Arwing

Arwing
Name	Arwing
Type	Spacecraft
Creator	Space Dynamics
Debut	Star Fox

The Arwing is a class of space fighter that is featured in the Star Fox series as the primary craft piloted by Fox McCloud and other playable fighters. These ships are known for their speed and maneuverability. Rather than being an individual ship or even a certain kind, the Arwing name represents a long line of models that over time have been improved with new features.

Information

Like most space vessels, they are also designed to fly within a planet's atmosphere. For a long time it has been the favored ship model for the mercenary Star Fox Team, going back to even the original team led by James McCloud.

The original Arwing was a capable fighter with only one (rather primitive) G-Diffuser that prevented it from stopping in midair. However thanks to its design it was able to stand temperatures exceeding 9000 degrees on the surface of Lylat's sun. The weapon systems consist of a basic laser fire, homing weapons, as well as deploying powerful 'Smart Bombs'.

The Arwing model was later upgraded to twice its former size, making it all the more potent in Star Fox Assault. The new design was far sleeker than the original bulkier design. Thanks to the additional G-Diffusers, it was also capable of making stops at any time.

In Star Fox Command, both Peppy and James fly original Arwings during their missions (two for Peppy, one for James). Their ships have the following stats:

Laser: Twin
Lock: Single
Bomb: 2
Shield: Average
Boost: High
Time Bonus: 3 seconds

Fox, Slippy, Falco, and Krystal all fly ships similar to Arwings, though with more personal adjustments.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• Throughout the Super Smash Bros. series, the Arwings appear in Star Fox-related levels as occasional hazards that swoop through the area and fire lasers at characters. Fox and Falco also board their Arwings for their new Final Smashes in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. The Arwing has also been represented by a trophy in every game from Super Smash Bros. Melee through Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U, by a sticker (using artwork from Star Fox 64) in Brawl and by an Ace-rank Support Spirit (which grants immunity to gravity changes) in Ultimate.
• In the F-Zero series, there is a F-Zero Machine known as Little Wyvern that has a strong resemblance to the Arwing. It is piloted by James McCloud, a character who acts as an homage to Fox's father.
• The Arwing has appeared as an item in Animal Crossing, Wild World and City Folk. In the latter games, it plays the Star Fox theme for the player.
• In Super Mario Maker, the Star Fox Zero version of the Arwing appears as one of the Mystery Mushroom costumes that Mario can transform into. It is in its Walker form by default, but it shifts into Arwing form when running at high speeds, swimming, crouching or pressing up on the control pad. It could be unlocked as a random prize for completing the 100 Mario Challenge on Normal or harder.
• In Starlink: Battle for Atlas, Fox pilots the Arwing in his playable appearance, and he's joined by the rest of Star Fox in their Arwings.

Canceled Appearances

• In Star Fox 2, the initially unreleased game, Arwings came in three different models (later the two alternatives becoming the Landmaster and Blue Marine) that even allowed the transform into a mech-like walking robot.
• While it can only appear through hacking or using cheat devices, a small Arwing has been made to appear in the Kokiri Forest in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It acts as an enemy and was apparently included as a placeholder to test gameplay for the aerial boss Volvagia.

Trivia

• The name is likely a reference to Star Wars fighters which have names such as "X-Wing" and "A-Wing", as Arwing sounds like "R-Wing".
• The original Star Fox instruction manual referred to the Arwing as a prototype model that had not yet been tested when Star Fox used them to battle Andross. This fact seems to have been retconned by Star Fox 64, which shows Arwings as being in use during James McCloud's time.