5-Jun-2004 Nintendo's classic franchise gets a GBA outing so blisteringly fast, your eyeballs'll get a tan Unless you live in Japan, the fact that this second F-Zero for GBA features characters from a TV show is irrelevant.
Apart from that, a guy called Ryu has stepped in for Captain Falcon as the hero for Story Mode, but more on that later. What is important is that we have a totally revamped, extremely challenging update of a classic, with Nintendo really going to town on the presentation and depth of gameplay this time.
While there haven't been improvements to the nuts-and-bolts visuals for the races in GP Legend, it benefits hugely from a Story Mode that incorporates the types of challenges that made F-Zero GX so enjoyable. On a related note, you'll discover that every circuit is laden with plentiful shortcut opportunities that you're forced to consider given the punishing nature of circuit layouts. That, and you're now up against 30 other opponents in Grand Prix mode. GP Legend comes out growling straight from the garage!
Turning Point The biggest improvement is the tuning option. Similar to F-Zero GX, drivers balance their ship's performance before every challenge or race, within the vehicle's basic parameters. Another neat addition is the ability to play through other characters' stories after meeting them for the first time, which doubles up as the way to unlock other ships for the Grand Prix and multiplayer races. Initially, Story Mode can only be played as Ryu, but it's cool how each new character helps you branch out to find out more of the plot while appreciating how to drive the contrasting styles of vehicle.
You could almost accuse GP Legend of being heavy-handed with its insistence on a driver's skill. The whole package is geared up to make a driver out of you - a basic level of competence is not only required, it is even acknowledged by an unlockable licence test, pushing even F-Zero pros to the edge of endurance! Yet, although it looks not much more than a tarted-up SNES game, the racing experience is second to none on GBA.
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