Hello there! I’m the gun for hire – I mean writer – Akinori Sao. Hopefully you enjoyed the first interview in this series, which was about the need to make the new Star Fox title both cool and immersive. If you recall, the game’s director Yugo Hayashi told me that he had been in high school when Star Fox came out for the Nintendo 64. That really brought it home to me how much time has passed since that title was released.

Now, for the second interview, our theme is the way that the new vehicles in this title have broadened the scope of the gameplay. Naturally, old favourites like the Arwing are present and correct, but now they can transform, and there are entirely new spacecraft available too. Today we’re going to find out how this has affected the way you play Star Fox, and we’ll also learn some top secret techniques for racking up high scores. Right, let’s get started!

Part Two: New Vehicles Broaden the Scope of the Gameplay

Revisiting Things We Created 20 Years Ago

Sao: In Star Fox Zero, Fox McCloud’s ship can transform, and this is a major part of the gameplay.

Miyamoto: Yes, in this title, the Arwing can turn into the Walker, which can travel on land. The idea for this goes right back to the legendary Star Fox 2 which was in development for Super Nintendo but got cancelled once we knew the Nintendo 64 was on the way. In Star Fox 2, you could transform into a robot in order to get into narrow spaces like enemy battleships. Now in this new title, you can press the A Button whenever you like and turn your ship into the Walker.