F-1 Race

F-1 Race is a racing video game released in Japan in 1984 for the Family Computer. A version was released in 1990 for the Game Boy in Japan and in 1991 in Europe and North America, which included the four-player adapter for four-player play. In the game, you drive one of two Formula One cars around various tracks near capital cities and landmarks. In the family computer version of the game, the cars come in three colors: red, light orange and dark blue. The gameplay is similar to that of Namco's Pole Position. If you finish first, second or third, you end up on the podium; you have to win on each track to move on to the next. The vehicles in the game have a general two-speed manual transmission that determines the speed (with a "LOW" and a "HI" setting). The race consists of ten tracks; the game repeats after the tenth run. Three difficulty levels help beginners get used to the artificial intelligence on "Skill Level 1", while novices get an extra challenge on "Skill Level 2" and experts get the ultimate challenge on "Skill Level 3". A strict time limit forces players to finish the races without making any mistakes in order to advance to a more complicated race track. Several Nintendo characters appear at the end of the race tracks: Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad, Bowser, Link, Samus, Pit and Donkey Kong. The game led to a continuation of the Grand Prix series with Famicom Grand Prix: F-1 Race and Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally. Like the original, neither game was ever released outside of Japan.