Every day is the "End of the Week"

     I love the Star Fox series. Except for the first SNES one, I've played all of them and have enjoyed every single last one. I spent hours of my childhood trying to find the most cinematic path in Star Fox 64, I nearly broke my thumb traversing through Adventure, I do annual speed runs of Assault just to listen to the epic soundtrack, and I unlocked every ending in Command and even blew up my friends in its wi-fi multiplayer. I'm super psyched that Star Fox 64 is being remade and updated for the 3DS but I can't help but wonder, why did it take so long between Command and 64 3D for there to another Star Fox game?

     I couldn't wrap my brain around it since a classic Star Fox game would totally work on the Wii, given that games like Sin and Punishment are pretty similar, and really, the Wii Remote's pointer would work just like the stylus in Command (it also doesn't even have to use the pointer). I think the answer is pretty clear when you really delve deep into it: Star Fox is just not that popular.

     Star Fox 64 is however. It's often cited as a fan favorite and ranks on some lists as one of the best games of all time and that is probably the key reasoning that it is being remade, just like how Ocarina of Time was. But the franchise itself just isn't doing so well. Star Fox Adventure, while an excellent game, was not planned to be in the Star Fox series and it shows. When Assault was released as the true "next-gen" Star Fox game, it was panned for simply not being Star Fox 64.

     GameSpot wrote: "The game has its heart in the right place and provides some entertaining moments, but Assault doesn't quite measure up to the pedigree of its namesake."

     G4TV also wrote: "Sure, there's more variety in Star Fox: Assault than in past games in the series, but why give us half-baked concepts when all we want is another traditional Star Fox game?" (no link for some reason, I got this quote off Metacritic).

     I'll admit that Assault isn't perfect, but these and many others argued that the foot missions weren't that fun and it seemed to all stem from it not being like Star Fox 64. Assault was made by a different developer than the two Star Fox games before it, so is it entirely right to compare it to either of them? It was also made 8 years after 64, and told a much more intricate story (the more complex the story, the more linear it has to be).

     To date, Assault is the worst-reviewed Star Fox game, but a year later, Star Fox Command was released on the Nintendo DS. While better received, earning a 76 on Metacritic, it is the least selling Star Fox game in the series and thus, Nintendo decided not to produce any more for a while, but not without a heavy heart as Shigeru Miyamoto stated:

      "I tend to forget [games I was disappointed in] *laughs*. I'm a big fan of the Star Fox games. Every time we make a Star Fox game I'm hoping people will enjoy it as much as I do. Of course the goal every time is to try and make it more and more fun but, at least in Japan, the people that purchase the Star Fox games has decreased over the years. But we still try to make them more fun and hopefully people will see the appeal in those games."

     So it would seem that the key strategy behind each Star Fox game is to make it more fun with each iteration. This is a daunting task, since "fun" is a highly opinionated term. I thought the ground levels in Star Fox Assault were fun, even if it wasn't Star Fox 64, and I thought the turn-based strategy elements of Star Fox Command were fun, even it wasn't Star Fox 64. Many of the issues seem to derive from that oh-so-popular-argument that Star Fox has strayed from its "roots", but in reality, it hasn't, it just been exploring the other branches that share the same roots. It has always remained a short, fast paced, arcade style, 3-D shooter. Just because it isn't Star Fox 64, doesn't mean that it does have the same feel or evoke the same emotions as the classic game.

     The future of Star Fox hinges on the success of Star Fox 64. Either this game be the best in the series, or Star Fox will be eternally canned. Now for many, multiple copies of Star Fox 64 are owned either on the original N64 or on the Wii's Virtual Console. However, you have to ask yourself, what aspect of Star Fox are you really in love with? For me, its the characters and general fast paced action of the game. This is why Assault appealed to me so much, because I thought the Namco team really nailed the feeling of the game whether on ground or in the air. They even added something completely unique for some missions, creating several intense heart pounding scenarios where you really feel like you're not going to make it. I also don't care much for playing Star Fox with anyone but friends right in the same room. Afterall, Star Fox Command had online multiplayer, but I simply just had more fun playing the multiplayer in Assault with people I'm sitting right next to.

     If you're just into Star Fox 64, it would be hard to argue why you should pick up Star Fox 64 3D. After all, you probably own three copies of it right now. However if you're like me, you'll probably go and pick it up because you love the Star Fox series, and don't want to see it go away.

Editor's note: It has occurred to me that some people are missing some key punctuation of the first and second sentence. Just to clear somethings up, I haven't gotten the opportunity to play the original SNES game but I don't doubt how awesome it is. Star Fox 64 just seems like the more popular one based on what I've seen around the internet and have heard from my peers (it's also getting the remake...although 64 was basically a remake of the first one so...nevermind). Anyways, I just thought I should get that out there before people get the wrong idea. 

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