Star Fox isn't necessarily the first game that springs to mind when thinking of game delays. Delays are a regular part of a gamer's life these days, and many have grown accustomed to having their most anticipated games' launches pushed back, sometimes repeatedly, for the sake of ensuring the end product's quality is high. The recent Covid-19 pandemic played a huge part in normalizing game delays, with many release windows pushed back due to the virus rapidly spreading throughout the world. Some games that were rushed to meet deadlines, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and its infamously disastrous launch, have only served to ensure gamers are more accepting of these delays than ever. But when the development of Star Fox 2 was all but completed in 1995, nobody would've expected to have to wait an incredible 22 years until they could play the game.
The original Star Fox was released in 1993 for the SNES. A 3D rail shooter developed by Nintendo, it introduced protagonist Fox McCloud and his crew of anthropomorphic animal pilots. Together they were tasked with defending their homeland of Corneria from the evil Andross and his forces. One of Nintendo's very first 3D games, it received widespread critical acclaim, and a sequel seemed inevitable. Sure enough, work on a sequel commenced almost immediately, but due to extremely unfortunate timing, the game would end up not seeing the light of day for over two decades. On this day five years ago, fans finally got their hands on the long-lost game.
Star Fox 2's Launch Came a Little Later Than Planned
1993's Star Fox featured several key elements that made it such a big success. It was the first Nintendo game to use polygonal graphics, thanks to the power of the Super FX Chip, which was built into the cartridge and offered a far greater level of graphical capability than the standard processor found in the SNES. It also offered players a choice of route to take through the game, which helped with its replayability, presenting them with a level of choice not really seen in this style of game before. This left fans very excited about the sequel, which was announced shortly afterwards.
Star Fox 2 was approximately 95% complete by mid-1995. Pushing the graphical capabilities of the SNES to their absolute limits with the help of the Super FX Chip, promotion for the game had begun in 1994, and a version was actually playable at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in early 1995 ahead of a planned August 1995 release date. However, due to rapidly advancing 3D graphical capabilities, and rising competition from both the Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn, Nintendo ultimately decided to shelve Star Fox 2, instead focusing on Star Fox 64 for its superior Nintendo 64 console. Star Fox 64 was eventually released in 1997 and became a huge success, incorporating some of Star Fox 2's concepts.
Star Fox 2 would remain in Nintendo's archives in an almost completed state, without ever seeing a release, until five years ago today. Even when the Nintendo Wii's Virtual Console took off, games that used the Super FX Chip were not considered for inclusion due to difficulties emulating the chip. It wouldn't be until 2017's Super NES Classic Console, a pint-sized replica of the popular console that came with several games built in, that Star Fox 2 would finally see a release of sorts. When compiling the list of games to include in the bundle, it was suggested by one of the system's producers to include Star Fox 2 to avoid wasting a fully completed game.
Fans of the series were delighted with this decision since they were finally able to play this part of Star Fox's legacy, which was thought to be lost in history. As of December 12, 2019, the game has also been available for Nintendo Switch Online members as part of the Nintendo Switch Online Super NES library.
Star Fox 2 is now available for Nintendo Switch Online members, and via the Super NES Classic Console.