It’s Been 24 Years, And I’m Still Mad That Nintendo Reinvented This Classic Series on GameCube

Star Fox is one of Nintendo’s most enduring franchises, even if it’s never neccesarily been the publisher’s primary focus. While Mario, Link, and Pikachu have always generated stronger sales, the advancements in 3D game design made by the original Star Fox laid the groundwork for a lot of technical aspects of gaming that we take for granted today. Since then, the series has experimented with its rail-shooter gameplay and honed the action in some pretty great games. However, there’s one entry in the series that, despite earning strong reviews, I can never really get behind.

The last collaboration between Nintendo and Rare before the latter company was brought under the Xbox umbrella, Star Fox Adventures was a serious shift away from the previously established series formula. Reimagining a fantastical adventure game halfway through development as the next entry in the typically space-faring arcade flight sim, Star Fox Adventures has some solid game design and visuals but simply doesn’t feel like a Star Fox game.

Star Fox Adventures Might Have Been Good, But Wasn’t What Fans Wanted

Star Fox Adventures was a big deviation from the original series in a lot of ways — and it still bugs me. The earlier games in the series had been airborne arcade flight sims that leaned into early 3D polygons and the vibrant colors that came with them. However, the game quickly diverged from the standard formula. The game largely takes place on Dinosaur Planet, with Fox exiting his Arwing and exploring the mystical world on foot. On a mechanics level, the game plays similarly to other 3D action-adventure games of the era, taking clear inspiration from titles like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. The primary tool, a magical staff that Fox quickly finds on his journey, serves both as the primary weapon for combat and as a tool for puzzle solving. This is the brunt of the game’s single-player experience, with a few examples of the game shifting into Arwing mode and putting players back into the traditional Star Fox gameplay style — which is why this game was so frustrating.

As a fan of the first Star Fox and Star Fox 64, the prospect of a new entry in the series that was on the same level of ambition as Rogue Squadron II was exciting. I remember playing through the game for the first time, ecstatic during the first on-rail flight segment and then deeply confused when Fox got out of the ship. The game is primarily built on the work the game developers had done for Dinosaur Planet, which Nintendo had convinced Rare to fuse with one of former’s in-house IP as a means of hopefully expanding the appeal of the franchise. The underlying game itself isn’t bad, with the graphics and combat being especially impressive for the time. For the kind of game it is, it’s because the game had started life as a different property and got the Star Fox coat of paint on it, but it ended up not feeling like a Star Fox game as a result.

Star Fox Adventures’ Best Levels Prove Why I’m Still Mad About It

The most frustrating part about getting Star Fox Adventures as a Star Fox fan was that the few instances where the game shifted into a more familiar form were a blast. The team clearly knew how to put together a traditional Star Fox game, with the final confrontation with Andross and other brief Arwing segments hinting at the strength of the team’s game design in that genre. The boss battle at the end of the game against Andross is a fun throwback flight mission, recalling the final challenge of Star Fox 64. The GameCube’s capabilities result in a gorgeously rendered threat that still looks good today. The boss is the right kind of challenging for Star Fox fans, and all the more frustrating for being in a game that’s largely not all that interested in being a Star Fox game.

It’s not a final boss that rewards the player for perfecting their skills with the staff or their quick-thinking in an earthbound battle, but forces players to adjust to an entirely different style of gameplay. If you’ve loved the game for the action-adventure elements, this sudden shift must have been an unexpected (and difficult) jolt. It feels like a classic Star Fox encounter and would likely be a great conclusion to a more fleshed-out Star Fox game. By contrast, it’s a weird tonal shift after the more mystical narrative of Star Fox Adventures that can leave players unprepared for a genuinely solid rail-shooter boss, all while making Star Fox fans even more annoyed because it’s clear the team could have delivered a great Star Fox. I love Star Fox, and the strong sales of Star Fox on the Switch 2 give me hope for the future of the franchise. Looking back, though, it’s important to remember just how quickly the tone of the series can shift into something that lacks that key Star Fox feel.