The Star Fox universe (スターフォックス, Star Fox) refers to the Smash Bros. series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from Nintendo's Star Fox series of primarily-on-rails space shooter video games. While all have been published by Nintendo, each game was developed by a different company: Argonaut Games (originally Argonaut Software), Rareware, Namco, and Q-Games. The series takes place in a fictional star system starring anthropomorphic animals, focusing on missions undertaken by the mercenary team Star Fox, led by the main character Fox McCloud, to pilot Arwing spacecraft into battle against interplanetary threats. Fox, his wingmate Falco Lombardi, and his rival mercenary Wolf O'Donnell have all been featured as playable characters in the Smash Bros. games.