F-Zero X may be the most enjoyable racing game that I have ever played. The fact that I stumbled upon it at all is a mere coincidence. I recieved it along with a stack of games and an N64 I bought in bulk. Anyway, the game.
F-Zero X was released in 1998 and published by Nintendo. The sequel to the popular F-Zero for the SNES, F-Zero X was, like its predecessor, an advancement in video game technology, though, perhaps not in the same sense.
F-Zero was revolutionary for its time because it took advantage of the Super Nintendo's Mode-7 graphics chip. This chip allowed the SNES to interlace multiple layers of 2D graphics, giving a pseudo-3D look to the environment of the game. This 3D effect, coupled with the high framerate of the game made for a very fast-paced, fun racing game.
F-Zero X, however, was revolutionary because it managed to sustain an even more impressive framerate at all times during gameplay, as well as being able to render 30 racers on screen at any given time. While the graphics were nothing too impressive, even for the time, the gameplay and immense sense of speed more than makes up for this. F-Zero X proved, once again, that graphics always take a back seat to gameplay.
Speaking of gameplay, F-Zero X's offers a ton of things. In the standard Grand Prix mode, you are given three different cups: the Jack, Queen and King cups. Beating all three of these unlocks a harder cup, called the Joker cup. This may seem like all that the mode has to offer, but in fact, if you go back and complete all four of these cups on the expert difficulty, you unlock the 'X cup'. This cup randomly generates tracks, giving the game an almost infinite replay value.
The game also offers a standard Time Trial mode, as well as a Death Race mode, wherein the player is given a perpetual straightaway and they have to eliminate all other racers as fast as possible. There is also a four-player Vs mode, but this mode is limited to four racers, so if you're playing with three friends there won't be any NPCs, eliminating one of the elements that makes the game fun in the first place: the scale of the races. The Vs mode is still enjoyable, but no where near as solid as the single player experience the game presents you with.
As a bonus, if you happen to own an N64 DD (which is highly unlikely), you can purchase the F-Zero X expansion disk. This expansion gives the player access to 12 new tracks, a car editor and a track editor. Since I don't own one, I can't really comment on this portion of the game, but it sounds pretty damn rad, does it not?
All in all, F-Zero X is a fantastic game, and while it was panned by critics at the time for "not being up to Nintendo's usual standard", it is definately worth a look, and is now one of my favourite racers. It even includes a reworked version of Mario Kart 64's Rainbow Road. That's cool.
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