Nintendo Switch Online is Adding a Surprise Game

27.03.2024 - 15:35 / gamerant.com / Mario Kart / J Brodie Shirey / Nintendo

Nintendo Switch Onlineis adding a classic game that very few saw coming: the Game Boy Advance launch title F-Zero: Maximum Velocity. The futuristic F-Zero series has somewhat faded into the background since the early 2000s, with modern gamers likely recognizing its main protagonist Captain Falcon more for his appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series than the franchise he debuted in. There have been a handful of F-Zero games released since the original SNES title, with the most recent one being the online multiplayer battle royale F-Zero 99 that launched on Nintendo Switch Online last September.

F-Zero 99 left hardcore fans divided, with some hoping for a more traditional entry in the series that has been left on the sidelines for nearly two decades. Original F-Zero artist Takaya Imamura addressed the series’ long hiatus last summer, explaining that Nintendo likely doesn’t want a new F-Zero game to compete with the similar Mario Kart. That isn’t to say that a return is completely out of the question, as F-Zero GX producer Toshihiro Nagoshi has stated that he would be interested in working on a new installment.

In the meantime, a classic entry in the F-Zero series is finally making its way onto the Nintendo Switch Online library later this week. F-Zero: Maximum Velocity was the third mainline game in the franchise, and was released in 2001 as a launch title for the then-current Nintendo Game Boy Advance. It features the same high-speed racing gameplay and colorful graphics as its console predecessors, but its story takes place 25 years after these games — meaning that F-Zero mascot Captain Falcon is nowhere to be found. F-Zero: Maximum Velocity will be released on Nintendo Switch Online on Friday, March 29.

Nintendo Switch Online already includes the two previous F-Zero games as part of its library of past Nintendo titles, with the original F-Zero being released as part of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Nintendo Switch Online collection in 2019 and 1998’s F-Zero X being added to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack with online multiplayer in 2022. Nintendo Switch Online is also home to several classic Game Boy Advance titles, such as Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade and The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap.

Now F-Zero: Maximum Velocity is being added to the list of retro gems from the Game Boy Advance era available on Nintendo Switch Online, much to the surprise of fans who are still hoping for a full series renaissance in the wake of F-Zero 99. Only time will tell what the future of F-Zero holds, but players will at least be able to dive back into the blistering futuristic racing action of Maximum Velocity when it comes to Nintendo Switch Online this Friday.

The Nintendo Switch is a hybrid