F-Zero GX has arrived on Switch 2 as part of its GameCube collection, but the default controls make the game virtually unplayable.
This might shock you for a racing game, but F-Zero GX is all about going really fast. And to do that you need to boost – a lot.
Except by default, the Switch 2 maps accelerate to the A button and boost to the Y button. In order to effectively boost you need to be accelerating, which means hitting both buttons at the same time. And that’s practically impossible, especially without hitting the B button which is brake by default.
Thankfully, it’s easy enough to remap the controls. Hit the minus button to suspend the game and bring up the options, and from here you can switch any of the controls around.
So what’s best? I swapped the Y and B buttons around, so I could boost more easily instead of braking. After all, who hits the brakes in an F-Zero game?
An alternative would be to put boost on X, which is also accessible while pressing A to accelerate, though you’ll need to move attacks (on X) to another button. This A and X combo would mimic the original controls that put boost on the kidney shaped Y button above the central A.
Another option would be to put boost on the Switch 2’s L button, which is unused by default.
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Of course, the real alternative Nintendo wants is for you to buy the GameCube controller, but that’ll set you back almost 60 quid.
The remaining two GameCube classics are The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Soul Calibur 2, but the controls appear much more manageable by default. The collection is available for those with a Nintendo Switch Online subscription.
F-Zero GX was developed by Sega and published by Nintendo for the GameCube back in 2003. Since then, we haven’t had a new home console entry in the series (beyond F-Zero 99). Still, I’m very happy to see Switch 2 technically launch with an F-Zero game, just like the SNES and GBA did – I’ve missed those camp post-race news reports.