F-Zero is a game series with a devoted following. From its origins on the SNES, the games were like nothing else before, and inspired numerous other series such as Wipeout and Super Mario Kart. The series kept getting better and better until its final console release on the GameCube. F-Zero GX was a collaboration between Nintendo and longtime rival Sega, where two new games were created. F-Zero GX for GameCube and F-Zero AX for the arcades developed by Amusement Vision and this was a match made in heaven.
F-Zero GX was unlike anything else at the time, the speed was greater than ever and the difficulty was immense. The visuals were stunning and ran at a perfect 60 fps even at the most intense moments, which was a technical marvel at the time. The game took the balls to the wall craziness of F-Zero X and merged it with the precision racing of the original F-Zero to create something different than what players had experienced in the series thus far. This was a game that could be learned quickly, but mastering it would take a large amount of time and a lot of patience to do.
The game had much more of an arcade feel thanks to Sega’s influence and the soundtrack as well, felt very different. You could upgrade your vehicles while playing and even unlock new chapters in the story mode as well. The story mode landed more on the side of cheesiness, but had a certain charm to it that was aided by its extreme difficulty and epic feeling. This was a very different F-Zero, one that had to be learned to be understood and one that players would truly come to appreciate over time. It had the perfect amount of polish and refinement, and if this had been the last game in the series, it would have been the perfect note to end on.
Nintendo has yet to make any new F-Zero games since the last Game Boy Advance entry, but if they have a perfect opportunity if they ever want to revive this series. Take F-Zero GX and F-Zero AX and give them an HD makeover and add online play to them and release it on Switch. A new generation of fans would come to love the series and realize why this is racing perfection made manifest.