It's been two weeks since Wing Commander Armada and System Shock shipped, however it's taken less time than that to realize we had two gigantic hits on our hands. Within hours after the games hit the store shelves, gamers from all over the country were talking about both products online.

'Gonna spend some time today and make some real raunchy taunts so I can finish this head to head game....My wife is gonna sue ORIGIN over this game,' wrote one Armada player. 'Wow, fantastic game!' wrote another. 'My brother and I love it! We've been kicking butt from dawn to dusk, and it's endless slaughter! The taunt files really add a lot to the game; a moment of hilarity is always added by an appropriately timed Clint Eastwood, 'Make my day,' or a Terminator, 'Hasta la vista!'

... We're back in a big way,' says ORIGIN sales vp Marten 'Bulldog' Davies. 'With Armada, we've listened to our customers and given them a sci-fi oriented, head-to-head, modem game that they can play at their leisure when they want to.'... Just look at what happened at local stores and you'll get an idea of the success for both of these games. 'Babbages was completely out of Armada on day one and they had something like 17 units in the store,' according to Marten. 'At Best Buy, they were already on their second order of System Shock on the day after the product shipped.' He said it was much the same story for Armada. Kind of a nice problem to have, eh Marten?

'It feels really good,' says Armada director Jeff Everett. 'I guess I'm kind of surprised that people were as excited about it as they are. I always liked it and the people in QA liked it, but you never know if a game is going to be perceived good or bad until it's out there on shelves. I just wasn't going to let myself get to the point where I thought everybody's going to love this game regardless of what happens. But now, everyone seems to like it.'

... 'Bottom line,' says Marten, 'more power to Jeff Everett and his team and Warren Spector and the guys at Looking Glass. Two great products.'

The Wing Commander III juggernaut is starting to roll, folks. The latest issue of Strategy Plus is out and features WCIII on its cover. Steve Bauman, who made a trip to Austin in late August to get a first-hand look at the game, obviously came away impressed. Listen to these comments, 'Origin may have actually accomplished their goal of creating the first truly interactive cinematic experience, an action movie where you get to be the hero and one where the long-promised marriage of Hollywood and Silicon produces something that both can be proud of. Of the numerous current 'interactive movies' that use live actors with computer rendered backgrounds, none come even close to Wing Commander III's level of integration.' And what about that music, Steve. 'The sound of a space opera is like this is of utmost importance, and once again Wing Commander III delivers in spades.'

Plan on seeing at least one more cover story on WC 3 in the December issue of PC Gamer (on the stands in mid-November). Bill Trotter, a self-avowed Wing Commander addict, travelled to Austin last month to see if all the hype on the game is true. Let's just say Bill's addiction won't be cured anytime soon. In addition, PC Gamer and its sister publication, CD-ROM Today, will be including the just-finished WC III demo on a CD that will come packaged with the magazines.

But wait, there's more. WC III has popped up in other publications across the country. Axcess magazine, kind of a new wave/movie/entertainment publication, wrote, 'Wing Commander III takes the concept of the interactive movie to new limits. It's Hollywood's biggest interactive experiment to date.'

There also were nice previews in the new Cinescape magazine from Sendai Publications and in Sci-Fi Universe. Closer to the release date expect stories on the Today Show and on VH-1. Watch for dates and times on your e-mail.

It's a little too early to see what most reviewers are going to say about ORIGIN's latest releases, System Shock and Wing Commander Armada. Gamestar magazine in Australia, though, has gotten a bit of a head start... Armada came in with even more kudos. 'The graphics are just totally mind blowing with the best bitmap graphics I'd ever - and I mean ever - seen in my life. A totally awesome game.'

Point of Origin
Vol. IV, No. 60 - October 7, 1994 Contents Spotlight: Back on Top
In Ink
Off the Wire
Point Man
Ticker
"It's Time for a Focus Group"
EOM
New Hires
Quality Entertainment Dept.
The Future