A little bit of comparison: WC1 PC vs. SNES

Karakkaze

Spaceman
While the Amiga, and Sega CD versions of Wing Commander all too similar to note, the SNES version of Wing Commander has some notable differences. I'll also provide a well-hidden cheat code that works in the U.S version, for the sake of completion.


Cheat Code: (Wing Commander 1, SNES)
On the title screen, press the buttons in this order: BABYBYLARA
You will access a cheat menu of sorts. I didn't research the menu itself too much.


Also, the SNES version of Wing Commander has some notable differences from the PC version, which I will list (these are all I've discovered):

  • All ships are viewable from far less angles. Behind, side, front, top, and bottom are the only angles you can see of any given ship. The rest simply do not exist.
  • Only one ship can be in 'firing range' at any time. For instance, you will not be able to catch up to an enemy fighter if one is already near you.
  • The landing sequence was cut in half. You see yourself fly into the hangar from a top view of the Claw's landing strip, and you go right to the 'damage report'.
  • The colors of weapon fire were changed drastically. Laser cannons fire blue orbs, Mass Drivers fire green orbs, and Neutron Guns fire red orbs. Kilrathi ships also fire red orbs.
  • Different music is used when battling Kilrathi.
  • No save feature; The beds will be randomly filled with 1, maybe 2 people. You cannot save your game in the SNES version.
  • Takeoff sequence is different. You start at a stop then blast out of the hangar bay instead of gradually flying out.
  • Missing physics: When making a sharp turn with afterburners, you will not have to 'recover' from your momentum.
  • Irregular asteroids: As with the battle issue, only one Asteroid can come at you at a time. Also, Asteroids always come from directly ahead, and come at you depending on the speed you are travelling. In WC1 PC, you could have the afterburners' going through an entire asteroid field. In WC1 SNES, you're far more likely to hit an asteroid. The graphic for the Asteroid is also entirely different from what was used in the PC version.
  • Different door: The door to the Barracks from the Bar is colored differently, as 'Barracks' is in black.
  • Glowing fire button: When you fire, a part of the on-screen Joystick will change color. I don't know if it was supposed to mean anything...
  • He just randomly appeared on the Claw, and nobody questioned his appearance: In the PC version, you start off in a short game that resorts in a loss no matter what you try. You enter your last name, and your callsign. In the SNES version, you reach a generic screen to enter your callsign.
  • Those aren't their nicknames, those ARE their names: On the kill board, characters are referred to only by codename. Never by their actual name unlike the PC version. Also, their respective rank is also missing in action.
  • Sometimes, during an escort mission, the Transports will not follow you when you go to Autopilot. This is due to the 'one-ship-at-a-time' issue.

Any other differences, anyone? I know there has to be more details that make the SNES port inferior to the rest of the WC1 ports as well as the original.

EDIT: Can someone move this to normal discussion? Just realize I slipped up in placement.
 
You should post this in the General forum. You brought up some pretty good points about the game. Like most other things, when porting to a different system stuff changes.
__________________
Run Mr. Krabs! Run like your not in a coma!!!!
 
What? No mention about the over-the-top controls? :>

I loved the SNES port of WC1 when I was a kid and had all these weird button combinations memorized.
 
Another big one is the dialogue edits, part of Nintendo's requirements for games back in the day. Any references to drinking are gone (Shotglass mentions snacks instead and the Rostov Hairball is a new dessert...)

Squadron names are also changed - the Blue Devils, for instance, become the Blue Angels.
 
(...)

  • (...)
  • Only one ship can be in 'firing range' at any time. For instance, you will not be able to catch up to an enemy fighter if one is already near you.
    (...)
  • Different music is used when battling Kilrathi.
    (...)
  • Glowing fire button: When you fire, a part of the on-screen Joystick will change color. I don't know if it was supposed to mean anything...
    (...)

Neat, I didn't know about these things. I'll need to take my PSP out and take a look at that.
 
Adding another detail I spotted:

- Hunter's cigarette is completely missing from the SNES port. And, unlike the PC version, he has an ounce of piloting skill.
 
Whereas in the PC version, he had a good pound of it, if you compare him to his fellow pilots. At least in my experience. And even if that ain't so, he made up for it by just having the best personality. I always liked talking to Hunter, and I'm still upset he only appeared on the Claw.
 
Hunter does appear in two novels, Freedom Flight and Fleet Action.

Going back to the original post, I wouldn't count the other ports out yet -- each has some interesting differences. Like the 'rotating' ships on the Wing Commander 1 Amiga TrainSim selection screen or the full speech (and strange pre-set callsign!) in the SegaCD version.
 
Hunter does appear in two novels, Freedom Flight and Fleet Action.

I meant gamewise- I haven't had the money/opportunity to play past 3 yet, and I'm unlikely to go for the novels anytime soon (too much stuff currently owned, a backlog of series that need finished)... but I always liked flying with him.

(on a side note- any idea why he was wearing Dart's helmet?)
 
Hunter does appear in two novels, Freedom Flight and Fleet Action.

Going back to the original post, I wouldn't count the other ports out yet -- each has some interesting differences. Like the 'rotating' ships on the Wing Commander 1 Amiga TrainSim selection screen or the full speech (and strange pre-set callsign!) in the SegaCD version.

I don't have either of those versions, but I know I can 'acquire' the SegaCD version to get a look at it. As for the Amiga version, I don't think I can.

Also, a musical difference: SNES Simulator music does not have a drumset accompanying it. The Game Over theme is also slightly different.

Even more I spied just from starting the game up:

- The bar is not the bar, it is the Officers' Club.
- In the Barracks, there is no door leading to the briefing room.
- The Hornet's cockpit does not close shut like a typical aircraft's would. Instead, it behaves much like the Scimitar's, Rapier's and Raptor's cockpits to, sliding shut instead. However, the difference is that the cockpit slides shut vertically instead of horizontally. Quite a conundrum considering that you can't get in a plane if it's cockpit slides like that.
- The simulator does not keep any scores at all. It's music starts playing right at the moment you reach the enemy ship selection.
- Missiles do not require locks, all can be fired at will.
- Blasters do not have a limited fire rate.
- The graphics for the blaster's energy charge are all changed.
- Dralthis can and will drop mines often. I have never seen them do this once in the PC version. Sometimes, Dralthis will even drop mines twice.
- The colonel even has a different positioning when pointing at the screen during a Briefing.


Also, a little glitch info:

- In the PC version of WC1, sometimes you can encounter a Fralthi, destroy it, yet return and the game will act as if you had just breezed by it without even paying a bit of attention. This error has happened to me twice now.
- In the SNES version of WC1, Ships beyond your reach that are seemingly heading towards you can be shot with laser cannons from a great distance, and can in fact even be destroyed at that distance. It should be noted that ships at that distance can also fire back freely, meaning that it'll be easy for them to hit you if you're dashing at them but it'll be hard you to hit them. Also, I have never seen a Krant fire afterburners to escape my firing range. Only fly in a straight line for a good 10 seconds.
 
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