Star Fox Zero

[Hogge]

Hardest end boss! Really relying on your mastery of the controls to succeed. Was immensely old school and nice to see a tough end boss!

 

Watching the end I was a bit misty eyed for the N64 version!

 

For me it wasn't as good as the N64 outing but I figured I was comparing it to my first real love of the series. Then a truth dawned on me: Nintendo will never recapture their glory days when reimagining their previous 'perfect' games. Nothing will beat my first time. No new Mario, Zelda, Fox, Metroid, Smash...

But to a new generation this will be "their" StarFox and they may love it as much as previous entries. A shame then that WiiU has sold so poorly...

 

For all of its dexterous challenge, I can't wait to jump into co-op mode with my younger nephew and sell him on Fox and co. Thanks again Nintendo.

 

Now keep on giving us Cranky Kong types new franchises...

I think Nintendo definitely can recapture their glory days, but only if they realise that games are intrinsically judged as a product of their time. For its time, Starfox 64 was a fantastic looking game. The voiced dialogues and epic feeling cutscenes would rarely be mimmicked on the console and frankly were better implemented in most CD-based games at the time. Starfox could seriously be considered the Star Wars of video games. The short missions were no problem, because the branching paths through the Lylat System gave the game longevity, in no small part due to how short other games were back in the day. Quite simply, SF64 was the right game at the right time.

 

Starfox Zero though?

Honestly, the cinematics aren't enough of an improvement. In fact, the story in particular feels like a step down from SF64. I feel that with the change of structure in the game, Platinum could've added much longer cutscenes to flesh out the world and the story more. Also, in SF64, there was much more chatter between the characters, which gave them more personality. Falco was much more into insulting his team mates, Kat was more obviously in to Falco, Slippy was more annoying and Peppy seemed quite more proud to see Fox become a better pilot.

The missions in SFZ are way to few and the on-rails missions feel really, really short. Without dragging on for too long, I can tell you that I think SFZ feels like a launch title, experimenting with a brand new input device that the devloper is trying out in a commercial product for the first time, featuring graphics which would've been proof that the Wii U is more powerful than the PS3. A year before the announcement of the PS4 it would've been quite impressive.

 

And before you say anything, let me tell you that I actually like Star Fox Zero. I just don't think it stacks up to other games being released nowadays. It just feels old, which is fine by me as I still buy N64 games and find them genuinely enjoyable. But I also play modern games and I know that games in fact are better now than back then.

[david.dakota]

Andross isn't a spoiler :p

 

Anything is a spoiler is a don't know.

[dazzybee]

So the big problem I have currently is that the reticule on the tv doesn't shoot where it's sitting.... which is really annoying and making it unnecessarily hard to shoot enemies... Why the fuck would they do this...?!

[Hogge]

So the big problem I have currently is that the reticule on the tv doesn't shoot where it's sitting.... which is really annoying and making it unnecessarily hard to shoot enemies... Why the fuck would they do this...?!

 

To make you use the gamepad, silly.

[Dcubed]

So the big problem I have currently is that the reticule on the tv doesn't shoot where it's sitting.... which is really annoying and making it unnecessarily hard to shoot enemies... Why the fuck would they do this...?!

 

Because the cursor works in 3D space now instead of 2D, you need to look at both the TV and the Gamepad and glance between the two of them. By doing this, they've made it so that you can now shoot at off screen enemies and enemies at completely oblique angles (strafing runs are now possible for instance and you can shoot directly upwards and downwards as well). You can't just rely on the TV screen, you have to use both.

 

It's tough to learn, but it allows you to do things that you could never otherwise do with the old control system. You just need to practice glancing between the two screens and knowing when to shift the focus of your eyes between the both of them. Generally you need to focus on the Gamepad more when you're trying to shoot at a distant enemy, or when it's at a very oblique angle, relative to the Arwing onscreen.

Edited April 26, 2016 by Dcubed

[dazzybee]

Because the cursor works in 3D space now instead of 2D, you need to look at both the TV and the Gamepad and glance between the two of them. By doing this, they've made it so that you can now shoot at off screen enemies and enemies at completely oblique angles (strafing runs are now possible for instance and you can shoot directly upwards and downwards as well). You can't just rely on the TV screen, you have to use both.

 

It's tough to learn, but it allows you to do things that you could never otherwise do with the old control system. You just need to practice glancing between the two screens and knowing when to shift the focus of your eyes between the both of them. Generally you need to focus on the Gamepad more when you're trying to shoot at a distant enemy, or when it's at a very oblique angle, relative to the Arwing onscreen.

 

I get that, but it doesn't make any sense for the tv to do that; the straight arcade levels don't need us to look at the pad for the majority of it, it would be great fore the cursor to actually be useful and if we wanted to shoot off screen then we look down at the gamepad. This makes it so you always have to look at the gamepad because the cursor is wangy.... it's just stupid and doesn't make any logical sense...

[Retro_Link]

So I'm watching Damiani from Easy Allies doing a full playthrough of this game...

 

He's playing pretty much the entire thing in First Person, using the Gamepad display up on the TV. Seems pretty fun like that. It seems to have a better sense of speed and more like a rollercoaster that way.

 

Edited April 26, 2016 by Retro_Link

[Zechs Merquise]

I get that, but it doesn't make any sense for the tv to do that; the straight arcade levels don't need us to look at the pad for the majority of it, it would be great fore the cursor to actually be useful and if we wanted to shoot off screen then we look down at the gamepad. This makes it so you always have to look at the gamepad because the cursor is wangy.... it's just stupid and doesn't make any logical sense...

 

I was just coming to post this. Anyone who says the controls work are objectively WRONG! They are screwed, I'm lining up a shot on screen and it just isn't hitting anything, then I look down and the cursor is in a different position. This isn't helpful, or fun, it's rubbish because when you're in an on rails section there is literally no need for you to have to look down, but they force you to.

 

It's almost like the second screen is pointless at times, so to reinforce that you must use it, they make sure the on screen reticule can't actually line up a shot, hence you have to use the second screen.

 

And the argument that now you can shoot things that have just slipped out of view is crap, because the benefit of being able to shoot an enemy you have just missed isn't worth the utter frustration of endless shots missing because the reticule on the pad doesn't match the one on the screen.

 

Nintendo used to be about intuitive controls that simplified and streamlined the gaming experience, not controls that confused the player and made things more complex.

 

Motion controls work really well and have enhanced some franchises - Metroid Prime 3 (and the trilogy disk), Battalion Wars, Pikmin and Sin and Punishment were all drastically improved by using the Wii remote. But that doesn't mean you have to force things that don't.

 

Surely Nintendo must have play tested this and heard the confusion from players?

 

So I'm watching Damiani from Easy Allies doing a full playthrough of this game...

 

He's playing pretty much the entire thing in First Person, using the Gamepad display up on the TV. Seems pretty fun like that. It seems to have a better sense of speed and more like a rollercoaster that way.

 

So basically, it could have been done without the pad, as you can switch views!

 

I'm not hating on the game, as I am enjoying it to a degree, there are some great moments. It is just spoiled by the controls, not added to.

 

Especially the walker - why not just give us the standard dual analogue for the walker? Why make what could have been a fun and simple part into something harder and more complex than it should be?

 

There's a great moment when the Walker breaks into a colony and goes underground and has to dodge laser field, but the whole twin sticks things fucks it up.

 

Oh and also, what ever wank stain decided a barrel roll should be tied to two flicks of the stick and not the shoulder button on the other side needs firing!

[Retro_Link]

Oh I don't disagree they've made some strange control decisions.

 

Honestly, Star Fox has never been a series for me, and watching this latest entry confirms that. I think the game in it's current form just comes across as quite boring. The levels are so short, there's no real story there, and the world just seems empty.

 

Maybe I'd care more about each planet I was going to if it seemed to have any real form of life on it. Corneria's cityscape is just a bunch of geometrical shapes and empty 'highways' if you can even call them that. The same with all the space stations you visit. The game just comes across as empty and shallow. Point A to Point B, via a bunch of random shapes... and in space, sometime quite literally.

 

EDIT:

 

Star Fox: Age of Andross

 

 

To those who love the series, do you guys really think it's acceptable to essentially remake the same game for the third time? Being great fans of it, would you rather not be playing an entirely new chapter of it? I'd be really annoyed to essentially be playing a re-skinned version of the same game after all this time.

 

Why not make an entirely new StarFox with a whole new story and with entirely new planets. This game draws so heavily from Star Fox and Lylat Wars it's crazy.

Edited April 26, 2016 by Retro_Link

[dazzybee]

To be honest, it doesn't feel like a remake of Lylat Wars to me, feels like a new game.

[killthenet]

I finished my first play through on Saturday night and overall I enjoyed it - at times the controls worked perfectly but at other times, particularly in all-range mode, it felt a bit clunky. I started my second play through yesterday and had a really tough time with the alternate boss on Corneria, the difficulty is so far above the standard boss fight, but in terms of the controls I've started to really hit the spot now. It's started to feel so natural now, I think the main issue for me was working out when to recalibrate the reticle, if you do it often it becomes a much smoother experience.

 

I don't really get your argument that it's shallow Retro Link, to me it is just as deep an experience as 'Lylat Wars' and I genuinely believe I'll get as many hours out of this as I did playing through 'Star Fox 64 3D'. Obviously there are problems with Nintendo's attitude towards it's franchises, they're too stuck in Miyamoto's bubble in thinking their franchises need a new spin on them to make them worth making, but that's a problem with Nintendo themselves and not with this game. Platinum have done an excellent job at marrying 'Lylat Wars' with a more modern, fast-paced style and they've utilised the unique properties of the Wii U to make an enjoyable and fresh gaming experience. The game doesn't deserve to be used a scape goat for Nintendo's shortcomings.

[Ronnie]

Point A to Point B, via a bunch of random shapes

 

Some would call that gameplay. I agree with you that the world and story needs some fleshing out, but I don't think it's the be all and end all of an arcadey on rails space shooter.

[Glen-i]

To those who love the series, do you guys really think it's acceptable to essentially remake the same game for the third time? Being great fans of it, would you rather not be playing an entirely new chapter of it? I'd be really annoyed to essentially be playing a re-skinned version of the same game after all this time.

 

Why not make an entirely new StarFox with a whole new story and with entirely new planets. This game draws so heavily from Star Fox and Lylat Wars it's crazy.

 

Because then you get Star Fox Assault!

 

I don't care. I'm answering the question! You're not the boss of me!

 

I never got the impression that people actually cared about the story in these games. Do you really want another story driven game like Command?

Because I totally would. That story is so full of dumb, it's actually endearing.

[Retro_Link]

To be honest, it doesn't feel like a remake of Lylat Wars to me, feels like a new game.

Ok, well I can only go off the playthrough I've just watched, but Damiani was constantly, and I do mean constantly referencing levels, bosses, dialogue, stage design, cutscenes etc... as having come from Star Fox and Lylat Wars. He said he had almost been tempted during the playthrough to pull up sections from the previous games to show similarities, but it would have broken it up too much.

[Retro_Link]

I never got the impression that people actually cared about the story in these games. Do you really want another story driven game like Command?

I don't think the game needs some big story, but a new story that isn't a re-write of the one before/others each time.

 

It's almost the same complaint people levelled at Star Wars Episode VII, except Star Fox is an even stronger example.

 

Also, Fox's jaw flapping around like Fi's in Skyward Sword during the end cutscene etc... Starfox Adventures was doing a better job 10 years ago.

[Retro_Link]

I don't really get your argument that it's shallow Retro Link, to me it is just as deep an experience as 'Lylat Wars' and I genuinely believe I'll get as many hours out of this as I did playing through 'Star Fox 64 3D'. Obviously there are problems with Nintendo's attitude towards it's franchises, they're too stuck in Miyamoto's bubble in thinking their franchises need a new spin on them to make them worth making, but that's a problem with Nintendo themselves and not with this game. Platinum have done an excellent job at marrying 'Lylat Wars' with a more modern, fast-paced style and they've utilised the unique properties of the Wii U to make an enjoyable and fresh gaming experience. The game doesn't deserve to be used a scape goat for Nintendo's shortcomings.

Don't get me wrong, it's a personal opinion that I've always held of Star Fox.

 

I didn't ever really like Lylat Wars outside of some multiplayer. I thought I would give it another go on the 3DS via the remake, and I didn't enjoy the game at all then either. Nor does this new one seem any different to me. Somehow the games come across as almost clinical and sterile. They just give off a weird vibe to me.

 

It's why StarFox Adventures is undoubtedly my fav entry in the series despite its shortcomings.

 

I actually do think Platinum looked to have delivered a good Star Fox game here... if you're looking for a game that's as tried and tested as that same formula is by now. It looks a far better, worthy to the name entry than Assault. Like I said, I see this as kind of the Episode VII of Star Fox... feeling very familiar and playing on nostalgia.

 

It does look to offer replayability as well. Personally I'm not really a fan of how it does it, but that's personal taste again.

 

I couldn't agree more about Miyamoto's/Nintendo's stance on sequels. It frustrates me no end. To me this seems to have been a passion project of Shigsy... he gets to shoehorn his precious gamepad all over the experience, whilst at the same time effectively finishing development on StarFox 2. Win, win for him.

[nekunando]

I cleared this last night for the first time but I'm eager to get back into it, explore it fully and improve my understanding of the controls

 

I appreciated the nod to Iwata in the credits, though. It was a very nice touch : peace:

[killthenet]

I appreciated the nod to Iwata in the credits, though. It was a very nice touch : peace:

 

That really got me, E3 is going to be weird without him.

[Ashley]

Was just mooching through the asset store and came across this: https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/26427

 

Hmm...

[dazzybee]

Ok, well I can only go off the playthrough I've just watched, but Damiani was constantly, and I do mean constantly referencing levels, bosses, dialogue, stage design, cutscenes etc... as having come from Star Fox and Lylat Wars. He said he had almost been tempted during the playthrough to pull up sections from the previous games to show similarities, but it would have broken it up too much.

 

Possibly then... Maybe I just don't know Lylat Wars well enough to notice.

[Pestneb]

I never played lylat wars.. so that doesn't bother me.

 

I won't lie... I was hoping for something more like splatoon from the controls...hoping I'll get on with the game better with my own set up

[Hogge]

To be honest, it doesn't feel like a remake of Lylat Wars to me, feels like a new game.

 

Feels like a Lylat Wars equivalent to Goldeneye. Although SF0 cut down on the on-rails in favor of more All-Range missions and didn't have the cutscenes improved in the slightest, while Goldeneye became a linear mess with some quite cool cinematics.

 

Hell, in SF0 they're using virtually identical dialogue to Lylat Wars, even though at times the Lylat Wars quotes don't even fit with the context it's put into.

[Falcon_BlizZACK]

This video kinda sums up most of my thoughts on the game so far:

 

 

In short, this game would have been far better without the needlessly complex, unintuitive and forced control scheme.

 

I prepares myself for this game by replaying Lylat Wars and Star Fox Assault. Lylat Wars is still incredible. Assault is average, spoiled by needless on foot missions that control poorly and are drab and empty compared to the on rails flight sections.

 

Star Fox Zero is another misstep in the franchise. All we wanted was a proper sequel to Lylat Wars, but we couldn't have that, because Nintendo can't actually do what their customers want them to do.

 

Whether it is this, Federation Force or that shite Animal Crossing game, I am left wondering if Nintendo actually listen to anything that the gaming public actually say.

 

At the moment, all I feel about this game is disappointment. Looking at a fucking second screen in a rail shooter, fuck me, what a shit idea.

 

Hmm, that video wasn't all that IMO - states the obvious and I thought we all knew this Starfox was going to be very Gamepad specific since E3 last year?

 

Starfox isn't to blame, its the failed and shitty Wii U philosophy.

[Nolan]

Nah, Jim's wrong on this one. I'm usually one to thank God for him, but not this time.

 

He ends up coming across as someone who refuses to accept anything that deviates from the norm or even give it a fair shake... Considering his heavily negative review of Kid Icarus Uprising and his lambasting of that game's controls though? (Not to mention his general views on motion controls as a whole) That comes as no surprise to me

 

And no, the controls/dual screen gameplay couldn't have been made optional. Not without completely redesigning the game. It's just like Skyward Sword in that regard.

 

Slightly in Jims defense, his written review goes back to Splatoon and how well the gyroscopic aiming worked for that. But yeah he is typically negative of motion controls and personally I can't say I blame him some of the time.

[killthenet]

 

Fan made Star Fox animated series. Really similar to 'Regular Show' in terms of its style and mood. Watch it now before Nintendo find out and order it to be taken down! It's really good!