On February 21, 1993, the 3D shooting game “Star Fox” was released for the Super Nintendo. The commercial that used the unfamiliar word “super FX chip” on the front left a strong impression on me. I remember it well.
Now that I’m an adult, I looked into it, and the “Super FX chip” is a coprocessor built into some Super Famicom cassettes such as “Star Fox”. Used to render 3D polygon by polygon.
Thanks to this chip, “Star Fox” has become a very shocking title that can express 3D polygons on the Super Famicom. Other game titles also had beautiful graphics expression and smooth drawing at that time, but most of the Super Nintendo games at that time were expressed in 2D. When I came there, it was suddenly expressed with 3D polygons, and there was depth on the screen, and it was moving smoothly. The shock was too great. This may sound like an exaggeration, but even as a child, I thought, “This is a ridiculous game.”
In this article, I would like to look back on my memories of this work.
[“Star Fox” (Super Famicom Nintendo Switch Online)]
A world represented by 3D polygons.I liked games and played various titles from that time, but this work really shocked me.
This work was a series of surprises such as the expression of 3D polygons and the depth of space.
As mentioned above, the main attraction of this work is the 3D polygon representation.
Even if you say “3D polygons are amazing!”, you may feel unsatisfactory if you look at it by today’s discerning standards. However, the gray parts of the aircraft that appear and the mechanical ruggedness that you can feel, and the enemy’s weak points glow alternately in red and yellow, casually telling me that they are weak points. Also, some of the items use wireframes to create a futuristic feel, and even if you say 3D polygons in a nutshell, there are various types of expressions that convey messages to players. was impressive.
I was also surprised by the concept of “depth of space”. At that time, I was playing a group of works such as 2D side-scrolling action games, vertical-scrolling shooting games, and top-down RPGs. I don’t really have the concept of spatial depth in my head. However, in this work, enemy planes cut into your field of vision from the sides of the screen, enemy bullets and missiles attack you from the back of the screen, and depending on the stage, asteroids also fly towards you. was.
Since the boss is huge, I think it was difficult to express where to attack.By making it alternately glowing red and yellow, he appealed that it was the part he should attack.
In addition to enemy attacks from the back of the screen, asteroids and other objects flew by, and I was surprised and moved, thinking, “There is no game like this in the world!”
Visual expression is the main thing around here, and in a sense it may be said that it is just a memory correction. However, I feel that this work is very interesting even if I play it again now.
Is it really okay!Nightmare stages, including slot machine bosses
And the episode that impressed me the most is the hidden element of this work. From the conclusion, there is something like a hidden area in this work, and if you go to the end of the area, a huge slot machine boss will appear. The boss of this slot machine can be defeated by issuing 777, but conversely, there is no need to defeat it other than that, and it is necessary to turn the slot all the time.
I was really surprised by this hidden element. To get to this area, you would have to follow a special route that would make you think, “If you don’t know how to get there, you’ll never get there.” rice field.
I only found out about this hidden area from a vague memory, but I think it was introduced as a “trick” in a manga magazine for boys. I don’t remember the details anymore, but when I got the information that the hidden elements of this work would be published in the manga magazine, I remember going to the bookstore and buying it first thing in the morning on the release date of the magazine. And it was a hidden element that had an impact that was worth all the hard work.
A nightmare stage when you are overwhelmed with fever.Boss is a slot machine
After “Star Fox” was released on the Super Famicom, “Star Fox 64” was released on Nintendo 64, and the “Star Fox” series continued thereafter. Among them, “Star Fox 2” recorded in “Mini Super Famicom” had an impact. It is a sequel to the “Star Fox” that I picked up this time, but it was not released due to various reasons. It’s surprising that it became possible to play in the light of day in 2017.
And now, both “Star Fox” and “Star Fox 2” can be played on Nintendo Switch’s “Super Famicom Nintendo Switch Online”.
With “Super Nintendo Switch Online”, you can also play the phantom “Star Fox 2”.Please try playing along with this work
A masterpiece of 3D shooting that does not fade even in Reiwa era. It is a work that I would like even inexperienced readers to play.
