An engaging bite-sized rail shooter.
FUR Squadron is an unapologetic love letter to Star Fox and Star Fox 64. The content on offer is somewhat limited, but there’s a lot of charm and solid mechanics underneath this bite-sized rail shooter.
FUR Squadron happens entirely within the training simulation. The world is presented in bright and colorful wireframe graphics, especially when played on the OLED Nintendo Switch. Trapped inside, his two pilots and an outside technician must find a way out if something goes wrong in the simulation. Your ship comes equipped with standard lasers, which can be upgraded via pickups to increase their attack power. You can also charge lasers and lock them on enemies. You can pick up missiles throughout the stage for more powerful ranged attacks. Of course, you can also barrel roll with the R button. The default sensitivity to ship movement is a little stiff for my taste, but the controls are easily customizable in the settings menu.
The levels are strictly rail-lined and most of the time you won’t fight much on the standard difficulty, but additional difficulties can be unlocked upon completion. By the dangers of extended stages. However, the strict visual style tends to give all levels a very similar look. That said, in their style they are all very well understood. I’m here. Stages usually end with boss fights that range from very simple to really interesting. The music and overall sound design are also excellent. The characters speak gibberish except for certain words, and the soundtrack is beautifully synchronized with the on-screen action.
Where FUR Squadron struggles is in its content. The playthrough only lasts about 25 minutes. Replay value is based entirely on beating the game on high difficulty, as there are no alternate paths for future playthroughs. It might be enough to keep a genre lover hooked for an hour or his two, but it lacks the diverse permutations found in its inspiration, beloved by high-score seekers. . FUR Squadron is a pretty good love letter to Star Fox and rail shooters in general, and it’s clear the developer could pull off something on a much larger scale. It’s short and simple, but even if it’s just an afternoon, it’s a fun distraction for fans of the genre.
