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The Great SNES Round-Up!
In honor of today's release of EA Replay, which features the SNES ports of Wing Commander and The Secret Missions, we're collecting as much information as possible about the original versions of those games in this special super-sized update! Enjoy, and remember to pick up your Replay as soon as possible.
One of the first thing that eagle-eyed WingNuts should notice about WC on the PSP is the apparent lack of the distinctive Jalthi-class Heavy Fighter. Due to the extensive memory limitations of the SNES cartridge, the Jalthi artwork was removed from the game... instead, the game reuses the Salthi artwork, tinting it green to mark the difference between the light fighter and the six-shooter. Mindscape went all out in perpetuating this change -- the manual doubles up the Claw Marks line art for the ship. When The Secret Missions was developed, they even painted a 'green Salthi' for the cover artwork -- engaged in battle with a Hornet. (Read More)
 There's no place like home! But thanks to the SNES port, we're not quite sure where that is for Captain Joseph "Knight" Khumalo. For reasons unknown, the updated Wing Commander SNES manual changes his hometown from Kroonstad, South Africa to Lubango, Angola. Fans will notice a few other changes in the dialogue, including the switching of the "Blue Devils" squadron to the "Blue Angles". Political correctness run amuck, or an attempt to connect the Tiger's Claw to a real American military tradition? (Read More)
 We need more power! Nintendo Power, that is. Nintendo's official magazine was very supportive of the SNES releases in the 1990s, promoting them with all sorts of positive reviews and original artwork. One issue included a Wing Commander 'trading card'... and another published a Wing Commander edition of the magazine's ongoing "Nester's Adventures" comic strip! The humor is, perhaps, not the greatest -- but it does feature remarkably accurate drawings of Hornets, Rapiers, Dralthi and Krant! (Read More)
The rest of the world loved the games, too! In this review, respected GamePro Magazine was entirely positive about The Secret Missions -- going so far as to call it "top notch". Not bad for a port of a game released three years earlier for the PC which contains few graphical changes from the previous SNES release! The article also features some simple tips and tricks for new pilots -- worth a look, if WC PSP is driving you crazy. One change -- while SM is the second game, it isn't Wing Commander 2! (Read More)
 And here's what GamePro thought of the original Wing Commander SNES -- a similarly perfect score! (Read More)
 We need more time! And thanks to the SuperFamicom version of Wing Commander, we have it. The Japanese release of Wing Commander SNES features a full color manual which adds some interesting pieces of continuity to the classic Claw Marks timeline. Luckily, a well versed Wing Nut was able to translate it for us! Consider this example: "2646.005 - Starting with Baird's Star, seven systems declare independence from the Confederation. Confed attempts to break the stalemate and prevent other worlds from seceding by changing their strategic aims from direct engagement to intelligent, particularly in cryptography." Pictured here is the full color Vega Sector map included with the SFC WC1 -- amazing stuff! (Read More)
 That isn't the only amazing thing added by the SNES port in Japan... just look at thos stunning box art, which faithfully renders a Gratha, a Dralthi and a former Fralthi in combat with Confederation fighters. This was the first in a series of highly detailed Japanese Wing Commander paintings, which included similarly accurate scenes for the covers of Wing Commander and Wing Commander II for the FM Towns. (Read More)
 ... and there's even more from Japan! SFC Wing Commander's manual also features full color sketches of all the Tiger's Claw pilots! Ever wanted to see a 'manga style' version of Iceman? No? Well, you can anyway! You can find the entire set in our 'Head Museum' here.
 But the Japanese Wing Commander SNES box wasn't the only one with new artwork! Look carefully at this picture -- while it's similar to the original Wing Commander artwork, it's actually an entirely new drawing in a rather different style! (See the Back)
 We don't know how Wing Commander for the PSP will deal with the manuals -- including fourteen manuals in a tiny PSP case would be pretty darned tough, though. Luckily, we have a full text version of the Wing Commander manual here! We also have single page quick guides that were included when people rented each of the games, for Wing Commander SNES and The Secret Missions SNES available! Failing that, you can experience a crash course in the controls alone here.
 Cats got you down? Well, it just so happens that there are cheats for both SNES Wing Commanders. Presumably these codes will also work for the PSP release. To access the debug menu in Wing Commander: "Press B, A, B, Y, B, Y, L, A, R, A, Start at the title screen. " And in The Secret Missions: "Hold L + Rf + Select + Start on controller two and press Start on controller one at the title screen.".
 Nintendo Power did right by The Secret Missions, too -- going so far as to generate an entirely new painting... featuring many, many Ventures! That's not unprecedented. Because of the same space limitations that hurt the Jalthi, the Venture is used to replace the Exeter in the second game. The dialogue is changed to reflect this -- pilots will almost immediately stumble upon a conversation about the lost Venture-class TCS Gwenhyvar. This massive four-page article also features incredibly in-depth piloting techniques, similar to those which might appear in a large Wing Commander manual -- well worth a look for cadets or veterans! (Read More)
 Unfortunately, EA Replay is missing one Wing Commander game for the SNES. In early 1995, Origin completed development of Wing Commander II: Vengeance of the Kilrathi for the SNES. It was a bold game, done independant of the Mindscape produced ports two years earlier... it adapted the entire Wing Commander II storyline, meshed with a new action-oriented combat engine. Unfortunately, in 1995 the SNES was at the end of its life-cycle, and the game was shipped off to Japan never to be released. To this day, no known prototypes of WC2 SNES have been found -- but the game features updated graphics (including color VDUs!) and a uniquely different take on the WC2 gameplay. We've informed EA that this game exists, and hopefully they might be able to track down a copy in their vaults for a future retro set. In addition to sadly missing Wing Commander II, Origin actually developed several other SNES titles which could be included in a future 'Replay' package. These include Ultima VI, Ultma Runes of Virtue 2, Worlds of Ultima: Savage Empire and Metal Morph -- the last of which actually reuses quite a few graphics from Wing Commander: Privateer! (Read More and More)
 Remember that Wing Commander and The Secret Missions aren't the only Origin games in the EA Relay collection... it also includes the SNES port of Ultima VII! Wing Commander fans know 'The Black Gate' as the Ultima game which includes a Kilrathi Bloodfang fighter. I asked the game's lead developer if the fighter was included in the port... he said that, unfortunately there wasn't enough spare memory to include the image. SNES cartridges strike again! (Read More).
 Apparently there's a fun in-joke in The Secret Missions -- but it probably won't be possible to access it using EA Replay. Better dig out your Super Nintendos -- here's the instructions, straight from the game's producer: "... we had a pretty funny backdoor in SM. On the title screen press the two shoulder buttons along with the START & SELECT buttons simultaneously and you should see an alternate opening (some of the jokes may be lost on you, as they were specific to the people working at Mindscape at the time.)". Great stuff!
That was quite an update! We'll leave you with one final present -- an original Wing Commander SNES advertisement! These were published in a media blitz which rivals Wing Commander IV for the largest WC promotion. Copies appeared on magazines, comic books and elsewhere to promote the game's release.
We hope you've enjoyed this walk through memory lane -- and that you'll enjoy EA Replay... it's certainly what the CIC Staff will be doing!
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Update published on November 14, 2006. View all news from that day.
Wing Commander CIC - Visit the front page
Official news, fan projects and topics of particular interest to Wing Commander fans.
- Destroyer Destined for Guard Duty
- 2012-05-23 -- Kevin Caccamo's Ralari has taken a huge leap since the last time we saw it. The model has been plated with nice metallic textures that don't overdo the look. Running lights, windows, powered engines and intake glow all add significantly to the presentation here too.
- GOG Talks Space Sims
- 2012-05-22 -- centaurianmudpig spotted a new PlaySF interview with the folks at GOG.com. They discuss the state of the space combat genre and the possibility of releasing expansion packs for Wing Commander games.
- Enigma Mod Measures Out Confed Fleet
- 2012-05-21 -- Here's a new Confed showcase of capships for the Enigma 2666 mod. Each ship's length and scale is still subject to some potential tweaking to sync better with fighters, but the current lineup is displayed below. The TCS Concordia is very far along the design path, as is the Gilgamesh.
- "Sir, if we spot this Fralthi, should we engage?"
- 2012-05-20 -- Now we go from Fralthra to Fralthi WIP images. CMDBob's latest design is a classic Kilrathi light carrier/cruiser. His model has real clean lines and an animated WC1-style set of textures.
- Fearsome Fralthra Filling In Fast
- 2012-05-19 -- Red Baron has started to texture Cybot's Fralthra, and it's quickly turning into quite a work of art. The color scheme already does a great job of evoking Wing Commander 2. He's also scaled a Jalkehi as a point of reference and imagined what the entire fighter complement of the ship might look like.
- Wing Commander Saga Download Reminder
- 2012-05-18 -- If you haven't yet downloaded the long-awaited fan game, now is as good a time as any to get your hands on a copy! The Windows installer weighs in at a hefty 3.4 gigabytes, so we recommend some kind of download manager that can resume paused or failed transfers.
- New RPG Kicks Off
- 2012-05-17 -- The TCS Phoenix has launched and the game has begun in the Wing Commander: From the Ashes forum-based RPG. Some of the first characters have already been defined, and action in the Pentonville System is now in motion. There is also an out-of-character area where new players can ask questions and get situated before they begin role playing.
- Vega Sector Reinforcements Inbound
- 2012-05-16 -- Here's a preview of new designs that Klavs is working to bring to the Shapeways model factory. If all goes according to plan, this foursome may be available in a future bundle pack together. It's an interesting assortment of ships - Rapier, Super Wing Commander Rapier, Scimitar and Dralthi - and they all look fantastic!
- Academy Just Two Weeks Away!
- 2012-05-15 -- Wingnuts now have less than 14 days to prepare for the release of Wing Commander Academy on DVD! All thirteen episodes of the television series will be available in this set starting on May 29, 2012. Barnes & Noble and Deep Discount have some of the lowest prices, and there's still time to order from Amazon.
- Scimitar Prepares to Slice Up a Dralthi
- 2012-05-15 -- And to further get you in the Academy mood, here's another beautiful NinjaLA sketch. The CF-105 Scimitar was the workhorse of the cadets flying off the Tiger's Claw, and soon you'll get to watch them again in the new high quality release!
- Exotic Designs Hit the Spacelanes
- 2012-05-14 -- ScoobyDoo has put together several more concept renders inspired by a variety of sources. The first is a medium size capship with fighter-carrying ability, and it's followed by a beefier looking take on the Bearcat. The last design is a more unique idea that mixes Wing Commander elements with a Freespace ship.
- Fleets Increase Presence in Enigma
- 2012-05-13 -- Here's a big update for the Enigma 2666 mod. A handful of new pictures show off where the game is at today. Four different capship classes are pictured near a large Confed base, and all the fighters sport updated textures.
- Echo Sector Reopens
- 2012-05-13 -- The world's biggest website dedicated to the Crusader series, Echo Sector, has gotten a big revamp. New features include a streamlined menu interface and increased security. Not all of the links work yet, but more features will come online soon.
- Va ka Garga ka naru ha Garga
- 2012-05-12 -- NinjaLA has sketched a new fearsome Kilrathi. With his latest warrior, Ninja has done a good job of introducing menacing facial features, and this sinister look goes beyond just drawing a humanoid tiger. The armor is inspired by the classic WC2 style with a WC Movie headpiece.
- Kilrathi Destroyer Continues to Take Shape
- 2012-05-11 -- Kevin Caccamo is once again working on a Ralari model. Since we last saw the ship, additional detail has been added to the window areas and secondary structure. It appears to conform to the Claw Marks schematic quite well.
- Wing Commander Stories From The Fatman
- 2012-05-10 -- In recent weeks, Armchair Arcade has been conducting a series of interviews with famous videogame composer George Sanger. The newest issue talks about his and Dave Govett's work on the soundtrack for the original Wing Commander. Well worth a listen!
- Super Rapier Models Ready To Go
- 2012-05-09 -- Klavs has completed design and prototyping of another physical model. His Super Wing Commander Rapier is now available for fellow Wingnuts in 1/600 scale from Shapeways. The image below reveals that, although tiny, the ship packs some incredible detail - very distinctive hull markings and guns!
- WC Saga Soundtrack Released
- 2012-05-08 -- The WC Saga team has released the soundtrack to their Freespace mod. They are also working on a spinoff album based on George Oldziey's tunes from Wing Commander 3. You can grab the Darkest Dawn OST here (187 meg zip).
- Garriott DVD Drops May 15
- 2012-05-08 -- Richard Garriott's Man on a Mission documentary will be released on DVD next Tuesday! This charming film captures Lord British's successful dream to become the world's first second-generation astronaut. Most reviews have been quite positive and the documentary has come highly recommended.
- Paradigm Deployed to Enigma Sector
- 2012-05-07
- New WC Ship Viewer In Development
- 2012-05-06 -- BOC_Havoc has put together a very sharp 3D ship viewer. The program is still in the prototype stages, but you can try out the current build here. The unity web player plugin is needed to see the model.
- Still Worthy of an Honorable Mention
- 2012-05-05 -- There aren't as many gaming sites name dropping Wing Commander as there were a decade ago, but they still pop up all over if you look. Here's a couple from just this week: HotHardware ran a feature on gaming clichés. The story decries the linear nature of modern games that screech to a halt if any losing conditions are met.
- Warren Spector Revisits Origin Memories
- 2012-05-05 -- Yet another Wing Commander mention this week came from an interview with Warren Spector. Metro.co.
- A Trip to the WC Universe is Right
- 2012-05-04 -- PlaySF magazine has put together a wacky article on Wing Commander and Christopher Blair. From the perspective of an inter-dimensional time traveler, the author jumps back in time to the year AD 2700 within the Wing Commander universe. Once there, he encounters James Taggart and the TCS Midway.
- Everything's Ship Shape!
- 2012-05-03 -- In recent days WCPedia contributor Iceblade has worked on finalizing a layout for the ship articles on the project. After experimenting with the Broadsword article, and creating a great layout in the process, he's started to implement that layout across the Confederation fighters category. Currently, the F-36 Hornet article is the most complete.
- HUDdle Up and Check Out New Cockpit Displays
- 2012-05-02 -- Aginor is working on a new Wing Commander mod, and this game will be played from the Kilrathi perspective. Although there won't be full dashboard cockpit graphics, each ship will have a unique heads up display. Most games use the same targeting crosshairs and reticle for all ships, but here are some examples of how Wing Commander 4 differentiated its craft.
- Don't Miss an Infoburst!
- 2012-05-02 -- Are you linked up to get the latest Wing Commander news right as it happens? In addition to the main website and CIC Forums, dedicated Wingnuts can follow the CIC on various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and with RSS to stay in the loop as news breaks. In addition to hot stories, followers also see occasional special features and behind-the-scenes updates.
- Glance at Mod's Gwynedd Mission
- 2012-05-01 -- Here's some new shots from the Enigma 2666 mod that show off a fighter launch, autopilot fly-by and ship size comparison. Sharp players will quickly recognize the familiar Broadsword/Ferret pairing from the Fralthra Strike at the beginning of WC2 - a very fun mission, if you can keep the Broadswords alive! Here I used the Confederation Class from Klavs and the converted Broadsword from Standoff.
- Rapier Prepped for Production
- 2012-04-30 -- Klavs has finished his Super Wing Commander Rapier, and the result is gorgeous. These ships are now off to a trial at Shapeways 'rapid prototyping' lab. If the design pans out, small physical resin copies may be available to order soon.
- Academy DVD Approaching Fast
- 2012-04-29 -- There's just one month to go until the DVD box set of the Wing Commander Academy series is available! Amazon Prime members get first dibs with free release date delivery on May 29. Sites like Deep Discount and Barnes & Noble are a few dollars less and also offer free shipping, but delivery will take at least a few more days.
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