Try the CIC's AI Art Generator! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

AI chatbots, AI generated art and AI everything else are super hot this year, and the CIC is always working hard to keep up with the latest trends. So we've put our best engineers and computer scientists (Kris) on developing our own Wing Commander generative art engine (beta). Type a Wing Commander topic in the box, hit the button, and see what you get! Keep in mind, there may be a few quirks...

Kilrathi Sketches for the Win Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Today I'd like to share a few of EmuMusicFan's latest Kilrathi sketches. We've got several soccer themed pictures first. I can imagine that the inspiration for these began around the World Cup time, but I'll also point out that they arrived just in time for the new season of Ted Lasso. We also get a bonus Firekkan in the stands. There's a couple of buff shots of Ralgha and Jahkai as well!
"In the last minute of extra time, the goalkeeper made the save!"

Pining for the Quine Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here's a rarely seen difference between the original disk release of Privateer and the CD. The 'kill breakdown' was a feature added to Righteous Fire and then ported back to the original campaign by the CD-ROM team! When extracting the assets from the game's files, the Quine plate has an extra button?! And the one that displays in the game is nowhere to be found. A new mystery to solve... Learn all about the Quine 4000 line of Personal Computers in our newly updated Wiki page here! And if that leaves you wanting more, check out the expansive entry on the civilian Navigation System computer (with maps of every quadrant and system!).
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How I Solved a Privateer Damage State Mystery Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here are the damage states for the Privateer cockpits, which can impact your various cockpit gauges and multi function displays. These range from pretty subtle on the Centurion to totally tearing apart your Orion. One tiny detail that I have always loved about the Privateer cockpits: the three modern ships all have bright speed indicators that are projected on their HUDs... but the old Tarsus has big physical displays you can't see through and their text is a duller green. But I couldn't figure out where this Tarsus damage went, though... and no amount of ramming things in the game until everything explodes triggered it. I thought it was maybe unused? BUT I FIGURED IT OUT! It isn't triggered in the game because it's designed for an earlier version of the Tarsus cockpit... THE ONE YOU SEE IN THE INTRO CUTSCENE!

So this was the setup:

Where does this damage fit on the Tarsus cockpit?

The lower part prevents it from fitting on any of the lower instrumentation... but it also doesn't fit over the AUTO or FUEL indicators above. I tried over and over in the game and it never triggered. Every other one in every other ship I had in two goes. This was the last thing I did before bed and I literally had it running in my head all night.

Somebody suggested the side views, which doesn't fit with how the game works otherwise, but was possible. Maybe a cut feature? No, didn't come close anywhere there either.

But two things got me thinking: the idea that the lower part might be scratches that appear on the cockpit glass... and that it might be left over from some earlier revision (since it didn't trigger in the game).

Then I realized: where else do we see a Tarsus cockpit that's not the normal one? THE INTRO FLICK

The intro Tarsus is actually totally different. It's a slightly different perspective and the instrumentation is different, especially at the top where there's a blank panel instead of an autopilot light! And sure enough:

What this research proves is that the primordial Tarsus cockpit seen in the intro was once intended to be the gameplay one!
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Take a Fresh Look at the Prophecy Demo Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The GouldFish has posted a nifty review of the Wing Commander Prophecy Demo. His version comes from the March 1998 PC Format cover disc, but you can also download it here (plus movie pack). I like his setup with the Prophecy box in the background behind the vintage HP machine. Note that this is the full demo, not the 3DFX Test. As Gould notes, players who skipped over this and just played the actual game miss out on a whole three/four mission series. It's absolutely worth picking up for that extra bit of lore and gameplay! Check out the video below (jump to 14:00 if it doesn't autostart at that chapter):
Sure, you've played Prophecy... but did you ever play the demo? If not, you're missing out on a special little chunk of the game. Unlike most game previews, the Prophecy demo contains regular plot missions not available in the retail game. There are four missions that fit nicely in to the game's storyline, but if you'll only see three on your first try due to the branching story. You can still download the 38 meg demo here. You can also download the demo movies pack, which adds a few basic scenes such as your ship launching and briefing introductions. There's even a German version linked from our Files section if that's your preferred language.

Get Your Origin FX Fix Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

I couldn't find a legible scan of the Origin FX box online, so here's a quick one: Beautiful Kamekh render, though! Does Origin FX even have a Kamekh in it? Technically yes, since it includes a copy of Wing Commander II's post-credits cutscene and that is indeed a closeup of a Kamekh's hull: Learn all about the Origin FX screensaver/theater at our newly expanded and upgraded wiki page here!
Origin FX is a 1993 screensaver package developed by Origin Systems and published by Electronic Arts. Origin FX comes with 26 different 'movies', the term it uses for screensavers. Several of the movies include elements from the Wing Commander Universe including an air show which has jets and spaceships zoom around your desktop and an asteroid field that soars through familiar Wing Commander space debris. The movies are all customizeable. Origin FX also includes an slideshow option which plays bitmap files; two renderings from Privateer are included with the stock bitmaps.

Origin FX was released nine months before Wing Commander Privateer and offered one of the first looks at the game's ships. The T.C.S. Paradigm movie includes unique Wing Commander lore. The package is named after the Origin FX gameflow system used in games like Ultima VI and Wing Commander. Origin FX was designed to be modular with future Origin games adding additional movies that would utilize to their resources. Strike Commander was the only Origin title released with such an option.

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ORIGIN FX™ SCREEN SAVER is more than just a Windows utility that protects your mointor from burn-in. At the same time, it delivers enough entertainment to keep you enthralled fo hours. These modules reflect the creativity and technical ingenuity that have taken the WING COMMANDER and ULTIMA series to the top of the charts. ORIGIN FX is as versatile and exciting as it is useful; a modular screen saver with the graphics, sound and imagination that have made ORIGIN a favorite of computer gamers throughout the world.

ORIGIN FX incorporates images and characters familiar to fans of ORIGIN game worlds, as well as novel imagery created especially for this unique package. Unlike screen savers which use limited colors against a black background, ORIGIN FX brings the hottest color graphics in the entertainment industry to your Windows environment.

Features

  • More than 20 unique modules, with a selection of both algorithmic and graphics-based screen savers.
  • Award-winning ORIGIN music and sound effects.
  • Engage and hot key combinations to activate the screen saver at any time.
  • Customizing options -- you set speed, color, sound and other options.
  • Slide Show module allows you to cycle through bitmapped images from any directory, in any order, and for as long as you wish.
  • As a special feature for owners of WING COMMANDER II, ORIGIN FX offers a module that plays the cinematic sequences when Wing II is installed on your hard drive.
  • Players of the Ultima and Wing Commander games will recognize their favorite characters and space ships as they interact with your desktop.
  • Those new to ORIGIN's world will be introduced to the high quality graphics that made these games industry favorites.
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Build Your Own 'Fleet Museum' Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

This week's Picard of course reminded me of the Wing Commander IV introduction. "Can you believe it? It’s an orbital museum now. A relic of the War – like some farmers I know." What displays do you imagine are found on the Victory museum ship? Here's mine:
The Kilrathi War gallery has a Rapier II (serial #55-810419, formerly of the TCS Eagle's Talon) and a Dralthi (recovered by Operation Meatball during the closing days of the war). They're hanging posed in faux combat in front of a big backdrop of the G'wriss System. They also have the front part of a Broadsword cockpit sliced off so you can see the crew positions. (A-17D, 443rd Bomb Wing, "Flak Magnet") The WAR IN THE AIR gallery has, of course, a Sopwith Camel, a SB2C Helldiver and an F-16 Fighting Falcon (the first two are on loan from the Smithsonian, the F-16 was provided by the Istanbul Aviation Museum). Controversy over plans to include a placard discussing the bomb decision scuttled initial plans to display Excalibur 300, which volunteers spent almost a decade restoring. It was put on normal display with less fanfare eighteen months later. WAGON TRAIN TO THE STARS: MERCANTILE SPACECRAFT has a 2669-model Galaxy and a Drayman simulator. It's sponsored by Douglas Aerospace!
Watch the clip that inspired this post here!
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Cool 3D Console Effect Barely Visible in WC Movie Time Slice Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here's another little detail I've never noticed in the Wing Commander movie before. [[ChrisReid: "Which is saying A LOT coming from AD!"]] In the Time Slice sequence there's a 3D effect layered over the lights on the panels behind Blair and Angel. Alas, it's nearly imperceivable in the final cut due to the matting. Here's the final film version compared to a wider shot: You can see in the original takes from the rig that there's no effect in the shots. It was recorded on a separate pass and layered into the shot in post-production. It's an interesting effect and would have added another dynamic to the scene if we could have actually seen it. Technically speaking, it's not exactly the matting that's the issue though. At some point - possibly to try and mask the transition between the regular camera and the timeslice footage - they cropped into the frame for the freeze effect. Still, some of the home video / 4:3 aspect versions of the movie were presented in an open matte format and show a lot more of this effect as you can see in these very interesting stills from the airline edit. It's probably the best look at this special effect that we have: You can watch the sequence in question here in the middle of our extended time slice video:
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