Star Fox Adventures is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. The game's story is set eight years after the events of Star Fox 64, with players taking control of Fox McCloud, who is sent on a mission to visit the Dinosaur Planet in the Lylat System and prevent its destruction. Gameplay is divided between Adventure Mode, in which players explore environments while defeating enemies, solving puzzles, and collecting items, and Arwing Mode, which features rail shooter segments.

The game originated from two separate projects originally in production for the Nintendo 64: a proposed action-adventure sequel to Star Fox 64 that was in development at Nintendo EAD in Kyoto, and Dinosaur Planet, an original property created by Rare that began development in 1997. Nintendo producer Shigeru Miyamoto convinced Rare to merge the two projects, with Star Fox characters and gameplay elements being implemented into the world of Dinosaur Planet. Development was moved forward one hardware generation to the GameCube, ending work on the Nintendo 64. The game was a commercial success and received mostly positive reviews, notably for its detailed graphics, new designs of characters including Fox, and its dynamic environments. However, the voice acting and the departure from the traditional Star Fox-style gameplay received some criticism.

Gameplay

left|thumb|[[Fox McCloud in combat with enemies. The interface displays the player's health, controls, and timer.]]

Star Fox Adventures is played from a third-person perspective with full camera control in most areas and the ability to use a first-person perspective for looking around a location. In this mode, players control the game's protagonist as they explore thirteen different locations on foot, each of which unlocks when the player completes a specific task or acquires a new requisite skill, in order to progress the story.

Synopsis

Eight years after Fox defeats Andross, Krystal investigates the destruction of her home planet, Cerinia, and the death of her parents. Receiving a distress call from the Krazoa Palace, After releasing the first one, however, a mysterious being sends Krystal into the spirit's path, trapping her in a floating crystal atop the palace until all the spirits can be returned.

Meanwhile, on the edge of the Lylat System, General Pepper contacts the Star Fox team, asking them to investigate the invasion of the Dinosaur Planet. Since the team are desperate for money and maintenance, the team leader Fox agrees to take a look, arriving unarmed at Pepper's request to avoid trouble with the locals. On the planet's surface, Fox obtains and wields the magic staff which Krystal lost earlier. Fox learns from the Queen of the EarthWalker Tribe that Scales stole four Spellstones from the planet's two Force Point Temples. and save Krystal. When Fox finds the last spirit, he discovers that it is guarded by Scales himself. However, just as Fox and Scales engage in combat, a mysterious voice orders Scales to surrender the spirit, to which he reluctantly agrees. Fox takes the spirit to the Krazoa Shrine and frees Krystal.

The spirits are forced into the head of a Krazoa statue, which reveals itself to be the resurrected Andross, the mastermind behind the spirit scheme, who flies off to resume his conquest of destroying the Lylat System. Falco Lombardi appears, and helps Fox to destroy Andross once again, releasing the Krazoa spirits and allowing them to restore the planet to normal. Afterwards, Falco rejoins the Star Fox team and Krystal is recruited, beginning a romance with Fox.

Development

thumb|Dinosaur Planet artwork showing various characters, including Krystal's original design

Star Fox Adventures had its origins in two separate projects, one of these being Dinosaur Planet, a Nintendo 64 game unrelated to the Star Fox series. According to lead engineer Phil Tossell, development of Dinosaur Planet began after the release of Diddy Kong Racing (1997), with two teams to work on Dinosaur Planet and Jet Force Gemini toward the end of the Nintendo 64's lifespan. The plot for Dinosaur Planet concerned Sabre and Krystal, along with sidekicks Tricky and Kyte (who both appear in the finished game), and Randorn, a wizard who was Sabre's father and Krystal's adoptive father (who was dropped entirely). The game featured elements such as the "SwapStone", which would let the player switch between Krystal and Sabre.

Bayliss said that Rare developed Dinosaur Planet in earnest, including preparation of a large E3 2000 demonstration, without considering that Nintendo already had the Star Fox property. A recompiled version was announced to be in development in May 2025.

Star Fox Adventures received "generally favorable" reviews, according to video game review aggregator platform Metacritic. By July 2006, it had sold 800,000 copies and earned $30 million (~$ in ) in the United States. Next Generation ranked it as the 73rd highest-selling game launched for the PlayStation 2, Xbox or GameCube between January 2000 and July 2006 in that country. Combined sales of Star Fox games released during the 2000s reached 1.2 million units in the United States by July 2006. Star Fox Adventures was eventually designated a Player's Choice game by Nintendo, signifying over 250,000 copies sold, and was thus available at a reduced retail price.

The visuals were highly praised, particularly for Fox's character model redesign. Edge wrote that the "visual splendour is immense", whilst in a similar fashion Matt Casamassina of IGN noted that the game is a "perfect companion" to The Legend of Zelda series, to which Adventures is often compared. NGC Magazine praised the game's vibrant atmosphere and detailed textures. The game's combat system garnered some accolades, with GameSpot adding that the combat is simplistic, though being "good looking" and not frustrating. NGC Magazine similarly praised the use of the combat system, but they noted that the battles did not require any skill and eventually "felt like a dull chore". It was nominated for GameSpots annual "Best Action Adventure Game", "Best Music", "Best Graphics (Technical)" and "Best Graphics (Artistic)" awards among GameCube games.

References

  • Star Fox Adventures – Dinosaur Planet – Rareware
  • Dinosaur Planet – Rareware
  • Dinosaur Planet – Nintendo