This week’s surprise Star Fox Direct gave us, well, a lot of surprises. A new game in the form of Star Fox, new designs, more multiplayer options, toys… the list is endless.

But the coolest part of the Direct, arguably, were shown in the last three minutes — a prologue featuring Fox McCloud’s father, James McCloud. Now, you can watch those last three minutes on YouTube.

It’s a bit of a treat for Star Fox fans, as it shows off the battle where James is betrayed by fellow pilot Pigma Dengar. Peppy Hare, of course, also features heavily in the short.

This might well be our first real look at how much more story-focused the upcoming reimagining of Star Fox 64 will be — but also at how cool James looks. Look at those shades. We could never.

Watching it through again now, the cutscenes look absolutely gorgeous, something we didn’t really appreciate when watching the Direct. The fur on James and Peppy, the darker lighting, the action, explosions… we’re really excited to see this in action on our Switch 2.

And we don’t have to wait long: Star Fox launches on Switch 2 on 25th June. Japan is also getting some adorable plushies of the Star Fox crew. Let’s hope we get those, too.