Let us know your thoughts in the poll at the bottom of the page, but first, let’s see what Team NL would like to see from a new Star Fox…

Gavin Lane, Editor

For me, Lylat Wars is it. That’s where I started, with a Rumble Pak slapped in my pad, nigh-on the first thing I played on my sparkly new N64. It ushered me into a new era of gaming. It was exciting.

Every Star Fox I’ve dabbled with afterwards failed to live up to that feeling – not an uncommon take, I know. The SNES original feels too rudimentary, and though I admire how Dinosaur Planet Adventures, Command, and Zero tried new things, it’s the B-movie spectacle of 64 and the nostalgia it evokes that pulls me back.

Nintendo (or Bandai Namco, or whoever they partner with) should lean into that. Give me a shlocky, time-travel story where Fox jumps around the timeline in his Arwing, going back to a black-and-white ’50s-serial-looking era to team up with his gramps, then hopping to an ’80s-style arcade era with plenty of neon and polygons, and then to the present — well, his present) — with all the modern trimmings.

I’d want them to lean into the Independence Day of it all, that glorious, on-the-nose, chintzy cinema feeling that comes with peril and zingers and sassy villains. That’s what I enjoy about Star Fox.

Ollie Reynolds, Reviews Editor

I know plenty of people were disappointed by Star Fox Adventures back in 2002, but I genuinely think this stemmed from expectations over the actual quality of the experience – it’s a really good game!

So yes, I’d love to see something similar, but I’m also acutely aware that there needs to be some of that classic Lylat Wars-inspired aerial action, too. There was a bit of it in Adventures, but Nintendo would need to ensure there’s more of a healthy balance in whatever it’s supposedly cooking up.

It would be great if the game were split into multiple semi-open world environments across different planets, with the on-foot sections leaning into the more explorative gameplay seen in Adventures. Then travelling between the planets could feature the classic on-rails gameplay that we all know and love from Lylat Wars.

Heck, you could even split these into multiple segments: an asteroid field, a hostile space station, maybe even a trippy warp-speed section… all before reaching your final destination.

Alana Hagues, Deputy Editor

Along with F-Zero, Star Fox is probably the Nintendo franchise I have the least amount of love for. Though I admit, I adore the characters and their designs, and grew up with a healthy amount of Lylat Wars.

I’m glad the Mario Galaxy Movie leans into the cheesiness of the series (even if they probably go a bit far with Fox). So like Gavin, I want that OTT cinematic, dramatic style for a new Star Fox game. Give me some quotable memes and fun interactions!

In reality, I think Star Fox would need to be a totally different game for me to pick it up. Like Ollie, I do like Adventures! But for the sake of a “true return”, Star Fox needs to be similar enough with a few modern-day wrinkles.

Two things that would be fun to add are side-scrolling shmup-like sections — maybe go a little Mario Odyssey and make them pixel art or even use the old polygonal visuals from the SNES — and some kind of exploration. Let us explore Venom, Corneria, Fortuna, and Aquas a little. Maybe go Mass Effect-style with probes rather than on foot, or let the Landmaster transform into some kind of space buggy.

Jim Norman, Features Editor

I’m very much in the middle ground where I want Lylat Wars again, but… different. I mean, as everyone else has said, the Star Fox format was never better than it was back on the N64, and I think returning to the series’ roots is a good thing — especially considering that would be the first Star Fox game for a huge audience. Give me some classic on-rails shooting with high melodrama, and we’re ticking all the boxes.

But, I also don’t just want ‘the same again’. Nintendo has clung to Lylat Wars so closely in past entries that the thought of “A bold retelling of the N64 classic” is enough to have my eyelids drooping already. There has to be something new, and a fresh, bigger story with a new antagonist doesn’t seem like a bad place to start.

What about taking things slightly more off the rails? No Man’s Sky has become the gold standard for open-world space exploration these days, and even something like Star Wars Outlaws shows how neat it can be in a more action-focused setting. The chance to freely explore a bigger galaxy certainly sounds like the kind of hook Nintendo might employ for a big series revival. This is increasingly sounding like Retro Studios’ rejected ‘Star Fox Armada’ pitch, isn’t it?

So, back to the gold-standard roots, but with a few surprises thrown in there too. Brace for Star Fox 64 3D HD, then…

Those are our thoughts, but let us know yours in the poll below, and feel free to hit the comments to espouse on how Nintendo should thread this needle for McCloud and co. Good luck.