Star Fox Assault Nintendo GameCube Rated T for Teen Released Feb. 14
C
Fox McCloud and his crew are back in action on the Nintendo GameCube. Though "Star Fox Assault" returns the franchise to its roots following the Zelda-like "Star Fox Adventures," the space shooter game is missing the polish and charm that made previous entries so much fun to play.
"Assault" begins one year after the events of "Adventures." What remains of the evil Andross' legions are now under the control of his incompetent son, Andrew. Under the guidance of Peppy Hare, Fox and wingmates Falco, Slippy and Krystal set out to stop the new threat, but soon become engaged in a new dilemma altogether: space creatures called aparoids bent on assimilation of all life in the Lylat System. In short, the goal is to shoot all the bad guys.
Besides the Arwing that Fox has flown since his debut on the Super Nintendo, he can also take command of the Landmaster tank first seen in "Star Fox 64." For the first time, Fox may also leave either transport in the middle of several levels and fight on foot. Unfortunately, only the Arwing presents any real fun, and even this doesn't feel quite the same as "Star Fox 64" or the original SNES classic.
The controls in "Assault" are simply not as intuitive as they should be on the GameCube controller, and feel strangely downgraded when compared to the N64 version. Previously, the L button was used to lean the Arwing left and the R button was used to lean it right. Now, L is the only button used for leaning, while R has been made into the brake. This makes things very awkward and distracts from the experience. Meanwhile, the Landmaster tank feels so sluggish to drive that using it in the multiplayer mode is absolutely worthless if your opponent has an Arwing. Also strange is that although the tank's ability to lift off the ground still exists, the player cannot stop its ascent until it reaches its peak.
On-foot action feels very rudimentary in design. New developer Namco has scrapped the control style of "Adventures" in favor of a more basic third-person shooter setup. Unfortunately, the poor level design in on-foot levels often leaves Fox running around frantically, shooting everything in sight.
Artificial intelligence does not seem to have evolved at all since "Star Fox 64." The enemies for the most part still follow patterns, occasionally chasing Fox down. Meanwhile, Fox's wingmates are still as useless as ever, constantly getting into trouble and never doing very much to help the cause. In fact, if keeping them alive didn't add to the final score at the end of each level, it's tempting to just go ahead and shoot them down.
The visuals in "Assault" are similarly disappointing. It is not nearly as detailed as Rare's "Adventures," and many surfaces simply feel flat. The graphics lack awe factor and sometimes hinder gameplay. In one level, the poor lighting and unhelpful camera angle constantly leave players unaware of the edges of platforms, which can lead to frustrating falls.
"Assault" has some great remixes of the traditional Star Fox tunes, plus some new ones that fit well into the gameplay. The voice work is average - the wingmates' voices get a bit tiresome, but at least Slippy's voice has gotten deeper since his N64 appearance. Sound effects are also mediocre.
There are a few extra modes to give "Assault" replay value. You can replay any mission to get new high scores, and once you beat the game, a survival mode is unlocked (or rather "acked on) in which every mission must be finished without saving the game. Versus mode allows four players to battle it out on foot, in tanks and in the air. This can be enjoyable, but the stages somehow feel a bit too spacious for only four players.
"Assault" is ultimately a disappointing game. It's not terrible by any means, but it is certainly the least enjoyable game in the franchise. Give it a rental if you're a "Star Fox" fan, but I wouldn't recommend spending $50 without trying it out first.
