Star Fox: Assault
My history with Star Fox games hasn’t exactly been that promising. I never played the original for the SNES, and I only briefly played Star Fox 64. My first true Starfox experience was with Star Fox Adventures, and as you might be able to tell by my review, I wasn’t very impressed. However, after some hesitation, I looked into Star Fox: Assault. With an open mind, I purchased the game and hoped for the best. What I got out of it was a pleasant surprise and a better overall feeling towards a series that I started off on a bad foot with.

Graphics:

While the graphics aren’t as good as they were in Star Fox Adventures, they’re definitely on par with the system’s capabilities. The in-game graphics are noticeably less advanced than those of the cutscenes, but that doesn’t mean the in-game graphics aren’t good in their own respect. The game holds a pretty darn good frame rate, with not a single bit of slowdown, even during the most intense battles when a crap load of enemies appear onscreen at once. As one would expect, the game looks its best during the Arwing sequences.

Sound and Music:

One thing I found somewhat disappointing was the minimal use of the Star Fox theme. The song only plays every once in awhile, most noticeably during timed multiplayer battles when only one minute remains on the clock. Despite this, the rest of the music is definitely something I’d listen to in my free time, especially the Star Wolf Theme. The orchestrated music gives the player the feel of an epic battle; much like how the music of John Williams set the tone in the Star Wars films. Another thing I found enjoyable was the somewhat good voice acting done within the game. While some may have liked the voices for the characters in Star Fox Adventures, I found them utterly annoying, therefore making the new set of voices a welcome addition. Fox sounds heroic, Falco has a gruff voice to match his personality, Peppy no longer sounds like he’s about to die, Krystal has a good voice with a British accent, and best of all, Slippy no longer sounds like he has been kicked in the groin one too many times.

Storyline:

The game’s storyline is somewhat of an oddity. At the beginning, it seems your mission is to stop the rebellion of Andrew Oikonny. However, after a few levels, the game takes a dramatic turn and soon becomes about stopping an invading robot menace known as the Aparoids. The Aparoids are such a menacing threat to the universe that even the Star Wolf team joins you in your fight against them. What ensues is an epic adventure filled with heroism, sacrifice, and a battle against an enemy much worse than the likes of Andross or any other enemy the Star Fox team has ever faced.

Gameplay:

The game Star Fox Assault reminds me the most of is Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike. Just like Rebel Strike, the space battles are the most exciting and enjoyable part of the game. However, unlike Rebel Strike, the ground levels in SFA actually take some skill and are enjoyable as well. While the on-foot and Landmaster tank portions aren’t as thrilling as the Arwing battles, they are still able to hold their own and offer a genuinely fun experience. In fact, the most enjoyable levels are the ones where you get the ability to play on all three grounds: foot, tank, and Arwing. Along with a single player experience, Namco also included a multiplayer mode. The multiplayer allows up to four players to go against each other in an all-out brawl. The level types vary, with some being on foot, tank, or Arwing only. Just like with the single player, the levels that allow all three types of play are the best. The biggest problem with the multiplayer, other than the fact that it isn’t very customizable, is that anyone who doesn’t own the game will suck at it big time.

Controls:

Assault offers a choice of three different control types. Within each control type, you’re given the choice to turn inverted aim on or off. Personally, I find the first control setting with inverted aim on (default) to be the best. However, I know for sure that Tanooki Koopa feels different on this subject. Besides, why would they make it the default control setting if it wasn’t the easiest to use?

Replayability:

In terms of single player, Star Fox Assault offers ten missions that can be completed within a few hours on Easy. It took me a few days on medium difficulty, and I have yet to play it on Hard. Lucky for us, the game makes up for its short single player mode by offering a wide variety of unlockables. Playable multiplayer characters, multiplayer levels, multiplayer modes, new multiplayer weapons, and even a few old school Namco Atari games can be unlocked. Sadly however, only a few of these are unlocked by completing certain requirements in single player. The majority of multiplayer unlockables require you to play multiplayer matches, nearly 300 of them to unlock everything. It’s kinda depressing, since the multiplayer isn’t all that engaging to begin with.

All in all, Star Fox Assault has definitely rejuvenated my hope in the Star Fox series. While it is far from being one of the greatest games of all time, it’s definitely a crap load better than my initial experience with the series (i.e. Star Fox Adventures). Despite the fact that the single player is short, the game will definitely be enjoyed while it lasts. If Namco had just put a bit more time in the multiplayer, then Star Fox Assault would have been an all around wonderful experience.
Graphics: 9.0/10
Sound and Music: 9.0/10
Storyline: 8.0/10
Gameplay: 8.5/10
Controls: 9.0/10
Replayability: 8.0/10
8.0
Out of 10