Tuesday 20 Feb 2007

Before I launch into my hair raising account of the heroic deeds that I’ve done and peace that I’ve brought to the Lylat system with my new mate Fox McCloud, it is important to know this. I am a complete noob when it comes to Star Fox. There, I have said it and we can all move on.

Congratulations for continuing to read my experience of Star Fox Command and feel comforted in the knowledge that, being new to the Star Fox franchise, I am not burdened by what has gone before, and can simply enjoy the experience for what it is. So if you are an avid follower of Fox McCloud and have spent many hours piloting him and the team over the years, or this is your first experience too, here is a rookie’s perspective of the latest addition.

The heroic deeds of the Star Fox team are known across the galaxy, but for those who have forsaken society and avoid all contact, let me recap. This fifth installment continues where the story left off in Star Fox: Assault, where the Star Fox team vanquished the evil forces on planet Venom and brought a tentative peace to the Lylat system. However, a new scurge called the Anglar has arisen from the acidic oceans of Venom and are determined to destroy the Lylat system once and for all. Enter Fox McCloud who needs to track down his dispersed team members and reform the Star Fox team, if he is to defend the galaxy and defeat the Anglar.

The Star Fox team used to include Peppy, Krystal, Slippy and Falco. The mere mentioning of their names will bring goose bumps to series followers; such is the emotional attachment to these characters. Peppy went on to assume the role of General of the Cornerian Army. Krystal was very close to Fox right up to the point where he forced her off the Star Fox team for “safety reasons,” stating that the job was too threatening for her to be involved in. Slippy on the other hand falls for a frog named Amanda. Last but not least, Falco followed his heart too and gets involved in any solo battle he can engage with.

Consequently, the team is non existent when the Anglar threat emerges and only your leadership can unify them in the name of good and get them back into laser blasting, barrel-rolling condition. You have some impact on the way the story ends as the campaign has multiple endings determined by the choices you make at key points in the plot. Although you will need to run through the “main” story path once to unlock the divergent path options. It is a nice feature although it can feel disjointed as you do get a clear sense of how the story progresses, rather than a split fragment of multiple stories.

Excellent use of touch screen

The game makes excellent use of the stylus during both phases of play. First there is the strategic turn based map mode. In this phase you need to plot the flight path of your fighters across the territory. There are limited turns, fog of war and fuel limitations to keep you entertained, but there is no rocket science to it. The challenge is to keep the Great Fox intact and vanquish all enemies before you run out of turns. The only combat that can occur during this phase is by firing missiles from the Great Fox. This marvelous mothership is piloted by a series favourite called Rob. If you are fortunate to have missiles in stock on the Great Fox, they can turn the tide of battle and prevent defeat. Often my fighters were on the other side of the map and an enemy unit popped out of the fog of war next to my mothership. I was extremely grateful for the drag and drop missiles!

Battle mode is engaged once you finish plotting the flight paths for your fighters. If a fighter comes near to an enemy fighter, base or missile the action begins. You’ll need to lumber up your wrist and trigger finger to give it to the Anglars. Some of the encounters like missile shoot-down are “on rails” so to speak and just require a steady hand, a whole lot of random luck. The base and fighter attacks require skill and do not suffer form the same inconsistencies as the missile shoot-down. My experience of Star Fox Command fighting was very positive with the stylus control feeling natural after a couple of minutes. There are a few touch tags on the HUD for fighting maneuvers, which are easily reached with the stylus in even the most frantic encounters. That said, you can get by with vanilla fighting to complete the primary story path.

Multiplayer

The beauty of the Nintendo DS shines through with this title whereby you can play with 5 mates over local wireless using just one card. I am still trying to coax sufficient players away from their latest games to test it out. I have no doubt that the fighting controls are just as slick as the story mode and given the fact that you are up against humans and not computer AI, it should rock the casbah. Alternatively, thanks to the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, you can easily play with 3 online players. Connection to the service is quick and in no time at all you can get a 4 player game running. Simple, easy connectivity options to suit your situation are the strong feature for this title and will certainly add to its longevity.

I really enjoyed Star Fox Command as it is a solid polished space shooter with a fun quirky story, simple yet effective control system and solid multiplayer experience. The bosses could have been staggered better in terms of difficulty and the missions could have been more varied. Nevertheless, it is an amazing game worthy of your time and a place in your collection.

Pros: Stylus control works beautifully, stunning design/layout, touching stories, single card multi-play.
Cons: Can get repetitive, missile chase-down behaves erratically.

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Contributor:	Wayne

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