One of the developers behind the canceled Star Fox sequel was just a little glad his game didn’t launch when intended, since it would never have held up to the newly-launched PlayStation.
Back in 1995, Nintendo was planning to launch Star Fox 2 on the SNES in August. By the middle of the year, the game was almost complete, but Nintendo, choosing to focus on the upcoming N64 and its 3D graphics, canceled the launch. Star Fox 2 was finished behind the scenes – complete with QA testing and localization – but didn’t see the light of day until it launched as part of the SNES Classic collection in 2017.
According to Star Fox and Star Fox 2 programmer Dylan Cuthbert, however, the team might have been less disappointed by the lack of a release than you might expect. Speaking to Retro Gamer, Cuthbert said that “I do with is had been released, but at the same time, the PlayStation had just launched and was obviously far superior at 3D graphics.”
The launch of Sony’s console in 1994 did seem to have Nintendo worried, and Cuthbert says he “wouldn’t have like our game to be compared” to the PlayStation’s graphics. That doesn’t mean that he didn’t ever want Star Fox 2 to see the light of day, however – he says that he was “very happy” that it eventually got its launch, albeit more than 20 years later than expected.
Cuthbert went on to have a leading role on several other Star Fox projects, however, directing both Star Fox Command for the Nintendo DS in 2006, and Star Fox N64 3D for the 3DS in 2011.
Star Fox earns its place on our list of the best SNES games of all time.
