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E3 2015 Wishlist: What We Want From Star Fox Wii U
We’re still not sure what Star Fox really looks like or how exactly it will play, but pending any surprise delays we know it is coming this year, which makes E3 2015 the perfect platform to show it off. It’s been a long time since we’ve played a first-party Star Fox title (the last one was Star Fox 64) and we’ve got some hopes and aspirations for the series.
More time in the Arwing
Both Star Fox: Adventures and Star Fox: Assault experimented heavily with placing Fox on his feet for combat and exploration. Fox, however, is a pilot, so we want him to spend more time in his iconic Arwing. That’s where the majority of the game should take place – the cockpit – but we would like him to get out and explore the Great Fox and see his assorted vehicles as they’re docked ready for action.
Learn more about the universe and its characters
What is Star Fox team? Bounty Hunters? Mercenaries? Corneria military? Do-gooders with a deep purse? We know they’re heroes and the personality of each team member is well-defined, but I don’t really know exactly how they fit into the universe. Referenced above, the ability to walk around and explore Great Fox perhaps between missions could be a fantastic opportunity to chat with your crew, much in the same way Shepard does in Mass Effect. I want to know more backstory. What happened to Fox’s dad? Why is Peppy the only remaining original member of the Star Fox team? What’s the deal with Wolf O’Donell? Why did Pigma Dengar go rogue? Talking with your team members would be a great way to flesh out this world and characters without forcing it into banter during missions.
Bring back the robot legs and puppet strings
When Star Fox premiered in 1993, it had a much different art style than the most recent Star Fox titles. Inspired by action puppet shows like Thunderbirds, Fox and his team appeared as tangible, detailed puppets on the game’s box art. It would, admittedly, be at odds with what is now the established art direction for Star Fox’s world, but with the high-definition abilities of the Wii U, it would be interesting to see them revisit that original style.
Transforming vehicles, giant robots, and security cameras
What little we were able to see of Star Fox at E3 2014 featured the Arwing (which was able to transform into the Landmaster), a helicopter, and a pair of minigames that had players watching security cameras in a tower defense-style game, and remote controlling a giant robot. It’s unclear if the two minigames will appear in Star Fox, but Nintendo seemed to imply they would.
I stand by the idea that Fox should spend the most time in his Arwing, but these sound like interesting diversions. I especially like the idea of the security cameras being strewn about the Great Fox’s hallways and it being up to the player to defend against enemies attempting to board. If you haven’t been able to tell already, I really want to explore and look around inside the Great Fox.
For the rest of our Star Fox Wii U wishlist, head to page two.
Don’t require motion controls, do use the second screen
Every demo of Splatoon Nintendo presented prior to release required motion controls. Nintendo would not let us turn it off while playing. When the game finally released, the first thing I did was turn off the motion controls. I’m sure whatever demo we receive at E3 will demand motion control, but it should not be the required way to play. It’s a game that certainly seems like it would play well with motion controls – but I don’t want to.
A recent Wii U title, Affordable Space Adventures, showed how piloting a space ship with the Wii U GamePad could be done in an interesting way. I hope Nintendo takes a look at that game, because I really like the idea of having all the action taking place on the television screen and Fox’s dashboard of assorted weapons and tools on the GamePad screen. There could be a dedicated windshield wiper button, or one that lets you mute Slippy when he becomes annoying.
Intergalactic exploration
In Star Fox games past, Fox travels planet to planet fighting Andross. Why not allow that to happen in real time? We’re not talking No Man’s Sky levels of exploration, but having a small solar system fully open to fly around in and explore could help the universe feel more connected and real.
Star Fox 2 on Virtual Console
As the story goes, Nintendo fully developed a Super Nintendo sequel to Star Fox, but shelved it as it prepared to release the Nintendo 64 console. You can learn more about Star Fox 2 by heading here. If the game truly is complete, why not release it on Virtual Console? Or as an unlockable in Star Fox Wii U? I loved Star Fox on Super Nintendo, and while 3D technology has far surpassed what would have been Star Fox 2 at this point, I would still love to sample that part of forgotten history. We would also happily accept a Virtual Console version of the cancelled Star Fox on Virtual Boy, as well. Preferably both.
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