A Game I Wish: Star Fox Franchise

There’s been rumor of a new Star Fox game around the corner for Wii. As a huge fan of the series of course I’m excited but I feel that I am due for disappointment. Nintendo really hasn’t respected the Star fox series since Star Fox 64 and outside of Smash Brothers, Fox hasn’t made a high quality appearance since the mid 90’s.  Let’s take a look at the previous Star Fox games first, then I’ll illustrate what I believe will be the ultimate Star Fox game.

Star Fox 64
Star Fox 64 give us a 3D rail shooter experience and a cinematic narrative experience. through out our mission we literally are trying to follow in James Mc Cloud’s (Fox’s father) foot steps. Our performance in the game is Fox’s constant struggle to be like his father. The narrative is something we can all find a connection with; having to live up to someone or some expectation. It’s never easy. The use of sound was also mind blowing. With a fantastic sound track that would define the Star Fox series and voice acting that’s quoted to this day, no wonder Star Fox 64 lives as the most popular and true Star Fox game.

Fox stands Tall. A face of a leader

Star Fox Adventures
In an effort to save the 64 adventure game, Dinosaur Planet, Nintendo re-skinned the game into the Star Fox universe. This ladies and gentlemen was the beginning of the end. The game at one point clearly illustrates the decision to make this game a Star Fox game as the mood switches from vegetated exploration to rail shooting space battles. Some could consider it fresh to have Fox out of his Arwing but it left us wanting more of Star Fox 64. The biggest compliant about this game from me is how they changed Fox. His personality and who he was doesn’t reflect what we learned about Fox in Star Fox 64. He’s more childlike and outgoing in appearance and nature. We no longer had a fearless leader on the raise.

Fox's Furriest version. He's more comical then serious.

Star Fox Assault
A step back to the Star Fox 64 universe, this game gave us some rail shooter levels and the ability to jump out of our machines into new ones ( Land Master, Wolfen, another Arwing) or fight on foot. The mechanic was very interesting but failed to deliver on many technical notes. ( though it can be expanded on and made into something really amazing)  The voice acting returned but was exceptionally poor and flat. The sound effects were simply terrible. When you get hit, you wouldn’t really know. You just take the damage. Star Fox 64 made it clear when you took a hit, then you could begin to evade the danger. The narrative was mildly interesting but nothing too rich. The Multiplayer was surprisingly good but also broken. Ground combat was so poor that the best strategy was always run to the next Land Master, which was significantly better then the Arwing and of course on foot. Fox is constantly being told what to do this in this game. As a leader he isn’t making very many decisions. Really, his original character hardly shows in this game.

As some would call it.
Photoshop By:  Chris Hill

Star Fox Command

This DS game is 100% flying and adds a strategy element. The game play was a step up from Assault but the multiplayer was a step down with a hardly enjoyable dog fight game. The story continues from Star Fox Assault and tells the story of another war but most importantly Fox’s relationship with Crystal. This look into who Fox is is the first time we get it since Star Fox 64. It was hugely refreshing. This game concludes the Star Fox story line with definite conclusive endings to the end of the character’s life spans. Fox the whole time is longing for Crystal, who he’s losing. Again though Fox’s personality changes no longer reflecting who he was drawn as in any of the previous games other then the concrete facts we were given. ( Crystal for example). The various endings are all very interesting and makes me wonder f they are going to choose a seemingly conclusive ending and work off of it for the new Star Fox game or if they are going to reboot the series with a telling of the same universe.

Fox and Friends as seen in Star Fox Command.

The Ultimate Star Fox Game
The Narrative and game play of my ultimate Star Fox game will take a step back to the days of the N64. The game play will be course based and on rails using mostly Arwing with a splash of Land Master and Blue Marine. The new element of this game would be that while on rails the story mode will be 4 players from beginning to end with each of the characters ( Fox, Falco, Peppy, Falco) having there own rail flight path in the same combat space. Confusing? Consider how Time Crisis 4 was 2 players on rail. Both players are fighting in the game fight but from different angles. This Star Fox game would play similarly as the rails of each character assist and complement each other from beginning to end. It would give this generation an amazing 4 player experience. Also the completest would have to play the game’s level’s 4 times to get every experience in the game. Of course the game would be able to played on-line over a network. The key here to rebooting the Star Fox rail shooter is design for the on-line experience.

Star Fox as seen in the original Smash Brothers.

Fox as seen in the original Smash Brothers.

Consistently is lost even in the same title.

Heavy Critical Roll on Fox’s Character
The direction and narrative of the story would have to build of Fox’s leadership. That player would have the most difficult flights and the other 3 players would be at the mercy of his skill level. Having fox’s roll be difficult gives a sense of Fox’s growth as a character and your growth as playing as Fox. “Your being more like your father”.  Imagine if your ability to take down certain enemies in time would change your team mates flight path or causes them to become downed. It will cause conflict or trust between Fox and his wing mates. That would compliment the games narrative if you play alone or with others. The Dynamic Story experience for 4 players is entirely possible for the Star Fox Universe.

 

Fox as seen in Super Smash Brother's Melee.

Multiplayer Experience
The Key to the lifespan of a game in this generation is a strong multiplayer experience with support from the publisher. What I mean is consistent playlists, modes, patches, maps, balance adjustments. If you keep them coming back for more, the gamer’s investment in the game both in terms of money and time is respected and the publisher can also benefit by profiting off downloadable content and support. In any case, the Star Fox Multiplayer would be a build off the Star Fox Assault multiplayer in terms of Land Master, Arwing, and on foot combat. The experience can take a page from Halo with it’s multiplayer experience in terms of presentation. The biggest problem Assault suffered was the size of the environments. A system with the processing power to generate huge environments would be best to keep the fight from being over crowded. It would also make close combat and distance combat possible. It would be ,at default,  a elimination format like counter strike / Gear’s of War; First to 5 rounds wins. Teams would be 4 men in size ( Star Fox Team vs. Star Wolf Team style) and up to 16 players ( 2 random teams for the sake of multiplayer). Communication between your wing men and enemies will be done in the style of Star Fox 64. Your Character’s portrait will pop up and begin to move his mouth but your voice will be presented. The unique ability to contact your team mates and enemies separately as any time would be an interested factor in combat that would make this game unique.

Fox as Seen in Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

This is my favorite look since Star Fox 64.

Why It Can't Happen
The Wii is the biggest limitation for a game like this to exist. The on-line ability of the wii is so weak that it could never handle any of these ideas story mode and multiplayer alike. The voices can never happen as Nintendo has a big issue with privacy. The environments would also never be big enough to hold the experience of travel in the Arwing / Land Master without taking speed out of the machines. Finally, since the wii is presented in Standard Definition,  the draw distance would never be good enough to hold the depth needed for an immersive sense of travel. It would also limit the multiplayer experience’s combat. The best way to reboot the Star Fox series is with next generation technology. A lot of people consider this the age of High Definition but I argue the true tool of the next generation is the on-line experience. Unfortunately Nintendo can’t deliver either one.