is a
3D scrolling shooter and
third-person shooter
Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot 'em ...
video game developed by
Namco
was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...
and published by
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
for the
GameCube
The is a home video game console developed and released by Nintendo in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in PAL territories in 2002. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 (1996), and predecessor of the Wii ...
. It is the fourth released title in the ''
Star Fox
is an arcade style rail shooter and third person action-adventure video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto, produced and published by Nintendo. The games follow the Star Fox combat team of anthropomorphic animals, led by chief protagoni ...
'' series. The game was released on 14 February 2005 in North America, on 24 February 2005 in Japan, on 29 April 2005 in Europe, and on 16 June 2005 in Australia.
The game is set after the events of ''
Star Fox Adventures
''Star Fox Adventures'' is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo. The game had a long development cycle starting in 1997. Originally developed as ''Dinosaur Planet'' with Rare-created characters as the prota ...
'', and follows Fox McCloud and his team attempting to save the Lylat System from the enemy insectoid beings called Aparoids.
It contains orchestral arrangements of music from ''
Star Fox 64
known as ''Lylat Wars'' in the PAL regions, is a 3D rail shooter video game developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It is the second installment in the ''Star Fox'' series and a reboot of the original ''Star Fox'' for the Super Nintendo Ente ...
'' as well as original tracks created specifically for the game.
When ''Assault'' was initially announced by Nintendo and Namco, it was also rumored that an
arcade game
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...
was under development,
but it was never officially revealed to the public.
Gameplay
The gameplay of ''Star Fox: Assault'' is divided into three distinctive types. The player can either fly an
Arwing
is an arcade style rail shooter and third person action-adventure video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto, produced and published by Nintendo. The games follow the Star Fox combat team of anthropomorphic animals, led by chief protagoni ...
spacecraft, drive a
Landmaster
The Landmaster is a unique 12-wheeled amphibious articulated vehicle constructed by Dean Jeffries at Jeffries Automotive in Universal City, California, for the 1977 science fiction film ''Damnation Alley''. Despite the appearance of two Landmaste ...
tank or perform certain tasks on foot. All three play types are available for use in the game's
multiplayer
A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...
mode, though the available gameplay types are restricted based on the chosen map.
Arwing missions are similar to those of the first two games in the series. The player flies in space or close to the ground and shoots down enemies. Some levels are
on rails
This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players.
0–9
A
...
, while others allow
full freedom of movement in a relatively small area. As in previous games, main character Fox's
wing mates occasionally call for help when chased by enemies, requiring the player to save them. Additionally, in some levels, the player has the ability to hop in and out of the Arwing at will.
Whenever damage is taken from enemies or hazards, the shield/health meter depletes. If it's completely depleted, the player loses a vehicle/life. An instant life loss results if Fox falls off a cliff. If the player has no more lives/vehicles and the shield/health meter completely depletes, they will receive a
game over and be sent back to the title screen. Lives are also lost from four mission failures.
While in the Landmaster, the player has complete freedom to move about the level. They are
free to shoot or run over enemies and assist their wing mates when necessary. Playing on foot essentially turns the game into a
3D third-person run 'n' gun shooter; the player starts armed with a standard blaster gun and can acquire a variety of other weapons, including but not limited to a
machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
and a
homing launcher. In two
shooting gallery
Shooting gallery may refer to:
Firearms and amusements
*Shooting gallery (carnival game), a facility for shooting live firearms or for shooting recreational guns within amusement parks, arcades, carnivals, or fairgrounds
*Shooting range, is a ...
levels, the player rides on the wing of an Arwing or a Wolfen fighter, shooting enemies on the ground and in the air with a plasma cannon.
As an added bonus, by collecting all silver medals throughout the game, the player can unlock the
NES
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...
port of the
scrolling shooter
In computer displays, filmmaking, television production, and other kinetic displays, scrolling is sliding text, images or video across a monitor or display, vertically or horizontally. "Scrolling," as such, does not change the layout of the text ...
arcade game
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...
''
Xevious
is a vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades in 1982. It was released in Japan and Europe by Namco and in North America by Atari, Inc. Controlling the Solvalou starship, the player attacks Xevious for ...
'' as a bonus minigame.
The Japanese version of ''Star Fox: Assault'' also features the
Famicom
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...
games ''
Battle City
is a multi-directional shooter video game for the Family Computer produced and published in 1985 by Namco. It is a successor to Namco's 1980 ''Tank Battalion'', and would be succeeded itself by the 1991 ''Tank Force''.
An arcade version for the ...
'' and ''
Star Luster
is a 1985 space combat simulator video game developed and published by Namco for the Family Computer in Japan. and adapted for play in arcades via the Nintendo VS. System. ''Star Luster'' is set in the same universe as Namco's ''Bosconian'' (198 ...
'' as unlockables.
Multiplayer
The game supports
multiplayer
A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...
with support for up to four players simultaneously. This mode starts off very limited, with only a few playable characters, weapons, items, and maps; but many more can be unlocked by either playing a certain number of multiplayer games or achieving certain accomplishments in-game. Players are able to fight on foot or in a vehicle (a Landmaster, Arwing, or
Wolfen), though some stages prohibit certain modes of travel. Playable characters include the entire
Star Fox team
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system called Star Fox. Game ...
(including Peppy and Wolf).
Multiplayer mode offers several stages for playing, including stages from the single-player mode, "Simple Maps" (which look like they're made of building blocks), and other new maps. There are also several modes for play available, which can force a certain weapon (sniper, rocket launcher, etc.) or change the style of play (capture the crown, etc.). Also, there are a few customizable options, such as turning radar on/off, turning special weapons on/off, and turning Demon Launchers on/off.
It has a number of items and weapons, most of which are taken directly from the single-player mode. Special unlockable weapons included the Demon Sniper and Demon Launcher which have the ability to kill in one hit. In addition, there are a couple special items such as jet packs (which give a player on foot a hovering ability similar to the Landmaster's hover), and the "Stealth Suit", which temporarily makes the player
invisible
Invisibility is the state of an object that cannot be seen. An object in this state is said to be ''invisible'' (literally, "not visible"). The phenomenon is studied by physics and perceptual psychology.
Since objects can be seen by light in ...
.
Weapons and items
The game features a number of weapons, such as the
blaster,
machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
,
Homing Launcher,
sniper rifle
A sniper rifle is a high-precision, long-range rifle. Requirements include accuracy, reliability, mobility, concealment and optics for anti-personnel, anti-materiel and surveillance uses of the military sniper. The modern sniper rifle is a por ...
and the
hand grenade
A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...
.
Also used is the
Plasma Cannon, a rapid-fire gun with unlimited ammunition. This, however, is only used at two specific points. The game has a number of special items, including personal
barriers which deflect enemy attacks. The usual rings seen in other ''Star Fox'' games that restore a vehicle's shield are also present.
Plot
Setting and characters
The game stars the members of
Star Fox
is an arcade style rail shooter and third person action-adventure video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto, produced and published by Nintendo. The games follow the Star Fox combat team of anthropomorphic animals, led by chief protagoni ...
, a team of spacefaring mercenaries:
Fox McCloud
is a fictional character and the chief protagonist of Nintendo's ''Star Fox'' series. He is an anthropomorphic fox created and designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takaya Imamura. He was introduced as a player character in the original 1993 video ga ...
,
Falco Lombardi
is a fictional anthropomorphic bird from the ''Star Fox'' series of video games. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and designed by Takaya Imamura. Falco acts as the wingman and best friend of the titular Fox McCloud for the majority of the se ...
,
Slippy Toad
is a fictional character from the ''Star Fox'' series of video games published by Nintendo. He was created by Shigeru Miyamoto along with Takaya Imamura, who also designed the character, and was based on the assistant director of the original ' ...
and their newest member
Krystal
Krystal may refer to:
People
* Krystal Ann Simpson (born 1982), American poet, fashion blogger, DJ, reality television personality, and musician
* Krystal Ball (born 1981), American political commentator
* Krystal Barter, Australian activi ...
participate in combat missions, while
Peppy Hare
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system called Star Fox. ...
and
ROB 64
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system called Star Fox. Game ...
provide tactical support from their mothership, the ''Great Fox''. Star Fox frequently clash with rival mercenary group
Star Wolf Star Wolf or Starwolf may refer to:
* ''Star Wolf'', a 1971 science-fiction novel by Ted White
* Star Wolf, a team of mercenaries from the ''Star Fox'' series of video games.
* ''Star Wolf'' (novel series), a series of science fiction novels by ...
, made up of
Wolf O'Donnell
is a fictional character in Nintendo's ''Star Fox'' video game series. He was created by both Shigeru Miyamoto and Takaya Imamura. In the ''Star Fox'' series, Wolf O'Donnell is an anthropomorphic wolf who is both the leader of the Star Wolf merc ...
,
Leon Powalski
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system called Star Fox. Game ...
and new recruit
Panther Caroso; former members
Pigma Dengar
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system cal ...
and
Andrew Oikonny have since been kicked out of the team. Other supporting characters include Cornerian commanding officer
General Pepper
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system cal ...
and Slippy's scientist father,
Beltino Toad.
The Star Fox team's primary opponents are the Aparoids, a race of cybernetic insectoid creatures. They are capable of controlling machines and life forms through an
infection
An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...
process known as "Aparoidedation". The Aparoids operate as a
hive mind under the control of the
Aparoid Queen, who believes that all things exist for the infestation and seeks to assimilate everything in the universe under her control.
''Assault'' takes place one year after the events of ''
Star Fox Adventures
''Star Fox Adventures'' is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo. The game had a long development cycle starting in 1997. Originally developed as ''Dinosaur Planet'' with Rare-created characters as the prota ...
''. The game is once again set in the Lylat System and sees the Star Fox team travelling to many different locations, such as their native planet Corneria, Star Wolf's base the Sargasso Hideout, the prehistoric planet Sauria, and the Aparoid Homeworld. Other planets are featured exclusively in the game's multiplayer mode.
Story
After the defeat of his uncle
Andross
''Star Fox'' is a series of spaceship shooter games published by Nintendo. The main protagonist and player character of the series is Fox McCloud, the leader of a team of anthropomorphic animals in the Lylat planetary system called Star Fox. Game ...
, Andrew Oikonny assumes leadership of the planet Venom's remaining troops and begins a rebellion. General Pepper orders an attack on Oikonny's forces, hiring the Star Fox team to assist the Cornerian Army. During the battle, Oikonny's flagship is destroyed by an insectoid creature, which attacks the Star Fox team. After Fox destroys the creature, he recovers its damaged Core Memory unit and turns it over to Beltino for research. Beltino explains the creature is a member of a race of robotic insectoids called Aparoids, one of which ravaged the Cornerian fleet 17 years prior. Fearing an invasion, Beltino asks Star Fox to recover an undamaged Core Memory so that they might find a way to stop the Aparoids.
Lured by a false distress signal, the Star Fox team are deceived by Pigma, who tricks them into destroying a giant Aparoid so he can steal its Core Memory and sell it on the black market. Wishing to find Pigma, the team attack the base of his former cohorts, Star Wolf, and get them to reveal his hideout's location. However, by the time Team Star Fox arrive to Pigma's hideaway, he has already been infected by the Aparoids and they are forced to kill him. The Memory Unit Pigma had stolen is then sent to Beltino for analysis. While Star Fox prevents an Aparoid assault on Sauria, Corneria is left nearly defenseless, with the Aparoids breaching the planet and infecting General Pepper. The team returns to contain the threat, aided by the unexpected arrival of Star Wolf, who seek to eliminate their common enemy.
Beltino uses the Core Memory to locate the Aparoid Homeworld, and discovers their vulnerability to
apoptosis
Apoptosis (from grc, ἀπόπτωσις, apóptōsis, 'falling off') is a form of programmed cell death that occurs in multicellular organisms. Biochemical events lead to characteristic cell changes (morphology) and death. These changes incl ...
. He creates a program which, if fired into the Aparoid Queen, will force all Aparoids to self-destruct. Star Fox and Star Wolf travel to the Aparoid Homeworld, only to discover the planet's core is blocked by a regenerative shield. With the ''Great Fox'' becoming infected, Peppy and ROB crash it into the shield to create an opening for the two teams to enter. While Star Wolf takes care of the remaining Aparoid forces, Fox and his allies reach the planet's core. The Aparoid Queen attempts to use the voices of Peppy, Pepper, Pigma and
James McCloud to deceive them into joining her, but the team is undeterred. After a long battle, Fox launches the self-destruct program into the Queen, but she resists it and attempts to escape to create an antibody. The team deals the final blow to the Queen, killing her and causing the destruction of the planet and all the Aparoids. Successfully evacuating, the Star Fox team reunite with Peppy and ROB, who survived the crash via an escape pod and reveal the other infectees have been cured, including General Pepper. Satisfied, Fox thanks his friends as they head for home.
Development
The game was announced on 8 May 2002. It had a tentative release date of April 2003 for Japan, and would be developed by the same employees who worked on ''
Ace Combat 2
is a 1997 air combat video game developed and published for the PlayStation by Namco. It is the sequel to ''Air Combat'' and the second in the ''Ace Combat'' franchise. The player controls one of 24 different fighter jets through 21 different ...
'' at Namco.
New information about the game did not show up until a short video
montage
Montage may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Filmmaking and films
* Montage (filmmaking), a technique in film editing
* ''Montage'' (2013 film), a South Korean film
Music
* Montage (music), or sound collage
* ''Montage'' (Block B EP), 2017 ...
at
E3 2003
E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publisher ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, which showcased the game's
first-person perspective. According to ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'', the video was booed by viewers, and ''EGM'' itself said the video was "remarkably unimpressive".
During development, the game had the working title: ''Star Fox Armada'', but eventually came to be known as ''Star Fox: Assault''. In 2003, the game was intended to be multiplayer-oriented, and the ground missions of the game had a control scheme similar to the on-foot multiplayer mode in ''
Star Fox 64
known as ''Lylat Wars'' in the PAL regions, is a 3D rail shooter video game developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It is the second installment in the ''Star Fox'' series and a reboot of the original ''Star Fox'' for the Super Nintendo Ente ...
''.
At
E3 2004
E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publisher ...
, ''EGM'', the same magazine that wrote poorly about it a year before, wrote a follow-up that said the game looked "much better than...a year ago". ''Assault'' was scheduled for a November 2004 release, but was delayed to the beginning of 2005.
The game uses
middleware
Middleware is a type of computer software that provides services to software applications beyond those available from the operating system. It can be described as "software glue".
Middleware makes it easier for software developers to implement co ...
provided by the Japanese company
CRI Middleware
(formerly CSK Research Institute Corp.) is a Japanese developer providing middleware for use in the video game industry. From the early nineties, CRI was a video game developer, but shifted focus in 2001.
History
CRI started out as CSK Research I ...
as a
game engine
A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term "software engine" used in the software i ...
. Yoshie Arakawa and Yoshinori Kanemoto provided ''Assault'' with a musical score and sound effects with the music performed by the Tokyo New City Orchestra. Most of the score pieces use themes from ''
Star Fox 64
known as ''Lylat Wars'' in the PAL regions, is a 3D rail shooter video game developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It is the second installment in the ''Star Fox'' series and a reboot of the original ''Star Fox'' for the Super Nintendo Ente ...
'', composed by
Koji Kondo
is a Japanese music composer, pianist, and music director who works for the video game company Nintendo. He is best known for his numerous contributions to the '' Super Mario'' and ''The Legend of Zelda'' series of video games, among others pr ...
and Hajime Wakai.
Reception
''Star Fox: Assault'' was met with mixed to positive reception and has an average score of 71% on
GameRankings
GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
and 67/100 on
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
.
Some complaints were aimed at the control scheme during on-foot portions;
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
worded the complaint as "ground missions suffering from sloppy control".
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
noted that the multiplayer portion of the game has little lasting value, an annoyance that IGN felt as well. IGN went on to say the
design
A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...
was too simplistic.
However, IGN noted that being able to switch between the Arwing and Landmaster at will was a "welcome addition". In ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'', two of the reviewers gave it an 8 out of 10.
Play Magazine gave the game 8 out of 10.
Thunderbolt gave it 9 out of 10.
Kevin Gifford said that "the game is aimed less at the ''Mario'' club and more toward the hardcore crowd". ''EGM'' also noted that ''Assault'' had an epic feel, helped by a great soundtrack.
The game became enough of a commercial success for it to be included in Nintendo's
Player's Choice
''Nintendo Selects'' (formerly ''Player's Choice'') was a marketing label used by Nintendo to promote video games on current Nintendo game consoles that have sold well. ''Nintendo Selects'' titles were sold at a lower price point (usually $19.99 ...
line, which also includes ''
Star Fox 64
known as ''Lylat Wars'' in the PAL regions, is a 3D rail shooter video game developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It is the second installment in the ''Star Fox'' series and a reboot of the original ''Star Fox'' for the Super Nintendo Ente ...
'' and ''
Star Fox Adventures
''Star Fox Adventures'' is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo. The game had a long development cycle starting in 1997. Originally developed as ''Dinosaur Planet'' with Rare-created characters as the prota ...
''.
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
2005 video games
Dinosaurs in video games
GameCube games
GameCube-only games
Namco games
Rail shooters
Shooter video games
Assault
An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...
Tank simulation video games
Video games developed in Japan
Video games about extraterrestrial life
Multiplayer and single-player video games