For years, Nintendo fans have strived for a fresh, new F-Zero to dig our teeth into. The super-fast racing classic has long been demanded by many a fan of the series. Is Trailblazers the answer to our frantic racing woes?

Developer: Supergonk

Publisher: Rising Star Games

5 Hours Played // Review Copy Provided // $29.99

Trailblazers is what happens when you mix the ink-splatting of Splatoon with the fast-paced racing of the classic F-Zero. The real question is: is Trailblazer’s gimmick complex enough to be more than a simple flash in the pan of racing games?

Welcome to the world of Trailblazers

Upon launching Trailblazers, I was pleased to see a story mode. This is something which I really dislike Mario Kart for not including, even if it is fairly simplistic. I enjoyed the story mode that Supergonk included in Trailblazers, even if it wasn’t the hardest thing I have played. What it does an outstanding job at is explaining the game and its mechanics in a fairly interesting way.

That said, I wasn’t a massive fan of the characters themselves. They feel like they are taken straight from a 90s cartoon, which I wasn’t digging. Fortunately, you don’t spend ages focused on these interactions, and the actual dialogue isn’t that bad. Albeit a little cheesy, it was funny at times. As I said though, it’s a racing game. You don’t spend hours in dialogue scenes; THANK GOD!

Super Speed Sun-set racing anyone?

Speaking of racing, how does it feel?? As someone who never played an F-Zero game, I can’t help but think this is the high-speed racing people are missing from that series. It feels really smooth. I’m talking melted Galaxy chocolate smooth, with some dipping strawberries, of course! The combination of an attack mechanic and painting ability add a level of strategy most racing games fail to engage in. Even the lorded Mario Kart!

The painting system is the core concept Trailblazers was built upon and I think it ends up being fairly well integrated, although I do have some flaws to discuss. What you will utilize most is what I like to call ‘butt painting’, wherein you shoot paint behind you onto the track. This serves a multitude of purposes. For example, it both speeds you (and your teammates) up and also makes enemies slower. This embeds within Trailblazers a deep strategy mechanic and leaves you with plenty of decisions. Do you hug the corners even if your team paint isn’t there? Or do you instead drift further out and hope it negates the further distance with a big boost? At times, I would try and be smart and end up with egg on my face as I finished last. Trial and error is ever-present.

The painting is crucial to success. Look at this hodge-podge!

The other component of Trailblazers which I think is worthy of inclusion is the fact that you are often working alongside other racers, rather than at odds with them. Naturally, you do have opponents but often you work in teams of two or three to beat the other team, with the ultimate goal being to secure the most points and win. Charging ahead and winning the race won’t always bag results in this style of racing, as you need to paint those damn lines to boost your team forward. Good GOD, I love this idea! I really want this to be something Mario Kart works with.

In Trailblazers, being on a team actually means something, unlike in Mario Kart, when it just acts as a way to know who you shouldn’t launch shells at. This was, for me, where the best of Trailblazers is showcased, and unfortunately, it isn’t there enough for me. I think the idea of team-based racers is awesome, and the use of it in Trailblazers is decent enough, but much more could have been done with it.

Trailblazers naturally has an online mode. The biggest bummer, though? There is no one. I couldn’t find a single game, not even cross-platform. Like, I spent 20 minutes in a lobby, and not a single person joined. I really wanted to test out the online, but, I mean, how can I if not a single game is achievable because of player counts? The lobby music is great, I guess? Not for 20 minutes, but I am clutching at straws a little here folk . . .

Good luck racing online! No lobbies for me ever…

Just like my playtime with Trailblazers, this review is rather short, but I have a few more things to say before we finish things up. For one, the art is really strange. I think the aim is for a cel-shaded style, but it looks somewhat rough. It was better in handheld purely due to the more condensed screen but damn, I gotta’ admit it looks rough on a TV. I also hated the character design! Nothing personal, but I think they look really, really ugly, I was rushing to get out of the menus and into the game to avoid the character models! For me, art is everything to a game, and when I can’t get on board with the visuals, I struggle to go any further. I always felt like I was playing a rushed 2000s game whenever I booted up Trailblazers, which is a massive shame.

I really hate the character designs, they just feel… off?!

My graphics based issues are further exemplified by the track design. The worlds surrounding them are actually OK, especially with the context of me not being a fan of the games art style. However, this variation is completely eliminated from the track itself, all are the same plain, grey colour (before the painting of course), and feel very synthetic because of this! At the end of the day, it is just another design mishap which could have been really easily straightened out. One of my favourite parts of the Mario Kart series is the beauty of the tracks. Thus, it is a disappointment to see such boring options in Trailblazers.

Ultimately, Trailblazers is a game which tried something different. It brought about some fascinating mechanics but fails to deliver on them completely and satisfyingly. Mix this with a detestable art style, and a lack of content due to the online ghost town, and you are left with a missable title which fails to have any real staying power.

Thanks for checking out our review of Trailblazers! For a fun party game check out our review of Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes! To keep the conversation going go follow us on Twitter and join our Discord.