Star Fox 64

Like Mario and Link, Fox McCloud was another Nintendo star who successfully transitioned to 3D in the 90's during the Nintendo 64's lifespan. Plus, as a fan of the first Star Fox game, I enjoyed this one greatly growing up.

Originally, the first Star Fox game in 1993 was to receive a sequel for the SNES, Star Fox 2, but it was cancelled in favor of this game. Some people don't know this, but this game is actually a remake of the original game with a more in-depth story: After spending five years in exile, mad scientist Andross re-emerges and invades the Lylat system with his army. Now it's up to the mercenary team Star Fox, consisting of Fox McCloud, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi to stop Andross.

This time, more light is shed on the betrayal and subsequent death of Fox's father, James McCloud and the introduction of, Star Wolf, who were supposed to appear in Star Fox 2. In fact, many aspects like all range mode and controlling the landmaster originated in Star Fox 2 before it was cancelled.

Like the original Star Fox, the gameplay consists mainly of controlling Fox in his Airwing flying through twenty-five beautifully designed, railway styled stages, shooting and dodging enemy craft and obstacles by veering left and right, and performing barrel rolls and somersaults to evade attacks. Every so often, though, you'll be able to fly in all range mode that allows you to fly in any direction. The controls are smooth and fairly easy to get used to. Of course, like any good wingman, you must also assist your teammates every so often when they're in trouble, and in return you can get advice from Peppy, enemy shield info from Slippy, or alternate routes to take by Falco.

But what I loved most was the music, sounds, and voice acting. Nintendo legend Koji Kondo created an inspiring and courageous soundtrack with strong brass and percussion. There are cool sounding sci-fi sound effects, like lasers and starship engines. And the voice cast really helped bring the characters to life, especially Rick May (RIP) as Peppy Hare. Not to mention the sheer number of legendary memes this game created, like "do a barrel roll" from Peppy or "My emperor, I've failed you!" from the first boss Granja. Everything sounds spectacular.

This game has aged well and is still fun today, so try it out of the Nintendo Switch if your curious about Star Fox's history.