The thing that truly separates Nintendo from the other two (and past) game publishers is their vast library of 1st party franchises that they’ve been able to grow and cultivate for decades. Mario, Zelda, Pokemon (which has been doing REALLY well lately), Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and more have done wonders for Nintendo platforms over the years. But, some franchises have dipped down in popularity, only to be brought back with new vigor and love. And yet, for the fan-favorite F-Zero franchise…that hasn’t happened.
In fact, it’s almost been 20 years since the last worldwide release of a title in the series, and yet, the main character in Captain Falcon is ALWAYS in Smash Bros, thus elevating a series that…hasn’t been around in a while. So what is going on here? The answer to that may come from Reggie Fils-Aime:
“Why was F-Zero abandoned? The insight I would share is that, at least during my tenure, Nintendo developers were always experimenting with different gameplay styles, always thinking about where a unique experience could be applied back, either to an existing franchise or maybe creating a new franchise. My bet is that somewhere in the Kyoto development centers, some developer is playing around with an idea that might be applied to F-Zero,” Fils-Aime told GamesBeat. “It’s never a situation, at least in my experience, where the company makes a conscious decision not to continue supporting X-Y-Z franchise. Historically it just hasn’t worked that way, not when I was there.”
So basically, despite all our fears, the franchise ISN’T abandoned…but possibly, just hasn’t gotten the “new thing” to make Nintendo want to bring it back. Hopefully they figure it out soon, because it would be most welcome on the Nintendo Switch.
