Star Fox 2 Made Its Debut On The SNES Classic Console Five Years Ago

I’m not a huge fan of the game overall but I still think it’s so cool that Nintendo just straight up released an unreleased SNES game years after development. Makes me wonder what else they have collecting dust on their shelves…

As someone who loves Star Fox, I was really happy to got to experience it on the SNES Classic when I got one, and I'm actually happy it made its way to NSO's SNES Online. Especially after years of reading about this one online from Star Fox and Nintendo fan sites.

Cool! Star Fox 2 was one of my favorite SNES games! Although it is kind of weird that the website is making an article on the anniversary of a rerelease of a game, I guess it is a Nintendo website after all

5 years already??? I can’t believe that in 5 years we never got a GAMEBOY classic or a N64 classic.

They should release stuff like that more often or even beta version of games

I am not one for hyperbolic statements, but it is criminal that we don’t have a Switch Star Fox game.
It seemed every console got their own version.

And the game they made a cameo in doesn’t count.

Hard to believe that this would be 25 year old game is only 5 year old officially.

@AX-7 A few years from now, we will be celebrating the anniversaries of ports.

@FishyS Yeah I'm like "wow, that was really 5 years ago?"

I still got my bootleg copy somebody made with an SNES cartridge.

Hmmm… I never knew this game existed. It sounds like something Nintendo would do, shelve a game and focus on something else. I hear about them finishing games and sitting on them. I’m wondering how many they have shelved that none of us know about.

@AX-7 It was not on the snes, the classic was its initial release.

I believe you have to unlock the game to play on the SNES Mini. I honestly couldn’t get into unfortunately.

@shonenjump86 Yeap you just need to complete the first mission of Star Fox to unlock it. Once you got out of Corneria, create a save-state then scroll on the menu until you see a gift wrap icon similar to the one found on a 3DS menu, unwrap it to get Star Fox 2. Nintendo really should do more of these kind of mini, an N64 classic mini with 30 games plus one or more unreleased games like Stunt Race 64, EarthBound 64 and/or Fire Emblem 64 included would be nice.

I still remember it like yesterday where people were losing their minds over Star Fox 2 finally being released. Time flies. I'm glad Nintendo finally officially released it.

Having a hard time believing 2017, perhaps my best year in recent times, happened 5 years ago.

I'm sure there is a market for physical copies of these games that were translated for the original console, but have only been released digitally on VC.
Star Fox 2, Fire Emblem 1, and Earthbound Beginnings stand out as titles that people would certainly buy if made available.
Then, of course, reprints of Earthbound, Fire Emblem for GC/Wii, Cubivore, and others would be nice too.
Yes, I can play some of them on VC, but the Mother series ought to be available on original hardware.

Star Fox 2, EarthBound Beginnings, and Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light really set a high bar, didn't they? Ever since those two have been released, it feels like requests for Mother 3 continued to skyrocket.

Hey look, an article that doesn't require me to own a Switch to be able to comment! Thanks Nintendo Life!

Has it REALLY been 5 years since the mini SNES got released? That time must have flown by! Wasn't a fan of Star Fox 2, but got tons of good memories from Star Fox and SF64.

NINJA APPROVED

dkc2 for virtual boy when?

More of a curio than anything,
but I'm happy to have it.

Star Fox 2 is one of my most revisited SNES games. It seems to be written off as nothing but a historical footnote, but it’s a truly fantastic game with a brilliant design. One of the best games on SNES, if you’re willing to give it a real chance.

Still have my SNES and Nes Mini unopened due to life and a backlog bigger than I can physically get through.
Maybe in another 5 years I might have opened them by then.

Seriously, 2017 was such a good time to be a Nintendo fan. Remember when everyone thought 2022 was going to be a repeat of that year?

@KingdomTears Yes! And now we're all dreaming 2023 will be that year.

Like others have said, it is such a shame the Switch never got a Star Fox game of its own.

And of course, to date, no original 2D Mario, no original 2D Zelda, no original Mario Kart and no original Donkey Kong.

In fact, if Switch success was measured on original software from major Nintendo franchises... it doesn't really make sense?

I can't wait for the Wii U-Switch ports anniversaries!

@nocdaes This is what I always say, it's shocking that since they merged the home and handheld development arms, very little has come from Nintendo's studios.

@Banjo- totally agree with you. They promised so much as they would be developing for just one system going forward but have delivered so little.

@andyg1412 Right and, on top of that, Breath of the Wild's development was finished one year earlier but they were porting it to Switch (revealed by Iwata Asks).

I wanted StarFox 2 so bad since I first saw it in Nintendo Power as a kid. When the SNES Classic launched, I was in line for hours, sitting on the floor and chatting with other Nintendo fans. I had my nerdy girlfriend chilling with me to get one herself, and I was doodling Link on my 3DS Colors! 3D game. It was a long wait but a fun evening. I unlocked StarFox 2 right away when I got home, and the experience was bittersweet. I was glad to finally be able to play it, and I was having fun, but quickly saw why it was shelved. I kept my SNES Classic mint for 5 years as well, but I was dying to play games like Killer Instinct and Secret of Evermore on it. So. I hacked it, finally. And I scroll past StarFox 2 without even thinking now.

5 years are you kidding me?! whoa time flies...

I feel these 3d snes games grow old so bad.

@shonenjump86 No you don't. Its right there on the menu.

@Tempestryke you have to unlock it. Like @Serpenterror mentioned, you just need to beat the 1st stage of Star Fox to get it.

I agree with my fellow community members here that it was pretty cool for the to release this game as a treat to SNES fans. This to me is in the same way they released a localized Earthbound Beginnings on the Wii U and the Switch original version of a localized Fire Emblem. Gives me hope for other future surprise localizations…….like Earthbound 3!

What would be more cool is if Starfox 2 was released in a physical format like Fire Emblem was!