As you know from my recent article, I was highly anticipating the release of the new Star Fox game on Nintendo Switch 2. This is a series I’ve loved since the very beginning on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and it’s so great to have another entry into the series arrive on the Switch 2.
I’m primarily a single player person, but every once in a while, I’ll dabble in the co-op or multiplayer modes if a game offers it. The new Star Fox game offers both, but I’m going to focus on the co-op experience through the campaign as the release of the game lined up with my young nephew visiting for a few days.
Obviously, all of us here love aviation and flying. Star Fox is a great example of arcade flight, putting players in control of Fox McCloud who pilots the lead aircraft (an Arwing) of the Star Fox team. This is why I fell in love with the series when it was first introduced on the SNES. It’s arcade flight at its best with a unique crew of fighter pilots that engage in atmospheric and space battles!
So, when I sat down to start playing the new Star Fox game with my nephew, the way the game works with co-op mode is that one player must control the aircraft while the other controls the weapons and acts as the gunner. My nephew wanted to fly, which admittingly, was hard for me to give up the controls of the aircraft (because I’m the pilot!!!). Although, being the gunner is also a ton of fun as I play many first-person shooters as well. As we dove into this setup with my nephew flying and me gunning, it led to such a fun and unique experience that I wasn’t fully expecting.
First of all, to play co-op in this way, it only works with the Nintendo Switch 2 Joy-Cons rather than two regular controllers. This is also because the gunner is set up to use the mouse pointer controls on the Joy-Con. I previously tried the mouse pointer in Metroid Prime 4 but hardly gave it much time at all. So, this was my first full experience with it for a good chunk of time as we played through the entire Star Fox campaign multiple times. It played amazingly well!
Not only is the shooting and gameplay a lot of fun for the gunner using the mouse controls of the Joy-Con, but the pilot (my nephew) had a ton of fun as well focused purely on the flying, navigating the terrain which includes secrets by flying through obstacles, and then of course dodging all the oncoming enemy projectiles.
Co-op can be played through the entire regular campaign and the challenge modes which feature several goals for the players to do in order to complete each of the objectives. Obviously, co-op modes are best when players need to work together to achieve an objective. As we began through the campaign, I was surprised just how much communication we needed to get on the same page for our strategy. This was observed while playing both the campaign and challenge modes.
One of the first examples is the very first boss where you shoot out its leg and cause it to fall over. This allows the player to then shoot its weak spot on its back to destroy it and win. In the challenge mode, you only have 3 minutes to complete the entire first mission. By the time you get to the boss, there’s usually between 35-60 seconds left depending on how fast you flew through the mission. As my nephew and I attempted to beat this mission in 3 minutes time, it’s important to deal with the boss quickly.
As the gunner, I took out the boss’s leg almost immediately, but then my nephew would start flying circles right over top of the boss without giving me a good angle to shoot its back. We failed the first time because of the close positioning that didn’t allow for good shooting angles. This allowed me to teach him how to create a better angle of attack for the aircraft, to approach it like a figure 8 rather than circling the downed boss. He immediately understood what I was teaching him and on our next attempt we completed the challenge successfully in under 3 minutes!
Teaching my nephew this way to approach what was essentially a ground target by the time we knocked it over was something I didn’t expect going into our co-op session on Star Fox. However, because the way co-op is set up, with one player being the pilot and the other the gunner, it created a fun memory for us as I was able to teach him this strategy. (This is also going to help him in future flight games as well!)
As we continued through the campaign, there were many more moments that also stood out where good communication was needed. There’s another boss where the pilot needs to avoid the enemy’s weapon fire and it’s easier to stay on the opposite side of the screen to do this. However, this means the gunner doesn’t have an angle to hit the enemy’s weak point. So, here was another opportunity where we needed to communicate the strategy for approaching the boss so that we could be successful. My nephew flew to the more dangerous side of the screen to set me up with a good look to fire on the boss’s weak point and would then roll out of the way before the enemy would hit us with its firepower. It was another success that required good communication and strategy to solve!
We had such a blast playing through the Star Fox campaign. We then continued to find alternative paths to see more of the stages and maintained communication throughout our entirety of playing the game. Co-op mode in Star Fox is a huge win in my opinion and the way it’s set up makes it a ton of fun to play and experience with others. Plus, forcing the players to use the Joy-Cons for piloting and shooting is also a win. It creates a unique gameplay experience within what’s already an incredible game. Not only did I have fun returning to the Star Fox series, but I was also so happy to see my nephew enjoy the game as well. I think we have another new Star Fox fan for life!
Since my nephew went back home, I continued my solo play and completed more of the planets, unlocked more medals, and completed additional challenges. There’s so much content in Star Fox and it’s all such a blast to play, whether it’s solo or co-op. This is also a game I’ll be taking with me to Oshkosh for EAA AirVenture in a couple of weeks so my Dad and I can play as well in the evenings! I highly recommend others do the same! If you haven’t picked up Star Fox yet on Nintendo Switch 2, please do so and prepare for a fun experience that will also challenge you along the way.
“Good luck!“
