What a disgrace!

Danaus

Spaceman
I heard the news yesterday about a new Wing Commander game... and it made my day. I was thinking I'll buy this game the day it comes out and buy Xbox Live Gold.

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Then I looked at a trailer on IGN and I got really mad. This game looks like Zaxxon, or 1942, or Gradius. It is not even a 3d game. These 3 games are classics and a lot of fun... but this ain't a Wing Commander Game.

If Wing Commander 1 had been re-released in EGA, as-is, on Xbox Live, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it.
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Wing Commander used to be the best selling pc-series of All-time. People used to buy new computers, and new sound cards and video cards and bigger hard drives just to play it. I would still buy a new computer just to play a new wing commander.

It is really unacceptable to re-make Zaxxon(1982)... and give this game 8-bit Nintendo graphics and call it a Wing-Commander. This makes me want to vomit!
 
So... you *don't* have an Xbox;)?

Seriously, you guys are going to be very impressed by how much went into this -- the ships *feel* like they did in the original Wing Commander games... and the amount of research they put into making sure this takes place 'in' the Wing Commander universe is spectacular.
 
I heard the news yesterday about a new Wing Commander game... and it made my day.
Mine, too.
I was thinking I'll buy this game the day it comes out and buy Xbox Live Gold.
Same here. Well, the Wing Commander part, anyway, since I already subscribe to Live.
Then I looked at a trailer on IGN and I got really mad. This game looks like Zaxxon, or 1942, or Gradius. It is not even a 3d game. These 3 games are classics and a lot of fun... but this ain't a Wing Commander Game.
Wow, what? I thought you said you watched the video - it's pretty clearly 3D. It's also pretty clearly Wing Commander, it is in the title, after all.
If Wing Commander 1 had been re-released in EGA, as-is, on Xbox Live, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it.
Porting WC for XBLA is almost as good an idea as Arena. I'd definitely buy those as well.
Wing Commander used to be the best selling pc-series of All-time. People used to buy new computers, and new sound cards and video cards and bigger hard drives just to play it.
I remember I got a new video card along with Prophecy.
I would still buy a new computer just to play a new wing commander.
I probably would, too, but this is even better, since I already own an Xbox, and a lot more people today play on their Xbox rather than their PC. It's a wider audience for the game, and more people for me to humiliate on Live.
It is really unacceptable to re-make Zaxxon(1982)... and give this game 8-bit Nintendo graphics and call it a Wing-Commander.
Yes, that would be totally unacceptable. Very fortunately for all of us, they instead went and, quite carefully and with an eye for detail, it seems, created an entirely new game that excels in many systems of measure.
This makes me want to vomit!
It makes me want to play Wing Commander with my friends on Xbox Live. I'll do that while you go puke.

It's very, very obvious to anyone with eyes that a lot of effort was made to produce a quality game that everyone would enjoy on the merits of how it played alone, while honoring all the previous WC titles we already love. The attention to detail so visible in the screenshots and videos is staggering.

Did you watch the video interview they linked from the front page? To hear Mr. Penney describe the game in his own words is to know that everything I've said is true.

But hey, don't listen to me. Don't listen to the people who made the game, or those who've already played it and think it's great. Go with your gut, Mr. Hasn't-Played-The-Game-Yet.

We'll just throw Arena on the pile of games that "aren't really Wing Commander," along with Academy, Armada, Privateeer 2, Prophecy and Secret Ops.

Rite guyz?
 
As stated, I wouldn't mind paying for a quad-core, DX-10 system to play a new wing commander. A 360 version is fine too.

I read the book (it was the only book I ever read in life for pleasure). I liked it.

I liked the movie. I liked Privateer. I bought WC1-5. And Special Ops, etc.

I played the nintendo(8-bit) remake of Wing Commander as well.

Starlancer and Freelancer were great as well.

It is strange to see a Wing Commander game that doesn't move up and down (it looks like the up-and-down is like Zaxxon). The game has change from a space-sim to a space combat game.

This is very unexpected after reading quotes like:
http://moblog.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/45882
"EA sought out input from original Wing Commander contributors such as creator Chris Roberts"
...
"We looked at [the space combat] area and said we want to dominate it," said Penney. "There are a lot of titles that haven't lived up to what that space can be. We wanted to innovate there."

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I read that and had high hopes. I was expecting WC1 using the prophecy engine, or better. I was not expecting Zaxxon controls on a game that would play on a super nintendo. Is this innovative?

The graphics are clearly inferior to Wing Commander 3(1994). This is pretty disappointing. I guess it's due to the 50mb limitation on Xbox Live Arcade games.
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This game may very well turn out to be a lot of fun. If it is I will buy it.
 
I played the nintendo(8-bit) remake of Wing Commander as well.

There was no 8-bit Nintendo Wing Commander. WC1 and SM1 were ported to the SNES.

I read that and had high hopes. I was expecting WC1 using the prophecy engine, or better. I was not expecting Zaxxon controls on a game that would play on a super nintendo.

That's just the thing, this is far above and beyond anything that would be possible on the Super Nintendo. If that's what you really think, you're missing a huge part of what Wing Commander Arena is. All the high definition screenshots, positive first-hand previews, multiplayer details and such should make this apparent. This video interview/transcript we posted today does a good job of starting to get into this. What few screenshots and videos are available now also should give you a good idea of all the research EA did to get things right in a Wing Commander sense.
 
WC Arena looks great and blends multiple chapters of the universe. The gameplay appears to be fantastic and provides a multiplayer that fans have been waiting for. The capital ship battle mode is an extraodinary feature and comparing it to a Zaxxon only demonstrate how baseless your entire argument is. The quality of the gameplay is cleary very high and radically different from some early arcade title.
 
The graphics are clearly inferior to Wing Commander 3(1994). This is pretty disappointing. I guess it's due to the 50mb limitation on Xbox Live Arcade games.

I think your memory is playing tricks on you -- Wing Commander III was a 640x480 SVGA game... this is 720p HD. Check out some of the full resolution movies on the front page.
 
Given that there wasn't an 8-bit WC (SNES was a 16-bit system, and 3D0 was a 32-bit system, as was PlayStation), don't be surprised if your other claims of actual WC experience are questioned... never mind your grasping at straws about "8-bit graphics", which anyone who has really played NES and Genesis games can tell you is nowhere near as detailed as what's shown in Arena screenshots and videos.

That said, it's becoming apparent that you didn't read anything about Arena, as several of the text articles go into detail on how there is a third dimension, but that it's used primarily for special maneuvers.

And when was WC ever a simulator? The controls have always been arcade-y, with simplified flight controls for the sake of gameplay. If you want to talk "simulator", look at Independence War, or in the atmospheric realm MS Flight Sim or X-Planes. Then get back to me about how much of a simulation WC is.

But, hey, feel free to go around crying "disgrace", puking or whatever. Most of the rest of us will be having fun with a new WC game when it comes out.
 
I mis-remembered. Wing commander was snes not nes. And yes, I really read the book.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wing_Commander:_Prophecy
"Wing Commander: Prophecy is the fourth direct sequel in Chris Roberts' Wing Commander science fiction flight simulator franchise of computer games."
-- I agree. Arcadey. Just symantecs. Up and Down like a plane.

WC3 screenshot:
http://www.mobygames.com/images/shots/original/967331133-00.gif

WC4 screenshot:
http://www.thelegacy.de/Museum/game...5859&nonePageMode=&nextGalleryID=30310&pos=17

WC5 screenshot:
http://www.gamespot.com/pages/image_viewer/frame_lead.php?pid=43354&img=1&sid=undefined

StarLancer:
http://www.gamershell.com/static/screenshots/3527/55349_full.jpg

FreeLancer:
http://www.playwhat.com/GameDetails/digitalanvil/freelancer_gallery3.html#Bottom
http://www.playwhat.com/GameDetails/digitalanvil/freelancer_gallery8.html#Bottom

WC Arena:
http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360...ing-commander-arena-20070222050327100-000.jpg

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Looking at the screenshots, 10-15 years later, the graphics are not quite what I remembered.
 
Thank you for linking me to all those pretty pictures. They just prove what a fantastic series Wing Commander has been and with Arena, will continue to be.
 
Privateer had a trade simulator component that, by your standards, would make it the equivalent of Microsoft Excel.

Arena is a space combat game, just like the original Wing Commander.
 
This game does looks great!
The graphics look awesome, the concept looks nice, and judging from the video's, I'd expect the playability to be pretty damn good,

BUT...

personally, I still prefer the story driven space simulator - i.e. WC 1-5 or privateer.

Also, Xbox has not established itself very well in my part of the world, not that I noticed at least.
(and for various reasons, I would prefer investing any spare funds in a better PC rather then in a game console)

At least they brought back both the Rapier II and the Broadsword (sending the Hellcat to it`s so desperately needed early retirement).
 
-- I agree. Arcadey. Just symantecs. Up and Down like a plane.

Looking at the screenshots, 10-15 years later, the graphics are not quite what I remembered.


Neither is the game play! Talk about "arcadey"... do you really recall the WC playing experience on SNES? It was all 2D representations and arcadey looking ships/guns/missiles! Was it the state-of-the-art for its time? Yep! Was it the closest thing to immersive 3D? Yep! Is it all that impressive now? Nope! (except as an appreciative "duuuuuuuuude... they did that on 386 computers with 12 MEGA-Hz???! and 4 MB of RAM!?")

WC and WC2 were clearly "quasi-3D" as was every WC game until, really, WCP!

Let me try this another way... you make an excellent point that WC games have always, always ALWAYS been about pushing the bounds of the medium. WC almost single handedly launched high-quality sound cards (Sound Blaster) for personal computers because it had a full score with dynamic music, advanced sounds (different impact/explosion sounds, not just one simple "bang" for every blast hit), etc.

WC: arena will advance the needle on technology once again.

WC: Arena will not be a stand alone game purchased in a store (correct me if I'm wrong gang). It will be a 50MB (or LESS) download pulled through the XBLA service to each player's hard disk drive. That's a modern-graphics-equipped, HD-video supported, multiplayer, configurable, multi-mode (rocks, battle arena, and capship vs. capship, 8 vs. 8 free-for-all) space combat game...for about double the TOTAL FILESIZE of Wing Commander: Privateer WITH Speech and WITH Righteous Fire installed. THAT is impressive. Combine that with addictive combat modes to engross the player...and it could very well be what breathes some life into the future of a Wing Commander standalone game!

I do NOT want to see WC become another fossilized memory of a byegone era...anything that will keep it alive is a wonderful thing...anything that keeps its heritage of groundbreaking execution is even better!

Please just give it a chance before you pronounce the death of WC and puke your guts out
 
This game does looks great!
The graphics look awesome, the concept looks nice, and judging from the video's, I'd expect the playability to be pretty damn good,

BUT...

personally, I still prefer the story driven space simulator - i.e. WC 1-5 or privateer.

Also, Xbox has not established itself very well in my part of the world, not that I noticed at least.
(and for various reasons, I would prefer investing any spare funds in a better PC rather then in a game console)

At least they brought back both the Rapier II and the Broadsword (sending the Hellcat to it`s so desperately needed early retirement).


Of Course!
I think everyone, no matter how excited wants another huge production, story based game. Arena isn't and never has been designed to replace that, and given the insane amount of press coverage from profesional gaming news sites we may just get that big game as well. We'll just have to wait a little longer.

And no, the positive reactions are not just some kind of ruse to get support for a new installment.
 
personally, I still prefer the story driven space simulator - i.e. WC 1-5 or privateer.
Your preference is understandable, although I'm not entirely sure I share it. I like simple. I like games that don't need to trick you with flashy cut-scenes into believing they're fun. This is not to say that a full-force WC sequel would be a bad game with flashy cut-scenes, I have enough faith to realize that wouldn't be the case, especially in light of the obvious high quality of Arena. I just enjoy every chance I get to thumb my nose at the current insufferable convention of requiring pompous and yet oh-so derivative "stories" and "plots" that don't actually enhance the game to which they're attached.

I'd still dig a whole new numbered Wing Commander, but this is looking pretty sweet as it is.
Also, Xbox has not established itself very well in my part of the world, not that I noticed at least.
How to best spend your money, well, that's obviously up to what makes you happy, but I wouldn't be too quick to assume that a new computer or even new parts is actually a more financially sound purchase. The last time I built my own PC it was the fastest thing around. It also cost a lot, was temperamental, and died suddenly one day. I replaced it with my current PowerBook, which is nothing special at all, with a 1.67GHz G4. But I don't play games on my computer anymore. Nobody does. Recently I was bummed that the new C&C looked so great, because my computer wouldn't run it. Then I learned it would be available for my 360 also.

The trend for some time now has seen game consoles replacing full PCs as game machines, while the home computer is more a productivity/web device. Certainly, I've started playing a hell of a lot more games on my 360 than I ever did on my Xbox or Gamecube, and almost none on my computer. And on my computer, I'm actually getting work done, and it's easy, efficient, and comes out well. I rather like the new paradigm. You might find out you agree someday soon.

Ultimately, I think Arena is the perfect game at the perfect time for the perfect system. I can't wait to play it, and I know it's going to be a hit.
 
It's a rather good idea, Arena is. Just remember, if Arena makes it big, the chances of a "classic" WC game improve greatly. Thus, instead of vomiting, you should be hoping or praying for Arena to succeed on the marketplace.

Just my two millicredits.
 
Hi Wing Commander Community and Fans !

Duty called about 3 weeks ago and now I serve at the Special Forces of my country.I am off duty for 2 days now and I visited my fav site ,WcNews!

What great news that Was ! A new WC game.......:p :p

A BRAND NEW WC GAME !!

too bad that :( as long as I serve my country (17months ) I wont be able to see it or play it.

Next time Ill log in here ,the game will probably be out !

Bye Wc Community for now.. I ll be back!:cool:
 
I read that and had high hopes. I was expecting WC1 using the prophecy engine, or better. I was not expecting Zaxxon controls on a game that would play on a super nintendo. Is this innovative?

I fail to see how making WC1 on the Prophecy engine would've been innovative. I'd have called that a fan mod, or expansion at best... but not innovative.
 
I think any new game from the wing commander series is a good thing. I don't understand why all the hostilities. Would people be happier if nothing was ever released. Yeah you may of had the time of your life playing wing commander 4 (or any of the other ones) but its time to move on and try somthing new.

Give it a shot it could be the best wing commander yet or the worst. No one really knows but at least its a new wing commander game. Nothing is gonna live up to the great experiences people had when they first stepped into the cockpit to defend the confederation.
 
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