The game may sound a bit familiar at first, and that's because it has some connections to Nintendo's own F-Zero series. ND Cube, the developer of F-Zero: Maximum Velocity for the GameBoy Advance, also handled the development of Tube Slider. There are some fairly obvious influences that can be seen when playing the game, but they tried to take the game in a slightly different direction. The high-speed hover racing is there, along with L & R triggers to drift and perform sliding turns and a tweaked boost/turbo system, just like you would find in F-Zero. Where Tube Slider differs, is in the track designs. As the name described, Tube Slider is all about racing within tube-like courses, which allow 360° movement around the course. It's an interesting twist, although one which could cause a bit of motion sickness after a while.

Tube Slider plays surprisingly well, and it was easy to just jump right in and win some races. The game has no weapons of any sort, but ND Cube has added a lock-on energy siphoning or "drafting" feature. If you are chasing down another racer it is possible to siphon their energy by lining up directly behind their craft, to simultaneously slow then down and whip your own craft ahead. The turbo/boost meter will gain some energy as well. Besides that, there are some boost icons scattered about, which launch you forward when touched. Besides the ability to race along the walls and ceiling of the tubular tracks and the lock-on feature, there is really nothing new or different in Tube Slider. I would say that the game has less technique than was found in the original F-Zero.

Overall, Tube Slider is a nice looking game. A silky smooth and very fast 60fps framerate, nice lighting and environmental effects, and well textured environments and vehicles round out the package. Hovercraft designs range from your typical "sled" type, to some crazy round droid looking crafts, and even one somewhat resembling a mech. All the races take place in tubular, lattice structures, but there are usually a decent amount of background details beyond that. Unfortunately, due to the same structure, its a bit difficult to really enjoy most of the scenery, and a lot of the courses end up having a similar appearance. The courses are set in most of the usual locations, such as fire, water or futuristic landscape themes.

The audio in Tube Slider is also fairly typical of the genre. A techno/electronic soundtrack dominates throughout, and none of is especially annoying or really that memorable. Sound effects are crisp, and there is a surprising variety to the hovercraft engine noises.

Tube Slider will inevitably be compared to the upcoming F-Zero GC, whenever it is finally released. While not quite in the same league as an F-Zero, Wipeout or Extreme G, Tube Slider is enjoyable for a bit. There aren't many modes besides the career and single run-type modes, though it does support up to 4 players simultaneously throughout. While not the big name blockbuster that NEC Games would probably want, the game is a decent attempt at getting back into the business. What would really turn heads, would be something like a new Bonk title or a similar update to a TurboGrafx 16 property (fingers crossed).