Arcade Castle - Episode 14 - F-Zero Knight League Real Racing Simulation Game

07/24/18 • 52 min

As the sun blazes down on Kentucky without mercy, Arcade Castle cools down by blazing down miles of asphalt at 900+ miles an hour as they play the early 1990s board game adaptation of F-Zero! Based off of the seminal Super Nintendo game that boasted Mode 7 graphics & wowed gamers in 1990, the F-Zero Knight League Real Racing Simulation Game does its best to capture the look and feel of F-Zero in a board game!

In the F-Zero Knight League Real Racing Simulation Game (hereafter FZKLRRSG), players race one another throughout the five courses of the Knight League, attempting to win as many races as they can to score the most points to win the game! Players have a 'hand' of cards to manage their speed and health as they navigate the hazards of each track in the Knight League. Players can push their luck to try and get in first place, but if they are not careful, they may find themselves a fiery wreck on the racetrack.

In Episode 14 of The Arcade Castle Podcast, John and Patrick play the first board game adaptation from the racing genre. Did TOMY successfully craft a game that captures the pace and feel of the iconic 16 bit racer? Or did it end up a twisted heap of metal and ash on the sidelines?

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Episode Outline:

00:00 - 07:00 - John and Patrick discuss the workability of a listener's suggestion for improving the MegaMan Board Game (2015).

07:00 - 20:00 - John and Patrick talk about the racing genre and their top three racing video game titles.

20:00 - 30:00 - Turning their attention to the F-Zero franchise, they discuss the technology behind Mode 7 graphics, the history and cultural reception of the F-Zero games from inception to its current status in the field.

30:00 - 53:00 - Arcade Castle discusses the FZKLRRSG in depth; from looking at the components and rules to examining the strategies gamers can use when playing FZKLRRSM, they try and determine how successful this game is at capturing the essence of the F-Zero franchise in a board game format.

Episode Outline:

00:00 - 07:00 - John and Patrick discuss the workability of a listener's suggestion for improving the MegaMan Board Game (2015).

07:00 - 20:00 - John and Patrick talk about the racing genre and their top three racing video game titles.

Previous Episode

Arcade Castle - Episode 13 - Food-Themed Kickstarter Card Game Double Feature!

Continuing the adventures from Episode 12, Arcade Castle looks at two more Kickstarter games, this time in the form of food-themed card games. The first game Arcade Castle examined was a card game based off the 1982 arcade smash hit BurgerTime. Following this, Arcade Castle had dessert in the form of Robots ♥ Ice Cream, based off a mid 2010s iOS phone game.

The BurgerTime Card Game attempts to overcome the challenge any developer faces when they try and adapt a typical arcade title into a board game or card game: how does one take the often "easy to learn, lifetime to master" simplistic gameplay of many arcade titles and make it a compelling and strategic game for multiple people to play. Does BurgerTime successfully create an enjoyable dish, or bring something to the table that deserves to be tossed into the trash?

After Arcade Castle digested BurgerTime, they decided to get some dessert in the form of Robots ♥ Ice Cream. Based off a Space Invaders-esque iOS game, it requires players to militarize their ice cream trucks and use weaponized ice cream to destroy robots across a series of worlds before they are able to steal that world's ice cream. Players work together to fend off the robot menace and save the galaxy's ice cream! Does this game provide a sweet treat, or a goopy mess?

Episode Outline:

00:00 - 20:00 - Arcade Castle talks about Talking Mcdonald's Trees, Fast Food Jobs, Cob Slevins, Board Games About Food, Video Games About Food, Fist-Fights At Old Folk Homes, Drive-Thru, and more!

20:00 - 35:00 - Arcade Castle discusses the Burgertime video game series, the Burgertime Card Game, and how the game 'plays'.

35:00 - 45:00 - Arcade Castle looks at Robots Love Ice Cream, how it plays, and whether or not they recommend either game.

45:00 - 62:00 - After playing three Kickstarter games that run the gamut of good to bad, Arcade Castle has a discussion about the pros and cons of the Kickstarter phenomenon.

Next Episode

Arcade Castle - Episode 15 - The Oregon Trail Board Game - Journey to Willamette Valley

In Episode 15 of the podcast, The Arcade Castle finds itself, once again, on a journey through another oregon trail licensed board game by Pressman in the form of The Oregon Trail Board Game: Journey to Willamette Valley. Having played The Oregon Trail Card Game and The Oregon Trail Hunt For Food Card Game in prior years (and on Episode 04 and Episode 08, respectively), The Arcade Castle has mixed expectations when bringing this game to the table.

In The Oregon Trail Board Game, players are uncovering the trail from Independence, MO to Willamette Valley, OR. As they traverse the wilderness of 1800s America, players will find hunting grounds, ford rivers, locate forts and towns, and brave the elements as they attempt to successfully reach Oregon. However, the trail is full of hazards and, as supplies dwindle in their covered wagons, will they best the calamities that befall them, or end their trip in a shallow grave on the roadside?

As players play the Oregon Trail Game they will place trail tiles onto the board as they attempt to get to Willamette Valley, OR. As they proceed along the trail, they will need to hunt, trade, buy, sell, and more as they attempt to ensure their family has the supplies it needs to make the journey, but also survive the calamities they encounter upon it.

Will this latest entry in the Oregon Trail franchise deliver like a delicious pizza? Or end up being only peperony and chease?

Episode Outline:

00:00-20:00: Arcade Castle talks about the Oregon Trail franchise as developed by Pressman over the years and how that can inform the player on how this latest entry was developed and published.

20:00-40:00: Arcade Castle talks about the gameplay of the Oregon Trail, and its contents.

40:00-60:00: Arcade Castle takes an in-depth look at the strategies inherent to the Oregon Trail Board Game, what the players can bring to the table to have a better chance at winning the game.

60:00-72:00: Arcade Castle compares this third entry in the franchise to the first two to see how the success, or failure, of them defined how the third game was developed and how the strategies reflect that development.

Apollo Approved!