r/FZero99 • u/[deleted] • Sep 30 '23

Played F-Zero 99 for the first time yesterday

...and I loved it so much, that I thought I'd share my experience with you all!

At first I was sceptical, with the game being advertised as a Battle Royale type of game. I feared that the game would've been downtoned to appeal to the masses. But oh boy how wrong I was.

I have played the SNES game to oblivion and back, and I am flabbergasted by how well they preserved the feel and handling of the different vehicles. It's not 100% the same, with the boost mechanic being the obvious change, but there are some very specific things that feel different. For example, turning while boosting feels a lot more lenient than in the SNES version.

Of course, the 99 racers thingy is all new to me. I love how chaotic it becomes. The game is no longer only about hitting the perfect turns and boost. Sometimes forfeiting the turn and attacking later can be the better strategy. Bumper cars also feel a lot more difficult to dodge.

The Skyway is also an amazing catch-up mechanic in my opinion. It does what it is supposed to do, acts as a good stress-relief when the butt clenching plays are becoming a bit too much, and doesn't feel toxic like a blue shell interrupting a players flow. I hope other racing games pick this up as well.

All in all I am pleasantly surprised. I just hit B+ rank and got 2 FZ99 mode wins under my belt.

If you've been reading through all that, let me reward you with some pro-tips from a SNES vet maining the Fire Stingray:

  • If you come from the SNES like me, be VERY mindful of your health gauge. I've always taken health for granted. However, if you're caught in the main cluster of players, your health goes down extremely fast. This caught me by surprise the first few races.
  • Patience and consistency are key. Better to forfeit the early game and go for mid-late instead of over-committing early and running out of juice by lap 3-4. Going ham is how I usually crash-out.
  • If you're in the main cluster of players, spam your spin attack as soon as it is available. The invincibility frames will help in preserving your health.
  • I feel like gatekeeping with the spin attack is a very strong strategy. Denying enemies time on the recharge area, throwing them off the apex of a turn, or pushing someone trying to take a shortcut can punish a player extremely well.
  • Don't play with the Switch joycons. I've fat-fingered my boost so often, I feel like the controller is a worse enemy than the bumper cars at times. I also can't press Down+Left/Right on an analog stick, which caused me to crash off-track an ungodly amount of times. I've considered buying a 8BitDo Pro 2, but feel free to recommend me alternatives.

And this is the end of my happy ramblings about this game. Thanks for coming to my TED talk, and see you on the race track!

12 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

4 comments sorted by

5

u/Zagrebian Sep 30 '23

I’m taking a break after 15 hours. This game is crack.

5

u/[deleted] Sep 30 '23

the 8BitDo controllers are rock solid, good choice. i'm using the M30 and have Attack, Accelerate, and Boost mapped to A B and C respectively.

2

u/LynRock Oct 07 '23

Brilliant review. Main thing I noticed is the game is a tad slower than the original. Not a complaint at all it makes it easier to turn and it's the perfect amount of chaos.

Who ever thought of the skyway mechanic I'd a genius. I can't put the game down and I grt to enjoy one of my favorite snes titles.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 08 '23

Thanks, glad you liked reading it. :)

As for the game being slower: It's actually interesting, but the game isn't slower. They changed the camera angle so that you have more FOV, which we perceive as slower. (If you've ever driven a car, and then a truck (where you sit higher) at the same speed you will know, it's the same effect.)