Exploring a Cockpit Artpiece Mystery (November 12, 2023)

Bandit LOAF

Bandit LOAF

Long Live the Confederation!
Folks, I’d like to introduce you to a true mystery that is driving insane. These photos were kindly posted by a game art collector who purchased them from artist Greg Winters.





The first is the (wonderful!) cover to Mindscape’s SNES Secret Missions port. The second was said to be for an insert… but it was not something found in the final product. So what the heck is it and what was it for?!





Is it even from Wing Commander? At first glance it is certainly at least referencing a bunch of WC visuals that would be appropriate for Secret Missions SNES. For instance, these readouts are straight from the Hornet cockpit:





And the armor gauge is straight from the Raptor art!





That’s absolutely a Wing Commander pilot comm on the left.





And while it’s not a proper WC layout it IS designed around a central Patriarchal radar display, something specific to WC.





So maybe it’s an insert created for the game but dropped? A different direction for the manual or a feelie (fold your own cockpit?) that was replaced by the mini poster. That makes sense… except!

It also seems to have some anachronistic details! Secret Missions came out in September 1993… but that cusp sure looks like the front of the Hellcat V cockpit from WC3 (December 1994)!





And then look closely on the right side… that looks like the ‘combined forces’ logo, again introduced in WC3!





I’m reaching out to folks connected with the game but haven’t learned anything more. Even the shape is bizarre. It looks like you could fold it like a tent card… but it doesn’t come together into anything.

Similarly it leaves blank spaces for something… but it sure seems like a small area if it were intended, for instance, to be the border of an advert or manual page layout.

Maybe you fold it forward so the art is 'inside'? That might work. But why?!

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Original update published on November 12, 2023
 
What are the dimensions of the item that might be an insert?
Is there maybe another sheet?
It wasn't mentioned but it looks like the top part has Canopy Access written inside the yellow rectangle.
Maybe (somehow) for a small in-store display by the cash register?
 
A bit late to the party - but the way it folds and the way the screen curves makes it look like the inside of a helmet-like device. Like a face mask / light shield for the Nintendo Virtual Boy?
 
There wasn't a lot of that kind of stuff at the time. The virtual boy was one example, but no WC game for that.
 
How large is the mystery item? How large is it in relation to the background image? What parts are cutouts?
 
It's 16" across but that isn't too telling because it's the original painting rather than whatever it would be printed on. (If you've ever seen WC:CCG art, for instance, the paintings range in size and they're all much larger than the final cards.)
 
Dang. I thought it was the real thing.

From the shape I'd say its fairly clear that the bottom half should be folded around the top one. So you'll end up with a half circle (in 5 sections) with a roof. Also the windshield and the roof are probably open.

Now depending on the size I could imagine you place either a piece of merchandize into there (like a game box, figurine, CCG booster box, ... or (more unlikely) its something lanternish for a candle or similar.

At least that are my guesses
 
cff said:
or (more unlikely) its something lanternish for a candle or similar.
Click to expand...

My money is still that it's some kind of monitor/tv wrap for stores that might be showing the WC3 trailer VHS or something on a loop.

Still, that doesn't necessarily need to be the case either as the fact that it's could be cut up and reconfigured any which way means it doesn't need to fold at all, and the more you stare at it, the "wing" and missile configurations etc don't make any sense no matter how you fold it.
 
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