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DEVELOPER
Nintendo
PUBLISHER
Nintendo
AVAILABLE
Now
MEDIUM
Cartridge
PLAYERS
Four
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1993, Nintendo introduced a new title called Starfox. The reason this title
was so important was because it was the first to showcase the power of
the innovative Super FX chip. Now, six years later, the Starfox title is
yet again a vehicle to showcase a new technology, the Rumble
Pack. Another reason Starfox 64 is so important is because it's the
latest from Shigeru Miyamoto. This man is half the reason the N64 has enjoyed
so much success.
In the Nintendo tradition, Starfox 64 isn't so much a sequel as it is
an extension of the original title. The Lylat System has been invaded by
the maniacal Dr. Andross. General Pepper, who originally apprehended and
banished the fiend years ago, calls on Fox MacLeod and his Starfox team
to put a stop to the madness. The underlying plot is that Andross and his
minions were also responsible for James MacLeod's death, Fox' father. Quite
a nice story setting, yet the more interesting plot elements are never
really explored, aside from Peppy constantly noting how Fox flies like
his father.
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Some of the many battle-fields in Starfox 64. This
game definitely has a fair amount of variety.
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Basically, the body of this installment is identical to the original.
Fly a land or space based mission, fight a boss, and move on. There are
multiple paths available, which are chosen for you depending on your performance
in specific missions. For instance, win a dogfight within a certain amount
of time, and go to one mission, or, lose the dogfight, a base explodes,
and you are taken to an alternate mission. This is ten times better than
just having a difficulty option. A nice addition to Starfox 64 is the dogfights,
including specific adversaries for each member of the Starfox team. My
only complaint is the fact that my wingmen are basically useless, as I'm
always saving their butts. Along with the basic story mode comes a training
course and a multiplayer dogfight mode. Of course, a little is lost in
this mode, due to the fact that the screen is split four ways, no matter
how many players are present.
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The water reflects all objects and craft above it,
as well as reacting to laser fire and crashing ships. Spectacular.
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When a 3D game is released on the N64, you can be sure that it's going
to look spectacular. Starfox is no exception, but, frankly, the fog effect
is becoming really old, really fast. Also, while in space, where fog can't
be used, the result is horrendous pop-up. Barring this glaring problem,
the graphics are still very nice, with loads of color and clean textures.
Laser fire leaves blast marks on the ground, and everything is reflected
when flying over water.
There is an unbelievable amount of speech in this title, and it's ll
fairly high quality. There is continuous radio babble from your wingmen
during flight, and all major enemies taunt you tirelessly. This feature
adds an immeasurable amount of authenticity to Starfox, weather or not
the acting is good or bad. The music, on the other hand, is somewhat disappointing,
it just isn't that dramatic, and this game screams for a Star Wars style
soundtrack.
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Try to destroy the core of this station while trying
to avoid fire from StarWolf and his lackies.
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Starfox 64, while being a solid title, has one major flaw, length.
Although there are separate paths, the game still isn't long enough. Within
an hour of booting it, I finished the game, within the next half hour,
I completed one of the alternate paths, etc. Either way, I suggest renting
before you buy.
-- Craig Majaski
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