Game Soundtrack Spotlight - F-Zero (1990)

F-Zero ( 1990, Published by Nintendo. )

by Craig Baxley

F-zero was a racing game made by Nintendo back in the glorious era of 16-bit gaming. What set it apart from other racing games of the time was a lack of weapon usage that other games such as Super Mario Kart used at the time, and a fast-paced system based around ridiculous speed boosts and cornering whose ilk was not seen until its sequel. It also featured a ship health system which deducted health based on the speed and angle of your ship as it crashed into the various scenery.

Another thing that set it apart from its predecessors is that it didn't contain as aggressive a rubber-banding system as other racing games of its time. Rubber banding of course is the coding which makes racers behind you in place receive a boost of speed to make it seem more challenging to the player. Because of F-Zero's fast paced racing and the addition of additional non-opponent ships it made racing frantic and the music in the game easily reflects that.

The Soundtrack-

Big Blue-
Probably one of the more well known songs on the F-zero soundtrack is Big Blue.

The song itself starts off with a heavily drum based buildup, which eventually coalesces into the main portion of the song. Big Blue has largely remained unchanged over the years in most of the versions of the song.

As soon as the race starts you're greeted with the opening, and as the race progresses the music only gets better. It's hard to not fall in love with the Melody and Rhythm of the song.

Port Town-
Port Town has one of the best themes of the game. It conveys to the player that shit just got real. As in a way, it most certainly has.

Port Town and Port Town II are no freakin' joke. These tracks will kill you, and it will happen without mercy or quarter.

It has an upbeat sound and melody that keeps you on the edge of your seat as you go around the 180 degree hairpin turns on the track. Yes. There are two of those. And that goes straight into a 90 degree right angle. Three of them.

Silence-
Silence is the strangest name for a song I've ever come across in a 16-bit game. The beginning of the song is rather tame. It quickly rises into the least silent most upbeat song in the game.

Sort of like an affirmation that you've made it that far into the game if you ask me.

The track is very jazzy and the rhythm and drums that accompany the center of the song are spectacular. Definitely par the course for racing game music.

White land-
White land starts of with a very high tempo drum beat and rolls into the main portion of the song very quickly.

It starts off on a high key and drops down as the song goes on, continuing this way for some time before the song begins to loop.

White land in the game is yet another stage that will utterly destroy the unprepared. The entire stage is completely littered with ice that will decimate anyone attempting to take a non-cornered turn through the slicks.

Mute City-
This is the perfect song for the first track in the game. The entire song is a big welcome mat of awesome. It lets you know that the soundtrack of this game is going to blow your ass out of the water. And its right.

This is the first song you hear while racing.

The first song is this amazing. What will you hear next? Big Blue. The best song in the game.

This track being first makes you want to play the game more to see what kind of music is there. It's great.

I recommend that you listen to a few of these songs one day while you're doing something that you want to finish in a hurry. The tempo of each of these songs encourages the person listening to them that they need to be the first, and that they have to be the best. They all will keep you awash with nostalgia while remembering the good times from the 16-bit era.

Just don't listen to them while you drive.

Thanks for reading.

All above music, F-zero and all elements therein are assets of Nintendo.  The video files were found on YouTube and I do not own the videos nor their contents.