REVIEW: Star Fox

Star Fox is back, and this time it’s a full remake of Star Fox 64 rather than a new entry in the series. Developed by Velan Studios, it swaps the cartoony look of past versions for a more grounded, realistic art style and puts a heavier focus on story than any previous take on the game.

That’s a fair bit to unpack for a game that’s technically been remade before, but after spending a good chunk of time with it on Switch 2, I came away thinking this is a genuinely strong way to experience a Nintendo classic, whether you’ve played the original or not.

Story

The plot hasn’t changed much from the N64 original. You’re Fox McCloud, flying with your team to stop Andross from taking over the Lylat system, with Star Wolf popping up throughout to make things difficult.

What’s different this time is how it’s told. New cutscenes and updated voice acting give the story more room to breathe, and the cast plays it a bit more seriously than the hammier delivery longtime fans might remember.

Having not played the Nintendo 64 version but seeing videos online, I do think the more grounded performances suit the new visual direction and still leave space for each character’s personality to come through. It’s not a reinvention of the story, but it’s told with more polish than before.

Gameplay

This is still the same tight, replayable arcade shooter it’s always been, and that’s exactly why it works. A full run takes around an hour, split across seven stages out of sixteen total, with branching routes depending on how well you play. That structure makes it ideal for shorter sessions, and the Switch 2’s portability plays nicely into that pick-up-and-play rhythm.

The core loop of blasting through enemy ships while dodging hazards, either along a set path or in open arena stages, still feels great. Switching things up with the Landmaster on the ground or the Blue-Marine underwater adds some welcome variety without straying too far from what makes the flying sections work.

The dogfights against Star Wolf and the boss encounters are where the game really shows its teeth, demanding sharper flying and more thought about positioning than the standard stages. My one gripe is the same one people have had for years: your wingmates aren’t great at staying alive during these fights, and babysitting them can get a little tiresome.

Online multiplayer is a solid addition here too. It’s a different kind of pressure than the campaign, and even when I got shot down repeatedly by better pilots, it kept that same rush the story mode’s tougher fights deliver. The option to use custom V-Tuber-style faces via a USB camera is a fun bit of extra personality that I could see friend groups getting a kick out of.

Visuals

I’ll admit the realistic redesign didn’t click with me right away and seeing the cast rendered as actual animals felt like a strange choice at first.

It grew on me the more I played, partly because the new character models echo the look of the original promotional puppets from the series’ early days, which gives the shift some grounding rather than feeling arbitrary.

The environments and effects are sharp too, and this is easily the best-looking Star Fox has been on any platform. The soundtrack also sounds better than ever, which goes a long way toward tying the whole presentation together.

Conclusion

Star Fox doesn’t try to reinvent what came before, and it doesn’t really need to. What it does is take a game that’s been remade a couple of times already and give it its most polished version yet, with a stronger narrative presentation, a fresh look that earns its place once you sit with it, and gameplay that’s lost none of its charm.

If you’ve never played Star Fox 64, this is a great entry point. If you have, there’s still enough here in the presentation and the multiplayer to make it worth another trip through the Lylat system.

Star Fox Pricing & Availability

Star Fox is available now on Nintendo Switch 2. The physical version is priced at €54.99 from Smyths, with the digital edition available for €49.99. It’s also available to purchase directly through the Nintendo Store.