Star Fox Adventures: Deleted Scenes

I remember back in 2002 that I had high hopes for Star Fox Adventures, especially when I heard that it was going to be Rare's final game for a Nintendo console. Given their track record of making wonderful and clever games, I expected that the company would end their relationship with Nintendo with a bang. Unfortunately, that was not the case. While not a terrible game by any means, Star Fox Adventures suffered from plot holes, being on the easy side, and most of all, giving the overall sense that it was rushed out before it was truly ready. I have felt sure that more could have been added to it to make it the excellent game it was meant to be. Well, thanks to people who have the ability to rip voice files off of games, various voice clips that did not make it into the final game have been uncovered, suggesting scenes and events that were likewise cut. My duty today is to tell you about some of these apparent deleted scenes, and give you a taste of what might have been.

First, there are a series of voice clips belonging to Krystal that failed to materialize in the actual game. As in the final version, she speaks Saurian at first, and there may have been events in Krazoa Palace besides those that ultimately took place. For example, she mentions having a bad feeling at one point, and declares to check inside the palace. Presumably, she would have still been captured, leaving Fox McCloud to rescue her. Unlike in the final game, Krystal had more English dialog, as well. When Fox picked up Krystal's staff for the first time, her instructions, similar to those heard in the final version, would be heard in English rather than Saurian. I feel that having Krystal speak English in this case makes more sense, as I consider that to be her native tongue and Saurian as her second language. Having her speak the latter language for much of the actual game makes little sense, especially in a key scene in which Fox first learns about her plight.

While in Moon Mountain Pass, Fox hears Krystal's cries for help. Originally, these cries would be in English, whereas they would ultimately be spoken in Saurian. I feel that Krystal's pleas in English are filled with a lot of anguish, giving you a true sense that her life is in serious danger. When spoken in Saurian, the anguish is toned down considerably, and as a result, the emotional power is a bit lacking. Additionally, why did Rare even have Krystal speaking Saurian at this point, when Fox's translator has been working for a while and everyone else has been talking to him in English? Did the translator suffer from a glitch, was Krystal too far out of its range, or was it an example of Rare tacking it on in their haste to finish the game before moving to Microsoft? It would have made much more sense to keep the English dialog intact and give the player a real incentive to save Krystal.

There also seems to have been a sequence, presumably at the very end of the game, in which Krystal and Fox would escape from the Krazoa Palace. Some of the unused dialog here suggests that Krystal dreamed of Fox while she was imprisoned, and that she wonders why he saved her while not knowing anything about her. Ultimately, with peace restored to Dinosaur Planet, Krystal and Fox are about to part ways, when she is offered the chance to join the Star Fox Team. In one of the best lines not heard in the final version, she tells Fox "I'll only join, if you'll kiss me." Keeping that line intact would have really give the sense that Fox and Krystal have the potential to become an item someday, and would be a neat sequence not usually seen in a Nintendo game.

While it seems that Krystal would still not have had a larger role than she would when the game was a Nintendo 64 title, these deleted sequences suggest that Rare was wanting to do a bit more with her. For whatever reason, whether it was because they ran out of time or because Nintendo seemed to have tacked on Andross as a final boss (more on that later), Krystal's role was diminished even further. What the unused dialog does not reveal is anything related to Krystal's original quest: discovering what destroyed her home planet and family. Perhaps this plot point was also added at the last minute, and while it had the potential to be quite compelling, it is never brought up again for the rest of the game, which is tragic. Still, it is clear that Rare wanted Krystal to have a slightly larger role than in the final version.

Another connected set of deleted sequences suggest that a different chain of events leading to the end of the game was originally planned. As before, Fox would have to travel to the Force Point Temples to return the stolen Spellstones. However, in this version, only the Spellstones, and not the Krazoa Spirits, were needed in order to put Dinosaur Planet back together. After the Spellstones are returned, Fox's teammates suggest that they can go home with the money that they have earned from this mission, adding that they do not need to finish off General Scales just to get a larger bonus. Fox, however, is concerned about Krystal, and having promised to rescue her, decides to head to the Walled City and search for the last spirit. The rest of the team comment on how Fox is always affected by girls.

It would seem that the spirits had the sole function of helping Fox save Krystal, unless Rare had other ideas for them. I will admit, however, that the final cut scene, which shows Dinosaur Planet still falling apart because the spirits are needed to keep the magic force at bay along with the Spellstones, gave a true sense of urgency and reminded the player that saving the planet was more complicated than it seemed. The original version of the cut scene, however, shows that Fox seems to truly care about Krystal, and wishes to save her life. The final game merely hinted at Fox's affections towards her, particularly in the scene which he stares at her lovingly while she is trapped inside a crystal.

During Fox's exploration of the Walled City, who should he happen to come across but General Scales, who wishes to destroy Fox in a last-ditch effort to take control of the planet once and for all. Then comes what the final version should have included: an actual fight between Scales and Fox. That's right...it seems that Scales was intended to be the game's final boss, and as in the final version, Fox would receive some assistance for this last encounter. Falco would appear and help Fox defeat Scales, which goes to show that at least some ideas would survive into the final game in one form or another.

How the final battle between Fox and Scales would have played out is unknown. Such an epic fight would have been full of possibilities: perhaps Scales could change into multiple forms with the aid of the Krazoa Spirit within him, assuming that particular plot point was intact. Maybe Falco could find a way to weaken Scales enough so that Fox could finish him off. These and other ideas would certainly have been far better than the move that Rare ultimately made: having Fox begin to fight Scales only to have Andross interfere almost immediately. I have said it before, and I will say it again: the realization of not being able to fight Scales at all was the moment I felt that Rare had jumped the shark. It seems that Andross was a late addition, perhaps tacked on as one more way of emphasizing that this was a Star Fox game. A lot of good that would do, as Andross has not been seen in other Star Fox games since then. I really wish that Rare's original ideas for a battle with Scales had been left intact, instead of having them give us a half-hearted "battle" like they did in the final version.

Other unused voice clips suggest additional features that were ultimately removed from the game. For example, scarabs could be used to pay Slippy for hints and upgrades. Slippy would then give Fox the tips or upgrades, and with the latter, he would ask him to read the display to find out how to use it. The toad would also remind the somewhat reluctant (because he had to pay for these things) Fox that all the money would be going to a good cause. This would have actually been a nice use for scarabs, and Fox could receive upgrades when he needed or wanted them, and hints if he was really stuck. In the final version, Slippy gave Fox only one upgrade-the Sharpclaw disguise-absolutely free and would give Fox hints whenever the player consulted him on most occasions, which added to the overall easy difficulty of the game.

Slippy, along with Peppy and General Pepper, would also give Fox useful advice more often. They would ask Fox to contact them if they had anything of particular importance to tell him. As for other deleted sequences, the Queen Earthwalker would have taught Tricky a new skill, though it is not known if it is a skill that he ultimately learned elsewhere or one that was taken out of the game. The Queen Cloudrunner would confront Scales, who wanted her tribe to join the Sharpclaws. The Earthwalker imprisoned in Dragon Rock was originally bound with chains, while the Hightop prisoner sensed that his doom was drawing close. All of these scenes would have been interesting and exciting to check out, if only Rare had not deleted them.

Would Star Fox Adventures have been a better game if these scenes had been left intact? It is quite possible that it would have been improved, as we have potentially useful features, scenes filled with plenty of drama, and the final battle with Scales that Rare dropped when it was decided that Andross should be the main villain instead. Rare could have, and should have, been given more time to work on these features and make Star Fox Adventures a true masterpiece, and the grand finale of their relationship with Nintendo that it was meant to be. Instead, we were left with a rushed product, which probably was not supposed to be released for a long time yet. Alas, with Rare having moved to Microsoft, a superior version of Star Fox Adventures that would be closer to Rare's original version (following the changeover from Dinosaur Planet, of course) will likely never materialize.

While the scenes will never be shown, you can still hear the voice clips. For the unused Krystal dialog, watch these videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sciAjyBKqk (Krazoa Palace, Staff Instructions, and Moon Mountain Pass)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vcu5ty74lg (Near the end of the game)

For the dialog from the canceled final battle with Scales and the events leading up to it, check out this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMmPs8MFzmg

For even more unused voice clips, as well as those that did make it into the final game, go to this site:

http://starfox-online.net/games/sfad/voiceacting/

Listen to the clips and discover for yourself what Rare was planning to include in the game. Then you, too, may realize that, in this case, what might have been may very well be better than what actually was.