Star Fox Review

AKA “Lylat Wars” for Aussies who, back in the day, were either treated special or just indifferently…

Actually, on the above, it was to avoid any confusion with a company then known as StarVox, though a cursory glance now suggests there are many StarVoxs out in the wild but we don’t mind a bit of unique history in Australia -- it’s largely one of our strengths. (It was also known as Lylat Wars in other PAL territories, but we’ll claim it.)

At any rate.

Star Fox, as it is now known globally, is essentially a rebooted iteration of the N64 classic with shiny new visuals, suped-up frame-rates, a new Achievement system locked to Challenges, co-op and multiplayer and, naturally, new ways to play from a controller perspective, including the Switch 2 Mouse option, though we opted out of this early on (read our “Would you like to know more?” box out for… MORE!). And while all of the above is a reasonable sense of things to come, the base game remains, largely, unchanged. It has balance issues, for example where some boss battles are far too easy while others drag on for far too long. Characters are also divisive still, though we reckon there’s some vigour out of this effort that could translate to transmedia exploitation moving forward, but we’re digressing a bit here.

What surprised us most of all is how well this new spin translated from its original 1997 release to now and, as stated earlier, while reasonably unchanged, it also presented a fairly refreshing challenge (those bosses hinted at aside). There are three difficulty settings in Easy and Normal -- available out of the gate -- while Expert requires patience and skill to unlock, opening up replayability with minor touches that make this suddenly a must-have Switch 2 title.

It might be a reboot, of sorts, but Nintendo has done what Nintendo does and suddenly what felt old feels refreshingly new and once we got to grips with how this iteration played… well, we couldn’t put it down.

Star Fox

Genre: Space Shooter
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: June 25, 2026
Classification: G
Author: Stephen Farrelly
Date: June 30, 2026

Jerk Store

Chief among the major overhauls here are the new cutscenes between each mission, all of which helps contextualise just what it is you’re mercenarying for (yes, that’s now our word). You see, Fox and co. are shrewd business animals; McCloud himself obviously inherited his Old Man’s merc setup, but this also allows for some expression of character amongst the overall troupe. Falco is clearly a gun-for-hire even if he’s the last line of Jerk Store versions of himself, Slippy is, in modern context, Simon Pegg to Cruise’s Mission Impossible while Peppy is an old hat and simply there to remind us (and Fox) how to play/fly the game. Each delivers something in the fun and trope-laden department, but all are relatable on a level and therefore the game’s actually relatively engaging story becomes easier to digest, especially given this exercise is designed for multiple playthroughs.

"Additional routes can only be engaged when helping out any of your other wingmen, and we don’t mean on a beach volleyball court..."

More importantly, though, for newcomers is that levels tend to contain additional routes that can only be engaged when helping out any of your other wingmen, and we don’t mean on a volleyball court. These alternate routes can also be achieved by engaging with other elements of a level and all of sudden for the curiously engaging, you might find yourself in a wormhole, beneath an ocean or plotting a surprise attack, and as you play through these and gain access, you also get to choose the route you want, while the game’s writing and VO delivery never jars around this is actually surprisingly fluid, so it all always feels cohesive. 

This setup, while old, remains fairly unique and translates to modern gameplay in a fantastic way. You might find Falco’s cockiness annoying, but it’s a small price to pay to give him a hand if it means you get to plough through Achievements and unlock more of the game, as well as to meet his curious friend Katt.

Would you like to know more?
The mouse setup for the Switch 2 is yet to find its hero product in our honest opinion, but we're on board so far with how it's being trialled across so many games. Star Fox's use of it is more than passable, but as an arcade aerial combat-type, we preferred the Classic Controller for proceedings. It's just a matter of time before an RTS or the like comes though, ready to champion the option.

Where Have You Been All My Life?

The Campaign and its baked-in Challenges and Achievements (called that, which is still new for Nintendo) can be accessed in single-player or co-op or via GameShare, while some fairly fun multiplayer joins the extensive ways to play which really delivers something for both the old-schoolers and the newcomers alike. But for ours it was the myriad ways to engage in the Campaign that kept us champing at the bit for more. Achievements within the Challenge setup were also evolving, offering up a tiered structure while any that you tick off per run remained completed, even if you don’t get them all in one go. This works well because most missions are actually pretty short, they’re just jam-packed with things to try and do, some of which can become pretty difficult the deeper you get into the list.

"Given Nintendo's more recent foray into this, Fox and co. could really hold up something special, whether a standalone CG movie or an anime series..."

In this way, Star Fox is both an arcade-to-its-bones jaunt, but one with a cute and fun story that feels pretty complete. We mentioned the potential here for expanded media and given Nintendo's more recent foray into this, Fox and co. could really hold up something special, whether a standalone CG movie or an anime series or the like, it just feels like these characters and this world has a lot more to give, especially when you pay attention to the banter which often hints at past relationships, challenges and other adventures.

More importantly, though, is the thought that this might also be a kicking off point for even more Star Fox videogaming treatments down the track and there’s something telling about the care made here, but also things like Fox’s recent cameo in the Super Mario Galaxy movie, like Nintendo is quietly gauging interest or might even have something fresh and new to drop at any moment. We can only hope.

Adventure Time?  

As mentioned in our opening salvo, though, it still suffers in some areas from a perspective of balance -- we found the Sector X mission where we had to intercept a number of missiles to be fairly janky and difficult to handle given both the speed of the missiles, your own speed and the map’s fairly small amount of geometry (being U-Turned while initially getting a good line-of-fire on the missiles was maddening). Equally, Falco, for all his talk, isn’t any better at his job after all these years and you’ll just find yourself spending a lot of time protecting teammates while also trying to manage the Challenges and Achievements on offer, and the fact you lose out at the close of missions based on the health of your less-than-capable wingpeeps means these things need to be engaged.

"We’d have loved more tinkering in a fairer and more balanced cadence of challenge as well as an ever-rising skill ceiling..."

Bosses are also pretty easy. On Normal we beat the game inside an hour on the first playthrough while watching all cut-scenes, and found some baddies just too simple. It hikes up when you unlock Expert, but we’d have loved more tinkering in a fairer and more balanced cadence of challenge as well as an ever-rising skill ceiling. But this is an old game after all, and the meat of its gameplay really hasn’t changed much at all from 1997.

None of that deterred us from milking the game (and we still are) for all of its secrets and other additions for you to find and challenge yourself for, and it is a stunning reboot with a particular shout out to how well it's lit. Every level has some glorious lighting and you genuinely feel like you’re an ace pilot in a sci-fi world, which is simply a win-win. The soundtrack too is superb with the whole thing reminding us just why Nintendo has been the best at its unique craft for so long, we just hope this isn’t the last time we’re in Fox’s cockpit and that next time it’s something new and equally innovative.

What’s Boss?

  • Return of a classic game that was awesome back in 1997 and remains awesome in 2026
  • Fox and co. get an all-new audience to engage
  • Ever-escalating Achievements tied to Challenges prompting replayability
  • Multiplayer with online features across GameChat and GameShare, with co-op also available
  • Simply stunning, fast and very responsive

Not Boss Enough?

  • The balance can be a bit off across the whole experiece
  • Many of the online features are barebones, as are some of the rewards for completing the aforementioned Challenges
  • New levels built for this release would have been a nice addition given time between its original release and now

An updated reboot of the N64 classic, Star Fox utilises the Switch 2's unique controller options and online features to bolster a traditional experience, all with enhanced visuals and a fast frame-rate.

Learn about our reviews

About the Author

Written By Stephen Farrelly
Stephen Farrelly is a veteran journalist and editor with more than two decades experience in the worlds of gaming, entertainment, lifestyle and sport. He is a proud pug dad, loves art in all forms (particularly street and tattoo culture), and is the director of Swear Jar Editorial and Media Pty Ltd, this site's owner and publisher. When not dispensing words, he's also dispensing boutique beers as a taproom fixture at Bracket Brewing in Marrickville, NSW...
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