Star Fox lands on Switch 2 on 25 June: what UK players get

News · 22 Jun 2026 · Claire Bennett

Star Fox on Switch 2 arrives as a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive on 25 June 2026, and a free demo has already been on the eShop since 9 June, so you can fly an Arwing this week before paying a penny. Nintendo confirmed the date in its 7 May Nintendo Direct, and Nintendo Life reported the demo going live on 9 June. The digital game is listed at £41.99 on the UK eShop. For UK players there is a second clock ticking: the Switch 2 console itself gets dearer on 1 September, which makes the next ten weeks the cheap window to buy in.

What is Star Fox on Switch 2, and who made it?

This is a ground-up remake of Star Fox 64, not a remaster, and the surprise is who built it. Velan Studios is the developer, with Nintendo publishing, a pairing Nintendo Life and Time Extension both confirmed on 9 June. Velan is best known for Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, so handing it Fox McCloud is a genuine left-field choice. The studio called the job “truly an honor” in its reveal post, and the original Star Fox team has, in its words, “passed the baton” across.

What you actually get is the Star Fox 64 story rebuilt with a new art style, fully voiced dialogue and an orchestral score, plus expanded level design rather than a straight 1997 port. The Arwing rail-shooting is intact, and the on-rails and all-range battles return. If you grew up barrel-rolling on the Nintendo 64, the muscle memory carries over, which is more than you can say for most reboots. It also slots neatly into a Switch 2 catalogue that keeps growing, alongside the kind of launch and exclusive titles I have tracked since the console’s record UK start.

Should I play the free demo first?

Yes, because it costs nothing and it answers the only question that matters before you pre-order: does it feel right. The demo has been on the eShop since 9 June, per Nintendo Life, and it covers the tutorial plus the opening Meteo stage. More usefully, it lets you test the control schemes and see how the remake’s visuals hold up on Switch 2 hardware before the full game lands on 25 June.

I would treat the demo as the deciding vote. Rail shooters live or die on how the ship handles, and a tutorial-plus-one-stage slice is exactly enough to know whether you want the full thing. If you are weighing up a new console at the same time, it is worth reading my rundown of the best Nintendo Switch 2 accessories in the UK so you are not caught short on storage or a second controller on launch day.

The free demo is the whole pitch: fly the opening stage, decide for yourself, then choose whether to buy the console before the September price rise.

Why the 1 September price rise changes the maths

Here is the part Nintendo would rather you skipped over: the console gets more expensive in ten weeks. The Switch 2 rises from £399.99 to £429.99 in the UK on 1 September 2026, a change reported across outlets including VGC and creativebloq this month, with Nintendo blaming global component and memory-chip costs. The US version jumps $50 to $499.99 and the EU price climbs about €30, so this is a worldwide move rather than a UK tax quirk.

For anyone buying Star Fox plus the hardware, that £30 is real money you can still avoid. Pick up the console before 1 September and the bundle maths works in your favour; wait until autumn and you pay the new floor. The demand is clearly there: Nintendo confirmed in early June, as reported by VGC on 4 June, that the Switch 2 has passed one million UK sales, hitting the milestone 30 weeks faster than the original Switch managed. If you are mapping the wider line-up first, my look at the Switch 2’s one-million UK sales run sets out how fast this console has moved.

How much does the game cost and is it worth £41.99?

The digital edition is £41.99 on the UK eShop, with physical copies sitting around the £49.99 mark at most UK retailers. That puts it a touch below the usual £49.99 to £59.99 Switch 2 first-party ceiling, which is a fair ask for a full remake rather than a re-release. GamesRadar noted on 19 June that the US pre-order had been running roughly $10 below list, so it is worth checking for a small launch discount before the price settles at full whack.

My honest read: if the demo clicks, £41.99 digital is the easy buy, because you skip any cartridge markup and it is ready the moment the clock ticks over on 25 June. If you prefer to own a box or trade games on, the physical copy is the one to chase down. This is the same buy-now-or-wait calculation I walked through for the iPhone 17 around Prime Day, just with a hard September deadline attached. Either way, this is a known quantity wearing new clothes, and the Star Fox 64 bones underneath are still some of the best on-rails shooting Nintendo has ever shipped.

Where to buy or check next

For the game, the cleanest route is the official Nintendo UK Star Fox page, where the digital edition is £41.99 and the free demo is one tap away. Physical copies are listed at major UK retailers including Currys, Argos, Amazon UK and John Lewis at around £49.99 (last checked: 2026-06-22). If you only want the digital game, the eShop link above is all you need.

For the console, the timing call is simple. The Switch 2 is £399.99 right now and rises to £429.99 on 1 September, so if a new machine is on your list, buy it before then at Currys, Argos, Amazon UK or the Nintendo UK store (last checked: 2026-06-22). First-time buyers should also weigh up bundles and a microSD Express card, which I cover in my Switch 2 accessories guide, and gamers who want a portable screen as well can compare options in my best Android tablet roundup.

Where I land on Star Fox on Switch 2

This is the rare reboot that lowers the risk for you before launch: a free demo, a fair £41.99 digital price and a story you already half-know. The single decision worth making this week is on the hardware, not the game. With the Switch 2 climbing to £429.99 on 1 September, and one million UK owners already aboard, buying the console now is the move that saves you £30. Play the demo, trust your thumbs, and if a new machine is on the cards, sort it before autumn rather than after.