'Star Fox Zero' release date set for Nov. 20

Star Fox Zero box artNintendo

Nintendo has recently released a massive amount of information to leading video game sites which details their product launches and plans for the rest of 2015. However, the company strangely did not release an accompanying "Nintendo Direct" presentation for fans, although listed among the information is the confirmed release date for "Star Fox Zero" for Wii U.  

According to the information via IGN, "Star Fox Zero" will be launched in North America and Europe on Nov. 20. This will mark the first original "Star Fox" title to be released after nine years since the release of "Star Fox Command" for the Nintendo DS. "Star Fox" on 3DS was an updated remake of "Star Fox 64" which was launched on the Nintendo 64 in 1997. 

It is also the sixth official installment in the franchise. 

Unlike previous iterations of the game, "Star Fox Zero" will have Fox McCloud and his team piloting not just their AirWings but also several other vehicles such as a Walker, the LandMaster tank, and a new vehicle called the GyroWing which is a hovercraft-type vehicle. There will not be sections with the pilots out of their vehicles such as in "Star Fox Assault." 

The game is being co-developed by Platinum Games, the same studio that made the "Bayonetta" titles and is well-known for their capability of making high-quality action video games such as "Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance" and the upcoming "Transformers: Devastation" title. 

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, video game designer and producer Shigeru Miyamoto explained that he took inspiration from the "Thunderbirds" TV series. Missions will be episodic in "Star Fox Zero" with the main missions being the "primetime episodes" while the side-quests and experimental mechanics can be considered as the "late night programming." 

Also listed in the announcement are the release dates for "Fatal Frame: Maiden of Blackwater," "Devil's Third," "Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash" and the highly anticipated RPG "Xenoblade Chronicles X" which will be launched in December.