Well its been a long time coming, but Nintendo and Rare's StarFox Adventures (previously Dinosaur Planet for N64) is finally available to purchase, but was the long wait worth it?

Gameplay: In a nut shell, StarFox Adventures is about the fox team answering to a distress call in a far corner of the Lylat system and engaging in a epic battle to save a planet. The StarFox name has always been about flying in intense battles in the sky - well things are about to change as now StarFox does something completely different and what you end up with is a adventure game with lots of combat, lots of exploring, some innovative puzzles and a dash of flying. While your down on the planet Fox's friends stay up in the ship and help you through communications which was a good way to have them interact with Fox. Like adventure games before, the basic gameplay structure follows. Its what could mostly be described as a Zelda clone, which is by far not a bad thing. One neat addition is the companion dinosaur. He helps you by digging up secrets and helping you in many ways with various powers he earns throughout the game. The flying parts are simply short and sweet but one feels that more could have been done with those levels.

Graphics: The level of art in StarFox is definitely a system pusher here. The vast worlds come to life in bright and vivid colors and everything has a special polish to it. The reflections off the water are astonishing. The shiny glimmer off of ice walls and the grass effect is amazing as you watch the grass shift and move (use first person mode and take a gander and you'll see what I mean). Rare really knows how to work the GameCube system and it shows in numbers.

Sound: The sound in the game is phenomenal. With nice rhythmic music in Thorntail Hollow to the intense sounds that play when you battle. Everything in the sound department comes together nicely, which has also always been a high standard by Rare. Now the only gripe some people will find will be held within the voice acting. The fact is that some of the characters sound great while others sound just plain out of character. Thankfully, Fox himself sounds just about right.

Control: The control is nice and smooth. No hiccups. It slightly plays like Zelda, but without the assign buttons. There is no jump button as it is done automatically. One interesting feature is how you use the right C stick to open your inventory which makes using items easier than access the menu every time. There is a lock on system as well (most 3-D game are finally catching on to do this) that works well.

Bad: There's only a few things to complain about in the game and that is that when first starting off, the game can and probably will seem like just a simple fetch quest and wont captivate you early on. Fact of the matter is give it time and the game opens up to many many great things and from then on you're in for a great gaming experience just with a slow start. Also, some people will just find the characters voices annoying.

Overall: StarFox is a mighty adventure that takes a slow start but picks up and never stops. The adventure and combat is great fun along with the multitude of mini games and great bosses and lengthy adventure. Its been a long time coming and yes the wait has been worth it.

- - Justin Celani