Wave Race

[Ikagura Ikagura]

A series that could almost be described as "F-zero on water" with fast paced gameplay.

It surprisingly started on the Gameboy but honestly it really shined on the N64 then on the Gamecube with Blue Storm.

I'm really surprised they have stopped making them since, even Pilotwings got some sequel on the 3DS (Wuhu Island would've been a perfect setting for a "Wave Race Resort" if they knew how to do it).

At least the series got one more game compared to 1080° Snowboarding but they could've done something with the motion control or even the Wii Balance Board for both games.

PS: In MK World the karts can no longer go underwater but float on it, like antigravity with F-zero that was reminding me of this game.

 

[NotReallyHere]

Ah, my favorite N64 game! Seriously

I believe the development on Wave Race 64 started off closer to a F-Zero title, with futuristic boats as the racers. Not sure why they went back to Jet Skis (licensing revenue from Kawasaki, maybe?) but I'm glad they did. Giving the game riders with names and personalities (from the wetsuit designs, at least) did a lot to add to the realism, as did all the little environmental touches like shipwrecks, seagulls, and whales.

At the time, it was a game that truly felt real - or, at least, close enough to it. A F-Zero clone wouldn't have had the same effect.

I've heard the series compared to F-Zero before, too, but I've never really made that connection in my mind. Yes, there are four racers (and one with the last name Stewart, which I'm sure was intentional) but they buoy / slalom style of racing is very much unique to Wave Race. At least, among Nintendo titles. Heck, they didn't even add a boost button until the Gamecube one...

Personally, I feel that the N64 game is the best. Blue Storm was made by a different team, and while it is a beautiful, detailed game, I felt the gameplay just wasn't as tight as Wave Race 64. It was also much, much more difficult than its predecessor. In fact, that's one area where I think it compares well to F-Zero, as Blue Storm may very well be the most difficult racing game on the console next to F-Zero GX!

I could talk about this all day. Nice post. Thanks for letting me reminisce at bit, OP

 

[Ikagura Ikagura]

Ah, my favorite N64 game! Seriously

I believe the development on Wave Race 64 started off closer to a F-Zero title, with futuristic boats as the racers. Not sure why they went back to Jet Skis (licensing revenue from Kawasaki, maybe?) but I'm glad they did. Giving the game riders with names and personalities (from the wetsuit designs, at least) did a lot to add to the realism, as did all the little environmental touches like shipwrecks, seagulls, and whales.

At the time, it was a game that truly felt real - or, at least, close enough to it. A F-Zero clone wouldn't have had the same effect.

I've heard the series compared to F-Zero before, too, but I've never really made that connection in my mind. Yes, there are four racers (and one with the last name Stewart, which I'm sure was intentional) but they buoy / slalom style of racing is very much unique to Wave Race. At least, among Nintendo titles. Heck, they didn't even add a boost button until the Gamecube one...

Personally, I feel that the N64 game is the best. Blue Storm was made by a different team, and while it is a beautiful, detailed game, I felt the gameplay just wasn't as tight as Wave Race 64. It was also much, much more difficult than its predecessor. In fact, that's one area where I think it compares well to F-Zero, as Blue Storm may very well be the most difficult racing game on the console next to F-Zero GX!

I could talk about this all day. Nice post. Thanks for letting me reminisce at bit, OP

I saw that Unseen64 page

I totally believe that this got repurposed for F-zero X: Look at the map and the vehicle shape.

I wouldn't mind if the next F-zero game introduced underwater/overwater sections as a gimmick.

Anyway, Blue Storm, like F-zero GX, still looks good today.

 

[bigstinkie]

i remember being very impressed by how it felt as if you were truly on the water in wave race 64
very impressive and cool
i see people such as notreallyhere and many others dislike how the gamecube entry plays, why is that in particular?

 

[bjork]

I never played the Game Boy one, but I like both the N64 and GC titles quite well. I think I spent slightly more time with the N64 one, but I played them both a bunch. Would love another entry at some point.

 

[GamingWarthog]

It's a shame the non Mario Kart racers from Nintendo all fell off, thought the Switch would have been a good time to bring them back with its Mario Kart being a port. It's been a while since I played them, but I recall liking the Gamecube one more than the N64. I liked the weather system of the Gamecube one.

 

[MemeAlert]

Are you one of those people that hate Nintendo for not making another F-Zero game even tho GX didn't sell that well?

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

You know what's weird? Even though I couldn't care less about its genre, Wave Race 64 was the first Nintendo 64 game that made me turn my head.