This isn't a drop-in replacement for the N64 classic. That one will always have a really special place in my heart and the gaming landscape, and it is more accessible than ever now with the PC ports like Starship. Those will only get better with time too, considering the modding scene has been ramping up.

Even still, pretty much everything I love about Star Fox 64 is here and in stunning fidelity running at a locked 60 FPS. The new cutscenes and added dialogue add so much characterization that dedicated fans were already hooked into, but now casual players (even older ones) will come to understand these things as well. The logs do a great job of explaining stuff that was only ever found in old guide books and comics as well. It makes my old Star Fox fan heart happy not only to see these things implemented into a game directly, but for them to be done so well for a newer generation. This is so faithful to not only the original Star Fox 64 but to the broader Star Fox world as a whole as it was before Adventures. It's an expanded version of a classic and I love it. I've gotten medals on almost every stage at this point, almost unlocking expert mode, and that's going to take up a huge chunk of time as well I can imagine. There are people criticizing the game for being too short but Star Fox 64 is a game wholly centered around replayability. I think single player movie games may have cooked some minds.

I've not actually gotten around to playing the multiplayer yet because I'm not a huge multiplayer guy to begin with. I've heard some good things about it but there's a good chance I won't play it. I also played with the mouse mode for like 5 minutes, it's just a tacked on gimmick and I wouldn't seriously consider playing that way. If you can get really good at playing the co-op mode where one player flies and another player shoots by yourself, I suspect that might be the best way to get high score runs in an optimized future.

There are a few complaints I have with this game that keeps it from being that drop-in replacement.

The first is that there is no high score screen. You can look at all your individual high scores for levels, but there's nothing like a place for you to enter your initials. I know the gaming landscape has changed a bit but for something that stays so true to its arcade roots, I would have loved to keep that there.

The second is that the sheer amount of detail can make things a bit harder to parse. It's kind of a "first world problem," but it's true. The lower level of detail on N64 makes enemies stand out much better. In this remake, there can be so many particle effects and fancy lighting around that it makes the enemies a bit hard to see at some points, especially the ones that are flying in fast.

And finally, the voice acting. I actually really like the new character designs and, for the most part, the voice acting of all the heroes in the game is awesome. I know they have different lines and different inflections from the original game, but I do like what they've done with it regardless. The same can't be said for the enemies. Almost all of them have awful line delivery with really bad timing. When you kill them, they don't sound like they're all that upset to die. The Shogun boss in Sector Y for instance SCREAMS when you kill him, but in this one he just goes "this is an honorable defeat..." in the most bland ass way possible. Andross sounds way too fruity dude... it's not menacing AT ALL. This is the biggest complaint I have with the game and it's what keeps me from going any higher than a 9. It's not like it completely ruins anything but it's just... really unfortunate.

It's a good thing the rest of the game is so good, then, to make up for those strange casting and VA directing choices. The graphics are awesome, the updated designs I personally think are really fucking cool, the characters are all great, the cutscenes changing depending on your path is awesome, the soundtrack is PERFECT... just some little things here and there that make it a game I probably won't go back to as much as I do 64 still on a regular basis. Like, once I unlock everything (which is going to take quite some time), I don't see myself going back to the remake as much as I do the original.

I'd highly recommend it if you've got a Switch 2. I love the care that was put into it that not only makes it a great remake, but also really forges a new bright future for the Star Fox series. I do really believe that this is the kind of thing Nintendo wanted to spark with the 3DS port and Zero, but those never really caught on quite like this did. Here's to hoping we get more Star Fox games!

#beardgamereview