The former Nintendo art director who originally designed the Star Fox characters in the ’90s has admitted he prefers the recent Super Mario Galaxy film’s design of Fox McCloud to the newly-announced game’s.
Takaya Imamura is a bit of a Nintendo legend, having designed characters including Captain Falcon and The Legend of Zelda’s middle-aged and fairy-obsessed Tingle, to name just two. But, for many, he is most famous for designing Star Fox’s anthropomorphic animal leads (did you know Imamura used Shigeru Miyamoto as his inspiration for Fox McCloud?)
But while Imamura is no longer at Nintendo, it’s clear his time there meant a great deal to him, and he still often comments on the likes of Star Fox on his social media channels. So, it comes as no surprise that following last night’s reveal of Star Fox for Nintendo Switch 2, the artist had some thoughts.
To be clear, Imamura was not a part of the newly-announced Star Fox 64 remake, or its character designs. He said as much while replying to a fan on X. But, even so, the artist began the day by saying how “proud” he was to see Star Fox 64 getting the remake treatment, and thanking Miyamoto in the process.
When asked his thoughts on the new character designs, he then replied: “I suppose this is what happens when I’m not overseeing it… I do think the concept is good, though” (translated via DeepL).
Imamura went on to say that while he believes this version of Fox McCloud to be “good in its own right” and has “a clear direction”, he personally thinks Illumination’s animated take on the character in the Super Mario Galaxy Movie was better. “I prefer the film version,” he stated.
These character designs in Star Fox (the new one) have been somewhat controversial, and since the Switch 2 remake was announced, many have shared their disappointment with how the characters appear in the game.
While some have no issue with the Star Fox crew’s new look, others have been less complimentary, with responses ranging from Falco’s face looks “too human like” to “I’m sorry but I hate this new hyper realistic approach to the Star Fox characters”.
Away from these divisive designs, though, there is one thing many people can agree on. How are we getting yet another version of the same game again?
Star Fox is set to release later this year, on 25th June. The game will include new cutscenes in the form of pre-mission briefings to give us more context about the characters and the world, as well as a multiplayer element and more.
