June 14, 2001 - One of the first titles for the Super NES was also one of the system's most technically impressive games as well -- when F-Zero was released on the Nintendo 16-bit system a decade ago, it offered the fastest, smoothest pseudo-3D racer ever conceived for a home system...and it was only the beginning. History's repeating itself almost exactly 10 years later, as Nintendo has launched the Game Boy Advance with the follow-up to the SNES classic design -- not only is the game amazing to play and look at, it shows just what's possible on the new handheld. And it's only the beginning...

Features

• More than 20 tracks
• Hidden vehicles
• Link cable support for four players (multi-cartridge and single-cartridge modes)
• Battery back-up
• Only for Game Boy Advance

It's a futuristic racer where the speeds are high and the action's intense -- sure, the idea's to come in first, but you're more likely to end up track debris due to all the crashing and bashing against other opponents and the track sides. Each race is five laps long, and after each lap you have to come in under a certain position to keep racing. By the time the last lap comes around, if you're not one of the first three across the finish line, you'll have to do the race all over again -- if you have a vehicle to spare, of course.

F-Zero was followed up on the N64 as a fully-realized 3D polygonal game, but the Game Boy Advance sequel goes back to the game's roots with a super-speedy, gorgeous "Mode 7" style game engine...the sprite-style 3D graphics that the Super NES was known for. And it's extremely fast and smooth in action on the Game Boy Advance hardware -- it even adds a second layer to give the added illusion of depth, something the SNES game didn't have.

But don't think F-Zero: Maximum Velocity is merely a rehash of the original SNES game -- it's not. The game mechanics have been given an overhaul to make the experience as fresh as possible. A new control technique requires you to blip the accelerator rapidly to take the sharp turns, as well as utilize the L and R shoulder buttons to lean into the curves -- and that's the game's only real control issue, as rapidly tapping the A button and holding the R shoulder together is like patting your head and rubbing your tummy at the same time. It takes a lot of practice to get the knack down pat.

The game is also extremely challenging, with 20 tracks and four classes of difficulty -- the computer AI gets extremely pushy later on, and you'll find yourself trailing behind if you don't avoid collisions. What's worse, there are elements on the tracks themselves that will really push your ability to take control of your hyperspeed vehicle -- mines that will explode on contact, whirlwinds that will spin your vehicle, and jumps that'll launch you in the air...fly off the course and it's game over for that car. As you progress through the classes, you'll earn cars with enhanced top speed, acceleration, and shield strength attributes.

The element that really makes F-Zero Maximum Velocity shine is its four player option -- the SNES original was a single-player environment, but thanks to the GBA's four-player link function, three other friends can connect their systems and get their own viewpoint of the race. Any records that you might hold in any specific track actually get sent to the other cartridges, and statistics are combined across the boards so you can see how your times stack up against your friends'. This is link cable done right.

Nintendo even offered a single cartridge "download" link feature just in case your friends are missing their own copy of the game, but you'll only get one track and no choice of which vehicle to race. Still, even though this feature is limited, it's just another element that makes F-Zero such a treat on the Game Boy Advance.

I think the one element that brings the game down just a notch is the sense that the races seem to go on for longer than they should -- each race is five laps and a race could go on for at least three minutes. It doesn't seem like a very long time in theory...but put it in practice and you'll see what I mean.

Closing Comments
The system's just out of the gate, and F-Zero: Maximum Velocity is an amazing achievement for the Game Boy Advance -- you just have to imagine what else this little thing can do when the developers continue to learn the ins-and-outs of the nifty little unit.

Rating	Description
out of 10	click here for ratings guide
8.0	Presentation It's a straight-forward racer with some good items to earn if you're good enough.
9.0	Graphics Very fast and very smooth 3D-esque engine, with more realistic colors than the original SNES game.
8.0	Sound While the original SNES soundtrack is missed, what the developers included for this game is really good.
9.0	Gameplay Very tight controls and fast action compliment the tried-and-true SNES design.
9.0	Lasting Appeal The later levels are near impossible to complete -- you'll definitely get your money's worth trying to finish the game.
9.0 Outstanding	OVERALL (out of 10 / not an average)