Wing Commander Petition

[Farbourne]

As far as a smooth, integrated, easy-to-use front end for getting the old WC games to run in XP (and please don't forget die hard Win2K users like me!!!) I wouldn't be surprised if some of the wonderful folk on this site don't do that soon. The pieces are already there--Dosbox is out there and reasonably stable, there are detailed instructions for setting it up to run WC optimally, and numerous patches that folk like HCl have developed to fix stuff like joystick compatibility and improve graphics. I bet that someone before too long will integrate them all together and make things real easy. Sorry it won't be me--I'm not much of a programmer (except in FORTRAN, which isn't particularly useful...)

Of course, there's still the issue of needing the actual games, which is the stumbling block for a lot of folk that can't find an old copy. As someone mentioned, EA does protect their IP pretty vigorously, even for an old game like WC1, so you'll probably still always need the original games, and they won't be free for download. Still, the fact that EA does protect their IP, if nothing else, gives hope that they might someday keep the series going.

 

[ChrisReid]

As far as a smooth, integrated, easy-to-use front end for getting the old WC games to run in XP (and please don't forget die hard Win2K users like me!!!) I wouldn't be surprised if some of the wonderful folk on this site don't do that soon. The pieces are already there--Dosbox is out there and reasonably stable, there are detailed instructions for setting it up to run WC optimally, and numerous patches that folk like HCl have developed to fix stuff like joystick compatibility and improve graphics. I bet that someone before too long will integrate them all together and make things real easy.

The plan is to create more detailed instructions, but once you understand what's going on, setting up an individual WC game takes less than a minute. Most setups involve changing one or two lines in a text file and typing three or four lines into a command prompt window. I don't expect anyone to develop an automated process for that any time soon.

Of course, there's still the issue of needing the actual games, which is the stumbling block for a lot of folk that can't find an old copy.

It's pretty easy to find all the DOS WC games on eBay.

 

[Dundradal]

I recently found a WC3 collectors edition and a WC2 deluxe edition at a local yard sale for $8 for both. Intact with original box and manuals, was one of my best WC finds yet.