Star Fox
The first game in the series, developed by Nintendo EAD and programmed by Argonaut Software, used the Super FX Chip to create the first accelerated 3D gaming experience on a home console. The Super FX Chip was an additional math co-processor that was built into the cartridge and helped the Super NES better render the game's graphics. The Super FX Chip has been used in other Super NES games as well, some with increased processing speed. Its reboot, "Star Fox 64", further revolutionized the video game industry by being the first Nintendo 64 game to feature  Rumble Pak support. Due to perceived issues with the German company StarVox, "Star Fox" and "Star Fox 64" were released in PAL region territories as "Starwing" and "Lylat Wars" respectively. However, as of "Star Fox Adventures", Nintendo went back on this decision so future releases could use the same name globally. Games. Main series. Section::::"Star Fox". The first game, "Star Fox", known as "Starwing" in Europe and Australia, was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. Developed by Nintendo EAD and programmed by Argonaut Software, it used the Super FX chip to simulate 3D graphics during a period  of predominately 2D games. Fox McCloud and his team, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi, take on Andross, who threatens to overthrow the Lylat system. The game's concept was inspired by a shrine to the fox deity Inari Ōkami, which Shigeru Miyamoto visited regularly. The shrine was accessible through a series of arches, influencing the gameplay. Several boss battles from the game are included as mini-games in the Wii title "", using the Wii Remote to fly the ship. Section::::"Star Fox 64". "Star Fox 64", known as "Lylat Wars" in Europe and Australia, introduced fully spoken dialogue, off -the-rails movement, new vehicles and characters, multiplayer, and rudimentary on-foot gameplay through an unlockable multiplayer mode. The game was released in 1997 for the Nintendo 64 and came bundled with the Rumble Pak, a force feedback attachment. "Star Fox 64" retells the main story of the original "Star Fox" canon, with new characters and gameplay elements. New multiplayer modes include: free-for-all, battle royale and a time trial. The overall plot is expanded with relatively small core changes. This game is also famous for quotes that have become Internet memes: "Do a barrel roll!" and "Use bombs  wisely" by Peppy Hare and "Can't let you do that, Star Fox!" by Wolf O'Donnell. Section::::"Star Fox 64 3D". "Star Fox 64 3D" is a remake of "Star Fox 64" for the Nintendo 3DS, released in 2011, being the second "Star Fox" title on a handheld console. Its existence debuted in a conceptual trailer for the Nintendo 3DS revealed at E3 2010, when objects from the Nintendo universe flew out of the 3DS screen. One of the many objects was a flying Arwing, hinting the next "Star Fox" game. The game was officially announced later on. Screenshots, footage, and  some information were revealed over the then-upcoming "Star Fox 64" 3D game at 3DS conferences on 29 September 2010, and 19 January 2011. With a few exceptions, the gameplay in "Star Fox 64 3D" is very similar to that of the original version. The player controls Fox's Arwing fighter using the circle pad to steer, the shoulder buttons to bank left and right, and the four right-hand buttons to fire lasers and bombs, boost and brake. The D-Pad allows the player to perform somersaults and u-turns, which can also be performed with combinations of other  controls, and to zoom in and out from the Arwing in "All-Range Mode". The player can also enable "Gyro Controls", using the 3DS' internal gyroscope sensor to control the Arwing. Character dialogue, messages and control information are displayed on the touch screen. "Star Fox 64 3D" also features a new multiplayer "Battle Mode", which allows players to play up to 4-player LAN multiplayer (via Download Play), or to battle against CPU opponents. During battles, each player's face appears on opponents' screens in a live reaction feed from the console's internal camera. Section::::"Star Fox Adventures". "Star Fox  Adventures", was released in 2002 for GameCube. Developed by Rare, the game is predominately an action-adventure game in which Fox is armed with a mystical staff; traditional space shooting is limited to small segments between chapters. Its roots can be traced to "Dinosaur Planet", a game Rare was developing late in the life cycle of the Nintendo 64, but cancelled at the behest of Nintendo and converted into a "Star Fox" game. "Adventures" introduced new characters, including, most notably, Prince Tricky and Krystal. Taking place eight years after the events of "Star Fox 64", the main antagonist is an  army of dinosaurs called the Sharp Claws, led by General Scales. Fox and Krystal fall in love soon before the final boss fight when Fox saves her life. Krystal then becomes the Star Fox team's newest member. The gameplay of "Adventures" resembles that seen in most 3D "The Legend of Zelda" games. Section::::"Star Fox: Assault". Developed by Namco, "Star Fox: Assault" was released in 2005 for the GameCube. The emphasis returned to Arwing-based gameplay, but also had portions of on-foot missions. "Assault" takes place one year after "Adventures", with the Aparoids becoming a new threat to the  Lylat system. The Star Fox team is tasked with stopping them. Along with ROB, Peppy now pilots the Great Fox, while Krystal replaces Peppy's role as one of the team's pilots. Section::::"Star Fox Command". "Star Fox Command" was developed by Q-Games for the Nintendo DS, and was released in 2006. It is the first "Star Fox" game for a handheld console and the first to offer online multiplayer. Like the original "Star Fox", gameplay is completely aircraft-based, and uses chatter much like the SNES game instead of the voice acting of later installments. "Command" utilizes a  new system of gameplay, incorporating strategy and abandoning its "fly-by-rail" roots. Players plot flight paths and engage enemies in an open arena-style flying mode using the Nintendo DS's touch screen. Each character has a unique ship with different abilities. For example, Slippy's ship has no lock-on feature and shorter boosts, but has stronger lasers and shielding; Fox McCloud pilots the redesigned Arwing II. "Command" takes place two to three years after the events of "Star Fox: Assault" and features possible nine endings, determined by the player's story progression choices. Section::::"Star Fox Zero". "Star  Fox Zero" was developed by Nintendo and PlatinumGames for the Wii U and released in April 2016. The first "Star Fox" game on a home game console in over 10 years, the game is controlled using the Wii U GamePad's gyroscope feature. "Star Fox Zero" also came packaged with a retail version of "Star Fox Guard", a tower defense spin-off game. Section::::"Star Fox 2". "Star Fox 2" was originally cancelled even though it was completely finished. Many of its new ideas were implemented for the then-forthcoming "Star Fox 64", such as the rival team Star Wolf, all -range mode, charge shot, and a multiplayer mode (though "Star Fox 2"s multiplayer mode was no longer featured in the final beta). Other elements such as choosing characters, map pointing, and multiple ship variations were later implemented in "Star Fox Command". A beta version of the Landmaster tank (the Walker) also makes an appearance as an Arwing with leglike attachments. A patch for the final beta was released by a third-party team of hackers to make the game complete, removing the debug mode menus, making an English translation, and removing subroutines for a buggy third vehicle not used in  the game. The game was officially released as part of the Super NES Classic Edition. Canceled games. Virtual Boy game. This game was a tech demo of what would have been a "Star Fox" game had the Virtual Boy adopted the series. The closest game to it is "Red Alarm". Cinematic camera angles were a key element, as they are in "Star Fox 2". At both E3 1995 and at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show 1995, the demo showed an Arwing doing various spins and motions. One observer called it "An intriguing technical demo featuring a "Star Fox"-like spacecraft doing  a lot of spinning and zooming in 3D. It is made of filled polygons and looks much better than the unfilled "Red Alarm" vehicles." Attendees to these two events were given 3D glasses to watch the demos and tech videos that were played on screens at the show floors, and from these videos. Arcade game. Originally planned as a companion game for "", an arcade game was abandoned and never released. It was supposed to be released in 2004–2005, but was not for reasons unknown. Spin-off games. Section::::"Star Fox" (Nelsonic Game Watch). Shortly after the release of the first "Star  Fox" game, in June 1993, Nintendo teamed up with Kellogg's and Nelsonic to develop and release a promotional LCD-based "Star Fox" Game Watch to those who bought a box of Corn Flakes and sent the order form to Kellogg's to receive the "Star Fox" game watch for free. In the game watch, there are four levels and the object is to fly towards the Attack Carrier and destroy it while dodging plasma balls and falling structures. The game watch also included a pair of earphones and a headphone jack for listening to the game without disturbing anyone  nearby due to the game watch missing a volume control. Nelsonic later released it in stores in a different watch appearance. Section::::"Star Fox Guard". "Star Fox Guard" was first shown at E3 2014 under the name of "Project Guard", and was announced under a final name in a March 2016 Nintendo Direct. "Guard" was released for the Wii U in April 2016, coinciding with the release of "Star Fox Zero". Developed by Nintendo and PlatinumGames, "Guard" is a tower defense game where the objective is to switch between different views on security cameras and protect the player's base by  shooting enemy robots. A physical version of the game came bundled alongside the physical version of "Star Fox Zero", and is also available separately as a digital download on the Wii U eShop. Related games. Section::::"Super Smash Bros." series. Various "Star Fox" characters and elements have appeared in the "Super Smash Bros." franchise of fighting games. Fox McCloud has appeared in all five as a playable character, while Falco Lombardi was featured in all titles since "Super Smash Bros. Melee" as an unlockable character. Wolf O'Donnell appears as an unlockable fighter in "Super Smash Bros. Brawl" and "Super Smash Bros.  Ultimate" as well. All three characters have virtually the same "Final Smash" in "Brawl" in which each calls down a Landmaster to run over and shoot enemies with, with minor differences between each; this was changed to an Arwing or Wolfen strike in "Ultimate". They also share similar moves, like the Blaster, Reflector, Fox Illusion/Falco Phantasm/Wolf Flash, and Fire Fox/Fire Bird/Fire Wolf. Peppy Hare and Slippy Toad make brief cameos in "Melee" and "Brawl", with Krystal, Leon Powalski and Panther Caroso appearing alongside them in the latter. All five released entries in the series feature "Star  Fox" related stages: Sector Z, Corneria, Venom, Lylat Cruise and Orbital Gate Assault. Sector Z (N64) and Corneria ("Melee", "Brawl", "3DS" and "Ultimate") are played atop the length of the mothership "Great Fox". Venom is played along the width of the "Great Fox", with the fighters doing battle atop the wings. In "Super Smash Bros. Brawl", the Corneria stage from "Melee" returns, as well as a new stage called "Lylat Cruise" which is set atop an all-new ship known as the "Pleiades" that warps between various areas within the Lylat system. In "Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and  Wii U", three "Star Fox" stages appear between both versions, with the Corneria stage from "Melee" returning once more for the 3DS version, while the Wii U version features the return of the Lylat Cruise stage from "Brawl" and a new stage based on the Orbital Gate Assault mission from "Star Fox Assault". "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate" features the return of the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages. Andross also appears in his form from the original "Star Fox" as an assist trophy, sucking in air and then spewing projectiles at combatants, Krystal similarly appears as an assist trophy in  Ultimate, using her staff to attack opponents. The item "Smart Bomb" is also featured. When used, it creates an explosion that slowly grows; however, sometimes the Smart Bomb is a dud and has a delayed explosion. Section::::"WarioWare" series. In "" for Wii, there is a "Star Fox" minigame in the style of the SNES title with three stages. Using the Wii Remote, the player pilots the Arwing through Corneria, Sector X, and Titania. At the end of each level, the player fights R.O.B. (not ROB 64 from the "Star Fox" series, but rather the R.O.B. attachment for the NES), who is  armed with a large NES Zapper. In "WarioWare Gold" for Nintendo 3DS, another SNES-styled Star Fox microgame appears, this time challenging players to not crash into anything when their ship is on the verge of being destroyed. Section::::"Super Mario Maker". Fox, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy, along with the Arwing Walker from "Star Fox Zero", appear as Mystery Mushroom costumes in "Super Mario Maker". Section::::"Starlink: Battle for Atlas". The Nintendo Switch version of Ubisoft's action-adventure game "" features exclusive missions featuring "Star Fox" characters and ships. As part of the game's toys-to-life features, the Nintendo Switch  starter pack includes figures of Fox McCloud and his Arwing that can be used in-game. Other media. Section::::"Nintendo Power" comics. A monthly "Star Fox" comic strip, illustrated by , was printed in issues 45 to 55 of "Nintendo Power" in 1993. It is an adaptation of the events of the original "Star Fox", with some exclusive characters not seen in any of the games to date. One such character is Fara Phoenix, a vixen who becomes the fifth member of Star Fox after they saved her from Venomian forces, who forms a close relationship with Fox. The story follows the  Star Fox team as they went from outlaws on Papetoon, to an elite Arwing fighter squadron. Fox, Falco, and Andross were the only 3 characters whose backgrounds were fully explained in the story. A sequel set after the events of the game was produced in "Nintendo Power" by the same team which continued the story, featuring Andross's DNA being split between two clones. The clones then begin an invasion of the Lylat system, laying waste to everything in their path. The Star Fox team springs back into action, while Fara— dressed in clothing once worn by Fox's deceased  mother, as the team had been enjoying some down time when the invasion begins— manages to provide an accidental, yet significant, distraction to one of the Andross clones when he spots her on a monitor due to a revelation that the original Andross was in love with Fox's mother and accidentally murdered her with a bomb intended for Fox's father, which the clone says over a loudspeaker, as the clone believes he is speaking to the deceased vixen, rather than Fara. Enraged by this new knowledge, Fox battles his way through the forces of Andross's clones, one  of whom slays the other as he considers the feelings of the one who believes Fara to be Fox's mother is a weakness that is unneeded, and destroys the survivor. The story ends with the Lylat system celebrating the ultimate defeat of Andross as what remains of his forces flee from the forces of Corneria and the surviving fighters of the other worlds in the system. Section::::"Lylat Wars Comic". The official "Club Nintendo" magazine in Germany released a "Star Fox 64" comic drawn manga-style to retell the game's storyline. The comic shows some scenes that were not  present in the game—for instance, Wolf kicking Andrew and Pigma out of Star Wolf because they acted against his orders (and thus saving Star Fox from the plot of the two). The comic ends with a robotic Andross being defeated. Japanese comics. A one-issue "Star Fox" comic by Kazumi Sakamoto (坂本かずみ) was printed in the "Comic Bonbon" 1993 Spring Vacation Jumbo Edition (春休みジャンボ増刊号), published in April of that month. A one-issue "Star Fox" comic by was printed in the 1993 Spring Break Edition (増刊号 ９３年春休み増刊) of "Corocoro Comic". A "Star Fox 64" comic by Takahiro Yamashita is  within the April and June 1997 issues of "Bessatsu Corocoro Comic". Takahiro Yamashita seen in April 1997 issue, p. 96, and June 1997 issue, p. 121.--> "Star Fox 64" (スターフォックス64). In: "Bessatsu Corocoro Comic" (別冊コロコロ). 28 April 1997 (28 April 1997 ). p. 94-119. and "Bessatsu Corocoro Comic" (別冊コロコロ). 30 June 1997 (30 June 1997 ). p. 121-145.</ref> Section::::"Star Fox: Farewell, Beloved Falco". is a Japanese manga created by Nintendo, and part of the main "Star Fox" series. The manga was released on the official "Star Fox Adventures" Japanese website, and it chronicles the events between "Star Fox  64" and "Star Fox Adventures". It gives the backstory as to why Falco left the Star Fox team. It also introduces a new antagonist, Captain Shears. Captain Shears runs a base on the sand-dune planet Titania, but unbeknownst to Star Fox, Shears is actually taking part in an experiment to resurrect Andross. In the beginning, Katt Monroe returns from "Star Fox 64" along with a rag-tag team of roughnecks with apparently an inside lead on the fact that Shears is evil. Fox doesn't believe them, which ends up in a sparring match between him and Falco, thus  adding more emphasis into Falco's intentions of leaving Star Fox. Eventually, it is revealed to Star Fox that Shears is indeed evil, and Fox storms in to stop the resurrection plan once and for all. The manga ends with the Star Fox team seeing Dinosaur Planet broken apart and deciding it is worth checking out. "Star Fox Adventures" opens with General Pepper ordering them to go there and save it, stating that their payment has been approved if they succeed. Section::::"Star Fox Zero – The Battle Begins". A 14-minute web video of "Star Fox Zero" produced by Shigeru Miyamoto , Production IG, and Wit Studio, features the Star Fox team in an anime-styled battle of the first level in "Star Fox Zero": Corneria. The short was later released via the Wii U eShop as part of the "Star Fox Zero: The Battle Begins + Training" demo. Cancelled TV series. In an interview with "The Serf Times", comedian and television host, Adam Conover revealed that back in 2015, him and other members of CollegeHumor were working along with Shigeru Miyamoto to produce a clay-animated show of the series. However, the project was cancelled a month later by Nintendo after  plans for a series based on "Legend of Zelda" were leaked by Netflix. Recurring elements. Arwing. The Arwing is the principal craft of the Star Fox team, and has appeared in all "Star Fox" games to date. The Arwing has had considerable changes, though all versions of it retain a basic shape: a central fuselage, two crested streamlined pods attached at the sides, known as Gravity Diffusers, or G Diffusers, and wings mounted on the side pods. From "Star Fox 64" onwards, the two side pods are a distinctive blue color. The Arwings make an appearance in the "Super Smash  Bros." series, in "Super Smash Bros. Melee" and "Brawl", they appear as trophies. In this series, Arwings are used by Fox and Falco as their on-screen introduction, in addition to being used as a stage obstacle on Fox's Level, Sector Z. The Arwings on this stage would occasionally fly through and shoot lasers at the players. In the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages they are seen flying in the background. The Arwing is also an easter egg in "" but can only be accessed by a gameshark code. It appears in Kokiri forest as an enemy who can  be defeated by Link with either a boomerang, fairy bow, or fairy slingshot. Once defeated, they fall to the ground, explode and its blast may inadvertently kill Link. The Arwing also appears as a piece of furniture in "" and "". When touched by the game character, the Arwing will briefly play the "Star Fox" theme music. It also appears over a box in "Super Mario RPG", Hinopio's Market, but it's just a decor. In "Bayonetta 2", miniature Arwings replace Bayonetta's guns when she is wearing the game's unlockable Star Fox costume. In addition, the plane in the  final level is also replaced with an Arwing. Miyamoto explains that the craft is called Arwing "because it was like one big wing shaped like an A." Landmaster. The Landmaster M1 tank first appeared in "Star Fox 64" (1997, Nintendo 64) as a tracked light tank in two of the game's missions and one of the game's multiplayer maps. It appeared again in "" (2005, GameCube), though with some changes, including the substitution of tank treads with tires. The Assault version of the Landmaster also handled somewhat differently and was used for "all-range" style combat rather than the  on-rails type of missions featured in "Star Fox 64". The Landmaster tank makes its most recent appearance in "Super Smash Bros. Brawl" (2008, Wii) as Fox's Final Smash. The same design – in alternate color schemes – is also used as the Final Smash for Falco Lombardi and Wolf O'Donnell. All three Landmasters have slightly different properties. The Landmaster that Fox and Falco use is the traditional white and blue color scheme, while Wolf's Landmaster is a black and red color scheme. Falco's Landmaster can fly higher and longer than Fox's but its firepower has reduced knockback . In addition, Wolf's Landmaster has greater firepower and knockback ability than the one Fox and Falco use, but it remains on the stage for a much shorter time. Other than a shared name, Nintendo's Landmaster tank is unrelated to the Landmaster vehicle from the film "Damnation Alley". Wolfen. The Wolfen is piloted by Wolf O'Donnell. This ship would have first appeared in "Star Fox 2", but was instead first seen in "Star Fox 64" on the planet Fichina (mistranslated as Fortuna in Star Fox 64, Fixed in 64 3D) – or alternatively – Bolse. Additionally, taking the hard path to  Venom enables the player to battle the Wolfen II, which outperforms the Arwing. In "", Team Star Wolf piloted the original versions of the Wolfen against the Star Fox team, and they are playable in the game's multiplayer mode. The Wolfen has also appeared in "Super Smash Bros. Melee" and "Brawl" as interactive elements of the Corneria, Venom, and Lylat Cruise stages. They can also be found in the original "Super Smash Bros." on the Sector Z stage, seen flying in the background. Reception. The "Star Fox" series has seen mostly positive reviews, the most acclaimed being "Star Fox 64 , while Star Fox Zero" received the most mixed reviews. "Star Fox" took the No. 115 spot on "EGM"<nowiki>'</nowiki>s "The Greatest 200 Videogames of Their Time", and 82nd best game made on a Nintendo System in Nintendo Powers Top 200 Games list. It also received a 34 out of 40 from "Famitsu" magazine, and a 4.125 out of 5 from "Nintendo Power" Magazine. Next Gen Magazine pointed out "Star Fox" as helping pioneer the use of 3-D video game graphics. The game has been used as an example of how, even with a fully polygon design, the game  was still very similar to older games in that there was a set path to travel through each level. As "Star Fox Adventures" took a different approach to the franchise, many fans complained it was too much like a role-playing adventure game, such as "The Legend of Zelda". Regardless, it was critically praised. In an IGN poll for voting from a list of ten Nintendo characters for favorite Nintendo character of all time, Fox came in fourth, behind Link, Mario, and Samus respectively. In October 2009, Shigeru Miyamoto said that he felt disappointed that sales of the "Star Fox  series in Japan had decreased during the preceding period. Because of the popularity of the series, Google introduced an easter egg in which, if one types do a barrel roll" or "Z or R twice" into the search bar, and has a system compatible with HTML 5 or higher, the screen rotates 360°.