Amiga Wing Commander Unboxed Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Sometimes when things get stressful, it's relaxing to kick back with an old school unboxing video. Here's one by GreekRetroMan that takes a look at the Amiga edition of Wing Commander 1. I never get tired of Claw Marks or the fighter blueprints, and it's also nice to see the Amiga version in action once in a while. Although it doesn't support as many colors as its PC counterpart, many people swear by this edition!

Peeling More Layers of the Super Wing Commander Capship Onion Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

There's a little error in the intro to Super Wing Commander. Paladin reports that his wing is "approaching Fralthi target" when what they're actually attacking what immediately turns out to be a Snakeir carrier. You can watch the full intro here. An even dorkier continuity error is that the intro can't happen BEFORE WC1 because the Rapiers, Fralthi and Snakeir are the (only) specific ships that are introduced as being brand new during the game.
So wondering if there was a story here, I went back to access the 3D models used to render Super Wing Commander's ships. SNAKEIR.OBJ is the carrier (later reused by Armada as the Shiraak) but FRALTHI.OBJ is... this: I forgive you if you don't know the Super Wing Commander Fralthi redesign by heart, so here it is from the manual: Is it just a case of giving up on one concept and switching to another for the actual game? Well, I found another piece of the puzzle: here's a gameplay shot from the Super Wing Commander trailer. A Rapier attacking the mystery ship! Here's that trailer:
So I kept looking through the original models until I found where the 'new' Fralthi originated. It's saved the same date (so it's not a later substitution) as the others... and it's named SPIKERI.OBJ. The unused/cut Fralthi is a pretty detailed model as far as SWC objects go, complete with textured interior bays that would never have been visible when rendered for the game. It also has another ridiculous secret: it's a Sabre! Whoever built this cruiser started with Wing Commander II's Sabre 3D model, clipped the wings and went to town. The intakes became launch tubes! So stepping back: what's a Spikeri? It actually comes from the original Wing Commander where it was concepted as the Kilrathi corvette. It even has stats in the published wc.exe, there just isn't a ship file with graphics included for it (and no mission spawns it).

For Wing Commander I, Glen Johnson concepted 22 ships and an outsource company in New York turned his 2D artwork (as seen in Claw Marks) into 3D objects (which were then rendered at different angles for the finished game). But to save space, five of these designs were cut! Four of these immediately appeared in the first mission disk: the human corvette and tanker and the Kilrathi freighter and dreadnaught. But the Spikeri did not! The Kilrathi wouldn't get a proper corvette until the Kamekh in Wing Commander II.

So what happened to the Spikeri art? We come full circle, because it was reused in The Secret Missions 2... as the first appearance of the Snakeir, the ship from the Super Wing Commander intro! Look closely, it's not a huge carrier, it has a large visible cockpit...

Wait a minute, then the Kamekh corvette model from Wing Commander II is retextured for Privateer... and then just like the Sabre it had it's wings cut off for Super Wing Commander where it became... THE SNAKEIR! We're through the looking glass here, people.
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WC Modeler Creates 'Ghost of Kyiv' Tribute Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Prolific model maker Klavs doesn't just build Wing Commander models. He's also well known for his military aviation and space creations. We're not sure if the Ghost of Kyiv is real, but the concept has gone viral this week. Their MiG-29 has become an inspiration to Ukraine's defenders. Klavs has put together this design as a tribute. He's also donating profits from his web store relief efforts in the region. Great job to everyone doing their part!
Here at Hangar B we usually try to stay away from modern political discourse and let the airplanes and historical documents speak for themselves. Recent tragic and horrific events in Ukraine, have moved us off the sidelines.

Inspired by the story of "The Ghost of Kyiv," we present this image without watermarks in the hope that it will be shared freely in order to bring some small comfort, and perhaps inspiration to the people of that embattled nation in the hard days to come.

For the next 2 weeks, any profits made from our webstore will be donated to aid organizations aiding in humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.

Game Developers Donate to Ukrainian Refugee Aid Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Game developers are starting to step up and support the humanitarian needs emerging in Ukraine. I just learned about a very cool looking space strategy game called Slipways being developed out of Poland. Their team is currently donating 100% of profits to the Polish Red Cross, which is gearing up to support an influx of refugees. GOG.com, also based in Poland and the primary purveyor of digital Wing Commander, has already donated a quarter million dollars to local aid agencies assisting with the crisis. This is in addition to a other high profile support drives set up by 11 bit studios (This War of Mine) and Bungie. Supporting these efforts may not fully relieve the pervasive feelings of helplessness out there, but small efforts do add up!

Our Thoughts Are With Those in the Warzone Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The news of Russian's invasion of Ukraine has been a big distraction today, so our previously scheduled Wing Commander news is momentarily on hold. We recognize how lucky we are that it's only a distraction for us and not a life-or-death struggle as it is for people on the ground on Eastern Europe. We have friends and know Wingnuts in both countries, and we hope all remain safe. If you're looking for fellow WC fans to discuss the situation with, feel free to visit the #Wingnut Discord. With that being said, consider that it may be less stressful to focus on topics other than the war!

I am at least encouraged to see that Russian citizens have already started to speak out against the violence - even at their own personal peril. The more we realize our shared interests and how much we have in common, the sooner peace and stability can be restored. As such, here's a set of Russian videos about the WC series that Dnimornut just put together. They cover the making of Wing Commander, console ports and the original game itself. You can use YouTube's built in auto-translator to read captions in your preferred language.

Wing Kerbmander Morningstar Video Released Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Last month we reported on capi's slick Morningstar model made in Kerbal Space Program. He was also putting together a cute video to introduce the craft, and we're happy to share it now! It's presented in the style of a classic mission briefing starring the Kerbs. We also get to see some pretty acrobatic flying. The landing is a bit rough, but you know what they say about any landing you can walk away from!
Featuring the F-95 Morningstar, we fight like it's 1992.

Some context for posterity - this was my entry for the seventh week of the competition. The fighters in the combat sequence of the video were my entries from the previous six weeks. My son created the map you see in the video for the third week of the competition and I've been sneaking it and references to it in since. BAN-JEB stands for "Bob's Aeronautical and Naval Jet Engineering Bureau", and is "the militant wing of Bob's Scientific Imperium and Country Bunker", who we're supposed to be representing (in reality, my son is digging on Jebediah Kerman, who's like KSP's principal kerbalnaut; Bob is number two). And yes, the "Country Bunker" part is a Blues Brothers reference.

Freedom Flight Group Read Kicking Off Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

EmuMusicFan is working double duty this week! To the right he's got another Kilrathi sketch for his growing portfolio. It's his interpretation of a Kilrathi officer from Special Operations 1, Captain nar Raktha.

Even more exciting is a new group read project that EMF is getting started for Wing Commander Freedom Flight. We've done a number of these over the years, but it's been quite a while since the last one. It's kind of crazy to think about, because this is a perfect pandemic activity! It's always nice to get in early on these, so dust off your copies and get ready. If you don't own one, it's easier than ever to purchase a digital edition. It goes for $6.99 at Baen, Apple or Amazon. Discussion will take place on the CIC Forums and #Wingnut Discord, but it's not necessary to engage in any deep analysis. The most important thing is to have fun!

First, please allow me to talk about plant-based food and drink in Kilrathi's diet.

Although the general impression and the subsequent narrative in Chapter 9 suggest that the Kilrathi certainly eat meat as their main meal, plant based, plant products have an important place in their dietary consumption.

From Freedom Flight, we know arakh leaves are a very common consumer product for Kilrathi. It is enjoyed from Thrak‘hra, nobles, to Kilra‘hra, commoners. Chewing these leaves and drinking the juice can calm Kilrathi from anxiety, but having too much of this catnip-like plant could intoxicate a Kilrathi into unconsciousness.

As for whether enjoying arakh leaves can be harmful to a Kilrathi's health, at least the normal dosage is not significantly harmful. Judging from Ralgha's use of it to calm down before the official start of the action, it does not have the side effect of disrupting thoughtful judgment when used in moderation. And long term normal use should not lead to physical weakness, because Kirha, a young Kilrathi who insists on physical exercise to serve his lord, also uses it, according to Chapter 9.

Lillard Reflects on Wing Commander Hype Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Variety recently did an interview with Matthew Lillard where they talked about the original Scream movie's 25th anniversary (and release of Scream 5). There's one small part where he compares his excitement with Scream to starring in Wing Commander, and it's something I've always appreciated about Lillard's involvement with the film. This isn't a new off-the-cuff take - he usually reflects fondly when talking about making the Wing Commander Movie. Last year he even put together an awesome table read for April 1! You can find the full Variety article here.
When “Scream” first came out, did you ever think you’d be here 25 years later discussing its legacy?

Matthew Lillard: The short answer is no way. I think we’re surprised, but we love it. It holds an emotional place for all of us because we were so young and had an incredible experience shooting the movie. Going into it, none of us had any idea, right?

Lillard: I want to say, though, I do think that every movie I’ve ever been in, I always go in and leave the movie like, “This is gonna be incredible. It’s ‘Wing Commander,’ and I think 25 years from now we are still going to be talking about how incredible ‘Wing Commander’ was.” It turns out, it doesn’t always happen that way.

Going Through a Sticky Patch Lately Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Today we're taking a look at the Wing Commander patches being sold by SciFi Geeks. The company specializes in cosplay patches for a very wide range of franchises. I've seen their promotions around in various forms for years, but I don't think we've highlighted them here before. There is a certainly sketchy Web 1.0 quality to their operation, but the fact that they seem to have been around for almost 20 years also lends some amount of credibility. Each of the patches below is listed for $11.99, and there appears to be a 15% coupon with the code "SAVE15." Has anyone ordered any of these before? How did they turn out? Send us your pictures if so!

WC Actress Okay After Rough Tumble Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Actress Dana Delany, who voiced Gwen "Archer" Bowman in Wing Commander Academy, had an unfortunate accident this week. She had a bad fall down a flight of stairs and came out of it with a black eye. Many news outlets are reporting how she was a longtime friend of Bob Saget, whose recent death appears connected to head trauma. As such, Ms. Delany took the incident seriously and got it checked out. Fortunately it appears that she'll be fine!
You should see the other guy.

Thank you all for your concern. I fell down some iron stairs head first (totally sober!) & all I could think of was poor Bob Saget. So I grabbed the handrail with my face. I was afraid it was fractured but thankfully, no. The folks at St John's emergency took great care of me.

New Kiev Insights Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

While doom scrolling through the latest global crisis I got to wondering why what I grew up calling Kiev is now written as Kyiv. Here’s an NPR article that explains it. Interesting, but what people really want to know is: how did Wing Commander do it? WC2 has eight missions (4 winning, 4 losing) set in the Confederation-settled system of “Novaya Kiev”. “Novaya Kiev” seems to be a case of wanting the system to be New Kiev (like New York) but just picking a word for new from the dictionary. A Russian speaker on the CIC Discord says it should be “Hовый Киев” (Novyy Kiev) and confirmation would be welcome! (Very very early on I named I think a weapons company in Star Citizen Novaya something in reference to WC2, but it was corrected by someone who actually spoke Russian somewhere along the line!)

There’s also a second Kiev reference in Wing Commander’s lore: per the WC4 novelization, Maniac was assigned to return to help clean up the Border Worlds after the events of the game as commander of the escort carrier TCS Kiev’s fighter wing.

This one is probably a reference to the Russian aircraft carrier Kiev, which has since become a luxury hotel in China. The future is strange!
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Tigers Claw Gets Its Own Blueprint Poster Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

GBGames has been getting back into the original Wing Commander, and this has inspired him to create a pretty awesome piece of Wing Commander art. He's put together a pretty slick Bengal class blueprint poster in the style of WC1's fighter blueprints. It's very nice - and high res enough to print or make your wallpaper image!
I've been playing Wing Commander for the PC, which is very different from the SNES version I played when I was younger.

And I decided I wanted a poster of the Tiger's Claw, so I made one.

Wing Commander Movie Discounted at Amazon and VUDU Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The Wing Commander Movie is seeing is biggest and broadest sale yet. The film briefly dipped down to $5 at Microsoft last year, but now we're seeing the same sale repeated at both Amazon and VUDU/Fandango (which have recently merged). At this point it seems like MS - as well as Google Play/YouTube are still at the $10. All of these are part of Movies Anywhere, so buying them at one storefront gets you access at all of them, which is great.

For a while after 2017 when the rights were changing over, the movie was hard to buy in any format, including streaming, but it's nice to see that it's more readily available again now. Apple/iTunes appears to be the last major platform that doesn't have a digital purchase option, but it can be rented. And buying it at the other places does deliver a purchased copy to your iTunes account, so at least that's an option. It's hard to go wrong for $5!

Based on the best selling video game, Wing Commander is now a full length action-packed movie! Starship Troopers meets Top Gun in this no-holds-battle for the future of mankind. A vicious alien race, the Kilrathi, has discovered the coordinates to Earth and is heading its way! Now it's up to two young hotshot fighter pilots to blast their way through the Kilrathi's defenses and save their planet from this new breed of enemy.

HD Upscaler Significantly Improves Sega WC Port Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Adam posted some impressive pics of the Sega CD edition of Wing Commander running with a neat upscaler gadget. He's highlighted some comparison shots below, and the difference is enormous! It is helpful to understand a little context though: the original game didn't look nearly as bad in 1994 as the first image implies, but there is some awful distortion that gets introduced when trying to upscale certain old SD content directly into modern HDTVs. It's nice to see that there are some good options to clean things up though. The device was made by Hyperkin, which does some good stuff.
The Hyperkin HDTV cable for Sega Genesis I ordered from Limited Run Games arrived today.

Here's some comparison shots with my composite cables (left pics). Sorry if those don't look all that great, they were taken with my phone. Believe me, the difference is noticeable in person.

Especially the text in Wing Commander. :D

Also, 1994 was not a typo! The Mega/Sega CD port of Wing Commander was one the last WC1 ports made (not counting things like Super Wing Commander, Kilrathi Saga, EA Replay and the various rereleases).

Happy Valentine's Day Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The Love Arrow got bottom billing last year, but now it's BACK on top, front and center. Hopefully its frantic pink glow casts a little bit more light into your world.

Happy Birthday Wing Commander IV! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Happy February 12, known in certain circles as December 8. (Wing Commander 4 turns 26 today! Happy birthday!)

The first image fans saw of Wing Commander IV was the teaser below, showing Tolwyn and Blair on opposing sides with a shadowy figure between them. It's a compelling image on the surface, but it's also problematic--since there's no actual reveal in the game itself. The shadow figure is just Seether, an entirely new character who is actually Tolwyn's henchman. The biggest problem, though, was that the first run of ads had a date promising the game on December 8, 1995. That would come back to haunt Origin when the title was delayed until February, 1996...
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Morningstar Fired up for 'Wing Kerbmander' Video Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

We've got an update on capi's entry into the Kerbal Space Program competition we mentioned last week. He got lots of good feedback from fellow Wing Commander fans, and the design has been nicely tweaked and finalized. Now work has shifted to an entry video that showcases the design. This has been dubbed "Wing Kerbmander," and it looks like it'll be something special! We'll be sure to share when it's ready.
Started putting together my video today. Going homage, but Kerbal-style. Anxious to share it with y'all but it's nowhere near complete yet. Just bits and fragments.

WC Fan Variant of Traveller RPG In Work Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Alek Specner has kicked off an attempt to create a Wing Commander conversion for the Traveller role playing game. It's in Spanish, but the test cards should still look pretty neat no matter what language you speak. I'm sure it's a lot of work to get everything balanced and coherent, but tabletop "mods" like this always strike me as pretty fun and doable projects. We'd love to see more!
Nostalgia attacked me and I got entangled in the construction of a game of #juegoderol #Traveller on the setting of the great pioneer of space simulation. #Hornet , #Scimitar , #Raptor , #Rapier ... Do they sound familiar to you? The call of duty enrolls us in #WingCommander .

The game of #Traveller in the universe of #WingCommander is taking shape. The Travelers will be members of the Navy of the Terran Confederation and in several scenarios of the plot they will have the opportunity to pilot two of the emblematic ships of the saga: #Hornet and #Rapier .

Wing Commander 2 - With a Little Something Extra Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Brian demodulated has posted a wonderful throwback to 1991. He found his old vintage copy of Wing Commander 2 recently, and as awesome as that is alone, it also still had the faded original store receipt. Sometimes unique little bits like that can tell their own nostalgic story - and Brian has one to go along with this buying experience below! If you have an old '90s tale to share about finding WC in stores, drop it in the comments and share. You can find more of Brian's classic gaming stuff at demodulated.com.
I found my old copy of Wing Commander II at my parents' house this weekend. A truly beloved artifact. I can't begin to tell you how immersive this game was for little me. The box includes my very faded original receipt from Steals Direct in Toronto in November, 1991!

Looking at this box again reminds me of the experience. My dad took me to this enormous PC and software superstore, I picked it up off the shelf, took it home, spent 45 minutes installing it, and the game was corrupted. Had to go back to exchange for another copy.

Get To Know the SAR-23 Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Know your Condors! Red is the search & rescue version, yellow is the refueling ship and grey is the shuttle (which I think didn’t make it to the game).

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Custom PC Magazine Highlights WC1 in VGA Retro Tech Article Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

AD found a neat article in the December 2021 issue of Custom PC. It's a piece on the history and origins of VGA. It's a good story, but Wing Commander doesn't actually appear in the text of the article. Rather, a screenshot from WC1 (with its 320x200 256 color graphics) is used as the headliner - and most notably - on the cover of the magazine. It's not too often these days that you find professional print mags with Wing Commander on the front, so we thought it was worth pointing out. You can actually order a copy for £5.99 here. If you're not in it for the collectible, you can also find the whole article here and even download a PDF of the entire magazine.
VGA didn’t put the PC at the graphics cutting edge, but it did put it back in the race. The new hardware supported resolutions of up to 640 x 480 with 16 colours, or 320 x 200 with up to 256. What’s more, those 256 colours could be redefined at any time, from an 18-bit palette of 262,144 colours. With VGA, you could put a photo on the screen and it kind of looked like a photo. Artists could create 2D images with sophisticated colour and shading effects. PC games went from looking shocking to looking seriously awesome. VGA was literally a game changer.

Join the Discord #Wingnut Crew Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Each year we talk a lot about the CIC Discord chat room in the lead up the CIC Birthday Party, but that's not the only time the place is hopping. In fact, it's a great place to hang out year round! The service suffered an unusual outage a week or so back, and it really drove home how much we missed everyone while it was briefly unavailable. With this invite, you are able to log in via the web or the native phone/table/PC app. While we do talk about Wing Commander all day long, we don't just talk about Wing Commander. There's lots of chatter around video games and sci-fi in general. There's also space for focused topics like modding and fan fiction. Hope to see you there sometime!

Comments Needed on KSP Morningstar Design Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

capi is participating in a Kerbal Space Program competition, and his entry is the Morningstar from Special Operations 2. He's limited by elements within the KSP engine, but the results so far look pretty good. He's very much looking for feedback on how to improve or tweak the model any further. If you'd like to help him and get more representation for Wing Commander, hit the comment link below!
Alright, y'all - I need your opinions. Livery aside, is it passable? Is it a Morningstar or not? If not, where am I off?

I'm currently participating in Season 4 of Scott Manley's Runway Project - aerial combat in Kerbal Space Program. This week's challenge was to make a replica of something (and it could have been anything) that would fly and fight. I don't care about the color - I'm interested in whether or not the airframe looks right.

Start Your Weekend with a Throwback Academy Music Video Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here's something you don't see everyday. You don't really see them much at all anymore now, but long before Tik Tok was a thing, "music video" remixes with random visuals and someone else's music were a pretty popular YouTube pastime. They got extra bonus points if the visuals and the music actually sync'd up and loosely conveyed some narrative. We've got one such video today by Peter Plum. It takes a variety of scenes from the Wing Commander Academy television show and puts them against "This is War" by Thirty Seconds from Mars. It's not a bad combination!
The classic space-shooter Wing Commander spawned a short-lived television series entitled Wing Commander Academy. This video features clips from that cartoon put to Thirty Seconds from Mars' "This is War".

Vintage Video Shows Sega CD WC1 at CES Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Looking Glass Museum has posted a brief but nifty thirty year old video. Before E3 was a thing, the Consumer Electronics Shows was one of the primary venues to showcase your big video game. This was recorded by someone at the Summer 1992 CES. It features some of the upcoming games for the Sega CD system on a cool nine-television video wall. We get lots of flickering WING COMMANDERS on screen interspersed with some nice Hornet on Dralthi action. What a show that must have been!
LOAF: Interesting video clip from CES in 1992 showing Sega’s Sega CD display look at! Obviously I want a nine TV bank that flashes WING COMMANDER but the unreleased Ultima Underworld port is probably more interesting!
Here's some screenshots in case the Instagram embed breaks:

Listen to a Little Launch Music Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Matt McGuire has posted a short and sweet digital reorchestration of the classic WC1 scramble music. You can hear it take advantage of a much wider ensemble than the MIDI of thirty years ago. Give it a listen below!
Wing Commander Scramble Music

Composed in Cakewalk using the Spitfire BBC Orchestra

Dralthi Enters the Paint Hangar Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

elend has taken the next step in creation of his wonderful physical Dralthi model. The spacecraft itself is now complete - it looks fabulous! I could never make something so detailed. The primer coat is now being applied, and a full up brown Dralthi paint scheme is coming soon!
I have started priming! Wooo. Paintjob soon.

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