Star Fox series
Encyclopedia
is a video game series published by Nintendo
. The original game was a forward-scrolling 3D Sci-Fi rail shooter. Later sequels added more directional freedom as the series progressed. The game concept was inspired by a shrine to a fox god who could fly, which Shigeru Miyamoto
visited regularly. The shrine was accessible through a series of arches, thus inspiring the gameplay.
The first game in the series, developed by Nintendo EAD
and programmed by Argonaut Software
, used the Super FX
Chip to create the first accelerated 3D
gaming experience on a home console
. The Super FX Chip was an additional math co-processor that was built into the Game Pak and helped the Super Famicom and SNES better render the game's graphics. The Super FX Chip has been used in other Super Famicom/SNES games as well, some with increased processing speed. Its remake, Star Fox 64
, further revolutionized the video game industry
by being the first Nintendo 64
game to feature the Rumble Pak
.
Due to trademark issues over the name Star Fox in PAL region
territories, Star Fox and Star Fox 64 were released in those countries as Star Wing and Lylat Wars respectively. However, Nintendo bought the rights before the release of Star Fox Adventures so future games could be released worldwide with the same name.
The games follow an independent mercenary unit called Star Fox (made up of anthropomorphic animals) and their adventures around the fictional Lylat system.
The first game, Star Fox (known as Star Wing in Europe), also known as Star Fox 1, was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. Developed by Nintendo EAD
and programmed by Argonaut Software
, it used the Super FX
chip to simulate 3D graphics during a period of predominately 2D games. In Star Fox, Fox McCloud
and his team, Slippy Toad
, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi
, take on Andross, who threatens to overthrow the Lylat system. Several boss battles from the game are included as mini-games in the Wii
title WarioWare: Smooth Moves
, using the Wii Remote
to fly the ship.
Released in 1997
for the Nintendo 64, Star Fox 64 (Lylat Wars in Europe) introduced full spoken dialogue (Lylat Wars featured garbled Lylat Language as an option, which is similar to the dialogue in the original Star Fox/Star Wing for the SNES), fully three dimensional graphics, and new vehicles and characters. The game came bundled with the Rumble Pak
, a force feedback attachment. Star Fox 64 is the true beginning of the Star Fox canon
, and is one of the most popular games in the series. Although the main storyline features no on-foot missions, the player may unlock on-foot play in the multiplayer mode. The Multiplayer mode includes a free-for-all battle that goes up to 5 KOs to win, a battle royal, and a time trial.
This game is not a sequel to the SNES game, but rather a plot remake. The plot is changed but this is the beginning of the plot for the Star Fox games to come. This game is also famous for the quotes: "Do a barrel roll!" "Try a somersault!" and "Use bombs wisely" all of which are said by Peppy Hare.
A remake named "Star Fox 64 3D" was released on the 9th September 2011 for the Nintendo 3DS, featuring autostereoscopic 3D graphics.
The next Star Fox game, Star Fox Adventures, was released in 2002
for Nintendo's next home console, the Nintendo GameCube
. Developed by Rare, the game is predominately an action-adventure game
in which Fox is armed with a mystical staff; traditional space shooting is limited to small segments between chapters. Its roots can be traced to Dinosaur Planet, a game Rare was developing late in the life cycle of the Nintendo 64, but cancelled at the behest of Nintendo and converted into a Star Fox game. Adventures introduced new characters, including, most notably, Prince Tricky and Krystal. Taking place eight years after the events of Star Fox 64, the main antagonist is an army of dinosaurs called the Sharp Claws, led by General Scales. Fox and Krystal fall in love soon before the final boss fight when Fox saves her life. Krystal then becomes the Star Fox team's newest member.
Nintendo hired Namco
to develop Star Fox: Assault, released in 2005
, for the GameCube. The emphasis returned to Arwing-based gameplay, but also had portions of on-foot missions. Assault takes place one year after Adventures, with the Aparoids becoming a new threat to the Lylat system. The new Star Fox team is tasked to stop them. Along with ROB, Peppy now pilots the Great Fox, while Krystal replaces Peppy's role as one of the team's pilots.
Star Fox Command was developed by Q-Games
for the Nintendo DS
. It is the first Star Fox game for a handheld console
and the first to offer online multiplayer
. Like the original Star Fox, gameplay is completely aircraft based, and uses gibberish chatter instead of the voice acting of later installments. Command utilizes a new system of gameplay, incorporating strategy and abandoning its "fly-by-rail" roots. Players plot flight paths and engage enemies in an open arena-style flying mode using the Nintendo DS
's touch screen. Each character has a unique ship with different abilities. For example, Slippy's ship has no lock-on feature and shorter boosts, but has stronger lasers and shielding; Fox McCloud pilots the redesigned Arwing II. Command takes place two to three years after the events of Star Fox: Assault and features nine endings, determined by the player's story progression choices. None of these endings are currently considered to affect the storyline of the series as a whole.
for the Nintendo 3DS
, being the second Star Fox title on a handheld console. Its existence debuted in a conceptual trailer for the Nintendo 3DS revealed at E3 2010, when objects from the Nintendo universe flew out of the 3DS screen. One of the many objects happened to be a flying Arwing, hinting the next Star Fox game. The game was officially announced later on. Screenshots, footage, and some information were revealed over the upcoming Star Fox 64 3D game at 3DS conferences on September 29, 2010, and January 19, 2011.
mode (though Star Fox 2' s multiplayer mode was no longer featured in the final beta). Other elements such as choosing characters, map pointing, and multiple ship variations were later implemented in Star Fox Command. A beta version of the Landmaster tank (the Walker) also makes an appearance as an Arwing with leg-like attachments. A patch for the final beta was released by a third party team of hackers to make the game complete, removing the debug mode menus, making an English translation, and removing subroutines for a buggy third vehicle not used in the game. A patch with the cleaned up game an Japanese text is also available.
adopted the series. It ended up that the closest game to it was Red Alarm
. Cinematic camera angles were a key element, as they were in Star Fox 2
. Shown both at E3 1995 and at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show
1995, the game, though on the Virtual Boy, still used filled polygons. One observer called it "An intriguing technical demo featuring a Star Fox-like spacecraft doing a lot of spinning and zooming in 3D. It is made of filled polygons and looks much better than the unfilled Red Alarm vehicles." Attendees to these two events were given 3D glasses to watch the demos and tech videos that were played on screens at the show floors, and from these videos, only one public image of the possible Star Fox for the Virtual Boy survives.
-based Star Fox Game Watch to those who bought a box of Corn Flakes
and sent the order form to Kellogg's to receive the Star Fox game watch for free. In the game watch, there are four levels and the object is to fly towards the Attack Carrier and destroy it while dodging plasma balls and falling structures. The game watch also included a pair of earphones and a headphone jack for listening to the game without disturbing anyone nearby due to the game watch missing a volume control. Nelsonic later released it in stores in a different watch appearance.
has shown interest in creating a Star Fox game for the Wii
console in the future. GamesTM told Miyamoto that they would love to see a new Starfox game for Wii, he replied: “Me too.” As of now, however, no plot has been announced, and Q-Games
president Dylan Cuthbert has expressed reluctance to return to the series, although this does not rule out a game from another developer. Miyamoto
has suggested the Wii Remote
would work well for controlling an Arwing, while series designer Takaya Imamura
has also said he has a small idea on what Fox and Co. could engage in next time. A G4 interview with a series producer Dylan Cuthbert (who worked on Star Fox, the unreleased Star Fox 2, and Star Fox Command) has shown that Cuthbert will most likely not be involved with a Star Fox title for the Wii; as he says that, "The Wii is a bit more of a toy..." Hideki Kamiya
has stated to be interested in making a new Star Fox game.
In May 2006, an article suggested that a Star Fox experience for the Nintendo Wii console would be coming from Shigeru Miyamoto.
In August 2009, Turkish Nintendo news site Nintendocu.com reported that a Wii Star Fox game would be revealed in the upcoming issue of Nintendo Power
, showing a blurry image claimed to be the issue's cover page. (The Nintendo Power cover in question, #247, focused on Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
.) Titled "Star Fox Wii: Battle for Corneria", the game was to allegedly implement Wii MotionPlus
and would include an online battle mode with Wii Speak support. However, the Arwings and Great Fox displayed on the cover image were images from Star Fox: Assault. The same article updated its page three days after it was first published, adding headline that declared the information about Nintendo Power revealing the next Star Fox was false. However, the same page also has evidence to show that Nintendo recently renewed the domain name
"starfox.com", despite the fact, at the time, the URL still redirected to Nintendo's main portal.
In September 2009, a Nintendo news site called Infendo published an article stating that a Star Fox game for the Wii is currently being worked, said from a Nintendo staff member that did not give any more details.
In October 2009, Miyamoto commented on how the sales of the Star Fox games had been decreasing over the years, particularly in Japan. This was the latest time Shigeru Miyamoto talked about Star Fox directly, and does not necessarily mean a Star Fox game for Wii will not be made.
Hideki Kamiya
, the creator of the Devil May Cry
series and an avid Star Fox fan himself, has expressed interest in creating a new Star Fox game on the Wii in an IGN interview.
In an interview about Masahiro Sakurai
's Nintendo 3DS
game Kid Icarus: Uprising
, he revealed that he originally had Star Fox characters in mind to use for a new core gameplay concept made specifically for Nintendo 3DS. However, he then stated the concept worked better as a new Kid Icarus game instead.
However, later in June, Nintendo software producer and director Katsuya Eguchi
hinted Nintendo may be considering making a Star Fox title on the newly announced console Wii U.
Three Star Fox characters have appeared in the Super Smash Bros. franchise of fighting games. Fox McCloud
has appeared in all three as a playable character, while Falco Lombardi
was featured in Super Smash Bros. Melee
and Super Smash Bros. Brawl
as an unlockable character. Wolf O'Donnell appears as an unlockable fighter in Brawl as well. All three characters have virtually the same Final Smash in Brawl in which each calls down a Landmaster to run over and shoot enemies with, with minor differences between each. They also share similar moves, like the Blaster, Reflector, Fox Illusion/Falco Phantasm/Wolf Flash, Fire Fox/Fire Bird/Fire Wolf. Peppy Hare and Slippy Toad
make brief cameos in Melee and Brawl, with Krystal, Leon Powalski and Panther Caroso appearing alongside them in the latter.
All three games feature Star Fox related stages: Sector Z, Corneria, and Venom. Sector Z (N64) and Corneria (Melee, Brawl) are played atop the length of the mothership "Great Fox", which is scaled down from its original length of .046 miles/242' 10.56" (.074 km). Venom is played along the width of the "Great Fox", with the fighters doing battle atop the wings. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Corneria stage from Melee returns, as well as a new stage called "Lylat Cruise" which is set atop an all new ship known as the "Pleiades" that warps between various areas within the Lylat system. Andross also appears in his form from the original Star Fox as an assist trophy, sucking in air and then spewing projectiles at combatants. The item "Smart Bomb" is also featured. When used, it creates an explosion that slowly grows; however, sometimes the Smart Bomb is a dud and has a delayed explosion.
for Wii
, there is a Star Fox minigame in the style of the SNES
title with three stages. Using the Wii Remote
, the player pilots the Arwing through Corneria, Sector X, and Titania. At the end of each level, the player fights R.O.B.
(not ROB 64 from the Star Fox series, but rather the R.O.B. attachment for the NES), who is armed with a large NES Zapper
.
, was printed in issues 45 to 55 of Nintendo Power
in 1993. It was a sort of background covering of events in the original Star Fox, with some exclusive characters not currently seen in any of the games to date. One such character was Fara Phoenix, a vixen who becomes the fifth member of Star Fox after they saved her from Venomian forces. The story followed the Star Fox team as they went from outlaws on Papetoon, to an elite Arwing fighter squadron. Fox, Falco, and Andross were the only 3 characters whose backgrounds were fully explained in the story.
The manga ends with the Star Fox team seeing Dinosaur Planet broken apart and deciding it is worth checking out. Star Fox Adventures opens with General Pepper ordering them to go there and save it, promising to pay them if they succeed.
games to date.
Throughout its appearances, the Arwing has had considerable changes, though all versions of it retain a basic shape: a central fuselage, two crested streamlined pods attached at the sides, known as Gravity Diffusers, or G Diffusers, and wings mounted on the side pods. From Star Fox 64 onwards, the two side pods are a distinctive blue color.
The Arwings make an appearance in the Super Smash Bros. series, in Super Smash Bros. Melee
and Brawl
, they appear as trophies. In this series, Arwings are used by Fox and Falco as their on-screen introduction, in addition to being used as a stage obstacle on Fox's Level, Sector Z. The Arwings on this stage would occasionally fly through and shoot lasers at the players. In the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages they are seen flying in the background. The Arwing is also an easter egg in The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time but can only be accessed by a gameshark code. It appears in Kokiri forest as an enemy who can be defeated by Link with either a boomerang,fairy bow,or fairy slingshot. Once defeated,they fall to the ground and explode and its blast may inadvertently kill Link. The Arwing also appears as a piece of furniture in Animal Crossing: Wild World
and Animal Crossing: City Folk. When touched by the game character, the Arwing will briefly play the Star Fox theme music. Also appears over a box in Super Mario RPG, Hinopio's Market, but it's just a decor.
Miyamoto explains that the craft is called Arwing "because it was like one big wing shaped like an A."
(1997, Nintendo 64
) as a tracked light tank in two of the game's missions and one of the game's multiplayer maps.
It appeared again in Star Fox: Assault
(2005, Nintendo GameCube
), though with some changes, including the substitution of tank treads with tires. The Assault version of the Landmaster also handled somewhat differently and was used for all-range style combat rather than the on-rails type of missions featured in Star Fox 64
.
The Landmaster tank makes its most recent appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
(2008, Wii
) as Fox's Final Smash. The same design — in alternate color schemes — is also used as the Final Smash for Falco Lombardi and Wolf O'Donnell. All three Landmasters have slightly different properties. The Landmaster that Fox and Falco use is the traditional white and blue color scheme, while Wolf's Landmaster is a black and red color scheme. Falco's Landmaster can fly higher and longer than Fox's but its firepower has reduced knockback. In addition, Wolf's Landmaster has greater firepower and knockback ability than the one Fox and Falco use, but it remains on the stage for a much shorter time.
Other than a shared name, Nintendo's Landmaster tank is unrelated to the Landmaster
vehicle from the film Damnation Alley
.
, but was instead first seen in Star Fox 64
on the planet Fortuna - or alternatively - Bolse. Additionally, taking the hard path to Venom enables the player to battle the Wolfen II, which nearly outperforms the Arwing. In Star Fox: Assault
, Team Star Wolf piloted the original versions of the Wolfen against the Star Fox team, and they are playable in the game's multiplayer mode. The Wolfen has also appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee
and Brawl
as interactive elements of the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages. They can also be found in the original Super Smash Bros.
on the Sector Z stage, seen flying in the background.
, while Star Fox: Assault
received the most negative reviews. Star Fox took the #115 spot on EGM' s "The Greatest 200 Videogames of Their Time", and 82nd best game made on a Nintendo System in Nintendo Power
s Top 200 Games list. It also received a 34 out of 40 from Famitsu
magazine, and a 4.125 out of 5 from Nintendo Power
Magazine. Next Gen Magazine pointed out Star Fox as helping pioneer the use of 3-D video game graphics. The game has been used as an example of how, even with a fully polygon design, the game was still very similar to older games in that there was a set path to travel through each level.
As Star Fox Adventures took a different approach to the franchise, many fans complained it was too much like a role playing adventure game such as The Legend of Zelda. Certain elements of the plot were also criticized, for example how Fox came to be on a potentially hostile planet entirely unarmed, simply because of the orders of General Pepper, despite, at the end of the previous game, telling him explicitly "we like doing things our own way". This is most likely because Rare did not originally intend for the game to be based in the Star Fox universe, and had to adapt their original game, Dinosaur Planet, to the new fictional universe. However, especially to players who had not had previous experience with the series, the game was seen as one of the best adventure games on the Nintendo Gamecube console, and one of the most graphically impressive games of its time. In an IGN poll for voting from a list of ten Nintendo characters for favorite Nintendo character of all time, Fox came in fourth, behind Link, Mario
, and Samus
respectively.
In October 2009 Miyamoto said that he felt disappointed that sales of Star Fox games in Japan had decreased during the preceding period.
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
. The original game was a forward-scrolling 3D Sci-Fi rail shooter. Later sequels added more directional freedom as the series progressed. The game concept was inspired by a shrine to a fox god who could fly, which Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
visited regularly. The shrine was accessible through a series of arches, thus inspiring the gameplay.
The first game in the series, developed by Nintendo EAD
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development
, commonly abbreviated as EAD, is the largest division inside Nintendo. It was preceded by the , a team of designers with an art background responsible for many different tasks, which Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka originally belonged to...
and programmed by Argonaut Software
Argonaut Games
Argonaut Games plc was a British video game developer. Founded as Argonaut Software by teenager Jez San in 1982 the company name is a play on his name and the movie title Jason and the Argonauts. It had its head offices in Edgware, London....
, used the Super FX
Super FX
The Super FX is a coprocessor chip used in select Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game cartridges. This custom-made RISC processor was typically programmed to act like a graphics accelerator chip that would draw polygons to a frame buffer in the RAM that sat adjacent to it...
Chip to create the first accelerated 3D
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
gaming experience on a home console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
. The Super FX Chip was an additional math co-processor that was built into the Game Pak and helped the Super Famicom and SNES better render the game's graphics. The Super FX Chip has been used in other Super Famicom/SNES games as well, some with increased processing speed. Its remake, Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
, further revolutionized the video game industry
Computer and video game industry
The video game industry is the economic sector involved with the development, marketing and sales of video games...
by being the first Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
game to feature the Rumble Pak
Rumble Pak
The is a removable device from Nintendo which provides force feedback while playing video games. Games that support the Rumble Pak cause it to vibrate in select situations, such as when firing a weapon or receiving damage, to immerse the player in the game. Versions of the Rumble Pak are available...
.
Due to trademark issues over the name Star Fox in PAL region
PAL region
The PAL region is a television publication territory which covers most of Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe...
territories, Star Fox and Star Fox 64 were released in those countries as Star Wing and Lylat Wars respectively. However, Nintendo bought the rights before the release of Star Fox Adventures so future games could be released worldwide with the same name.
The games follow an independent mercenary unit called Star Fox (made up of anthropomorphic animals) and their adventures around the fictional Lylat system.
Star Fox
The first game, Star Fox (known as Star Wing in Europe), also known as Star Fox 1, was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. Developed by Nintendo EAD
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development
, commonly abbreviated as EAD, is the largest division inside Nintendo. It was preceded by the , a team of designers with an art background responsible for many different tasks, which Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka originally belonged to...
and programmed by Argonaut Software
Argonaut Games
Argonaut Games plc was a British video game developer. Founded as Argonaut Software by teenager Jez San in 1982 the company name is a play on his name and the movie title Jason and the Argonauts. It had its head offices in Edgware, London....
, it used the Super FX
Super FX
The Super FX is a coprocessor chip used in select Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game cartridges. This custom-made RISC processor was typically programmed to act like a graphics accelerator chip that would draw polygons to a frame buffer in the RAM that sat adjacent to it...
chip to simulate 3D graphics during a period of predominately 2D games. In Star Fox, Fox McCloud
Fox McCloud
is an anthropomorphic video game character and the main protagonist of the Star Fox series. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and designed by Takaya Imamura. As his name implies, he is a red fox and the main player character of the series....
and his team, Slippy Toad
Slippy Toad
is a player character in the Star Fox series of video games published by Nintendo, debuting in the 1993 game Star Fox.-Design and characteristics:...
, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi
Falco Lombardi
Falco Lombardi, known as in Japan, is an anthropomorphic falcon or pheasant character from the Star Fox series of video games. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and designed by Takaya Imamura. Falco acts as the wingman and friend of title character Fox McCloud for the majority of the...
, take on Andross, who threatens to overthrow the Lylat system. Several boss battles from the game are included as mini-games in the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
title WarioWare: Smooth Moves
WarioWare: Smooth Moves
WarioWare: Smooth Moves, known in Japan as , is a party video game developed by Nintendo SPD and Intelligent Systems. The game was published by Nintendo for its Wii video game system in Japan in December 2006, and in Europe, North America, and Australia in January 2007...
, using the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
to fly the ship.
Star Fox 64
Released in 1997
1997 in video gaming
-Events:*October 4 — Gunpei Yokoi dies after a double car accident.*November – Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association launched.*3rd annual E3...
for the Nintendo 64, Star Fox 64 (Lylat Wars in Europe) introduced full spoken dialogue (Lylat Wars featured garbled Lylat Language as an option, which is similar to the dialogue in the original Star Fox/Star Wing for the SNES), fully three dimensional graphics, and new vehicles and characters. The game came bundled with the Rumble Pak
Rumble Pak
The is a removable device from Nintendo which provides force feedback while playing video games. Games that support the Rumble Pak cause it to vibrate in select situations, such as when firing a weapon or receiving damage, to immerse the player in the game. Versions of the Rumble Pak are available...
, a force feedback attachment. Star Fox 64 is the true beginning of the Star Fox canon
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
, and is one of the most popular games in the series. Although the main storyline features no on-foot missions, the player may unlock on-foot play in the multiplayer mode. The Multiplayer mode includes a free-for-all battle that goes up to 5 KOs to win, a battle royal, and a time trial.
This game is not a sequel to the SNES game, but rather a plot remake. The plot is changed but this is the beginning of the plot for the Star Fox games to come. This game is also famous for the quotes: "Do a barrel roll!" "Try a somersault!" and "Use bombs wisely" all of which are said by Peppy Hare.
A remake named "Star Fox 64 3D" was released on the 9th September 2011 for the Nintendo 3DS, featuring autostereoscopic 3D graphics.
Star Fox Adventures
The next Star Fox game, Star Fox Adventures, was released in 2002
2002 in video gaming
The year 2002 in video gaming saw the release of many games to sixth-generation video game consoles, predominately, the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.-Events:...
for Nintendo's next home console, the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
. Developed by Rare, the game is predominately an action-adventure game
Action-adventure game
An action-adventure game is a video game that combines elements of the adventure game genre with various action game elements. It is perhaps the broadest and most diverse genre in gaming, and can include many games which might better be categorized under narrow genres...
in which Fox is armed with a mystical staff; traditional space shooting is limited to small segments between chapters. Its roots can be traced to Dinosaur Planet, a game Rare was developing late in the life cycle of the Nintendo 64, but cancelled at the behest of Nintendo and converted into a Star Fox game. Adventures introduced new characters, including, most notably, Prince Tricky and Krystal. Taking place eight years after the events of Star Fox 64, the main antagonist is an army of dinosaurs called the Sharp Claws, led by General Scales. Fox and Krystal fall in love soon before the final boss fight when Fox saves her life. Krystal then becomes the Star Fox team's newest member.
Star Fox: Assault
Nintendo hired Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
to develop Star Fox: Assault, released in 2005
2005 in video gaming
-Events:*March 6 — The television show 60 Minutes tackles issues within video game controversy. This segment of 60 Minutes has been criticized by video game players for encouraging video game censorship....
, for the GameCube. The emphasis returned to Arwing-based gameplay, but also had portions of on-foot missions. Assault takes place one year after Adventures, with the Aparoids becoming a new threat to the Lylat system. The new Star Fox team is tasked to stop them. Along with ROB, Peppy now pilots the Great Fox, while Krystal replaces Peppy's role as one of the team's pilots.
Star Fox Command
Star Fox Command was developed by Q-Games
Q-Games
Q-Games is a video game developer based in Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. It has a mixture of foreigners and Japanese nationals on staff and works closely with both Nintendo and Sony.-Foundation:...
for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
. It is the first Star Fox game for a handheld console
Handheld game console
A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic device with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are run on machines of small size allowing people to carry them and play them at any time or place...
and the first to offer online multiplayer
Online game
An online game is a game played over some form of computer network. This almost always means the Internet or equivalent technology, but games have always used whatever technology was current: modems before the Internet, and hard wired terminals before modems...
. Like the original Star Fox, gameplay is completely aircraft based, and uses gibberish chatter instead of the voice acting of later installments. Command utilizes a new system of gameplay, incorporating strategy and abandoning its "fly-by-rail" roots. Players plot flight paths and engage enemies in an open arena-style flying mode using the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
's touch screen. Each character has a unique ship with different abilities. For example, Slippy's ship has no lock-on feature and shorter boosts, but has stronger lasers and shielding; Fox McCloud pilots the redesigned Arwing II. Command takes place two to three years after the events of Star Fox: Assault and features nine endings, determined by the player's story progression choices. None of these endings are currently considered to affect the storyline of the series as a whole.
Star Fox 64 3D
Star Fox 64 3D is a remake of Star Fox 64Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
for the Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
, being the second Star Fox title on a handheld console. Its existence debuted in a conceptual trailer for the Nintendo 3DS revealed at E3 2010, when objects from the Nintendo universe flew out of the 3DS screen. One of the many objects happened to be a flying Arwing, hinting the next Star Fox game. The game was officially announced later on. Screenshots, footage, and some information were revealed over the upcoming Star Fox 64 3D game at 3DS conferences on September 29, 2010, and January 19, 2011.
Star Fox 2
The game was cancelled even though it was completely finished. Many of its new ideas were implemented for the forthcoming Star Fox 64, such as the rival team Star Wolf, all-range mode, charge shot, and a multiplayerMultiplayer game
A multiplayer video game is one which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time. Unlike most other games, computer and video games are often single-player activities that put the player against preprogrammed challenges and/or AI-controlled opponents, which often...
mode (though Star Fox 2
Star Fox (Virtual Boy)
This game was a tech demo of what would have been a Star Fox game had the Virtual BoyVirtual Boy
The was a video game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was the first video game console that was supposed to be capable of displaying "true 3D graphics" out of the box. Whereas most video games use monocular cues to achieve the illusion of three dimensions on a two-dimensional...
adopted the series. It ended up that the closest game to it was Red Alarm
Red Alarm
is a game for the Virtual Boy video game console. Released in August 1995 by T&E Soft, it was one of the four titles available at the console's introduction. The game takes place 70 years in the future , where a computer named KAOS threatens to take over the world and destroy mankind...
. Cinematic camera angles were a key element, as they were in Star Fox 2
Star Fox 2
was an unreleased video game for the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It was to be the second of the Star Fox series and the direct sequel to Star Fox. Both Argonaut Games and Nintendo developed the game, with Nintendo planning to publish it. The Japanese version was completely...
. Shown both at E3 1995 and at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
1995, the game, though on the Virtual Boy, still used filled polygons. One observer called it "An intriguing technical demo featuring a Star Fox-like spacecraft doing a lot of spinning and zooming in 3D. It is made of filled polygons and looks much better than the unfilled Red Alarm vehicles." Attendees to these two events were given 3D glasses to watch the demos and tech videos that were played on screens at the show floors, and from these videos, only one public image of the possible Star Fox for the Virtual Boy survives.
Star Fox (arcade)
Originally planned as a companion game with Star Fox: Assault, it was abandoned and never released. It was supposed to be released in 2004-2005, but wasn't for reasons unknown.Spin-off titles
Shortly after the release of the first Star Fox title, in June 1993, Nintendo teamed up with Kellogg's and Nelsonic to develop and release a promotional LCDLiquid crystal display
A liquid crystal display is a flat panel display, electronic visual display, or video display that uses the light modulating properties of liquid crystals . LCs do not emit light directly....
-based Star Fox Game Watch to those who bought a box of Corn Flakes
Corn flakes
Corn flakes are a popular breakfast cereal originally manufactured by Kellogg's through the treatment of maize. A patent for the product was filed on May 31, 1895, and issued on April 14, 1896.-History:...
and sent the order form to Kellogg's to receive the Star Fox game watch for free. In the game watch, there are four levels and the object is to fly towards the Attack Carrier and destroy it while dodging plasma balls and falling structures. The game watch also included a pair of earphones and a headphone jack for listening to the game without disturbing anyone nearby due to the game watch missing a volume control. Nelsonic later released it in stores in a different watch appearance.
Future
The Nintendo game designer Shigeru MiyamotoShigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
has shown interest in creating a Star Fox game for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
console in the future. GamesTM told Miyamoto that they would love to see a new Starfox game for Wii, he replied: “Me too.” As of now, however, no plot has been announced, and Q-Games
Q-Games
Q-Games is a video game developer based in Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. It has a mixture of foreigners and Japanese nationals on staff and works closely with both Nintendo and Sony.-Foundation:...
president Dylan Cuthbert has expressed reluctance to return to the series, although this does not rule out a game from another developer. Miyamoto
Miyamoto
Miyamoto is a Japanese surname.-People:*Shigeru Miyamoto, video game designer for Nintendo*Shunichi Miyamoto, musician and voice actor*Kazushi Miyamoto, professional wrestler...
has suggested the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
would work well for controlling an Arwing, while series designer Takaya Imamura
Takaya Imamura
is a Japanese artwork designer for Nintendo. He designed the characters from the F-Zero and Star Fox series of video games. He is credited for creating many of the characters, universe, and overall concept of those franchises. He is the original designer of Captain Falcon and Fox McCloud in Super...
has also said he has a small idea on what Fox and Co. could engage in next time. A G4 interview with a series producer Dylan Cuthbert (who worked on Star Fox, the unreleased Star Fox 2, and Star Fox Command) has shown that Cuthbert will most likely not be involved with a Star Fox title for the Wii; as he says that, "The Wii is a bit more of a toy..." Hideki Kamiya
Hideki Kamiya
is a video game designer formerly employed by Capcom and Clover Studio. He is currently working with former Clover Studio members at Platinum Games.- Career :...
has stated to be interested in making a new Star Fox game.
In May 2006, an article suggested that a Star Fox experience for the Nintendo Wii console would be coming from Shigeru Miyamoto.
In August 2009, Turkish Nintendo news site Nintendocu.com reported that a Wii Star Fox game would be revealed in the upcoming issue of Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
, showing a blurry image claimed to be the issue's cover page. (The Nintendo Power cover in question, #247, focused on Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
is a 2009 sports video game developed by Sega. It was published by Nintendo for Japan and by Sega for North America and Europe. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee through exclusive license International Sports Multimedia...
.) Titled "Star Fox Wii: Battle for Corneria", the game was to allegedly implement Wii MotionPlus
Wii MotionPlus
The is an expansion device for the Wii Remote video game controller for the Wii that allows it to more accurately capture complex motion. According to Nintendo, the sensor in the device supplements the accelerometer and Sensor Bar capabilities of the Wii Remote to enable actions to be rendered...
and would include an online battle mode with Wii Speak support. However, the Arwings and Great Fox displayed on the cover image were images from Star Fox: Assault. The same article updated its page three days after it was first published, adding headline that declared the information about Nintendo Power revealing the next Star Fox was false. However, the same page also has evidence to show that Nintendo recently renewed the domain name
Domain name
A domain name is an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority, or control in the Internet. Domain names are formed by the rules and procedures of the Domain Name System ....
"starfox.com", despite the fact, at the time, the URL still redirected to Nintendo's main portal.
In September 2009, a Nintendo news site called Infendo published an article stating that a Star Fox game for the Wii is currently being worked, said from a Nintendo staff member that did not give any more details.
In October 2009, Miyamoto commented on how the sales of the Star Fox games had been decreasing over the years, particularly in Japan. This was the latest time Shigeru Miyamoto talked about Star Fox directly, and does not necessarily mean a Star Fox game for Wii will not be made.
Hideki Kamiya
Hideki Kamiya
is a video game designer formerly employed by Capcom and Clover Studio. He is currently working with former Clover Studio members at Platinum Games.- Career :...
, the creator of the Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry
is an action game developed and published by Capcom, released in 2001 for the PlayStation 2. Although it is the first game in the series of the same name, the events in Devil May Cry are second in the series storyline's chronological order, taking place after Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening and...
series and an avid Star Fox fan himself, has expressed interest in creating a new Star Fox game on the Wii in an IGN interview.
In an interview about Masahiro Sakurai
Masahiro Sakurai
is a Japanese video game designer, the creative force behind both the Kirby and the Super Smash Bros. series on Nintendo platforms. He is currently Director of Software Development for the video game developer's Sora Ltd. and Project Sora. He is also the author of a weekly column for Famitsu...
's Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
game Kid Icarus: Uprising
Kid Icarus: Uprising
Kid Icarus: Uprising, known in Japan as , is an upcoming title for the Nintendo 3DS video game system, developed by Project Sora and to be published by Nintendo. It is the third game in the Kid Icarus series and the first since 1991's Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, a nineteen-year wait...
, he revealed that he originally had Star Fox characters in mind to use for a new core gameplay concept made specifically for Nintendo 3DS. However, he then stated the concept worked better as a new Kid Icarus game instead.
However, later in June, Nintendo software producer and director Katsuya Eguchi
Katsuya Eguchi
is a game designer and manager at Nintendo EAD. He was born in 1965 in Tokyo, Japan and grew up in the Chiba Prefecture. He began work at Nintendo in 1986 and spent some time doing promotional artwork before starting as a designer on Super Mario Bros. 3. He first served as director for Star Fox in...
hinted Nintendo may be considering making a Star Fox title on the newly announced console Wii U.
Super Smash Bros. series
Fox McCloud
is an anthropomorphic video game character and the main protagonist of the Star Fox series. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and designed by Takaya Imamura. As his name implies, he is a red fox and the main player character of the series....
has appeared in all three as a playable character, while Falco Lombardi
Falco Lombardi
Falco Lombardi, known as in Japan, is an anthropomorphic falcon or pheasant character from the Star Fox series of video games. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and designed by Takaya Imamura. Falco acts as the wingman and friend of title character Fox McCloud for the majority of the...
was featured in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBM or simply as Melee, is a crossover fighting game released for the Nintendo GameCube shortly after its launch in . It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 game Super Smash Bros., and the predecessor to the Wii game Super Smash...
and Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
as an unlockable character. Wolf O'Donnell appears as an unlockable fighter in Brawl as well. All three characters have virtually the same Final Smash in Brawl in which each calls down a Landmaster to run over and shoot enemies with, with minor differences between each. They also share similar moves, like the Blaster, Reflector, Fox Illusion/Falco Phantasm/Wolf Flash, Fire Fox/Fire Bird/Fire Wolf. Peppy Hare and Slippy Toad
Slippy Toad
is a player character in the Star Fox series of video games published by Nintendo, debuting in the 1993 game Star Fox.-Design and characteristics:...
make brief cameos in Melee and Brawl, with Krystal, Leon Powalski and Panther Caroso appearing alongside them in the latter.
All three games feature Star Fox related stages: Sector Z, Corneria, and Venom. Sector Z (N64) and Corneria (Melee, Brawl) are played atop the length of the mothership "Great Fox", which is scaled down from its original length of .046 miles/242' 10.56" (.074 km). Venom is played along the width of the "Great Fox", with the fighters doing battle atop the wings. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Corneria stage from Melee returns, as well as a new stage called "Lylat Cruise" which is set atop an all new ship known as the "Pleiades" that warps between various areas within the Lylat system. Andross also appears in his form from the original Star Fox as an assist trophy, sucking in air and then spewing projectiles at combatants. The item "Smart Bomb" is also featured. When used, it creates an explosion that slowly grows; however, sometimes the Smart Bomb is a dud and has a delayed explosion.
WarioWare: Smooth Moves
In WarioWare: Smooth MovesWarioWare: Smooth Moves
WarioWare: Smooth Moves, known in Japan as , is a party video game developed by Nintendo SPD and Intelligent Systems. The game was published by Nintendo for its Wii video game system in Japan in December 2006, and in Europe, North America, and Australia in January 2007...
for Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
, there is a Star Fox minigame in the style of the SNES
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
title with three stages. Using the Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
, the player pilots the Arwing through Corneria, Sector X, and Titania. At the end of each level, the player fights R.O.B.
R.O.B.
R.O.B. , released in Japan as the , is an accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was released in July 1985 in Japan and later that year in North America. It had a short product lifespan, with support for only two games which comprised the "Robot Series"; Gyromite and Stack-Up. R.O.B...
(not ROB 64 from the Star Fox series, but rather the R.O.B. attachment for the NES), who is armed with a large NES Zapper
NES Zapper
The NES Zapper, also known as the Beam Gun in Japan, is an electronic light gun accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System and the Japanese Famicom. It was released in Japan for the Famicom on and alongside the launch of the NES in North America in October 1985...
.
Monthly Nintendo Power Comics
A monthly Star Fox comic strip, illustrated by Benimaru ItohBenimaru Itoh
is a Japanese illustrator employed by Nintendo.Itoh illustrated the comic adaptations of Star Fox and Super Metroid that were serialized in Nintendo Power in 1993 and 1994 respectively...
, was printed in issues 45 to 55 of Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
in 1993. It was a sort of background covering of events in the original Star Fox, with some exclusive characters not currently seen in any of the games to date. One such character was Fara Phoenix, a vixen who becomes the fifth member of Star Fox after they saved her from Venomian forces. The story followed the Star Fox team as they went from outlaws on Papetoon, to an elite Arwing fighter squadron. Fox, Falco, and Andross were the only 3 characters whose backgrounds were fully explained in the story.
Star Fox 64 manga
Nintendo of Europe released a Star Fox 64 comic drawn manga-style to retell the game's storyline. The comic showed some scenes that were not present in the game—for instance, Wolf kicking Andrew and Pigma out of Star Wolf because they acted against his orders (and thus saving Star Fox from the plot of the two). The comic ends with a robotic Andross being defeated.Star Fox: Farewell, Beloved Falco
is a manga created by Nintendo, and part of the Star Fox series. The manga chronicles the events between Star Fox 64 and Star Fox Adventures. The manga was only released in Japan, and came with the Japanese version of Adventures. It gives the back story as to why Falco left the Star Fox team. It also introduces a new antagonist, Captain Shears. Captain Shears runs a base on the sand-dune planet Titania, but unbeknownst to Star Fox, Shears is actually taking part in an experiment to resurrect Andross. In the beginning, Katt Monroe returns from Star Fox 64 along with a rag-tag team of roughnecks with apparently an inside lead on the fact that Shears is evil. Fox doesn't believe them, which ends up in a sparring match between him and Falco, thus adding more emphasis into Falco's intentions of leaving Star Fox. Eventually, it is revealed to Star Fox that Shears is indeed evil, and Fox storms in to stop the resurrection plan once and for all.The manga ends with the Star Fox team seeing Dinosaur Planet broken apart and deciding it is worth checking out. Star Fox Adventures opens with General Pepper ordering them to go there and save it, promising to pay them if they succeed.
Arwing
The is the principal craft of the Star Fox team, it has appeared in all Star FoxStar Fox
, released as Starwing in Europe and Australia due to a game of the same name and subsequent trademark issues in those regions, is the first game in the Star Fox series of video games. It was released in the spring of 1993 for the SFC/SNES...
games to date.
Throughout its appearances, the Arwing has had considerable changes, though all versions of it retain a basic shape: a central fuselage, two crested streamlined pods attached at the sides, known as Gravity Diffusers, or G Diffusers, and wings mounted on the side pods. From Star Fox 64 onwards, the two side pods are a distinctive blue color.
The Arwings make an appearance in the Super Smash Bros. series, in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBM or simply as Melee, is a crossover fighting game released for the Nintendo GameCube shortly after its launch in . It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 game Super Smash Bros., and the predecessor to the Wii game Super Smash...
and Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
, they appear as trophies. In this series, Arwings are used by Fox and Falco as their on-screen introduction, in addition to being used as a stage obstacle on Fox's Level, Sector Z. The Arwings on this stage would occasionally fly through and shoot lasers at the players. In the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages they are seen flying in the background. The Arwing is also an easter egg in The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time but can only be accessed by a gameshark code. It appears in Kokiri forest as an enemy who can be defeated by Link with either a boomerang,fairy bow,or fairy slingshot. Once defeated,they fall to the ground and explode and its blast may inadvertently kill Link. The Arwing also appears as a piece of furniture in Animal Crossing: Wild World
Animal Crossing: Wild World
is a 2005 social simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console, and is the second game in the Animal Crossing series....
and Animal Crossing: City Folk. When touched by the game character, the Arwing will briefly play the Star Fox theme music. Also appears over a box in Super Mario RPG, Hinopio's Market, but it's just a decor.
Miyamoto explains that the craft is called Arwing "because it was like one big wing shaped like an A."
Landmaster
The tank first appeared in Star Fox 64Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
(1997, Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
) as a tracked light tank in two of the game's missions and one of the game's multiplayer maps.
It appeared again in Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault is a third-person shooter video game for the Nintendo GameCube developed by Namco and published by Nintendo. It is the fourth released title in the Star Fox series. It was released on February 14, 2005 in North America, on February 24, 2005 in Japan, on April 29, 2005 in Europe,...
(2005, Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
), though with some changes, including the substitution of tank treads with tires. The Assault version of the Landmaster also handled somewhat differently and was used for all-range style combat rather than the on-rails type of missions featured in Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
.
The Landmaster tank makes its most recent appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
(2008, Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
) as Fox's Final Smash. The same design — in alternate color schemes — is also used as the Final Smash for Falco Lombardi and Wolf O'Donnell. All three Landmasters have slightly different properties. The Landmaster that Fox and Falco use is the traditional white and blue color scheme, while Wolf's Landmaster is a black and red color scheme. Falco's Landmaster can fly higher and longer than Fox's but its firepower has reduced knockback. In addition, Wolf's Landmaster has greater firepower and knockback ability than the one Fox and Falco use, but it remains on the stage for a much shorter time.
Other than a shared name, Nintendo's Landmaster tank is unrelated to the Landmaster
Landmaster
The Landmaster is a unique 12-wheeled amphibious articulated vehicle constructed by Dean Jeffries at Jeffries Automotive in Universal City, California for the 1977 science fiction film Damnation Alley. Despite the appearance of two Landmasters in the film , only one was built at a cost of $350,000...
vehicle from the film Damnation Alley
Damnation Alley (film)
Damnation Alley is a 1977 film, directed by Jack Smight, loosely based on the novel of the same name by Roger Zelazny. The original music score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.-Plot:...
.
Wolfen
The is piloted by Wolf O'Donnell and the members of the Star Wolf team. This ship would have first appeared in Star Fox 2Star Fox 2
was an unreleased video game for the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It was to be the second of the Star Fox series and the direct sequel to Star Fox. Both Argonaut Games and Nintendo developed the game, with Nintendo planning to publish it. The Japanese version was completely...
, but was instead first seen in Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
on the planet Fortuna - or alternatively - Bolse. Additionally, taking the hard path to Venom enables the player to battle the Wolfen II, which nearly outperforms the Arwing. In Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault is a third-person shooter video game for the Nintendo GameCube developed by Namco and published by Nintendo. It is the fourth released title in the Star Fox series. It was released on February 14, 2005 in North America, on February 24, 2005 in Japan, on April 29, 2005 in Europe,...
, Team Star Wolf piloted the original versions of the Wolfen against the Star Fox team, and they are playable in the game's multiplayer mode. The Wolfen has also appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. Melee, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBM or simply as Melee, is a crossover fighting game released for the Nintendo GameCube shortly after its launch in . It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 game Super Smash Bros., and the predecessor to the Wii game Super Smash...
and Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
as interactive elements of the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages. They can also be found in the original Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros.
Super Smash Bros., known in Japan as , is a fighting game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan on January 21, 1999, in North America on April 26, 1999, and in Europe on November 19, 1999. Super Smash Bros. is the first game in the Super...
on the Sector Z stage, seen flying in the background.
Reception
The Star Fox series has seen positive reviews, the most acclaimed being Star Fox 64Star Fox 64
, known in Australia and Europe as Lylat Wars, is a scrolling shooter video game for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is a reboot of the original Star Fox, and the only game in the Star Fox series to be released on the Nintendo 64....
, while Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault
Star Fox: Assault is a third-person shooter video game for the Nintendo GameCube developed by Namco and published by Nintendo. It is the fourth released title in the Star Fox series. It was released on February 14, 2005 in North America, on February 24, 2005 in Japan, on April 29, 2005 in Europe,...
received the most negative reviews. Star Fox took the #115 spot on EGM
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
s Top 200 Games list. It also received a 34 out of 40 from Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
magazine, and a 4.125 out of 5 from Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
Magazine. Next Gen Magazine pointed out Star Fox as helping pioneer the use of 3-D video game graphics. The game has been used as an example of how, even with a fully polygon design, the game was still very similar to older games in that there was a set path to travel through each level.
As Star Fox Adventures took a different approach to the franchise, many fans complained it was too much like a role playing adventure game such as The Legend of Zelda. Certain elements of the plot were also criticized, for example how Fox came to be on a potentially hostile planet entirely unarmed, simply because of the orders of General Pepper, despite, at the end of the previous game, telling him explicitly "we like doing things our own way". This is most likely because Rare did not originally intend for the game to be based in the Star Fox universe, and had to adapt their original game, Dinosaur Planet, to the new fictional universe. However, especially to players who had not had previous experience with the series, the game was seen as one of the best adventure games on the Nintendo Gamecube console, and one of the most graphically impressive games of its time. In an IGN poll for voting from a list of ten Nintendo characters for favorite Nintendo character of all time, Fox came in fourth, behind Link, Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, and Samus
Samus Aran
is the protagonist of the Metroid video game series. Introduced in the 1986 video game Metroid, Samus is a female ex-army soldier bounty hunter usually fitted with a powered armor suit with weapons that include beams and missiles...
respectively.
In October 2009 Miyamoto said that he felt disappointed that sales of Star Fox games in Japan had decreased during the preceding period.
External links
- Lylat Wiki - a Star Fox wiki affiliated with the Nintendo Independent Wiki Alliance.
- Arwingpedia - a Star Fox wiki hosted on WikiaWikiaWikia is a free web hosting service for wikis . It is normally free of charge for readers and editors, deriving most of its income from advertising, and publishes all user-provided text under copyleft licenses. Wikia hosts several hundred thousand wikis using the open-source wiki software MediaWiki...
- Arwing Landing, a fansiteFansiteA fansite, fan site, or fanpage is a website created and maintained by a fan or devotee interested in a celebrity, thing, or a particular cultural phenomenon...
- Starfox-Online, another fansite in addition to ArwingLanding.net.
- StarFox Comics at Arwinglanding.net - Archived JPEG copies of all StarFox comics
- StarFox Comics at MobianLegends.com's StarFox section - Archived copies of all StarFox comics
- Page with PDF versions of the comics.