Velan Studios confirmed as Star Fox developer, demo out

Velan Studios has been named the developer of Star Fox for Nintendo Switch 2, and a free demo that includes the tutorial and the game’s opening stage, Meteo, is available on Switch 2 starting today.

Velan announced the role on Bluesky, writing, ‘We’ve been passionately working on this for a while, and we’re so proud to finally share it with the world: Velan Studios is the developer of Star Fox.’ The post described collaborating with Nintendo and bringing Fox McCloud and the rest of the cast to Switch 2 as an honor. The demo was released alongside that announcement.

The demo walks players through the tutorial and one opening mission, Meteo. It includes combat and flight segments that reflect the series’ on-rails shooter format. The trial is distributed through the Nintendo Switch 2 digital store and is available to download now.

The playable portion is limited to introductory content. It allows testing of control options and a preview of the game’s visuals on the Switch 2 hardware. The announcement did not include a release date for the full game.

Velan worked with Nintendo previously on Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit in 2020. Since then the studio produced augmented-reality and experimental titles such as Hot Wheels: Rift Rally and Bounce Arcade, and released Midnight Murder Club for PlayStation earlier this year. The Star Fox project is the studio’s second high-profile collaboration with Nintendo.

Nintendo’s announcement paired the demo release with the developer reveal. Players can download the trial now to sample the opening tutorial and Meteo stage on their Switch 2 units.