Stellar Codex is a very cool mix of old school 2D shoot-em-up action and 3D Star Fox-style on-rails space combat that offers a constant, varied stream of arcade action and boss fights as you lead your squadron in intense tactical missions to save humanity from annihilation.
In Stellar Codex you take on the role of Jack Knight, the leader of the United Space Navy’s Elite SABER Squadron who uncovers an alien threat tied to the titular ‘Stellar Codex’. It’s up to you to lead your squadron in epic space battles through asteroid fields, exploding suns and alien motherships to eliminate the alien threat for good.
The majority of gameplay in Stellar Codex is from a 3D on-rails viewpoint, occasionally flipping the gameplay into vertical or side scrolling shoot-em-up sections. This is a good thing as while the 2D sections are a nice distraction, the 3D combat is the most enjoyable part, playing a lot like Star Fox, but with you able to able to aim your firing reticule independently of your ship movement and with far less irritating wingmen.
It’s still very early in development, and suffers a few pacing issues at the moment but Stellar Codex is already great fun and shows a lot of promise. It could offer Star Fox fans that long awaited dose of action packed on-rails arcade combat that Star Fox Zero promised but failed to deliver. Well worth checking out for some interstellar alien blasting action, and there’s not a Slippy Toad in sight!
Check Out a Gameplay Video Here
UPDATE: Apologies, this Alpha Demo build is no longer available.