Star X

"No, This Really Isn't Star Fox"

Star X is a great shooter for any fans of the Star Fox series to try out. Though it might be accused of being a copy, which it may be, it's still fun and a great substitute for the absence of a port of the original Star Fox.

Story 7/10
First off, Star X is a shooter, which are games that generally are not known for epic stories. Star X is about an alien race discovered by Earth. When a team from Earth are sent to meet with the aliens, they're all killed, except for two pilots in a lone ship who manage to get away. It seems that the aliens are only interested in using humans as a resource (slaves) and doesn't care to do anything with Earth other than enslave it. The two pilots are caught, but escape again (it's all in the opening, and the part about the 'great escape' goes into great detail) and now they must travel back to Earth to warn everyone about the fact that the aliens are bad. I don't remember the alien race's name, so I'm not going to mention it here. As far as shooter stories go, this one is pretty detailed as it actually has an opening, which is actually longer than 30 seconds. This has got to be a record for shooter stories. Of course, on average, the story is certainly nothing special, but it's clear that the creators actually spent more than five seconds coming up with the plot, a thing rarely done for shooters.

Graphics 10/10
We all remember Star Fox, and are all very disappointed to find that no Star Fox game are available from Nintendo (unless you want to count Star Fox Adventures, which wasn't originally a Star Fox game in the first place) except for one coming out for the Game Cube, which probably won't be released any time soon. As soon as you start the first stage, you'll feel that you're reliving the original Star Fox game, which is great for any fans desperate for another sequel.

Sound 8/10
The sound effects were pretty clear and distinct, and it was easy to tell what they were used for. Not bad.

Music 5/10
You could count the number of songs in this game on one hand. That's how many there are. The ones that are there are kind of generic too.

Controls 7/10
This game has taken some criticism from game reviewers, but it's really not that bad. Maneuvering the ship is pretty easy, and targeting enemies isn't too challenging. The controls are somewhat similar to those in Star Fox, with the ability to boost, brake, and turn onto the side.

Challenge 10/10
The game comes with three difficulty settings to choose from, so you can have fun whether you're a master or you suck at games. The game doesn't prove to be too challenging for beginners, while it can still be pretty tough at the end.

Gameplay 8/10
It's very similar to Star Fox, so if you loved that game, don't think over whether you should get this game or not, as it's a pretty obvious choice. The game offers two game modes, one which is the standard Star Fox mode that has you traveling in a straight line, and the other that was introduced in Star Fox 64, where you're able to move around on a plane. The bosses are very interesting and can to prove to be fairly tough, and the enemies are frequent enough to keep you interested, while not too overwhelming.

Replay 7/10
The game has one extra feature, a hidden ship that you can find in the ninth stage. I'm not really sure what advantages it has over the first ship, but it looks pretty cool.

Overall 8/10
A great substitute for the absence of Star Fox, and a fun shooter I'd suggest you check out.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/28/03, Updated 01/28/03