Though I wasn’t overly impressed with the recent port of Star Fox 64 for the 3DS it was at least responsible for reigniting my love for the series. Since then I’ve had Star Fox on the brain. I went back and played all the old games, revisited the Star Fox-based stages in Super Smash Brothers Brawl and had all the classics theme songs stuck in my head on a constant loop. I even finally played the fan translated ROM of the completed but never released Star Fox 2.

So, for my first Blast from the Past piece I thought it would be highly appropriate to go back to where it all began, the original Star Fox. Maybe then the game’s theme song will finally vacate my brain.

It was actually a group of British whizz kids who were responsible for birthing what would become one of Nintendo’s most popular franchises. In the early 90s the London-based Argonaut Games managed to convince the Big N that 3D game play was possible on their current line of systems. They soon created the Super FX chip, a coprocessor that could be included in Super Nintendo cartridges to produce complex graphical effects like polygons. The flagship game for this cutting edge technology was Star Fox (renamed Star Wing in Europe from copyright reasons) released in 1993.

The game was mind blowing at the time with the 3D rendered environments, voice acting (a rarity in video games at the time) and superb soundtrack creating a cinematic shooter like never before.

Though it was lauded for its presentation Star Fox is no slouch on game play either

Nintendo and Argonaut didn’t rely on this to carry the game though, as Star Fox was immaculately designed and is still fun to this day. As a new take on the space shoot ‘em up genre both developers realised they’d need to take extra care to not alienate gamers. This ethos can be felt throughout the whole game, from playable training menu to the on-rails structure.

The Arwing launch sequence at the beginning of the first level is still one of my favourite openings to a video game

One of the more subtle yet brilliant touches was the dotted ground that gives the player a sense of depth and perspective. But probably my favourite addition is the ability to double tap either of a shoulder buttons to perform a barrel roll. Execute this move at just the right time and your Arwing space craft will harmlessly deflect away enemy projectiles. It was a simple but remarkable useful ability that meant even if you’d worked yourself into a corner you still had a fighting chance to survive.

Star Fox had a great deal of replay value and not just because of it’s reasonably high difficultly level. At the outset you have the choice between three completely different routes through the game all of which concluded in their own version of the final planet Venom. Each of the three also represented different difficulty levels, encouraging you to cut your teeth on the easiest path before stepping up to the harder two.

Story was not a major focus of the game though it added a lot of character to the proceedings. As would become a series tradition you play as Fox McCloud, leader of the elite star fighter squadron named Star Fox. Your equally anthromorphic wingmen Peppy Hare, Slippy Toad and Falco Lombardi accompany you as battle the forces of the evil Andross. Don’t expect your team mates to do much of the work though, as they’re mostly there to give you hints and be saved from pursuing enemy craft over and over again.

Another iconic moment is the trippy final battle with Andross who first appears a giant floating face.

While no figures are readily available for video game sales from back then it’s safe to say that Star Fox was a massive success for Nintendo. Not only did it strike an important blow in the infamous console war between the SNES and Sega’s Mega Drive (or Genesis in the U.S.) but it also spawned a long-running franchise. Nintendo continues to honour the original by including the music and other elements from it in the Super Smash Brothers games.

Though the sequel Star Fox 64 (renamed to Lylat Wars in Europe, again to avoid copyright reasons) reworked and improved many of Star Fox’s elements I don’t think it made the original redundant. The levels, the soundtrack and even the character designs were completely different for one thing. The Super FX graphics and the cinematic stylings, while dated by today’s standards, still remain iconic.

Though newcomers might be put off by its looks and the SNES controller’s lack of an analogue stick the original Star Fox deserves its special status in gaming history. If you ask me, both it and Star Fox 64 are two of the greatest shooters ever made.

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