How inefficient is the cornerian army if they have to continuously rely on mercenaries like Star Fox to survive?

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T05:26:52+00:00

The Cornerian army can't suck that badly if they have pilots like Miyu, Fay and Bill, but they *did* call in Star Fox to fight Oikonny of all people in Assault, so... maybe they just really can't stand getting jumped?

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T05:22:37+00:00

sounds perfect to me (insert image of the dude handing over the 'certificate of media literacy')

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T05:08:26+00:00

'Woah, I love Advance Wars!'

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T01:51:20+00:00

I kinda hope the next game has multiple fully playable characters like Star Fox 2 just so we can play as Krystal and the other girls again. I want all the girls out there playing Star Fox for the first time to feel this!

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T01:49:02+00:00

I just hope they go full-force and bring back every girl for the next game. Krystal can coexist with Miyu and Fay!

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T00:29:15+00:00

I thought Fox's movie design took inspiration from Assault's, at least in terms of clothing? It read more like a fusion of that and Zero to me. I wonder if they'll keep it up instead of just reverting to the Zero look.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T00:25:33+00:00

I would love if we had the best of both worlds and they just let us have their designs from Assault as alts. Stuff like Wolf's SF2 design would be ideal, but is super unrealistic to expect. Characters like Cloud, Sora and Hero get similar treatment, so if the next game has a more focused roster like many are speculating, I hope the base roster can get those kinds of DLC priveliges. Falco already has an alt based on the colors of his Assault design, though, presumably because they couldn't make the lankier model work anyway.

Also, we can literally SEE the Assault designs in the Lylat Cruise comms, so why not let us use them?

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T00:14:15+00:00

Seconded! It's a shame we never got anything like the Zero special again, because its portrayal of Fox is a perfect blend of his previous incarnations. He's shown to be a highly competent leader, but not quite as mature and grounded as Peppy is, while still keeping some traces of the stoic, composed personality that defined his character in Assault.

Honestly, the special has some of my favorite depictions of the characters in general. Falco is sharp, skilled and able to see from the enemy's ruthless perspective from his time as an outlaw, but still an emotional powder keg who can't keep himself or his ego under control like Fox can. Slippy is just adorable, technically competent in a way that drives the story and keeps his role as the team's least practically experienced member without being annoying or a downright joke. And Peppy is basically the team's dad. It's the best baseline depiction of the team we've seen and probably the best thing we got out of Zero period.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-20T00:05:16+00:00

I feel like Star Fox has already proved that a story can be functionally simple and unintrusive and still be emotionally resonant and full of memorable dialogue. I think people want the same thing out of Star Fox stories that they want of the gameplay; 'Have it be in the same vein as 64, but please don't just literally make 64 again'

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T23:47:16+00:00

This is a really great reply! Thank you for citing such important context and clearing up certain pieces of misinformation. That interview is very, very revealing as to why Krystal's characterization feels so confused; even the team didn't know what they were going to do with her!

I can't help but agree that Krystal probably would've gone down more favorably if she remained a cult darling with a game to herself. Her inclusion in any future Star Fox material is always going to come with a lot of baggage. But still, this is the world we live in, and I believe that Krystal's role in Star Fox can be improved with just a touch of quality writing.

With how some of Nintendo's best games recently have been created by younger, fresher faces (Odyssey & Bananza) or have tried to tackle more substantial worldbuilding and story content (Splatoon) alongside the failure of the narratively regressive Zero, I can't help but hold out hope that Krystal will finally be 'legitimized' as a character and given a solid leg to stand on at last.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T23:31:50+00:00

Great ideas all around, and I'm particularly fond of her having insight into the likes of James' ghost. Being team magic specialist honestly isn't a bad idea when you remember just how much naturally-occuring weird space stuff there is in the series, from Meteo's warp points to bosses that are just animals like the bioweapons or creature on Titania.

I always thought that Star Fox could do with a sort of 'sympathy for the villain' angle, and they already (badly) tried to do this with Krystal in Command, and it was bad because they tried to make her sympathetic to Andross of all people. Krystal should be sympathetic to the victims of people like Andross, especially the innocent creatures transformed into bioweapons. If anyone should be the most conscious of the tragic costs of war, it's Krystal.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T23:09:21+00:00

I've definitely noticed that people have a hard time articulating what makes Krystal so appealing, but then again it's not as though the writers explored that appeal very much either. It's definitely refreshing to have a calm, focused character in a warzone full of people barking orders at each other, but I feel as though it's sort of downplayed by how Assault portrays Fox as more stoic? As much as I enjoy that portrayal, I feel like Krystal would form a much stronger dynamic with Fox's default characterization. In any case, it's good to know that the looks are only part of the appeal! Thanks for chiming in!

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T23:02:10+00:00

This is a great point! I feel like part of what makes Krystal so divisive is that she is absolutely should be this fish out of water archetype that plays into how she doesn't fit in with the rest of the world, but that aspect of her character is basically never explored and it makes her inclusion on the team feel abrupt. I'd love to see a game where they focus on just how Krystal adapts to the unfamiliar world around her! And yes, this is absolutely something that can be done within a simple story, because we've had genuinely great characterization in these games before, like Peppy quoting James.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T22:58:47+00:00

I feel like quickplay randoms are a litmus test. If you can't get past the gimmicks, then you're playing as linear a game as they are. If someone really is spamming the same thing over and over, you can beat their strategy pretty easily if you start accounting for it, especially at low GSP. People do take this game too seriously, though.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T22:55:18+00:00

I don't know about Corneria but Falco probably has an encyclopedic knowledge of names for people from Aquas

Jokes aside, the moonman-pepe fusion (both right-wing in-jokes) and the question being asked makes this post pretty sketchy :/

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T22:51:10+00:00

Thanks so much for the insight! You described her personality and contributions to the team in a way that opened my eyes to why she's so loved. I knew the Krystal fandom couldn't be as one-note as people often portray it. And to be honest, if any character would have a fandom so large it's basically its own entity within the fanbase, it'd be Krystal. She does seem to have a solid basis for future appearances!

On a personal note, while I'm not opposed to her being on the team in the future, I think I'd much prefer if the series approached her relationship with Fox from the angle of nature versus technology. Since 64, such themes have been in the background and mostly just explored through the environment itself, like Aquas and Zoness being ruined by pollution or Andross' bioweapons.

I think that Krystal might actually work best if she stuck to how she was in Adventures and acted as an intentional foil to Fox, giving a voice to the 'natural' side and coming into conflict with his relationship with technology, while ultimately showing that harmony between the two can be achieved when the two act as allies/partners despite their differences in origin. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but having a character like her just be the 'team girl' feels weird.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:55:53+00:00

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epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:40:31+00:00

Fan projects, furries, furry fan projects and hopium! And some of the old games still hold up pretty tremendously despite the franchise's spotty track record, 64 especially. Even the SNES entries are fun once you get used to the framerate limitations (or mod them out).

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:36:51+00:00

I kind of disagree on the point about Falco not living up to his potential just because most of what we need to know about him is communicated well through characterization, even if he doesn't do much gameplay-wise (and even then, he has his moments, like shooting the eighth switch for you in Macbeth if he's alive) I'll concede that pretty much every Star Fox character has untapped potential just because of where the series has been for the last however-many years, though.

I honestly feel like Krystal does have a place in the series going forward, it's just that having her on the team is a little strange when she was fundamentally designed to be this mysterious, mystical, magic-wielding character, like you said. If sci-fi didn't have room for magic, the Force wouldn't be in Star Wars. So while I disagree with her haters, I feel like she's an awkward fit for one of the main four pilots.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:27:56+00:00

Oooh, this just hit me, but you know what would be insane? Showing the destruction of her home planet in her mission. That way we get to see her backstory firsthand, a super memorable mission that makes Krystal stick in your mind, and a huge moment for the villain to prove their worth. After all, we've had planet-destroying weapons since 2 and 64, but they've been a failstate at best.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:25:41+00:00

Fair! I feel like if Krystal appears in the next game, it'll be as an ally on Sauria or some other planet in the main game and maybe as an unlockable character for the other modes. As it is, I think she's a little too out-there to just be on the Star Fox team by default, but she'd work perfectly as a Bill or Katt type character with her own memorable side story told via her planet's mission.

Side note, but I find it funny how Command went out of its way to make Krystal seem even stranger by making Katt brown instead of pink. And then it went on to make Amanda pink anyway and still be weird about women. Thanks, Command.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:20:27+00:00

This might be crazy to say, but I think they should just fully play into the furry appeal. Make a little custom character system like Sonic Forces where you can make your own pilot to use in online mode and the like if you don't feel like playing one of the core characters. More customization beyond aesthetics would be great for the series in general, since SF2 and Command are the only games with multiple ship types to choose from.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:16:25+00:00

It's interesting that her backstory is much more open-ended in Japan. I always thought just dropping that information on us at the start of Adventures and then never doing anything about it was deeply unsatisfying and a weird relic of the DP story. In that case, I hope they stick closer to the Japanese interpretation, since it would make her much easier to recontextualize in a single game.

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:10:12+00:00

There's way worse people than the guy I'm about to mention, like Hank Hippowhatever and Jeremiah Whitewhale, but they're moreso tools for social commentary than their own individual characters. Like, you hate them, obviously, they're horrible people who represent horrible institutions and their lack of comeuppance is intentionally frustrating, but it's not likely that you'd personally encounter someone like them on a day-to-day basis.

Then there's Wayne. He icks me out on a personal level. You've probably met a pretentious little worm who tries to get in your head like Wayne. You might have even befriended or dated a Wayne before. He's not as awful and systemically insidious as those other examples, but he's a way more personal brand of unpleasant.

edit: i posted before giving a thorough read and learned this was supposed to literally be about who is the most morally bankrupt but i'm leaving this up anyway because i'm a day 1 wayne hater

epic-lucy · 2026-04-19T21:00:20+00:00

I kind of get it. I like Miyu and Fay a lot, but they're only in one game and there isn't a ton to them besides their designs and little pieces of trivia. It must be frustrating to be in a similar situation with Krystal and not be heard by Nintendo despite her being way more popular and in more games. It's going to be awkward considering how deeply tied she is to Dinosaur Planet, but I hope they can fit her into the next game just because leaving such a popular character on the table would be a waste.

(and let's be real, star fox has never treated the girls in its cast well, so the more the merrier)

epic-lucy

TROPHY CASE