Star Fox (2026) Review — A Safe but Stunning Reimagining

What is Star Fox?

Star Fox has been on ice for nearly a decade. The Lylat System hasn’t seen a proper console outing since the divisive Star Fox Zero limped onto Wii U in 2016, and an entire generation of fans has grown up without a new entry to call their own. Now Fox McCloud and crew are finally back, blasting onto Nintendo Switch 2 in a full cinematic reimagining of the beloved Star Fox 64.

Velan Studios (the same team behind Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit) takes the controls this time, delivering a top-to-bottom visual overhaul, expanded and fully voiced dialogue, an orchestral score, and a brand-new 4-vs-4 Battle Mode. The concern was if another Star Fox 64 remake would be what the franchise needed right now. After sinking plenty of hours into the campaign, multiplayer, and Challenge Mode, I can safely say it is.

Developer: Velan Studios
Publisher: Nintendo
Platform: Nintendo Switch 2
MSRP: $49.99 (Digital) / $59.99 (Physical)
Release Date: June 25, 2026
Reviewed On: Nintendo Switch 2

Presentation & Soundtrack — Lylat Has Never Looked (Or Sounded) This Good

• True graphical showcase for Nintendo Switch 2 with high-quality textures and dense environmental detail
• Stunning lighting effects, dynamic water reactions, and highly detailed character and vehicle models
• Top-tier cinematics with beautifully destructive set pieces driving the dialogue and action
• Orchestral renditions of the legendary Star Fox 64 soundtrack hit harder than ever

Star Fox is a true graphical showcase for the Nintendo Switch 2. The crisp textures, beautiful environments, and highly detailed characters and vehicles make every scene screenshot-worthy. The cinematics are top tier and really drive the dialogue and action forward. When something explodes, it looks beautifully high quality. The lighting, especially inside contained spaces, is the best I’ve seen from a Nintendo first-party game. Hover the Arwing low over water and you’ll catch the surface rippling against the thrusters in real time.

The environmental variety is something else worth highlighting. Each level in the Lylat System feels distinct and rich, with its own atmosphere, color palette, and visual identity. From the Earth-like green of Corneria to the polluted oceans of Zoness and the cosmic depths of Sector Y, no two stages blur into each other. Velan Studios’ VIPER engine is one of the best I’ve seen on a Nintendo platform, and it makes a strong case for the studio handling future Nintendo projects like F-Zero (please).

The modernized soundtrack is incredible. Every Star Fox 64 song I’ve adored for decades is now better than ever. Beyond the music, the sound effects of everything from laser fire to explosions to voice acting all sound superb. Whether you’re piloting through Meteo or facing down Star Wolf on Venom, the audio mix never lets up.

Narrative — A Faithful Retelling With Fresh Cinematic Flair

• Story remains faithful to Star Fox 64‘s plot with cinematics and dialogue adding real depth
• Pigma’s betrayal and James McCloud’s fate add weight as the intro
• Expanded mission briefings give each mission more weight than the original
• New Holoviewer menu provides bonus lore on characters and locations across the game

The overall story hasn’t changed, but the new cinematics and expanded dialogue flesh out the world in a way the N64 original never could. If you haven’t played a Star Fox game, here’s the gist: Star Fox is a mercenary group once led by James McCloud alongside Peppy Hare and Pigma Dengar. On a mission from General Pepper and the Cornerian Defense Force to investigate the planet Venom where Dr. Andross was banished, James goes MIA after Pigma betrays him for constantly taking missions pro bono and sides with Andross, who has been building an army to take over the Lylat System.

James’ son Fox McCloud takes over Star Fox after dropping out of CDF Academy, enlisting Slippy (his childhood friend) and Falco (a former gang member who was recruited after Fox saw his piloting skills). General Pepper enlists the new Star Fox to stop Andross’ invasion—for a price, of course. There’s also a Holoviewer menu that adds extra lore on locations and characters that you can dig into.

Characters — More Depth, More Personality

• Mission briefings give every team member room to show off their personality
• Peppy, Slippy, and Falco each push for missions that reflect who they are
• Fox is cocky but cares about doing the right thing
• Side characters like Star Wolf, Katt, and Bill remain largely unchanged from 64

Everybody gets a voice during General Pepper’s mission briefings, and everybody has an opinion when the team has to choose between two routes. Peppy plays the wise mentor, steering the crew toward the safer, Pepper-endorsed path and constantly invoking James which is clearly a sore spot for Fox. Slippy is the engineer behind the Arwing—the iconic fighter ship the crew pilots alongside the Blue Marine (submarine) and Landmaster (tank). He’s not the best pilot and may need saving more than a few times, but he provides analytics for bosses and pushes for missions that test his prototypes.

Falco is Fox’s hot-headed rival and just as good a pilot as Fox (better, if you let him tell it). He’s always challenging Fox to outperform him and usually recommends the more dangerous missions. Fox himself is cocky and, unlike his father, doesn’t work for free—but he still cares about doing the right thing. More than anything, he wants to prove he’s his own pilot, not a tracing of his father.

Side characters get less attention. Star Wolf, the rival mercenary group (now housing Pigma), Katt (from Falco’s former gang), and Bill (a CDF pilot Fox and Slippy went to Academy with) all remain mostly unchanged from 64 and don’t get much more screen time. It would’ve been nice to see these characters fleshed out more as well.

Gameplay (Campaign) — Modernized Controls, Classic Missions

• Branching paths unlocked by completing special objectives during missions
• Distinct scenarios per level make every playthrough feel completely different
• Mix of on-rail and all-range modes with braking, boosting, barrel rolls, and smart bombs
• Medal collection unlocks Expert difficulty after the fact, locked behind a grind

The core flight gameplay of Star Fox is as sharp as ever, now wrapped in modernized controls. Completing special objectives during missions unlocks branching paths to different stages. Some objectives are straightforward from the start—like taking out searchlights to remain stealthy and sneak up on Andross’ army, or shooting eight switches to reroute a supply train into a factory, destroying both. Other times, you may not know the objective and it’s subtle enough to miss. Each level is distinct, with scenarios that bring it to life. One run will have you doing stealth missions, exploring underwater, and dodging asteroids in deep space, while another has you holding off Andross’ attacks across multiple planets and surviving a lava-covered planet.

A 7-stage run wraps in about one to two hours, but you’ll never see everything in one sitting. The replay loop is the draw: chasing medals (earned by racking up enough hits) and puzzling out how to unlock each alternate path until you’ve cleared every stage. Combat flips between on-rail sections and all-range mode, where you’re free to fly in any direction across an open arena, usually for swarming dogfights or boss duels. Braking, boosting, barrel rolls, and smart bombs are your toolkit for dodging hazards, deflecting fire, and clearing the screen.

One slight knock: Expert mode only unlocks after collecting every medal, which kind of sucks if you wanted to play on the highest difficulty right out of the gate. It’s a holdover from 64 that probably could have been rethought.

Gameplay (Mouse Mode) — A Brand New Cockpit View

• First-person cockpit view with Joy-Con 2 mouse aiming
• Precise, responsive targeting that pulls you closer to the action
• Spinning view during barrel rolls with an optional toggle
• A great alternative if standard play feels too close to the N64 experience

Switch 2 mouse mode provides a brand-new way to play that feels completely different from the standard experience. When in mouse mode, you play from a first-person cockpit view and aim with the Joy-Con 2 mouse. It’s accurate and really puts you closer to the action. Pulling off barrel rolls and watching the entire screen spin is awesome. You can turn this effect off if it’s too much for you, though. I’d point anyone who finds the standard experience a little too close to their N64 memories to give mouse mode a go. Honestly, it became my go-to for repeat runs.

Gameplay (Battle Mode) — Star Fox Battlefront

• 4-vs-4 all-range Battle Mode with online play, GameShare, and bot support
• Three maps with distinct objective-based gameplay (Corneria, Fichina, Sector Y)
• Battlefield-style chaos with bots padding both sides for hectic, large-scale fights
• Pickup secondary weapons and abilities like missiles, plasma beams, and teleporters

Battle Mode is the piece of gameplay that’s been completely revamped. Instead of the 4-player split-screen dogfight experience of the original, Velan expanded the playing field to 4-vs-4 all-range battles with online play against friends, randoms, or bots. GameShare support included. Each of the three maps comes with its own distinct objective. Corneria, the Earth-like map, is a domination-style mode where you occupy areas and capture satellite towers. Fichina, the icy map, has you dodging meteors while collecting the energy left behind at their crash sites. Sector Y, the deep space map, has you retrieving cargo and transporting it safely back to base while keeping it out of enemy hands.

All three modes and maps are surprisingly fun. With bots swelling the ranks on both sides beyond the eight human players, it starts looking more like Star Wars Battlefront than any Star Fox game of the past. It’s chaotic and hectic in the best way. Health and items litter the battlefield, including secondary weapons and abilities that swap out your campaign smart bombs: missiles, speed boosts, plasma beams, teleporters, and a grab bag of toys the single-player never touches. They add a real layer of strategy to the mayhem.

Challenge Mode — Earning Your Stripes

• Replay cleared campaign stages with new objectives not found in Campaign Mode
• Available in Normal or Expert difficulty settings
• Adds significant replayability beyond branching path discovery
• Tasks range from enemy-type kill counts to time limits to full ship upgrades

Challenge Mode adds even more replayability with a wide variety of challenges to complete for each level. Tasks include defeating a certain number of specific enemy types, completing missions within a set timeframe, or fully upgrading your shields and lasers before the stage ends. Combined with the branching paths in Campaign Mode and the medal grind required to unlock Expert, Challenge Mode gives the game a long tail that easily justifies multiple playthroughs.

Accessibility — Room to Grow

• Limited accessibility options across the board
• No in-game control remapping (system-level remapping on Switch 2 still works)
• Mouse mode functions as a potential accessibility aid even if not advertised as such
• Difficulty settings provide some flexibility, though Expert is locked behind medals

There isn’t much going on in terms of accessibility. The game doesn’t offer many options, and you can’t remap controls in the settings, although the Switch 2 itself allows system-level remapping as a workaround. Mouse mode itself could be a great accessibility option even if it’s not marketed that way. Having an alternate input method that works well with one hand or less emphasis on thumbs could open the game up to players with disabilities. Still, Velan and Nintendo could have done more here.

Final Thoughts — Star Fox is Back

This is as close to a perfect 1:1 remake as you could ask for. Star Fox feels and looks exactly how my brain remembered the game back in 1997. Every detail has been touched up to make for a modern experience while leaving the core gameplay loop intact. I would prefer if we had more shiny new toys to play with but when they refreshed the old toy this good, it’s hard to complain. The new cutscenes and dialogue bring the characters to life like never before. The orchestral arrangements of the legendary soundtrack are chef’s kiss. This is also a surprise graphical showcase for the Nintendo Switch 2. Velan Studios did an amazing job, and I hope to see them stick with the franchise the way Grezzo has with Zelda and MercurySteam with Metroid. Star Fox is back. Next time, let’s take him to new heights.