Arcade Games, Game Secrets, Sega Retro

F-Zero AX Hidden within Retail Copies of F-Zero GX


F-Zero GX for the Nintendo Gamecube had an interesting feature that worked with it’s Triforce brother. By bringing your memory card to an F-Zero AX arcade machine, it allowed you to unlock additional content for use in the home version and bring your custom vehicle with you on the arcade version. However due to an extremely limited release of the arcade unit, most of the AX content was basically untouchable for many. Turns out after all these years, F-Zero AX was much closer than one thought. Coming from The Cutting Room Floor, and later reported by Retro Collect, they have turned up the entirety of the arcade game is already embedded with each home copy of F-Zero GX. More or less that is. For more information on how to play through AX on your copy of F-Zero GX, be sure to check out the Action Replay codes on either site, or watch the embedded video to see AX mode in action.

Because the games work so close together and both games were in development at the same time, this should come as to no surprise. Still a very interesting insight of the game, and sure to interest those who have never experienced the F-Zero AX arcade machine first hand.

[Source: The Cutting Room FloorRetro Collect]

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11 Comments

  • Reply

    Alright….THIS is a sweet find!

    I think I may as well get myself F-Zero GX and an Action Replay just to play the arcade game 😛

  • Reply

    Someone is going to have to explain this to me.

    The Retro Collect article makes it seem like it is actually impossible to unlock the AX tracks (and racers too I guess) in the Gamecube version, which is entirely possible to do.

    For the racers you just beat GX story missions on their hardest difficulties and for the courses just beat the other Grand Prix on Master difficulty.

    Isn’t this just really a code to unlock the AX interface?

    However, if this actually works like AX and all you have to do is come in first with characters/on courses you don’t have to unlock them easily then I guess this will help those people out.

    Nice find regardless and I will be taking my Gamecube out later to do this.

    • Reply

      I forgot that you can still unlock the AX stuff without playing the arcade unit, but it just takes “Longer” to unlock depending on whether or not you can find an actual arcade unit. The code does seem like it just changes out some of the front-end menu material, but I’ve a suspicion if more digging was involved, more of the interface from the arcade game is likely to come up.

  • Reply

    Wonder if they’ll figure out the code to race on the beta track with screw drive properly.

  • Reply

    Now THIS is awesome!
    I think I will grab an ISO of F-Zero GX today and give it the code. I wanted to play AX for a LONG time and, while this does not give me the cabinet, it at least stills my hunger for a new F-Zero for a while.
    Plus I get to revisit GX as an additional bonus!

  • Reply

    Sonic Speed should be like this. Like Unleashed, but more.

  • Reply

    More or less? What’s missing?

    • Reply

      If you’ll notice, after finishing a race, it brings up the “End of Race” menu from F-Zero GX. So it’s not entirely in “AX Mode.” There’s likely more parts of AX that needs to be brought up.

  • Reply

    Oh. I haven’t played GX in forever, I just assumed that that was a part of AX. That’s pretty rad, though.

  • Reply

    It’s a shame you can’t really play F-Zero GX with any “arcade time limit” option :/

  • Reply

    I did this with an action replay when I was like 14… I honestly thought it was common knowledge 😮

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