Star Fox is getting a free Battle Mode update on September 29 in the United States. Nintendo says it adds four-player split screen on one Nintendo Switch 2 and three stages: Katina, Sector X and Venom. A group of up to four people on the same console can also enter online battles together. Nintendo’s U.S. game page still describes the update as coming September 29, so check for the software update before planning a match around it.
The new split-screen option is the biggest change if your friends are in the same room. Battle Mode already supports online four-on-four matches, but local play on one system has been limited. The free update is meant to let four players share that system, either competing against one another locally or joining an online team.
Four players can share one Switch 2
The trailer shows the screen divided into four views, each following a different Arwing. All four players use the same console, rather than needing four copies for that setup. Nintendo also says those four players can form a team and join online battles from the one system. For online play, Nintendo lists a Nintendo Switch Online membership and Nintendo Account as requirements. Local play does not need the online membership.
This is Battle Mode, not a four-player story campaign. The campaign has its own two-person co-op setup, where one player pilots and another aims. The update expands the competitive side of Star Fox; it does not turn every story mission into a four-player flight.
What happens on Katina, Sector X and Venom?
Katina is about taking control of a powerful laser. Nintendo’s trailer shows Arwings fighting around the platforms that hold it. Instead of only chasing other pilots, teams need to pay attention to that central objective.
Sector X sends players into an asteroid field. Nintendo says they need to destroy asteroids while avoiding destructive energy waves. The stage adds a moving hazard to the battle, so watching the space around your ship matters as much as lining up a shot.
Venom asks players to scan data modules and escape a deadly surge. That gives the stage a different goal from Katina’s laser fight and Sector X’s asteroid challenge. Nintendo has not described every scoring rule in the short trailer, so the full update will show how those objectives play over a complete match.
How to get the update
Nintendo lists September 29 for the free update on its U.S. Star Fox page. You need the Nintendo Switch 2 game and an internet connection to download the software update. On the HOME Menu, select the game icon, press + or –, choose Software Update, then Via the Internet if the update does not arrive automatically. Nintendo gives those steps on its multiplayer support page.
The game itself launched June 25, 2026 on Nintendo Switch 2. If you have not bought it, the Nintendo eShop has a separate free demo with the tutorial and Meteo campaign stage. That demo is not the new Battle Mode update. Once the update is available, the full game’s Battle Mode will have six stages: the existing Corneria, Sector Y and Fichina, plus these three additions.
