Star Fox has multiple alternate routes to reach the final planet of Venom, with almost every stage offering regular and secret exits.

Each alternate route has a special, hidden requirement — such as saving or defeating specific characters in battle, completing objectives or flying through warp gates — that allow you to make your own way to the end of the game and face Andross.

To see all these routes at a glance, our Star Fox routes map shows every stage and where it can take you. For more specifics on how to access these alternate routes, the guide features every planet and the routes available for each one, as well as suggested Easy Route, Medium Route and Hard Route options to take.

Star Fox Routes Map

Here is every stage in Star Fox and the routes available to you. If the arrow is white, then you will travel on that route if you complete the stage as normal, whereas a red route is an alternate path you can take, provided you fulfil the hidden requirements:

Before we proceed with how to access their hidden requirements, some additional notes on routes:

• Generally, to travel along the upper half of the Lylat system, you have to find alternate routes, whereas taking the default route will see you travel along the bottom.
• If you have unlocked an alternate route, you don’t have to take it after the mission – you can opt to change course and choose the normal route from the map screen if you prefer.
• On the map screen, the very bottom of the screen’s interface shows the stages you have taken so far, and the team members who weren’t downed at every step.

Star Fox Walkthrough For Easy, Medium and Hard Routes

The beauty of Star Fox is you can decide your own route through the campaign, based on the branching paths in front of you. However, it’s hard to know which is the ‘best’ route to take, especially for those who didn’t play the Nintendo 64 original.

Though there is no formal Easy, Medium or Hard route, it’s broadly recognised that the courses at the bottom of the map (with no alternative exits) are easiest, the courses in the middle (which requires one or two alternative exits) are a little more challenging, and the courses along the top (which mainly require alternate exits to reach) are the most difficult.

Tackling them in this order gives you a gradual ramp up in difficulty, so you aren’t accidentally stumbling on a hard stage early.

Here’s our suggestions for an Easy route, Medium route, and Hard route in Star Fox:

Easy route

Corneria, Meteo, Fichina, Sector X, Titania, Bolse, Venom

Medium route

Corneria, Meteo, Katina, Solar, Macbeth, Bolse, Venom

Hard route

Corneria, Sector Y, Aquas, Zoness, Sector Z, Area 6, Venom 2 (and the true ending)

The additional benefit of tackling the above in order is, by the time you’re done, you’ll have played and thus unlocked each stage, allowing you then to revisit them individually for their respective challenges.

All Alternate Routes In Star Fox

Here is every stage, and the routes available to you, listed in alphabetical order.

Aquas routes

To Aquas (hard route)

Complete stage normally

Area 6 routes

Blose routes

To Venom

Complete stage normally

Corneria routes

To Meteo

Complete stage normally

To Sector Y

Save Falco in battle, fly through all seven stone archways, and Falco will show you a secret route through the waterfall on the right to the Attack Carrier boss (full details in our Corneria alternative exit explainer)

Fichina routes

To Sector X

Complete stage normally

To Solar

Defeat Star Wolf in battle before the timer runs out

Katina routes

To Sector X

Complete stage normally

To Solar

Destroy the Saucerer and save the base

Macbeth routes

To Bolse

Complete stage normally

To Area 6 (hard route)

Shoot all eight rail locks, then the rail switch, during the boss fight (full details in our Macbeth rail lock locations explainer)

Meteo routes

To Fichina

Complete stage normally

To Katina

Find and travel through all seven energy anomalies

Sector X routes

To Titania

Complete stage normally

To Macbeth

Ensure Slippy isn’t downed during the Spyborg boss battle

To Sector Z

Shoot open, then fly through, all four warp gates

Sector Y routes

To Katina

Complete stage normally

To Aquas (hard route)

Destroy all six Copperhead Missiles before they can damage the Great Fox

Sector Z routes

To Bolse

Complete stage normally

To Area 6 (hard route)

Destroy every missile

Solar routes

To Macbeth

Complete stage normally

Titania routes

To Bolse

Complete stage normally

Zoness routes

To Macbeth

Complete stage normally

To Sector Z (hard route)

Destroy all 36 Radar Buoys without being detected

Venom / Venom 2 routes

FAQs

How many stages are there in Star Fox?

There are 16 stages in total, all starting with Corneria and ending with either Venom or Venom 2, depending on your route.

How many possible routes are there in Star Fox?

There are 25 possible routes to take from Corneria to Venom, 14 of which take you to the normal ending, and 11 which can take you to Venom 2 and the true ending. (Thanks to this nameless user on reddit for working out all the combinations based on the original N64 version.)

Are there any new stages or routes in Star Fox on Switch 2?

No – the stages and routes all remain the same as the Nintendo 64 original. Some of the unlock descriptions have changed or become formalised, but their methods and where they go are unchanged.

What is the best route to take in Star Fox?

If you are playing for the first time, then don’t worry too much about the route you are taking. The campaign is short and designed to be replayed, so if you happen upon a branching path, great – otherwise you can always replay and revisit later.

That said, in general, the lower routes are easier, and the higher routes are more challenging. By attempting the suggested Easy, Medium, and Hard routes earlier in this guide, you then naturally play each stage with minimal overlap, and unlock them for individual replays later.

Can routes only go in one direction in Star Fox?

Correct – there’s no way to ‘double back’. There’s only a maximum of seven stages in each playthrough, all starting and ending at Corneria and Venom or Venom 2, and you have to progress forwards based on the possible paths available to you.