Star Fox Review – You Did Good, Fox

It’s not an entirely new or especially innovative title, but Star Fox is a top-notch game that provides us with another reminder as to why Star Fox 64 has been such a beloved game since its launch. The new cutscenes and updated voice acting give the familiar story a fresh feel, and the gameplay is as exciting as it’s ever been. Whether you’ve played the original before or not, you can’t go wrong giving Star Fox a go.

Though I never had a Nintendo 64 (having grown up as a Sega kid), I loved playing Star Fox 64 when visiting family that had it. The Nintendo 3DS remake was fantastic too, and Star Fox Zero at least tried some new things while reimagining the game. Now we’ve arrived at Star Fox – a full-fledged new remake of Star Fox 64 that goes for a more realistic look while emphasizing the narrative more than any previous take. While it may feel like a bit much to redo one game yet again, it’s hard to deny that this is a pretty excellent remake.

If you’ve never played Star Fox 64, your average run of the game takes about an hour or so. There are 16 total levels, with each run covering seven stages. Fulfilling certain conditions puts you onto different routes, culminating in a final battle against the vile Andross and one of two endings. I love how quick a run, and particularly each stage, can be, as it allows for incredibly convenient segmented playing. This is a perfect game for people who don’t have long periods to play, as the portability of the Switch 2, combined with the quick stages, creates a perfect pick-up-and-play experience.

The stages of Star Fox are all a blast, typically consisting of you flying through the air and blasting enemy ships, either on a track or freely in a large area. Ducking and dodging obstacles and environmental hazards while battling enemy ships is a skill-testing endeavor, cementing the feeling of being an ace pilot without losing the fluid arcade vibe that makes flying so fun. The levels that let you use the earthbound Landmaster or underwater Blue-Marine provide a refreshing change of pace, too, without diverging too far from the core gameplay loop. Finding the conditions for the numerous routes is rewarding, and being able to tackle the stages and their challenges individually after beating them makes it easy to replay your favorite parts on a whim.

Shooting down weaker enemies feels great, but it’s the boss battles and dogfights with the antagonistic Star Wolf that feel like the real high points of the title. Having to perform more advanced maneuvers whilst figuring out weak points or keeping up with a skilled opponent is especially satisfying, and there’s a bountiful abundance of these encounters throughout pretty much any route you take. It can be a bit irritating trying to babysit your whole team in these sections, as they seem even worse at keeping themselves alive in these parts than in your standard levels.

Online multiplayer is a great addition to Star Fox. I’ve enjoyed taking on strangers, despite learning I am far less skilled as a pilot than the campaign led me to believe. That being said, even when I’m being blown out of the sky, there’s the same sense of excitement that I mentioned getting in boss battles and dogfights. Being able to use the goofy V-Tuber faces with a USB camera adds another layer of silly fun to this, as I could see a lot of friend groups having a blast with the models.

Star Fox‘s new visual style really grows on you.

When Star Fox was first revealed, I was a bit put off by the realistic look. The colorful and cartoony look of the characters in Star Fox 64 3D was perfect for me, so having the cast look like actual animals was a bit strange. I’ve gotten accustomed to it, though, and the fact that the new models are actually quite reminiscent of the original Star Fox promotional puppets helped me come around to the look. The environments and effects look stunning as well, making this the best a Star Fox game has looked thus far.\

Of course, what would Star Fox be without an exceptional soundtrack? The already thrilling and memorable tracks from Star Fox 64 sound better than ever here, especially when paired with the voice acting. Though I do miss the hammier delivery of previous versions, it’s an interesting thing to experience a somewhat “serious” take on a Star Fox story. The actors all do a grand job of making this silly Star Wars-adjacent narrative come off as almost grounded while also playing into the tropes each main character embodies. I hope we get an all-new Star Fox game with this cast, as I’d love to see what they can do with less well-trodden material.