News Collection: On This Day in WC News

2023.134 (May 14, 2023)

The Wing Commander Discography

A stately conductor stands before an orchestra three rows deep. The planet Venice, the Kilrathi capital of the Vega Sector, looms overhead. He raises his baton…From the very first visual of the very first game, the deep connection between music and Wing Commander was clear… even to PC speaker users! Over the years, the Wing Commander franchise repeatedly pushed forward the public's expectation for what is now called 'VGM' and considered its own respected genre of music.

2022.134 (May 14, 2022)

More WC2 Remixes for Your Audio Enjoyment

Symphonic Remakes has made a new set of digital reorchestrations for Wing Commander 2. Today's lineup is the brief scramble clip followed by longer tracks for Prince Thrakhath's Theme and the Victory tune. WC2 has some fabulous music, so it's nice to see another fresh take on it. If you like these, check out their earlier remixes for WC1/2 here!

2021.134 (May 14, 2021)

Lights, Camera, Puns

2020.135 (May 14, 2020)

WC Vet Adjusts to the Times

Lieutenant Lance Casey may have defeated a Nephilim invasion fleet, but now he's facing his biggest challenge yet: the novel coronavirus. The actor behind Wing Commander Prophecy's main character founded Steven Petrarca Events after transitioning out of acting about fifteen years ago. He's built the company up into a high end event planning business with some major customers in West Hollywood, California. Like many other industries, however, COVID-19 has severely impacted their ability to operate.

2019.134 (May 14, 2019)

Wing Commander Spotted in Progressive Ad

The perennially asinine world of insurance commercials has a new Wing Commander tie-in. A new Progressive ad titled "Rebel - Birthday" presents a snarky conversation involving a middle aged man living in his parents' home. The directors helped set the scene with a copy of Wing Commander on the shelf. It's between the wooden ship and baseballs.

2018.134 (May 14, 2018)

"Drop your cargo before you blow, will ya?"

DefianceIndustries is hard at work cranking out the most plentiful peashooter of the Gemini Sector, the F-38 Talon. Unfortunately, they're mostly up to no good on behalf of the Retros or pirates, but occasionally the Confed Militia will trot a few out as well. The Talon might be a bland workhorse in Privateer, but these updated renders are gorgeous!I finally finished up my F-38 Talon.

Wing Commander Meme of the Day: Third World Skeptical Kid

Speaking of Talons...

2017.134 (May 14, 2017)

PC Format on Wing Commander II

PC Format, a UK-based gaming magazine that would go on to have a close relationship with Origin Systems, published their first issue in 1991. Of interest to us, however, is issue 2: the November, 1991 edition of the magazine was absolutely chock full of Wing Commander II. As you can see, Wing Commander II gets a four page review, a picture on the cover and even a letter in their 'Q&A' section. The highlight, however, is the 'cartoon' version of the WC2 intro where the story is punched up with word balloons and new graphics.

2016.135 (May 14, 2016)

Hamill Talks Return To Space Sims

There's a new PC World interview making the rounds that takes a moment to pull Mark Hamill away from Star Wars Episode VIII filming to talk about some of the other sci-fi ventures he's been involved with over the years. Major topics include working with Chris Roberts again as well as the shift from live FMV to motion-captured CGI video. He notes that the majority of his Squadron 42 work was a reunion with John Rhys-Davies. Older articles have pointed out that his sons used to play Wing Commander in the '90s, and now he mentions that they're returning to video games in their 30s.

2015.134 (May 14, 2015)

Make Or Break A Strategic Shakedown Cruise

The WC Generals beta continues to wage battle across the galaxy and root out issues to be fixed. New features described below add some meaningful depth to the latest iteration of this fan game. There have also been good discussions on how to address time/turns and how some mechanics could be refined to enhance the strategy aspect. If you're curious and would like to give the playtest a shot, head over to wcgenerals.

2014.134 (May 14, 2014)

Wing Commander VHS Previews Posted (For Some Reason)

No longer own a VCR machine? Dying to see the filler on the casette before the start of the Wing Commander Movie VHS? The Previews Guy has come to the rescue! And it's our mission to bring dedicated Wingnuts like you "all things Wing Commander" every day.

2013.134 (May 14, 2013)

Space Sim First Look: Wings of Saint Nazaire

Community member Howard Day is working on an indie space sim "in the vein of Wing Commander and X-Wing." The ship models look incredibly detailed, and the cockpit view has a pleasing '90s vibe. Wings of Saint Nazaire is being built on the Unity 3D engine, which means it'll run on Windows, Mac, Linux and even some consoles! There are two reasons for the Sprite-based ship rendering in the game.

2012.135 (May 14, 2012)

Exotic Designs Hit the Spacelanes

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. Check out the Ecantonas escorting the frigate!

2011.134 (May 14, 2011)

RC Dralthi Sets Sights on the Sky

Joe Garrity posted this tantalizing shot of a foam core Dralthi model he's building with Chris Carpenter. It's not just an art project though - the goal is get it flying via remote radio control. Before that happens, the craft will need some structural reinforcement, a cool paintjob and the propelling motor installed. Then it'll be just like Secret Missions 2 again at Joe's house!

Space Sim First Look: X Rebirth

Shotglass.de noticed that Egosoft has announced another space sim, X Rebirth. It will be the fourth major game in the series that began in 1999 with X: Beyond the Frontier. The 'rebirth' moniker is intended to symbolize the game's new take on space action and economics.

2010.134 (May 14, 2010)

A Dazzling Display of Dashboard Doohickies

Here's something for everybody who likes blinking lights and switches (and who doesn't?!). AD took these screenshots from a 1080p broadcast of the Wing Commander Movie, and they reveal some very intricate detail of the Rapier cockpit. Now you can study the weapons telemetry indicators, jump drive initiators and gravitation sensor switches up close.

2009.134 (May 14, 2009)

Frank Reminisces About Playtesting At Origin

Normally we don't report on playtesting guides posted to the XNA site, but this one is a little different. It's written by Wing Commander veteran Frank Savage, who is a development manager for the XNA toolset. You can read the entire article here. To prove a point, he even delves into his Wing Commander past to pull up an anecdote from his time at Origin:Got any good playtest stories?

Making the Game: Series E Overview

The 'E' series is the first half of the game's long series of missions set in the T'lan Meth system. It's home to Prophecy's most confusing mission, Treasure Hunt.These updates are thanks to John "Captain Johnny" Guentzel, who provided several CD image archives of material used by the Wing Commander Prophecy development team!

2008.135 (May 14, 2008)

The Big Transport That Could

In sharp contrast to the tiny 1/1000 scale paper Clydesdale that Péricles unveiled last week, his 1/200 scale model is quite a monster. Where the last design could be placed next to coins for reference, this one might be better sitting next to hubcaps or dinner plates. The basic structure of the ship is coming together well now, and three sizes of the design should be ready to release soon. After this transport is complete, Péricles plans to move on to the Venture and Stiletto.

Making the Game - Part 9

Today we have the May 3rd, 1996 Component Manager Meeting Agenda, with comments and status updates from all the groups working on the game. What interests me the most here is the amount of control this group seems to have over the entire Wing Commander property - they're monitoring the big titles in development, Wing Commander V and Maniac Missions, but also keeping tabs on Wing Commander IV Playstation, The Darkening and even sending representatives to LA to make sure that MCA/Universal is not "fucking up the property" on Wing Commander Academy TV. I also think everyone can take something different away from these -- for example, I imagine some 3D artists probably understand what it means that the art team is all learning Alias better than I do.

2007.134 (May 14, 2007)

Missile Command

There have been a lot of question as to how missiles work in Wing Commander Arena. Are they simple fire-and-forget weapons, or even worse all Dumb Fires? Not so! Producer Sean Penney stopped by to explain how locking works: "There are heat seekers.

Remember (To Buy) Pearl Harbor

The latest historical novel from Wing Commander veteran Dr. William Forstchen hits bookstores this week. The book is Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th, co-authored with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. This is the fifth collaboration for Forstchen and Gingrich, following alternative history novels set during World War II and the Civil War.

2006.134 (May 14, 2006)

WC Ship Pack For FS2 Available

Most of our Freespace news lately has related to the WC Saga mod, but Scooby Doo has also recently created a standalone model pack. It includes the Raptor, Excalibur, Ecantona, Kamekh, Goran, Vampire and Piranha. The files are available as .VPs.

Stingrays Sting In Higher Res Than Ever

When some of the first Wing Commander desktop wallpapers were released with Origin FX in 1993, they were made available in 640x480 VGA resolution - more than twice the detail available in Wing Commander games at the time. In 1996 Origin released official wallpapers for Privateer 2 in enhanced 800x600 SVGA resolution. Ten years have passed now, and more and more people are running in UXGA and beyond. To meet this demand, Sean Murphy has provided his latest wallpaper in full 1600x1200 resolution.

2005.134 (May 14, 2005)

Howie's Drayman Nearly Finished

Fresh from finishing up his Salthi earlier in the week, Howie Day has sent us pictures from his latest work-in-progress. This Drayman is amazingly detailed with just little details such as running lights yet to be added. I'm glad to see the Drayman being modeled as transports are often passed up by modelers in favor of more exciting ships such as fighters and capital ships.

Concordia Gets Its Orders

As LOAF was leaving Austin for the summer, he caught the Austin American Statesman paper reporting on the Concordia's local fleet movements. It looks like Concordia's new location is classified.

2004.135 (May 14, 2004)

Check Out More E3 Inside

We've got a few more images from inside E3 today, including a quick shot of Electronic Arts CEO Larry Probst. Apparently he was in a quite a hurry when we caught him however. We also got a chance to check out the Nintendo DS. The obvious emphasis is on the dual screen ability, but the touch screen seems to be where lots of innovation will occur.

Help Save the 3D Kilrathi Fleet!

Attention master 3D artists: here's a chance to help preserve Wing Commander history!See, I wrote this fanfic with this super-fighter...Just kidding - I need someone to help recreate in as much detail as possible three Kilrathi capital ships! During the war they were our feared enemies...

2003.134 (May 14, 2003)

Beware the End of May

The e-commerce site voted most likely to have a Secret Ops secondary character named after it is at it again: Amazon.com now lists the US release of Prophecy GBA as a stately May 27th, 2003. Based on what we know, this sounds like it could be right. Pleeeeease be right!

WCPolaroids: Stiletto (4/8)

Stiletto, Stiletto... wonder what that means. Well, Maestro, Dictionary.com has your answer!

2001.134 (May 14, 2001)

SWC Ship of the Day: Star Post

Here's the Kilrathi Star Post, as it appears in Super Wing Commander. Just one more ship left in our little campaign -- one you'd never guess! And here's a hint: it's not the Hhriss...

Trivia 3 Week 29

If this week's trivia were a page in Freedom Flight, it'd include the quote "Except for Todd Marshall, who's completely slipped his leash".Welcome to Game Three, Week Twenty-Nine Trivia. We play each week. Every Monday two main questions and one bonus question are posted to alt.

2000.135 (May 14, 2000)

A Fishy Easter Egg

I was playing Starlancer today, and I came across what I assume is an easter egg. On the Yamato carrier, there's a fish tank in your quarters. You have to follow a certain path to walk up to it. First, turn to the Simulation Pod.

We've Never Fought Russians in Space?

Gamespot gave SL a 7.7 out of 10 rating. Although there are a few Chris Roberts comments that are a stretch here, the review seems to rightfully focus on Warthog and Privateer 2 more than average. They hit on the radar point too, which is one of my concerns.

Opi-Ola Corporation Presents New Brands

Story by Derich Glenfires. Opi-Ola, 'The religion of the masses', yesterday unveiled their new summer brand line-up. Five new flavours of the galay's favourite soft drink are being released; Kumquat, Marjoram, Rhubarb, Aloe and Sickly are all set to propel this blue-chip company to even greater heights. Also on show was the company's much-vaunted alcoholic custard.

1999.134 (May 14, 1999)

Unexpected Circumstances

We mentioned an article by Chris Roberts at Next Generation a few days ago -- what we neglected to show was the entire article, which can be read here. The strange thing? It starts off with an excerpt from his schedule, including "Tomorrow: 3 p.m.

Fourth of July Plus Two

DVD Express is now listing the Wing Commander DVD as having a July 6th release date, and is allowing pre-orders. According to the site, it will have only an English audio track, be regionally coded and have a 100 minute running time. The most positive bit of information is the fact that it's retail price is $34.90 -- the level at which DVD's usually include lots of cool extras.

Peter Telep Site

Richard J Bowden has set up a official site based on Peter Telep's Decent novels, which you can see here. Tis very nice... has a calander, pictures, information on the next Descent book and lots of other cool stuff. Which reminds me that I completely forgot to thank Peter Telep for sending me the cover image to Pilgrim Stars after I ditched my old computer and email archives...

Stealing Thunder

For those still wondering, the second Descent book seems to be finally appearing everywhere -- I was able to grab a copy of Stealing Thunder to read while in line for Star Wars. It lists the next book as being titled 'Descent: Equinox'. (Erm, and I don't know how it is, because I didn't get time to read it... I will soon, though).

LOAF's Media Coverage

Yay, I'm a star! By which I mean loser... anyway, check out this article in USA Today. My brothers (pictured there), some friends and I waited for 36 hours to get Star Wars at DC's sweet Uptown theater.