Tag: F-Zero

The 12 Days Of Switchmas: Day 1 – Fresh Life For Nintendo!

by The_acz

We’re just 11 days away from finding out everything there is to know about the Nintendo Switch, but before everyone makes the switch, we here at Geekscape thought it’d be fun to give our own thoughts on what we’re expecting and hoping from Nintendo’s newest console. Christmas may be over, but there’s still hype to be had. This is The 12 Days of Switchmas!

Let’s start off with a main concern of mine. The battery life. While we’re all excited that we’ll finally get the chance to play some of our favorite games like Zelda, Skyrim, and more on the go, the novelty of that might wane fast if it can only be for an hour or two. Ever since the launch of the 3DS, Nintendo has had trouble trying to keep their hardware at a decent battery life. People tend to forget that the original 3DS only had about 3-5 hours battery life (which was quickly fixed with the XL and the New 3DS line).

This problem continued to carry over to Wii U as the gamepad was left with a very abysmal battery which prompted people to always have it hooked up to a charger. I’m hearing rumblings that since the initial reveal that they’ve gotten the switch battery to clock in around 5 hours undocked, which would actually be pretty solid. All I’m asking is that I don’t want to be shelling out an extra $10-$15 on a 3rd party battery just so I can get an extra 2 hours out of the system.

                                                 Predictions

Let’s get some simple predictions out of the way first. There’s no doubt in my mind that we’ll be seeing appearances by Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Mario Switch. They’ll almost certainly be front and center to show off the console’s power. I’m going to go out on a limb and say not only will we see a release date for both games, but that both of those releases will be on launch day, AND that both will be available in the first 2 bundles at launch.

Another thing I’m hoping for is to see the Virtual Console line-up that Nintendo has planned. I’m predicting that after years of begging and waiting that we’ll finally see the introduction of Gamecube VC (at least 3-5 titles at during launch week.) I also think that there’s a very good chance we’ll be seeing an announcement on how we’ll finally be able to transfer our Wii U VC library to the Switch for no charge, and that all existing VC titles on Wii U will also be available Day 1 on the Switch.

                                                                                             Time For Bets

I think that keeping excitement in check for this event is a good thing, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t get a bit crazy. This section is just for fun. I don’t expect this to happen, but it’d be pretty damn cool if it did. My bet is that with the constant success and profitability of sports games that Nintendo will see this as a chance to bring back some long awaited franchises back. That’s right! Not only will we witness the return of Wave Race and F-Zero, but these 2 games will also serve as the first titles to be part of the Nintendo E-sports brand, where they’ll have their very own leagues, tournaments, etc. You can bet on that.

That just about wraps it up for my thoughts on the Switch event. Who’ll be sharing their thoughts on the event tomorrow? Come back on the 2nd to find out! Until then, Merry Switchmas!

 

IndieCade 2015: ‘F-Zero’ Meets ‘Ikaruga’ In ‘FAST Racing NEO’

by Josh Jackson

While Nintendo has been better over the past year with revisiting some of their seemingly forgotten franchises like Star Fox and Chibi Robo, one much sought after series that is nowhere to be found is F-Zero. Looking to fill that void, the developers at Shinen Games, (the folks behind the Jett Rocket and Nanostray series of games,) have turned their attention to the race track with FAST Racing NEO, a futuristic, high speed competition that pits the galaxy’s greatest drivers against one another across a series of tracks. At this year’s IndieCade, we got a chance to check out what this promising title has in store for Wii U owners.

FAST Racing NEO Screen 1Opponents are relentless

Obviously modeled after the style of Nintendo’s own racer, NEO manages to replicate the sense of speed, and the punishing difficulty of the games that inspired it. Keeping up with each turn, figuring out when the best times to boost are, and fighting off opponents who will take the first chance they get to run you off the road all comes off as a seamless, adrenaline filled experience that comes off as if it were a sequel in a long running series as opposed to the developer’s first try at this type of game. Putting all of these pieces together as you zoom through the track is vital if you want to win, because once you fly off the road or end up getting your vehicle destroyed, chances are you can say goodbye to that first place position. The CPU in the runs that I played was relentless, ensuring that I was on top of my game each time.

Not content with just being an F-Zero clone however, NEO manages to pull away from the pack thanks to its unique boosting meter mechanic. Replacing the health meter is the boost meter, where driving over certain sections of the track will build up your stored boost for later use. However, these sections are color coated as either blue or orange, and will only reward you with that precious speed if you ship switches its force field to match the color of the track. Much like Ikaruga, changing colors on the fly is achieved with a simple tap of the button, but anticipating when the right time to switch is becomes a challenge in and of itself, adding some depth to an already strong outing.

FAST Racing NEO Screen 3Split screen co-op, and it still looks great? Who would have thought?

Scheduled for a 2015 release on the Wii U e-Shop, FAST Racing NEO is right around the corner. Complete with online and four player split screen races to accompany the game’s yet to be played single player content, and it’s looking like this indie title will be one to save your points cards for when the holidays roll around.

Are you as excited for FAST Racing NEO as we are? Let us know in the comment below!

Need An ‘F-Zero’ Fix? Try Out Hero Mode In ‘Fast Racing Neo’!

by The_acz

F-Zero fans have had it very rough.

The last game in the series was F-Zero Climax for the Gameboy Advance that came out nearly 11 years years ago. The worst part about it was that it didn’t even get released in America! (So, stop your whining Metroid fans; it’s only 5 years since your last game.) The closest we’ve got to a new game was in the form of a minigame for Nintendo Land and a couple of tracks, outfits, and cars in Mario Kart 8 via DLC and Amiibo integration. Even Miyamoto himself has admitted that they don’t know what to do with the series anymore.

While we’re not getting a new F-Zero anytime soon, Shin’en Multimedia doesn’t want you to forget it’s legacy. Later this year, they’ll be releasing their own take on the Futuristic Racing genre titled FAST Racing Neo. This weekend, while at EGX, Shin’en revealed that they’ll be adding in a special Hero Mode for the game that’s reminiscent of the F-Zero games of old.  This mode can only be unlocked by completing previous speed classes in campaign mode. There’ll be a couple of tweaks to this mode as well, such as having your boost meter function as a shield, and having to finish in first in order to continue.

If you’re interested in how the game plays, check out this excerpt from Nintendo’s Treehouse Live segment from this year’s E3. FAST Racing Neo will be boosting it’s way onto the Nintendo E-shop sometime at the end of the year.