Gaming audiences are already more than used to remakes: from mass-appeal titles like Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, to massive projects like Final Fantasy VII, to versions that honor the originals like Resident Evil, it’s fair to say this is very familiar territory for both players and studios. In this context, Star Fox arrives on the Nintendo Switch 2 retelling the story that became iconic on the Nintendo 64, but this time with updated graphics and a few extra nuances.

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The most obvious of those showed up on the big screen. Fox McCloud, the franchise’s protagonist, is a fairly important character in Super Mario Galaxy: The Movie, suggesting that Nintendo plans to bring the fox back into the spotlight.

Another point that’s impossible to ignore when playing the new game has to do precisely with this familiarity we’ve developed with classic revivals. We already know what a remake looks like when it can extract the essence of the original material and carry it into the present day — not by overdoing it, but by filling in the empty spaces that the passage of time inevitably creates. In that sense, unfortunately, Star Fox stops halfway.

For longtime fans, there aren’t many surprises when it comes to the story. It begins with the failed mission of James McCloud and his squadron of mercenaries, who fall to Andross’s forces after Pigma Dengar’s betrayal. The character sacrifices himself to save his companions, leaving his son Fox in the care of his colleague and friend Peppy Hare.

After a time jump, we’re introduced to an adult Fox, though still a reckless one. He inherited leadership of the team despite his immaturity in handling crisis situations, especially under pressure from the talented Falco, who wants to compete with his captain at every turn. The duo, alongside veteran Peppy and engineer Slippy Toad, receives an incredibly difficult mission from General Pepper, setting off the journey that will make the pilots revisit the past.

Across seven missions, we pilot both the Arwing and land and sea prototypes built by Slippy, though the gameplay between them doesn’t differ all that much. Fox’s main vehicle is equipped with cannons and a lock-on charged shot, along with a wide-range bomb; movement is always forward, with brakes and turbo to control speed, plus some side-to-side motion to dodge obstacles and enemy fire — in that regard, the famous Barrel Roll is a major ally for the player.

The concept of shooting wherever the Arwing’s nose is pointing, without much variation in camera placement or reticle position, may feel dated. In tighter environments, it can even be hard to see enemies that are right in front of you, causing some frustration, especially when bosses don’t have especially large hitboxes but their attacks take up nearly the entire screen.

The Nintendo Switch 2’s mouse function helps ease that problem, putting the player in something like an FPS mode. There is a considerable loss of visibility, but at least aiming your shots becomes easier. Local co-op, which gives directional controls to one player and the cannons to another, also works well as a buffer; even so, neither option is the primary way to play.

The console as a whole, in fact, acts as a catalyst for making these issues easier to overlook. The Joy-Con’s haptic feedback delivers an excellent sensation when your shots connect with an enemy, especially when the map opens up and we can move around freely. The battles against Star Wolf are a lot of fun, and Battle Mode, which adds the possibility of online multiplayer, leans on that strength to deliver a galactic warfare experience.

Strictly speaking in terms of gameplay, players who get comfortable with the controls will have a great time. Those who struggle — which is entirely understandable — to get a handle on the game’s aiming may end up a little frustrated.

At the end of the day, saying that Star Fox stops halfway as a remake has less to do with gameplay and more to do with the story. The disappointment also doesn’t come from this being the fourth or fifth time we’ve lived through this story, which is presented in an extremely similar way to Star Fox 64. The problem lies in the missed opportunities.

There are at least two moments that suggest a huge climax for the protagonist, where he’ll have to take risks and solve something in a way only a cool hero like him could. Instead of showing us those moments — or even taking the fox out of the ship so we could control him during those sequences — the choice was to cut to a blank screen and then immediately show the resolution of the drama afterward.

The same goes for deepening the narrative as a whole. There’s a certain charm in keeping the seven missions and their alternate routes the way audiences from back then remember them, but it also wouldn’t have hurt to add a few extra crumbs of context about who Andross is and why he’s so evil, or to explain the rivalry with Star Wolf. Watching the most memorable scenes from Star Fox 64 and realizing they’re practically identical leaves a bitter taste in your mouth.

With the full game in hand, it’s fair to say our preview, done in Mexico City at Nintendo’s invitation, was pretty spot-on: Star Fox is not aiming to reinvent the franchise or take the character to the next level; the intention here is, most likely, to put McCloud back into the public imagination so he can perhaps soar to new heights in the near future.

In the meantime, the generation that had fun on the Nintendo 64 has a game that will bring back that exact same sense of wonder from the time, now with improved graphics and impeccable Brazilian Portuguese voice acting. As valid as it is to marvel at the extremely high level of nostalgia, it’s also no crime to feel disappointed at not seeing such beloved characters in new situations.

Star Fox

Star Fox

25 junho 2026

Shoot'em up

Developer: Velan Studios

Publisher: Nintendo

Rating: 10 years

Platforms: Nintendo Switch 2

Tested on: Nintendo Switch 2