The relationship between PlatinumGames and Nintendo has been quite solid for the last couple of years. Best known for its action titles, PlatinumGames has released some incredible games exclusive to Nintendo’s consoles, ranging fromThe Wonderful 101andBayonetta 2in the Wii U era to 2019’sAstral Chainon the Switch. The former two games had the chance to be played again due toNintendo Switch ports, but one PlatinumGames project that is still locked on the Wii U isStar Fox Zero.
This game was a collaboration between Nintendo and PlatinumGames, and while it was initially met with a lot of excitement,Star Fox Zerowas critically pannedby critics and fans alike after release. Many of the problems stemmed from the game’s incredibly awkward and very difficult control scheme, as it utilized every single aspect of the Wii U. The game was also a commercial failure and was unable to garner interest as a reboot, as the game was retellingStar Fox 64’s story fora second time. The original game was ported to the 3DS a few years prior, which likely did not help.
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Despite all of this, many fans want a port of this game to the Switch, with modifications made to the gameplay to make it work on the console. This sentiment is shared by PlatinumGames. In an interview with VideoGamesChronicle, studio head Atsushi Inaba gave his thoughts onbringingStar Fox Zeroto the Switch, expressing interest on giving the game a new lease on life. “It’s not cool that people aren’t able to play older games because they’re locked out of the platform, so of course if anything was possible we’d like to bring over any of those older titles to the newer platforms," Inaba said.
While Inaba stated that they’re interested in porting the game to the Switch, he added that both the decision to make that port and to overhaul its gameplay is not up to PlatinumGames. Instead, it is up to the main gameplay designer,Shigeru Miyamoto, who was the one who pushed for many ofStar Fox Zero’s mechanics. “The important thing to remember there is that because it’s Nintendo’s IP, the ideas are coming from Miyamoto-san himself,” Inaba said. “We have to respect what Miyamoto-san wants to do.” He further stated that due to Miyamoto’s status, many had troubles trying to respectfully bring up any feedback regarding his ideas.
As it stands,Star Fox Zerois currently not in the cards to be ported from the Wii U to the Switch. This is a shame, considering many formerWii U exclusive gameshave benefited from being ported to the new console. Hopefully, the dialogue between PlatinumGames and Nintendo can be opened up once again to help give the game another chance to take off.
