Star Fox Zero has been flying through my Wii U for the past week or so and I've had the chance to check out a chunk of levels from the upcoming game. For the nitty gritty details on this Nintendo/PlatinumGames joint, check out Daan's in-depth preview. But if you want to know some specifics on the levels we can talk about, check out my informal ranked list based on my playtime with each of these 12 levels. And for anyone trying to game this ranking system in the future, just know a little Bill Grey goes a long way.

12. Asteroid Field - Treacherous Trajectory

I can’t say I’m a fan of asteroid fields. They’re just filled with big dumb rocks that, in this Star Fox Zero stage, are hurtling towards the Great Fox. Accessible through an alternate path in Area 3, the Asteroid Field level tasks with you protecting the Great Fox from space rocks, enemies, and drones. Drones are very likely my least favorite enemies so far in Zero. They attach to the Great Fox and move around the ship’s exterior, causing a ton of damage. They’re hard to find and pesky to kill. The best way to combat that, it seemed, was to fly around the Great Fox and land on it in Walker form to quickly lock-on and blow up the drones. The stage ends after you clear the enemies off the Great Fox.

11. Zoness - Covert Ops

I respect this level, but that doesn’t mean I like it that much. This Gyrowing level is slow paced, requiring you to sneak into a captured Cornerian base to take down shield generators. It’s a stark change of pace from the other faster levels, and even includes a cameo from Katt Monroe.

On one hand, the change of pace is wonderful, but it really slows everything to a crawl as you explore the abandoned Cornerian base of Zoness. Your goal is to avoid being discovered by search lights and take down two shield generators using your little robot buddy Direct-i. If you do get spotted, it doesn’t really do anything outside of make some enemies appear and attack you.

Katt Monroe is trapped in one of the shield generators, and freeing her is a mandatory part of the level. After you take down both generators, the whole base winds up blowing up, so you have to follow Katt out to escape.

10. Sector Alpha - Frenzied Firefight

Sector Alpha is the second level you’ll ever see in Star Fox Zero, and it’s a pretty vanilla space-shooting stage. You shoot down Andross’ fleet until you eventually enter a base where, if it’s your first time in the level, you get your first crack at the Walker. After that, you get your first extended look at the Walker in a close-quarters environment. The Walker is really fun to use, and the level ends with the same boss that you can access with the Walker in the first Corneria stage. Sector Alpha ain’t fancy, but it’s a fine Star Fox level.

9. Area 3 - The Key to Victory

Area 3 is representative of a lot of things that I like about some of Star Fox Zero’s level design so far. The level starts off in space, as you shoot down enemies in an all-range battle before Pigma Dengar shows up. Shoot down Pigma in the first of many dogfights and then you land on Area 3, where Andross’ forces are trying to capture a Gigarilla. Clearly, you’re going to fight this big robot monkey later on in the game, but for now, it lays dormant. You’re seemingly encouraged to walk around the base as the Walker, but you can also transform into the Arwing if you like to shoot down foes quicker.

You do have to enter Area 3, though, and that requires proper Walker use. Eventually, you come into contact with the Gyrowing for the first time. The slow-paced style of the vehicle is introduced as you slowly make your way out of the base’s underground while hacking some computer terminals with the little robot companion Direct-i along the way. Your goal, when you make it back out to the Gigarilla, is to hack the Gigarilla and control him. When you do that, the big robot follows you around and smashes the crap out of the opposing forces until General Pepper decides it’s time for you to hop in a portal, which leads you to Zoness.

8. Titania - A Fox in the Desert

The Landmaster makes its debut in this stage, as you try to save Peppy Hare in this desert environment. The stage is fun, with a lot of action and unique enemies swarming around. About halfway through, the level splits into upper, middle, and lower tiers. If you go lower, you’ll be able to pick up three gold rings and get a medal. Stay in the middle and it’s business as usual. For now, you can’t get up top, but maybe the Landmaster can transform? (wink wink, nudge nudge)

The boss is a giant worm that has been giving Peppy hell. Blow up the bulbous red pustules on its body and you’ll save the hare and the day. For a Landmaster stage, it isn’t that bad. Titania is lower on the list, though, because, let’s face it: Arwings are so much better than Landmasters.

7. Aquarosa

Once you get the Walker transformation for the Arwing, you can go back to Corneria and take the alternate path that leads to Aquarosa - a challenging boss fight. It’s reminiscent of the base you attack at the end of the first stage, but this time, it’s way harder, by the water, and shooting out damaging electromagnetic waves. Aquarosa requires you to deftly fly in and shoot weak points while dodging punishing cannons and keeping an eye on the base’s frequent damaging electromagnetic attacks. When you get halfway through, things get even more dastardly as you barely have enough to make an attacking run in between electromagnetic attacks.

If you can pull off taking down Aquarosa, you’ll start swimming in alternate paths, but details on that will have to wait for now.

6. Fortuna - Dangerous Skies

Fortuna has one of the more visually interesting settings in Star Fox Zero, as it’s this lush organic world filled with a variety of creatures that buck the enemy trend of “ships that look like stuff from old Star Fox games” (not that that is a bad thing necessarily). With enemies that look like venus flytraps, weird worms, and more, Fortuna is dense, even more so because Katt Monroe shows up to help out for a bit (likely only if you progress through the game and save her in Zoness). Throughout the stage, you’re being chased by a bird boss, the Monarch Dodora, who first appeared in Star Fox on Super Nintendo. At the close of the stage, you square off against this diabolical mechanical bird. The boss fight requires a lot of careful maneuvering as you try to hit the bird’s various weak spots on the tail, chest, and back. About halfway through, the bird starts firing off cyclones that become a real pain to dodge as you try to get the last few shots in.

After you beat this stage once, you can revisit it to go down an alternate path where you leave the mission halfway through to go fight Wolf on Fichina. It’s another example of the secret paths nestled in Star Fox Zero, as all you have to do is lock onto Wolf when he appears and you soar away.

5. Corneria - Hidden Plans

Late in the game, you have to return to Corneria at General Pepper’s behest because there is a teleporter that will take you deep into enemy territory. This lets you go through a tweaked version of Corneria that is way busier, with tons of enemies flooding in all over the place. The first stage is at the start of the invasion; Hidden Plans is when the invasion is in the late game. It’s neat seeing how Corneria is still in ruins from the initial attack, but I still ultimately prefer the introductory stage (as you’ll find it later on in this list). Still, Hidden Plans is a fun level that ends in a Chekhov’s Gun-esque payoff as you have to fight the Gigarilla you first saw in Area 3. After you take down the Gigarilla, you head through the portal on Corneria to...well, you’ll find out later.

4. Hunter - Lone Wolf

When I came across the level that was nothing more than a one-on-one dogfight with Wolf, I was giddy. While visually, dog-fighting in Star Fox Zero doesn’t look too exciting, I adore it while I’m playing it. The Wolf fight nails that balance between challenging and exciting as I feel like every time I beat Wolf, it was by the skin of my teeth. What made this fight all the more punishing is that Wolf starts to do a dashing attack directly at you that knocks off a big chunk of your shield. If you’re not quick to boost out of harm’s way, Wolf will truly not let you do that, Star Fox.

3. Corneria - Enter Star Fox

Tried and true, Corneria is a great place to kick off an adventure. It might feel very familiar to past Corneria stages, but no matter, the opening Corneria stage is a great showpiece for what makes Star Fox Zero really neat. You have your fast-paced straight-ahead opening that kicks off as you and your squad enter the atmosphere over a body of water. This entire segment features action on all sides, necessitating some amount of mastery over the unique controls to set the high score. The second segment introduces all-range mode with mid-air battles and artful destruction of ground enemies. The finale features a multi-faceted boss that you can destroy one of two different ways. This opening Corneria level, to me, is something that all Star Fox levels should aspire to be.

2. Sector Beta - Reunited With a Friend

First off, your old pal Bill Grey shows up in this mid-game stage. Good ol’ Bill has got a fleet to save and you and your gang of merry anthropomorphic animals set out to help the surfer dude-voiced dog. The stage opens mid-battle with Andross’ fleet, and after you blow up some ships, a bigger enemy craft warps in. General Pepper fires the big cannon and this enemy craft repels the blast. Through clever trickery, you have to sneak through the shield, transform into the Walker, and go inside the ship to take the shield offline. Thanks in part to the cinematic presentation the GamePad provides, this level is awesome, filled with twists, turns, and big explosions. And that’s only the first part.

After you take out the enemy craft, Bill takes off and Star Wolf appears. You have to first take on Pigma, Andrew, and Leon before Wolf shows up. If you don’t defeat the fearsome foursome in time, then Peppy gets shot down (and you head off to Titania to rescue him). If you beat Star Wolf, you get to rock a sweet shortcut, and also know that you totally beat up all four members of Star Wolf.

1. Sector Gamma - Blasting Through

Sector Gamma is one of the last stages of the game and it’s also one of the most frantic. This fast-moving rail level is the quickest the game goes and it features plenty of objects to dodge, enemies to shoot, and alternate paths to take. This level is also a test of your mastery of Star Fox Zero’s controls, as it requires you to move quickly and aim true. After some Andross-fueled chaos, you get to take on the Attack Carrier, a throwback to old Star Fox games. However, this time around, the Attack Carrier is a much more formidable foe. It’s one of the best twists on an old boss I’ve seen so far in Zero, and is a perfect capper for a dynamite stage.