It’s so neat to know what it’s called. I recall it being very impressive as a kid. I’ll never forget the Super Star Wars (SNES) Sandspeeder level.
Interesting tangent:
I just finished “Console Wars” by Blake J. Harris which basically is a very well researched dramatization of the late 80s/ early 90s console wars from the point of view of Sega of America.
It’s relevant here because Mode 7 was a big deal and one of the bigger technical advantages the SNES had over the Genesis/Megadrive. Mario Kart and the like was a really effective blow back at Sega at a time when Sega finally was able to leap ahead of Nintendo. But also mode 7 turned out to be a huge marketting advantage in Nintendo’s favor purely in advertising.
Sega of America’s marketing coined Blast Processing as a purely counter marketing maneuver and is nowhere nearly as technically interesting. However they succeeded in getting it implanted in people’s collective consciousness for a long time as something comparable to mode 7.
I remember kids could essentially make gangs based on the console they begged their parents to buy them, so there were snotty little kids arguing:
“Mode 7 blows the roof off all games! Mario Kart, F-Zero, the game that comes with the Super Scope my cousin has!”
“Whatever, Blast Processing is gonna destroy! And we have a Mortal Kombat blood code, to boot!”
I know, I was also surprised by how middle school aged children spoke back then, but my 7 year old assures me the 80s and 90s were “olden times”, so that is just how they spoke…
I didn’t even have a console for a long time, but I bled grey and red for Nintendo, always.
I’m so bummed how they’re going after ROMs.
Not to beat a dead horse, but I stumbled across this. Mode 7 LIVES!