Star Fox
a game by | Nintendo, and Argonaut Games |
Genre: | Action |
Platform: | SNES |
Editor Rating: | 7/10, based on 4 reviews |
User Rating: | 8.8/10 - 5 votes |
Rate this game: | |
See also: | Star Fox Series, Fox Games |
I bet you're as surprised to see this as we were. Yes, StarFox 2 was on display at the Winter CES and boy was it hot! It seems that the evil Andross is back, and he's out to conquer the universe again.
StarFox 2 utilizes many of the same play techniques as the first game, but there have been some major improvements. For one, the game is non-linear, allowing you to fly your R-Wing almost anywhere. Second, your ship can transform into a robotlike walker for new types of missions. Another cool idea is that you can choose your pilot from a cast of cool characters. There is even a splitscreen, Two-player Mode for even more shooter thrills.
StarFox 2 is an impressive shooter that goes beyond the original in the typical Nintendo fashion.
ANDROSS HAS RETURNED!
Team StarFox has been called to duty once again, as Andross' forces make a surprise attack on the Lylat system. Instantly, four worlds have been enslaved by the armies of the evil Andross. and the invaders are now approaching Corneria. You must free the planets and stop Andross once and for all!
PROTECT CORNERIA AT ALL COSTS...
Throughout the game, the Andross forces will attack Corneria. When this happens, you'd better stop the level you're in and hunt down the attackers. If Corneria's damage hits 100 percent, you'll lose the game. The Andross armies send ships and missiles.
ANDROSS INVASION FORCES
As you attempt to free the four planets from Andross' control, the enemy will attack Corneria. As you saw above, the planet can only take so much damage before your game ends. Andross will send several types of ships, and even a missile or two. It's up to you to hunt down these enemies and dispose of them. You must act quickly or they'll do damage!
TAITANIA
Taitanra is where Andross has his primary missile launch sites. Sweep in quickly and destroy the few defenders. Then concentrate on the missile silos. They go down after a few shots, so hop to it StarFox Team!
VENOM
Venom was once Andross' main fortress. After you liberated it, the world began to heal. Now the evil one has returned, and the world fs turning nightmarish again. Destroy the base by shooting its walls away.
ELEDARD
The Poisoner is ruining the planet of Eledard. It's up to you to find the machine, shut it off and blow it up. There is little resistance here, so you shouldn't have too much trouble. You're almost done, so hurry up!
METEOR
Destroy the occupation forces that lie deep within the Meteor. You will mostly come across strange walkers and lots of cannons built into the walls. This mission is tough, so move fast or you are as good as dead.
Download Star Fox
System requirements:
- PC compatible
- Operating systems: Windows 10/Windows 8/Windows 7/2000/Vista/WinXP
- Pentium II (or equivalent) 266MHz (500MHz recommended), RAM: 64MB (128MB recommended), DirectX v8.0a or later must be installed
Game Reviews
Get ready for blast off! Star Fox by Nintendo will fly you into outer space combat like you've never seen before. This is the first SNES game to be equipped with Nintendo's Super FX (SFX) graphics chip. If this is any indication of things to come... wow!
Galactic Monkey Business
The story line is simple enough. In an animal universe a big ape scientist named Andross gets too smart for his hairy britches. When he's caught conducting unsavory experiments, he's banished to the planet Venom -- out of sight, out of mind. Then one infamous day, "Emperor" Andross comes back on the scene with a vengeance, plus a ruthless space armada.
You are Fox McCloud, leader of the Star Fox squadron (a group of animal adventurers with outstanding spaceship- flying combat skills). Your squadron members are Falco Lombardi (a bird being), Peppy Hare, and Slippy Toad -- the toughest group of critters this side of the Bronx zoo.
Foxy Graphics & Sounds
Star Fox is an excellent outer space shoot-em-up that dazzles you with eye-popping graphics even when it sends you down in flames. You fly the Arwing, an awesome star-fighter, and your team flies in formation with you.
The game play is excellent, but the graphics make the show. As with most flight simulators, Star Fox uses polygon graphics, but you've never seen polygons move like this! The SFX is actually a math coprocessor chip that juices the CPU's ability to draw and move the graphics big time (see sidebar "The Power of Super FX") with great 3-D effects.
ProTip: When you fire from the behind-the- ship view, leant to aim by watching where your shots hit.
To spice up the look, the backgrounds feature terrific-looking bitmapped pix. The game also uses texture mapping, which basically paints graphics onto the polygon shapes to produce an eye-catching look.
Star Fox provides you with several slick game play views. Most stages use a behind-the-spacecraft view. You either fly out into space or skim across a planet's surface. In outer space stages you can switch among three viewpoints. A from-the-cockpit view displays your gun's cross hairs on-screen, which you move with directional controls. You also get two behind-the-ship views, which differ only in their distance from the tail of the Arwing.
This game's sounds will make you jump! The music rocks steady, but the effects are dynamite. The blasts and booms will pound a symphony of destruction on your eardrums. You also get some crazy digitized voice.
A Sly Game
There's more to this game than good looks. The game features three monstrously tough Difficulty Levels. Level 1 will make your thumbs and your head ache. Level 2 will drive you nuts. Level 3 will make sensitive players loose their Level grip and end up in therapy. There are continues, but no passwords, so keep 'em flying.
In a commendable piece of game design, each Difficulty Level takes you on a different path to your showdown with Andross on his home planet, Venom. Only the beginning and final stages are similar.
Take on all three Difficulty Levels and you fly 20 missions against Andross' armada. A great- looking mission map displays all three paths. Additionally, there's a mission to a Black Hole, which poses its own unique challenge. The Black Hole appears on the mission map, but it doesn't connect with any of the Difficulty Level paths indicated on the map. You must ferret out a secret pathway to reach it. Also, there's a hidden level that doesn't show up on the map at all!
- Here's a hint to help you find the Black Hole: you must have rocks in your head.
- On the snow planet Titania, knock out the weather stations to alter your flying conditions.
- On Level 1, Stage 2, there's a 1-up. Look for rotating triple diamonds and shoot 'em.
- If you lose a wing, a Twin Blaster power-up will restore it.
Map reading, however, is the least of your worries. Andross' forces put up a furious resistance to your attack on their realm. You face a fierce fleet of aggressive enemy spacecraft and deadly robot guardians. Moreover, there's a huge boss on each stage, including a missile-launching Attack Carrier, a swift Dancing Insector machine, the devious shape-changing Phantron robot ship, and a voracious dinosaur called "Monarch Dodra."
- To beat the boss on Level 1, Stage 1, shoot the ship's lit areas.
- Inside the Boss ship on Level 1, Stage 2, try not to shoot the doors with the arrows on them. The arrows indicate which way the doors will open. Shooting the doors reverses the arrows and it could confuse you.
- To cripple the spindly legged Dancing Insector boss on Level 1, Stage 4, you must shoot its stilts. Knock off the white set twice. When the red legs appear, you've almost got him beat.
Animal Crackers
Your flying animal buddies are a great bunch of guys, but they don't help you too much. It pays, however, to cover their...uhhh...tails, because they occasionally lay down cover fire that can take out an enemy or two. As you fight, your pals occasionally pop up in a gorgeous communication screen to tell you their problems. It's a nice-looking bit of comic relief.
Star Fox Control
Star Fox's controls are primo. In fact, the controls will likely be what earns your respect for the processing power of the SFX chip. Even as Andross' forces toss everything they've got at you from the front and from the rear of your ship, it responds instantly to your button presses. The game uses every button on the SNES control pad at some time during your missions. You can pull slick, quick, barrel rolls to twist out of trouble. You can also turn your ship sideways to slip through narrow passageways.
On the first stage, immediately fly through all the arches and you'll earn a Twin Blaster. It makes a BIG difference.
The tight controls help you do some fancy flying to elude the aggressive enemy ships and robot traps. They also help to get you past some nasty obstacles. For example, you fly through overcrowded asteroid fields and through the insides of some large enemy vessels. Tricky outer space pillars criss-cross in front of your ship. When you blast ground targets, some of them topple over in front of you.
On Level 1, Stage 1, fly to the right side of town. You'll find a smart bomb hidden to the side of the buildings.
To help develop your combat flying skills, there's an excellent training screen that displays your controller and diagrams all the button functions. Before you begin your missions, a window on the screen displays the Arwing and enables you to try out the controls, including your weapons. You can also fly a training mission.
An All-Star Game
It's no-brainer time! Star Fox is a leap. It's the type of game that will make someone buy an SNES. The game itself is awesome. However, there are many impressive little touches that any gamer should appreciate. At the very least, Nintendo deserves an A for effort. There's a new star on the SNES horizon -- Star Fox!
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Available: 1993
- Levels: 13
- Theme: Shooting
A New Generation for Super NES!
Get ready to enter a whole dimension in home video gaming! StarFox is first cart that utilizes Nintendo's revolutionary new Super FX chip. This technology allows the Super NES to handle smooth polygon graphics and manipulate multiple sprites with Mode 7! The story is simple: the galaxy is being threatened by an-evil scientist known as Emperor Andross. You must lead a group of rather strange copilots in an attack against the offending armada. There are three different attack levels to choose from each with a variety of challenges. There is a training mode where you can get used to your ship's controls and a configure screen for your controller. Check out this incredible cart for yourself!
It certainly looks as if Nintendo hasn't been resting on its laurels the past few months. Back in the November issue, GameFabrique blew the doors wide open on the super secret Super FX Chip that turns your ordinary Super NES into a gaming monster.
Nintendo is now introducing the first game to really utilize this experimental technology. Called Star Fox, this game thrusts you into heated combat within the Rairatto Solar System.
The story involves Emperor Androv who is planning to overthrow the Rairatto System. You must engage Androv's forces with guns blazing! You are the leader of a team of birds, rabbits, frogs and foxes. Each of these combat divisions have their own unique fighting style on the ground and also in the sky.
Together, you and your teams will experience flight simulation at its best. Weave in and out of the 3-D buildings and marvel at the incredible scaling techniques that only the Super FX chip can offer. This game is slated for an early release so get ready!