{"id":610506,"date":"2023-02-21T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-21T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/21\/stunt-race-fx-isnt-the-worst-tech-demo-but-that-isnt-a-compliment\/"},"modified":"2023-02-21T16:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-02-21T22:00:00","slug":"stunt-race-fx-isnt-the-worst-tech-demo-but-that-isnt-a-compliment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/21\/stunt-race-fx-isnt-the-worst-tech-demo-but-that-isnt-a-compliment\/","title":{"rendered":"Stunt Race FX isn\u2019t the worst tech demo, but that isn\u2019t a compliment"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Punching above its generational weight class<\/h2>\n

The Super FX chip was a handsome feather in Nintendo\u2019s cap, even if they very rarely wore it out on the town. A graphics support unit, the Super FX chip was a co-processor that pushed the SNES\u2019 graphic capabilities pretty far. Games like Star Fox<\/i> and Super Mario World 2: Yoshi\u2019s Island<\/i> benefitted from the tech and were able to punch above their generational weight class.<\/p>\n

Regardless, only Yoshi\u2019s Island<\/i> doesn\u2019t look entirely antiquated by today\u2019s standards. While 3D graphics were novel at the time, their mostly flat-shaded surfaces came at a tremendous price when it came to framerate. Because of their overall choppiness, games that were classics once can be difficult to play through a modern lens.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s debatable if Stunt Race FX<\/i> was ever good. Reviews at the time were generally favorable, but any game with visual pop would normally be lavishly praised in contemporary reviews. Even discounting its arthritic bones, there was a lot left to be desired. However, when I first played it as a kid, it enthralled me, and I have a lot of extremely pleasant memories of playing it with my family.<\/p>\n

\"Stunt
Screenshot by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Historical perspective<\/h2>\n

Stunt Race FX<\/i> was created by Nintendo EAD and Argonaut Software during their time tucked under the wing of the Japanese video game giant. It was released in 1994, which is important to keep in mind because that\u2019s a few months after<\/i> the seminal 3D racing game Ridge Racer<\/i><\/a> was released. It\u2019s roughly two years after Virtua Racing <\/i><\/a>(and the same year as the Genesis version). It\u2019s also almost directly alongside Daytona USA<\/i><\/a>. I find this perspective to be rather important because it strips Stunt Race FX<\/i> of any status of being unique as an early 3D racing game. It wasn\u2019t. Maybe it\u2019s more impressive than Super Mario Kart<\/i><\/a>, and perhaps it\u2019s impressive for an SNES game, but you had other options in 1994.<\/p>\n

You can smell the tech demo on it, which I find somewhat charming. Despite being a rather routine racing game, there is a lot of enthusiasm on display. There are two circuits of four tracks, and slotted in the middle of each of them is a bonus game where you drive a tractor-trailer. It\u2019s completely apropos of nothing, but they made a level and a side objective around it.<\/p>\n

The racing is actually the lamest part. The only thing it really has going for it is some fun physics and a boost button. 3D racing kind of sucks on an all-digital controller, but the shoulder buttons are used to turn harder<\/i>. That\u2019s one better than digital; it\u2019s trigital! Or something.<\/p>\n

\"Stunt
Screenshot by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Play \u2019til you puke<\/h2>\n

I really don\u2019t think I can describe Stunt Race FX<\/i> without making it sound lame, so I\u2019m going to reach back into the past and bring up some of my family\u2019s impressions of it. First, 3D is amazing. I don\u2019t think I knew what I was seeing when I was younger or why it was impressive. However, my family described going over the hills in cockpit view as \u201clike riding a roller coast.\u201d We\u2019d challenge each other to drive through the more undulating courses in first-person to see who would feel nauseous first.<\/p>\n

It was a rental fixture for us. When we needed a multi-player title, it was a big go-to for us. That\u2019s right, there\u2019s split-screen, which was still pretty rare for racing games in general. It\u2019s 1-on-1, but there are no weapons, so it\u2019s less likely to tear your family apart.<\/p>\n

There are also a lot of whimsical little details scattered throughout in the background. Deer running across the road, whales swimming alongside underwater, and an airliner flying above the track. There are even callouts to other Nintendo titles like Star Fox<\/i> and Kirby<\/i>. The cars each have eyes for headlights, so you can watch the fear in them as you drive toward a wall. More importantly, weight is simulated, so rather than just being glued to the road, your car will lean and bounce as you drive. Suspension physics are taken for granted today, but it barely even existed back in those days.<\/p>\n

\"Stunt
Screenshot by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Easy to digest<\/h2>\n

I\u2019ve already mentioned some of the shortcomings of Stunt Race FX<\/i>, so I\u2019ll withhold further explaining how it runs like a flipbook. I will show restraint and not bring up the fact that it can\u2019t even do full screen.<\/p>\n

It is, however, worth pointing out that there is very <\/i>little content contained. There are eight race tracks, as I mentioned previously, but no difficulty changes. The second circuit can be a bit tricky, but it\u2019s unlikely you\u2019ll struggle too protractedly. There are \u201cstunt\u201d levels where you collect star-shaped balloons. Those are pretty cool but easy to digest. I re-played all of Stunt Racer FX<\/i> in less than an hour, just to illustrate how much of a rental title this is.<\/p>\n

If you have someone else who\u2019s down for some antiquated racing games, you can squeeze some extra time out of it. Otherwise, it just feels insubstantial. It does a lot to feel like it\u2019s being sold entirely on being a technological showcase. And, to be fair, Virtua Racing<\/i> had three tracks. Once again, historical perspective.<\/p>\n

At least the soundtrack by Tar\u014d Band\u014d is pretty awesome. Like, really weirdly good. It\u2019s maybe not something I think of often, but whenever I hear it, I find it impressive.<\/p>\n

\"RC
Screenshot by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Admiration for Argonaut<\/h2>\n

Wait a minute. I just realized that Argonaut Software was responsible for the subject of one of my recent kusoge articles: 2004\u2019s Catwoman. <\/i>I have a lot of admiration for Argonaut. They seemed to just really love technical tinkering. Have you ever seen Race Drivin\u2019 <\/i>on Game Boy? It\u2019s not a good game, but holy crap, how did they get Race Drivin\u2019 <\/i>on Game Boy?<\/p>\n

Stunt Race FX<\/i> is exactly like that. It looks like the team had a lot of fun challenging themselves to see what they could squeeze out of the tech, but it\u2019s not necessarily that much fun to play. Yet, somehow, it has just enough personality to feel distinctly Super Nintendo.<\/p>\n

Weirdly, even though I keep on lancing Stunt Race FX<\/i> and keep pushing forward the idea that it\u2019s aged poorly, I still recommend trying it. It\u2019s on the Nintendo Switch<\/a>\u2019s Online SNES platform, so you can at least play it easily enough. Just try it, then tell me it\u2019s completely bereft of charm. I wouldn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n

For other retro titles you may have missed, click right here!<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

<\/p>\n

\n

Zoey Handley<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

Staff Writer – Zoey is a gaming gadabout. She got her start blogging with the community in 2018 and hit the front page soon after. Normally found exploring indie experiments and retro libraries, she does her best to remain chronically uncool.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\n Zoey Handley<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Punching above its generational weight class The Super FX chip was a handsome feather in Nintendo\u2019s cap, even if they very rarely wore it out on the town. A graphics support unit, the Super FX chip was a co-processor that pushed the SNES\u2019 graphic capabilities pretty far. Games like Star Fox and Super Mario World […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":610507,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[534,688,4990],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-610506","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-financial","8":"category-isnt","9":"category-stunt"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=610506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/610507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=610506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=610506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=610506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}