Updated 14.05 | Published 13.48
The old Nintendo 64 game “Lylat Wars” is back in a new twist and feels just as good as it did in the 90s.
The graphics, the music and the gameplay are top notch – but Nintendo could probably have dared to go a little further.
Sometimes it just feels like an old game with better graphics.
star fox
Price: From approx. SEK 579
From: 7 years
Format: Switch 2
Developer: Velan Studios
Publisher: Nintendo
Played at: Switch 2
Plus: One of the best looking Switch 2 games on the market, very good controls, epic reinterpretations of the classic music.
Minus: Still as short as before, overly realistic characters, some levels are less fun.
I was hesitant at first to a remake of Nintendo The 64 game “Lylat Wars” from 1997. This despite the fact that the original is one of my favorite games for the console.
A roughly 2-5 hour long space game whose format would really have been best in an arcade is perhaps not the best recipe for success at a time when Nintendo has to prove itself with the Switch 2. The fact that Fox and the gang look like stuffed middle manager furries was not promising either.
After playing it though, I have to throw in the towel. “Star Fox” is a really delicious remake that takes the charming science fiction atmosphere of the original and turns it into a truly epic gaming experience. However, it is sometimes a little too faithful to its original.
The fox races across the ice with 4K graphics
“Star Fox” follows exactly the same simple but effective story as in “Lylat Wars”. Here we follow space pilot Fox McCloud and his team as they defend the galaxy against the evil scientist Andross in their funky spaceships.
The remake has a bit more cutscenes and dialogue that gives more context to the various planets you ride and pan on, but it honestly doesn’t add too much to the rather thin premise. It has also never been the focus, but mostly functions as a charming frame for the space adventure.
The fact that I’m still not completely sold on how they interpreted the characters with hyperrealism, however, derails the story more, it helps. I also think their design clashes a bit with the otherwise campy b-movie feel of the original.
If we look past the moldy muppets of main characters, “Star Fox” is without a doubt one of the best-looking games I’ve seen spinning on my Switch 2. Gliding over the emerald green waters of Corneria or beware of being crushed by asteroids in Meteo is simply a graphical delight. The newly recorded music by “The Legend of Zelda” and “Super Mario” composer Koji Kondo is also really powerful, with melodies that stick in my head for days after I play.
It all feels nostalgic and modern at the same time. This despite the fact that it is a rather outdated game hiding behind the polished surface.
“Do a barrel roll!”
“Star Fox”, but also “Lylat Wars”, is a short game. The game has a very arcadey feel, where you play a number of courses on a map until you reach the final boss and finally the credits. Doing it once takes about 1-2 hours, but there is some replay value as you can unlock alternate paths with other tracks.
Getting through all the roads takes perhaps a maximum of 5-6 hours.
So this is not a game for you who want as many hours of play as possible for your money spent. “Star Fox” is, as previously mentioned, a very faithful remake. So if you’ve played “Lylat Wars”, you’ve actually already played this. There isn’t much depth to the game mechanics either, but the fact that it’s so neat and fun to play makes up for it – as long as you can accept how short it is.
A neat remake for the already saved
As I said, I didn’t have high hopes for “Star Fox”, but I can’t say anything other than that I had a lot of fun during my delicious space travels.
However, this is coming from someone who really likes “Lylat Wars” and was around when it was released, so my feelings are not entirely without a certain dose of nostalgia. I therefore find it hard to believe that a short Nintendo 64 game with new graphics can become a blockbuster that takes Fox to the same level of success as Mario or Zelda.
The more open courses where you fly around an arena instead of in a straight line are also just as noisy and sometimes frustrating as they were 28 years ago. Many of the flaws that were in the original, are just as preserved as the tight game feeling.
Having said that hope I really hope that “Star Fox” can be enough of a success for us to see more of the cocky space fox in the future. Maybe even in a brand new game?
