there's a pun in there somewhere) and it seems like it might be quite good after all. Futuristic racers aren't everyone's cup of tea I know, but F-Zero (Snes) was one of the games that I bought to show off the console at the time. It was just so blisteringly fast and cool with it...

    Fingers crossed we get to see the PAL version (or at least an american version that works with Freeloader) this side of chrimbo!

    Peej

  • Nemesis #10 9 years ago

    Once you get the hang of it though, this should prolong your enjoyment of GX no end, particularly as you can smear your handiwork with custom logos designed using a pretty decent paint tool to give your accomplishments a signature aesthetic.

    Maybe some integration with the E-Card Reader going on there?

    Well, sounds pretty hardcore and I'm all for that. A racer that rewards your skills rates pretty highly for me.

    So what of the future. Nintendo farming out more of these franchises to get the games out quicker? SEGA are certainly the dogs bollocks at the moment, give them some more work!

  • BradlayLaw #11 9 years ago

    Damn you. I feel my credit card getting weaker as I type. That'll be one copy of F-Zero and one of SCII thanks tronix.

  • ssuellid #12 9 years ago

    Sega actually managed some decent track design? Whats the music/sound like?

    Looks like Sega are doing very well getting the best from the GC and the XBox - e.g PDO.

  • Killerbee #13 9 years ago

    This does look and sound very good indeed. I seem to be one of the few people who really liked Wipeout Fusion on the PS2 and I have to say the inclusion of a range of weapons in that game does still give it a little bit more appeal to my mind.

    Aw hell, maybe I'll just have to make room for both... :)

  • jiroczech #14 9 years ago

    It's insanely fast! Even when you're doing less than 2000kph - and some bloke has worked out a technique that lets you hit speeds of 3000.. There's a vid of him doing Mute City in something like 48s that's doing the rounds.

    Anyway.. I love it, even tho' it makes my eyes bleed.

  • FWB #15 9 years ago

    I shall be getting this.

  • jiroczech #16 9 years ago

    Hmm.. goblin are OK and there's some decent States based companies like Tronix and NCSX. Do a search in the forums cos I'm sure there's loads of threads in there recommending importers.

  • BradlayLaw #17 9 years ago

    I've ordered two things from tronix in the past month and one arrived 4 days after the amercian release date (and this was over a weekend) and one arrived 3 days after the release date. If you ask them to mark it as promotional software you will miss out on customs charges as well. I can't recommend them enough.

  • AnotherMartin #18 9 years ago

    N64's inferior X version,

    Sorry, I'll have to disagree with this, the N64 version was the nutz and if you include the 64DD add on it was even better.

    One quick Q about the new version though, can you have multiple identifiable ghosts in the time trials like you could on the N64 version?

  • DDevil #19 9 years ago

    mmmmmm drool. I'm getting fed up of speeding round on FZero on the GBA so I can't wait for the Euro release...

  • Pirotic #20 9 years ago

    i have to disagree, the 64DD add-on for F-zero X was terrible.

    My main gripe with the cube version is that bashing your opponents off the track isnt as easy as before, they've aimed it more for straight racer than fighting which piss's on my playing style.

  • inpHilltr8r #21 9 years ago

    Does it actually use the analogue-ness of the analogue shoulder buttons? (Does anything?)

  • DB2k #22 9 years ago

    yeah i have had this for a few weeks now.. its lordy.. the feeling of speed makes me weep..

  • Nillsens #23 9 years ago

    JP release date: 25/07/03
    US release date: 26/08/03
    EU release date: NOT 27/9/03 = BOOOO!!!

    Want it now! Us Europeans are equally as important!

    I just got through a massive preview in NoM... It's got me itching worse than ever! After reading about the vertical 180 turn I am convinced this is as good as speed can get! So much in fact that I can't even care about Soul Calibur 2 anymore!

  • Pirotic #24 9 years ago

    i got F-zero GX today - good game if you like the rush of pure speed and dont mind hardcore difficulty levels.

  • Marcus #25 9 years ago

    Still sounds good - How does the difficulty compare with F-Zero X?

  • Pirotic #26 9 years ago

    F-zero X is childs play compared to GX.. its more on par with the GBA version in terms of difficulty.

  • Marcus #27 9 years ago

    That's ok, I did alright on the GBA version :)

  • Pirotic #28 9 years ago

    first time i played it - first GP, first difficulty setting - i was expecting straight 1st places, getting only 5th on the first track sorta set me straight that F-Zero GX has arcade roots.

    After a days worth of play, i can now go back to the first GP and get all firsts with a 10 second distance between 2nd place - which goes to show that while difficult, its not just down to random factors and chance, you just gotta learn the tracks like the back of your hand and never miss a boost.

  • malloc #29 9 years ago

    Nillsens I suggest you sit down before reading the following.

    Actually the release date for it over here isn't until 31.10.03, about 9 weeks after the US release... :( which is about 13 weeks after the Jap release date.

    Haven't a flying of why, when one considers the amount of games that is coming our way between Oct 31st and Nov 21st, MK:DD, Pikmin 2, 1080, VJ, etc. all within 3 weeks!

  • The Button #30 9 years ago

    I saw an American version of this on eBay for £4.
    Bid away, lucky importers.

  • howboring #31 9 years ago

    I played a demo of this in Game the other day.. its fast!! Everyone ignored the gamecube stand :( So I had it all to myself ;)

  • Tiger_Walts #32 9 years ago

    I played it on the demo pod in GAME yesterday too. Very fast, but the track on the demo is not very demanding, a case of hitting the speedups and boosting on the straights, the swwop race I played last night on KotOR was more demanding.

    Also had a go on the Rogue Leader 3 demo, which I managed to get to hang :/. The level on show is one based on foot at the battle of Hoth and sees you running under AT-ATs, 'hookshotting' your way to it's underbelly, sabering a hole and throwing in an explosive. The next bits appear to be running and gunning down stormtroopers on foot and astride a tauntaun. However it all seems very pedestrian and I'm sorry to say that ALL the levels on the previous installment were more engaging. Still, I look forward to shooting Ewoks (By accident of course) on it's release.

    Viewtiful Joe and the Mario Golf game were on the pod too but due to the system hanging I didn't manage a go, I also had a train to catch.