F-Zero 99 1.5.5 update out now, patch notes

F-Zero 99 has received a bunch of support throughout 2024, and one last 1.5.5 update for the year was just released.

Frozen Tour is back in action, and can be played until January 19, 2025. Players will compete in three-lap races for points as they aim for a high score. Gem Sparks can also be collected on Frozen Tour Event tracks to unlock special rewards.

Here’s the full rundown of today’s update:

F-Zero 99 update 1.5.5 patch notes

New Additions

• The Frozen Tour Event has been added. All tracks in the game will be covered in snow and appear as frozen tracks. By collecting Gem Sparks that appear on the frozen tracks, players can get event-exclusive rewards.
  • The Frozen Tour Event will be held for a limited time only. You can see how much time is remaining in the event by pressing the L Button on the Main Menu.
  • If you match at least one Lucky Rank during the event period, you can get 500 Gem Sparks as a reward.
  • Classic Tracks and Secret Tracks will not become frozen tracks.
  • Grand Prix events for the Knight League, etc. will be held using normal tracks.
  • Frozen tracks will not appear in Private Lobbies.
• Added a special event called the Frozen World Tour in which players compete for rank in 9 consecutive races when the Frozen World Tour event is live.
  • The Frozen World Tour is a series of nine races, with each race consisting of three laps. The rules are based on a score system in which the rankings are determined by the total points awarded for each lap, the number of KOs, and the number of Gem Sparks collected during the three laps of the race.
  • In Frozen World Tour, the more players there are in the lobby, the more potential points that players can earn during the race.
  • A Frozen World Tour high-score rankings tab has been added to the weekly leaderboard. This ranking will be reset every Sunday at 4 p.m. PST (00:00 UTC).
  • A player ranking in 999th place or above in the Frozen World Tour will get a special badge. This badge can only be obtained once during the time when the event is live.
  • A Frozen World Tour category has been added to Prix in Records in the Workshop.
• Star Rivals will appear again. They will occasionally appear on frozen tracks races during the Frozen Tour Event.
  • Star Rivals will not appear in Team Battles and Private Lobby races.
  • The Star Rivals are Captain Falcon, Samurai Goroh, Dr. Stewart, and Pico from the SNES version of F-ZERO.
  • When you beat a Star Rival in a race where they’ve been chosen as your Rival, you’ll receive a special badge that can be used for customizing Pilot Cards. (This offer is limited to players who have not received one before).
• Added Boost colors and Spin Effects to be used for machine customization, as well as backdrops, badges, and borders to be used for Pilot Card customization. These can be unlocked when certain conditions are met.
  • There are some customization items that can only be obtained during the time when the Frozen Tour Event is live. You can check acquisition status by pressing the L Button on the Main Menu.
  • After you have obtained all of the customization items for the Frozen Tour Event, you will receive 3 Prix tickets for every 2,000 Gem Sparks you collect.
  • Any unclaimed rewards from last year’s Frozen Knight League will be available to obtain during this event.
  • This time we have also added customization items that can be obtained by playing Team Battle and Pro Tracks modes.
  • You can perform customization and confirm conditions for obtaining items by selecting Workshop from the Main Menu and then selecting CUSTOMIZE MACHINE, PILOT CARDS, or EMOTES.

Other Adjustments and Changes

• The maximum player level has been raised from 399 to 699.
  • The ☆ colors for players in levels 100-399 and those in levels 400-699 are now different so that they can be distinguished from each other.
• Decals for machines from BS F-ZERO GRAND PRIX can now be used in Team Battle.
• The player’s Pilot Card is now also displayed on the Pilot Card display screen before the race starts.
• When you obtain all emotes in the EMOTES section of the Workshop, the emotes for each character will now be displayed vertically.

Other Issues

• Fixed issues to make for a more pleasant gaming experience.

F-Zero 99 is currently available for Nintendo Switch Online members. We have patch notes for prior updates here.