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One of the easiest ways to survive in F-Zero 99 is to be at the front of the pack. Being caught in a brawl with 20+ players vying for 50th place does nothing but slow you down, and if things go really badly, end your game. If you want to win, you need to stay as far away from the scrum as humanly possible.
The best way to do that is to get a solid start to your race. Every race in F-Zero has you blitzing down a long road towards the track proper. If you enter the track first, you are in an excellent position to maintain that lead since nobody is trying to grind you into a wall. For this, you are going to need to learn how to perform a Boost Start.
More F-Zero 99 content:
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What Is Boosting?
There are multiple ways to get boosts in F-Zero 99. The most obvious is using your Energy to, well, boost. You can also gain bursts of speed by going over Boost Panels and even going up jumps. Some of these things exist during the pre-race – the notable exception to this is your standard Energy Boost.
This is an important thing to note because Energy Boosting is the best way to reach your top speed in a pinch. Since this isn’t active until you cross the start line, certain ships struggle to get up to speed due to varying Acceleration Stats. This is where Start Boosting comes into play, and it’s something you want to learn ASAP.
Don’t Just Hold Down The Accelerator
You may have noticed that holding down the accelerator when starting a race gives you a boost of speed. You probably also noticed that this boost is very short-lived and then everyone passes you because your engine stalled. This is a failed boost start, and you want to avoid this at all costs. Never start a race by flooring the gas – it’s far better to just start without a boost.
How To Perform A Boost Start
Performing a Boost Start will take some practice because the timing is very precise. To pull it off, you need to hit the Accelerator mere mili-moments before “GO!” appears on the screen. Time it just right, and you will accelerate to top speed rapidly. Get it wrong, and you will have a slow start. Mess it up royally, and you will stall. Needless to say, it’s a risky manoeuvre.
But it’s worth learning. When a race starts, there will be three very distinct beeps that count you down to the race starting. Each beep has a one-second delay before the next. This same delay exists between the third beep and “GO!”. Listen to those beeps, wait half a second after the third one chimes, then slap the accelerator. This should get you off to a blazing start every time.
It is a matter of practice when all is said and done. The more you try to nail it, the more of a rhythm you will get into when the race begins. After a few failed attempts it will start to click, and then you’ll be leading the pack in no time. You are substantially less likely to win a race of F-Zero 99 if you fail to crack the Boost Start, so what are you waiting for?
That’s all we have on F-Zero 99. Be sure to check out our other lists and guides for more F-Zero content.
