How Mario Kart 64 (Almost) Tried To Be F-Zero
The developers of Mario Kart 64 revealed that they almost included a No Items mode, in order to appeal to F-Zero fans. It seems strange now to think that the Mario Kart developers were attempting to court the F-Zero fanbase, considering the last F-Zero game was released in 2004, while Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the best-selling Nintendo Switch game of all time, and continues to sell millions of copies every year. F-Zero has seemingly been abandoned by Nintendo, yet fans hold out hope that it will return someday.
The original F-Zero and Mario Kart games had a similar purpose, as they were both intended to show off the Mode 7 capabilities of the Super Nintendo. Mode 7 was a method of displaying sprites on a rotating background, in order to create the illusion of 3D movement. Racing games were the ideal way of showing off Mode 7 and F-Zero was the fast-paced, high-tech game that rewarded skill and fast reflexes, while Mario Kart was all about colorful characters, using items to gain an advantage, and being an amazing multiplayer experience.
Related: Mario Kart 8 DLC Tracks That Wave 2 Must Add
The Nintendo 64 received the next entries in the F-Zero and Mario Kart series, with Mario Kart 64 launching in '96 and F-Zero X launching in '98. The developers of Mario Kart 64 were interviewed for the official Japanese guidebook for the game, which has been translated by Shmuplations (via Dash Panel on Twitter). The original F-Zero clearly had an effect on the developers of Mario Kart 64, as they almost included a mode specifically for fans of that game.
According to the Mario Kart 64 team, the game originally had a No Items mode, where races were determined wholly by a player's skill. This mode was actually implemented into the game
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