The Reveal

Nintendo gave us quite the surprise by dropping one of their famous Nintendo Direct videos, bringing back a series that has been on ice for a little over 10 years.  But this wasn't one of their regular pre-planned events. The reveal actually started just minutes before the event. In a move that sent r/Nintendo into a frenzy, Shigeru Miyamoto posted from the official Nintendo X/Twitter account:  

"This is Miyamoto. In just a moment, at 3pm PT, we will livestream Star Fox Direct 5.6.2026. I would be delighted if you could take a look."

This created a massive, instantaneous "wait, what?" moment across social media, as fans had only ten minutes to scramble for a link before the premiere began.

The video opened in the classic Direct studio with Shigeru Miyamoto and Yoshiaki Koizumi. Miyamoto directly referenced Fox McCloud’s cameo in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, essentially confirming that the movie appearance was the intended "soft launch" for the franchise's return. 

Then the presentation shifted to the main topic: a new Star Fox game, exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2, titled just... Star Fox (for simplicity I'll call it Star Fox 2026).

Star Fox 2026 was revealed as a Switch 2 exclusive, yet another remake of the original Star Fox 64, even-though Star Fox 64 is itself a remake of the SNES original. The videos contained a slew of colorful visuals showcasing the usual Starfox gameplay we all have come to know and love over the years. 

From SNES to Switch

For anyone unfamiliar (shame on you!) the Star Fox series began back on the Super Nintendo. It was developed as a collaboration between Nintendo and a small UK team called Argonaut Games. At a time when home consoles were strictly 2D, Argonaut convinced Nintendo they could pull off "real-time 3D" if they built a custom chip directly into the cartridge.  The Super FX chip (originally codenamed "MARIO") acted as a graphics accelerator for the SNES.  The resulting game, Star Fox (1993), was a technical marvel. While the frame rate was low by modern standards, seeing flat-shaded polygons move in 3D on a 16-bit console was revolutionary. It established the "rail shooter" formula and the iconic cast of Fox, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy.  

If the original was a proof of concept, Star Fox 64 was the real deal. It wasn't a sequel so much as a reimagining of the original story, but with the power of the Nintendo 64. It was the first game to support the Rumble Pak, introducing haptic feedback to the industry. It also featured full voice acting, which was a rarity for Nintendo at the time, and birthed endless memes like "Do a barrel roll!"  It introduced the All-Range Mode (360-degree flight) and branching paths based on player skill, a mechanic that defined the "high-score chaser" appeal of the series.  

Following the success of Starfox 64, Nintendo entered a period of outsourcing to external developers. Star Fox Adventures, released in 2002 and developed by Rare, famously began development as a game called Dinosaur Planet, then was rebranded as a Star Fox title at Miyamoto’s request. It traded flight for Zelda-style on-foot exploration. Then in 2005, Star Fox: Assault, developed by Namco, attempted to blend 64-style flight with third-person shooting. While ambitious, critics felt the "on-foot" segments lacked the polish of the flight sections. In 2006, Star Fox Command was released as a DS title that incorporated strategic "map" elements and utilized touch-screen flight controls. 

After a long hiatus, Nintendo returned to the series, but curiously chose to look backward rather than forward. Star Fox 64 3D, released in 2011 on the 3DS, was a faithful handheld remaster that proved the 64 formula was still beloved. Then Star Fox Zero, co-developed by Platinum Games, released in 2016 as a reimagining of Starfox 64, built specifically to showcase the Wii U's GamePad. Its dual-screen control scheme (looking at the TV to fly and the GamePad to aim) proved highly controversial and led to the series' lowest sales in years. Then in 2017, Nintendo released Star Fox 2, a direct sequel to the original SNES Star Fox, developed for the Super Nintendo, that had been cancelled in 1995. Nintendo finished whatever remaining development there was and included it as a pack-in for the SNES Classic Edition, then later it became available on Switch as part of the Nintendo Online service.

Now, in 2026, we're finally getting a new entry in the long running series.

Online Reaction

After the Direct, the reactions on the internets are generally split into one of two camps: 

One group of fans are praising the Switch 2's visual fidelity and a return to the series' roots. The James McCloud prologue is especially being cited as the exact kind of "new" content needed to justify another remake (r/starfox).

Then there is the "ugh another remake!?!" group. A vocal minority on r/Nintendo is frustrated that this is the fourth time Nintendo has retold the Star Fox 64 story instead of making a true sequel, and Starfox 64 is just a retelling of the first game . There is also a lot of debate over the "realistic" animal faces, with some calling them a bit "uncanny valley"

My Impressions

I will say it was nice seeing the Star Fox IP getting the 4K treatment on everything, except their re-designed and all-too-realistic character models. I am not sure if everyone had the same initial thoughts as I did, but they immediately brought back those terror-filled memories of the initial Sonic character model from the first film, before the internet banded together and forced the re-design they are using today. 

I wish they would have followed the visual direction used in the Super Mario Galaxy film, which had slightly cartoonish, yet relatable qualities, with just the right hints of bravery and ingenuity that only comes from Fox McCloud. 

The video also showcased some new co-op mechanics using the mouse feature of the Switch 2 Joy Cons. I won’t go into much detail here, but the end of the video showed a fair amount of Star Fox lore that was unknown to me. This has peaked my interest as to how this game expands the Star Fox universe, and I encourage you to check it out for yourself. 

The game releases on June 25th of this year, which gives Nintendo another big name release for its 2026 summer lineup, although I am not sure if its going to be as popular as Yoshi and The Mysterious Book or Splatoon Raiders. While I am happy to see that the Starfox franchise is getting some love I can’t help but feel like Nintendo is unsure about the series future. 

Other Nintendo IPs such as Zelda, Mario and Metroid have all gotten their share of remakes, and Nintendo has innovated their gameplay and expanded their universe in new and exciting ways. Games like Zelda Breath of The Wild, Super Mario Odyssey and Metroid Dread all showcased new systems, characters and mechanics that revolutionized their franchises, while also feeling familiar and retaining those retro bits that made them great in the first place. 

Star Fox, on the other hand, has so far showed us more of the same since the first Star Fox game was released on the SNES. In fact, Star Fox 64 was a remake of the first Star Fox, and this Switch 2 release will mark the FOURTH time that Star Fox 64 itself has been remade!