Star Fox 2 review: An SNES game-changer 22 years in the making

A game completed more than two decades ago, Star Fox 2 is a rare example of examining a “what could have been” scenario in all its glory.

Developers: Nintendo, Argonaut Games
Publisher: Nintendo
Platform: Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Release Date: September 29, 2017

There’s nothing more frustrating than an excellent video game idea being so close to release before being canceled in development. Star Fox 2 was a ~95% completed game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System back in 1995, but with the Nintendo 64 just around the corner and an opportunity to create a polygonal-based Star Fox sequel on that platform, the game was never officially released.

While a ROM of the game has been floating around the past few years, it was only in a surprise announcement, bundled in with the SNES Classic, that Star Fox 2 would see the light once more. Having played through the game several times, I can thankfully report that its ambitious gameplay style still remains impressive close to 22 years after initial development was completed.

Corneria is under attack once again! Andross returns to wreak havoc on the Lylat system, and it’s up to Star Fox to save the day. Instead of progressing through a branched narrative path with pre-determined levels to access and enemies to overcome, Andross will send battle carriers from a distance to attack Corneria, using missiles and enemy ships to destroy the peaceful planet. It’s up to you to take them down while defending Corneria from reaching 100% damage.

The player controls one of six different characters, including new recruits in the lynx Miyu and Fay, a dog. In addition to selecting one character, the player can also select a backup in case things get tragic. Each ship has various strengths and weakness including overworld travel speed, shields, special items and more.

I fell in love with the intensity this gameplay system brings.

What makes Star Fox 2 a fascinating game is that it uses a “real-time with pause” gameplay system. As players fly off to intercept missiles and ships, once close enough you are entered into a combat stage similar to playing out a Star Fox mission. You have targets to take out, but as you destroy enemies a slowed-down timer increases in the real world. Any time you pause, you can jump back out to the map and try to intercept another attack close to Corneria.

I fell in love with the intensity this gameplay system brings. There’s no better way to feel immersed in the “save the galaxy” mentality than to have to manage movement, speed and balancing out perspectives of what’s more important to your mission. Dilly-dallying about is no longer an option; you need to be quick and efficient in order to make sure Andross is surely defeated.

In addition to driving immediacy in its gameplay, it also adds depth of exploration. Star Fox 2 deals with encounters in a 3D space, taking radar positioning, target triggers and progression blockers into its level design. Not only do you have to face off against mini-bosses that block your path with a button held on their back within a stage, but sometimes you’ll be interrupted by enemy forces from Star Wolf, forcing players to win live-or-die dogfights with an active enemy AI.

It’s a damn shame that SNES owners were robbed of the option to play this game decades ago, as Star Fox 2 is a technical, graphical and gameplay marvel of its time.

With a “©1996 Nintendo” logo on the splash screen, I’m given no choice but to reckon this as the proper canonical introduction to this Star Wolf team in Star Fox 2, and their task to take you down (or distract you long enough to destroy more of Corneria) is a tough hello. They quickly became a driving force for the story and the gameplay, as every time they made an appearance they’re good for a one-liner and a lengthy battle primed to kill your timer.

Planetary bases are a welcomed change, as well. In order to destroy the enemy bases that send out missiles and your anti-missile turret, you need to make your way through in your modified Arwing primed for ground combat. This mobile tank-like design paved the way for Star Fox 64‘s land combat, but in this game, it serves as a cool way to create action platforming segments within bases.

It’s a damn shame that SNES owners were robbed of the option to play this game decades ago, as Star Fox 2 is a technical, graphical and gameplay marvel of its time. The way enemies track the player, environmental detail is varied and visually pleasing, the soundtrack bangs with the best of the SNES era and how it performs gameplay functions not seen elsewhere on the system; there’s nothing quite like this game.

There are some classic gaming conventions that make Star Fox 2 drag a bit compared to modern games. With the exception of mini-bosses and Star Wolf, combat with regular enemies gets familiar real quick. While I appreciate their function, stylistically they leave a lot to be desired.

Additionally, the depth of gameplay is hidden behind increasing difficulty levels. There are hidden trophies to collect and mini-bosses/encounters that pop up in Hard and Extreme difficulties that aren’t experienced by players under the Normal difficulty. Even the bump from Normal to Hard is an extreme learning curve, as real-time management of conflicts, resources and combat, I can only imagine, is extremely limiting for players less skilled than I.

Next: 25 Best SNES Games Of All Time

Treating this by 1995 gameplay standards of gameplay, console limitations and what was available at the time, Star Fox 2 serves as an awesome farewell to the SNES. It’s unmatched in sheer ambition, pushing the limits of the hardware to create plenty of open maps in a variety of locations that look and feel different from one another.

A copy of this game was provided to App Trigger for the purpose of this review. All scores are ranked out of 10, with .5 increments. Click here to learn more about our Review Policy.