Star Fox (series)

The Star Fox series' is one of Nintendo's major franchises, although it is less of a major franchise than others such as the Mario series and Legend of Zelda series. It began in 1993 with the release of Star Fox for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and continues to this day.

Overview
The series focuses on the humanoid fox, Fox McCloud, and his efforts to destroy the evil Emporer Andross from taking over the Lylat System. Unlike quite a few other Nintendo franchises, the Star Fox series actually tries to tell a coherent story and to maintain continuity. So far, the only game in the series that has proven impossible to fit into the storyline is the original SNES game. However this is because Star Fox 64 for the Nintendo 64 was a remake of the game, and thus it replaces the original storyline rather than being a sequel to it.

Star Fox
In the Super Nintendo game and original comics that ran in the official Nintendo magazine issues 45 through 55, Nintendo Power, which are both in the original continuity, Fox receives a distress signal from Director-General Pepper to come to the Lylat System's aid. Immediately setting off for Pepper's homeplanet of Corneria via stowing away on a starship, Fox and his team members- Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and Falco Lombardi arrive on Corneria just as the forward attack force of Andross's armada of ships arrive. Quickly Team Star Fox jumps into the cockpits of the prototype super-advanced starfighter, Arwing, which Pepper believes to be the only ship capable of defeating Andross. They graduate from basic training quickly and before they can even hardly rest they're dispatched to protect the city they're in from attack. Pepper's prediction is right- after many, many battles with various enemy starships Fox reaches Venom, first planet of the Lylat system, and fights his way to Andross's lair. It is there that he comes across a metallic silver face, one that Andross formed using his Telekinetic Amplifier in order to protect his central Core Brain from being destroyed. Fox managed to shoot apart the apparition, though, and he laid waste to the core. Escaping from the self-destructing, base, he rejoins his team and they boost off back to Corneria as heroes. Andross still lives...

Star Fox 64
In the Nintendo 64 game and official adaptaion of the game which ran in Nintendo Power, Star Fox 64 (or Lylat Wars in Europe for copyright reasons) Team Star Fox is patrolling the Lylat system in their Dreadnought-class flagship, the Great Fox, when Pepper appears via hologram and says: "We need your help, Star Fox! Andross has declared war and is trying to take over Corneria! Our army alone can't do the job. Hurry, Star Fox!" The team quickly scrambles their Arwing fighters from the Great Fox's hangar bay and speeds towards the planet, which is heavily under siege. Checking their G-Diffusers, they set out and liberate the world. Along the way they encounter Team Star Wolf, a rival group of mercenaries whom Andross had hired to destroy Fox's team. They were all defeated, but they managed to narrowly escape death and come back via the power of reconstructive surgery. Before too long they reach Venom, homeworld of Andross, who resembles a floating primate head with two floating hands. He taunts them before they reach the surface, where Fox and team battle thousand upon thousand of his warships along with a revived Team Star Wolf. Fox enters the monkey's labyrinth, and at its end floats Andross. Destroying his false outer face, Fox finds the maniac's true form- a floating brain! "Only I have the brains to rule Lylat!" Andross yells. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the brawn. Fox tears though him, and Andross selfdestructs in a desperate, vengeful last move. Fox screams, thinking he is good for dead, but his father James McCloud (who Andross killed, as well) guides him away from the base. He returns to Corneria to a victory parade, when Pepper offers to place the group in the Cornerian Army. Fox refuses, and Team Star Fox runs off into the sunset.

This game was called Lylat Wars in Europe, due to copyright reasons. This was also the name of the Nintendo Power comic adapting the game.

Starfox Adventures
Eight years later, we're introduced to Dinosaur Planet, a forgotten world on the edge of the Lylat System. A young vixen named Krystal, who is searching for the cause of her homeworld's destruction, ends up here after responding to a distess signal. She enters the mysterious Krazoa Palace and finds the remnants of an Earthwalker army inside. The soldiers inform her that they were attacked by General Scales and his Sharpclaw Army, who were attempting to capture Krazoa Spirits for an unknown purpose. She manages to find the first Krazoa Spirit, and places it back to it's resting place. However she is captured inside of a large crystal and becomes helpless. In his process of taking over this world, Scales ends up tearing apart the planet and before too long the matter comes to General Pepper's attention. He informs Team Star Fox (which has only one active member left) of the situation, and they approach Dinosaur Planet. Fox, sole on-duty member flies down to the planet and begins a long adventure to find all of the Krazoa Spirits, vital components of the planet, along with the four Spellstones which hold the planet itself together. He succeeds, and along the way meets Krystal, frees her, and she joins Team Star Fox. At the journey's end, Fox brings all of the Spirits to Krazoa Palace, only to find that Andross has managed to cheat death by infesting the Krazoa God's form with his disembodied spirit. After a long and harrowing space battle in which Falco Lombardi comes to Fox's aid after five years of leaving the team, Andross's spirit and the Krazoa God are both killed, leaving only celebration and peace in their wake.

Starfox Assault
In Starfox: Assault, it's been one year since Andross was destroyed for the last time. Krystal and Fox are in a pseudo-relationship, and all of the Starfox Team's equipment has been upgraded and repaired. As the Star Fox team is called in to defend Corneria from the Oikonny Rebels, the remnants of the Venomian Army of Imperial Lizards, a disturbing new menace known as the Aparoids invade the Lylat System. Emerging in the heart of the battlefield as Andrew Oikonny, leader of the rebellion, attempts to succeed in killing Fox where his uncle failed, the invaders wipe out much of the fleet. So begins Fox's latest adventure, as he rushes to the Aparoid Homeworld to defeat their Queen.

Continuity
Canonically, Star Fox 64 occurs first, with Starfox Adventures ocurring eight years afterward, and Starfox Assault taking place a year after Adventures. It is unknown at this point when the forthcoming game Starfox: Command will take place, but it is most likely to take place sometime after Assault. Also, there are 3 separate comics printed by Nintendo that ran in issues of Nintendo Power that may or may not take place in the series. For the most part, these comics adapt the games, although the third comic tells the story of how Falco left the team. There was also a Japanese manga adapting the third game in the series, Starfox Adventures. It is unknown how canon this comic as as of now.

Starfox: Command
A new game has been announced by Nintendo following E3 2006, first hinted at by Shigeru Miyamoto when the Nintendo DS was first revealed. From screenshots and other media it appears that a new character, Peppina, will be in the game, and it will heavily feature all-range mode.

Important Characters

 * Andross
 * Falco Lombardi
 * Fox McCloud
 * Krystal
 * Pepper
 * Peppy Hare
 * Slippy Toad

Secondary Characters

 * Andrew Oikonny
 * Bill Grey
 * Katt Monroe
 * James McCloud
 * Leon Powalski
 * Panther Caroso
 * Pigma Dengar
 * ROB 64-NUS
 * Tricky
 * Wolf O'Donnel