A Question For Those In The Know

J "Phantom" D

2nd Lieutenant
Hi everyone!

I hope someone here can help me out, because you guys seem to be the authorities on Wing Commander.

I recently purchased an absolutely pristine still-sealed WC1 on 3.5 disk, and I was looking at it and wondering if the 3.5" version came out the same time as the 5.25" disk version, or if the 3.5" version was a later re-release (1991 or so).

Does anyone know?

Thanks for your help guys!
 
It did come out at the same time--3.5" drives were pretty common by late 1990.

I believe there were originally three SKUs of Wing Commander I -- 5.25" LD, 5.25" HD, 3.5" LD and 3.5" HD. The 5.25" LD version is by far the least common, the others seem to exist in about equal numbers.
 
Thanks LOAF! I figured someone around here would know that.

Being only 8 in 1990, I couldn't remember if 3.5" drives were common or not (my original WC was on 5.25 HD, alas it is in incredibly rough shape due to moves (we moved a lot when I was a kid because my Dad is military) and general lack of care one has when one is a kid.
 
You mentioned four types, but 5.25 HD is extremely rare, I opted back in 1991 for a 5.25 in my 386, wich became a HD drive (1.2MB)

Also, correct me if I'm wrong but i believe these are the common types:
3.5" DD 720KB
3.5" HD 1.44MB
5.25" DD 360KB
5.25" HD 1.2MB

Now the floppys HD for 5.25 were very rare and expensive. there were also 3.5" ED drives, wich featured 2.88MB storage, and then came the LS-120 and so on.

I have never seen a game released on 5.25HD, not then, and not now on conventions.

I have never heard the term "low density" used, even my old homecomputer I had in the 80's that ran CP/M and MSX-dos, the 360k's were DS/DD(Double sided double density disks, and the drive was only single-sided, so i had to turn the floppy over to use stuff on the other side of it.
 
I have never seen a game released on 5.25HD, not then, and not now on conventions.

All the 5.25" copies of Wing Commander on eBay right now are the 1.2/HD version.

I have never heard the term "low density" used, even my old homecomputer I had in the 80's that ran CP/M and MSX-dos, the 360k's were DS/DD(Double sided double density disks, and the drive was only single-sided, so i had to turn the floppy over to use stuff on the other side of it.

I think 'low density' was the common term for the 360KB/720KB disks by the early 1990s. I can dig up some better pictures at home, but you can see it used on the Disk Exchange form included with Wing Commander I here: https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/nuangelwc-005.jpg
 
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Oh wow, 5,25" disks, what good memories, i bought both wc1 and wc2 in those formats, as well as SM1 and SO1 and 2 (both came in a package i posted here once).
 
You mentioned four types, but 5.25 HD is extremely rare, I opted back in 1991 for a 5.25 in my 386, wich became a HD drive (1.2MB)

Also, correct me if I'm wrong but i believe these are the common types:
3.5" DD 720KB
3.5" HD 1.44MB
5.25" DD 360KB
5.25" HD 1.2MB

Now the floppys HD for 5.25 were very rare and expensive. there were also 3.5" ED drives, wich featured 2.88MB storage, and then came the LS-120 and so on.

I have never seen a game released on 5.25HD, not then, and not now on conventions.

I have never heard the term "low density" used, even my old homecomputer I had in the 80's that ran CP/M and MSX-dos, the 360k's were DS/DD(Double sided double density disks, and the drive was only single-sided, so i had to turn the floppy over to use stuff on the other side of it.

I believe i still have a box of virgin 5,25 hd disks somewhere.
 
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