Flying Hornet Improves Performance Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

AircPirateNinsei's flying flying Hornet model continues to impress. The recent laser cannon additions are complete, and plans for people to build their own have been posted alongside the rest of the design instructions. Even with the cannons in place, the fighter can maintain amazingly stable flight, pull off acrobatic maneuvers and even land smoothly! It also gets some serious altitude. You can continue to follow development over at the Flite Test Forums.
The build plan for the laser cannons is finished and ready for download! It contains two templates to prepare the wing so that the laser cannons can be retrofitted. The laser cannons are also very stable. Unfortunately I didn't have a carbon fiber tube anymore, that would have been even better. The Hornet also flies with laser cannons, rolls, loops and lands without damage!

The Hornet is our contribution to the 2019 Flite Test Forum & Flite Fest Community Fantasy Aircraft Design & Build Challenge.

Tabletop Game Preps for Fan Playtest Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Adm_Maverick has a variety of cool new things to show off in his Wing Commander tabletop game. He's sharpened up a number of his pilot and ship cards, and the basic game mechanics are being written up in a cool player's manual. As he approaches another round of playtesting, Maverick has also started 3D printing nifty little WC fighters and missiles off Thingiverse. Although he's got some fantastic paper/cardboard ships, all the vertical detail in his plastic models is pretty nice too!
So the first round of playtesting is less than a month away. I've got a group of 6 people signed up to participate in it... and that means I'm motivated to get everything ready for it.

I've finished compiling version .01a of the player handbook. This contains the basic rules for fighter vs fighter combat including the stats for missiles, and cannons, along with the rules for dealing full body collisions, clipping another ship and dealing with pilot stresses.

If anyone is interested or inclined I would appreciate getting some eyes that aren't my own reading through it and make sure everything makes sense and I covered everything I mention in the book.

Wing Commander Nook Complete Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

We just finished a space-themed reading nook for the kiddos, and that gave us a great opportunity to display a piece of Wing Commander art. Mike Winterbauer's slick metal print of the WC1 SNES box art fits right in! It's a cozy place to curl up with a Wing Commander ebook. What do you think?

EA Patches Origin Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Various news outlets are reporting that Electronic Arts has patched a major security flaw in its Origin gaming storefront/launcher program. Apparently it was possible to execute remote code, which is a scary issue, but has fortunately been resolved. Be sure to update your launcher to remove the vulnerability. The appropriately named Origin service, along with GOG, is one of the easiest ways to buy and play Wing Commander games on modern systems today.

The story brings to mind another famous Origin security threat. Back during the August 1998 launch of Wing Commander Secret Ops, reports began to immediately surface of infected files on one of the download mirrors. This began to spread to other sites hosting a copy. Within hours, fans rallied to identify the CIH virus and provide countermeasures to remove the bug. Origin posted this statement on the issue and ultimately the damage was fairly contained - but it made an already exciting night even more chaotic at the time!

All Wings Considered - Episode 10 - LIVE! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The latest episode of ALL WINGS CONSIDERED is live now! All Wings Considered is the CIC's first ever streaming variety show which features news, conversation and gameplay relating to our favorite series. This week's Nav Points include:

  • Visiting Bex to check out Brian Blessed's unusual mission
  • Special Operations 1, Series 3: Flying the Morningstar
  • Privateer 2 ship of the week: the Skecsis
  • Food Club: Testing the MREs from End Run!

Missed the stream? The replay will be available below once it has been processed by YouTube. You can subscribe to the AWC channel for future notifications here.

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Model Upgrade Pack Update Adding Nephilim, Bases & More Soon Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The Prophecy & Secret Ops Model Upgrade Pack team posted a status update on the project's next release. December's upgrade included flashy new graphics effects and new capship/superbase/fighter models. The next iteration will feature even more beautiful updates plus programming enhancements. An exact timeframe is still soft, but if you were close to doing a fresh playthrough, it might be worth holding off just a little bit longer!
Hi all - we are working on the next MUP release: right now it will include the Hydra, Kraken, an updated Dula 7, the SO cruise liner and associated hulk, as well as the rest of the WCP starbases (Callisto, Confed Starbase, etc.). It will also incorporate the latest WCP Unlimited enhancements. No ETA yet but I'm going to see if we can get it out before the end of May. Watch this space.

Bearcat Fighter Ready to Strike Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

DefianceIndustries has debuted his Bearcat, and it's a beauty! Wingnuts overall have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the heavy fighter, but I've always been a fan. I love the aggressive stance from the head on perspective as well as the substantial engine cluster. It's hard to have a conversation about the ship without dragging in discussion about its wide-spaced guns, but they sure look cool. We really don't get to play with the ships nearly enough, and if we ever got a game where the Bearcat got more play time, it'd probably have a different gun loadout with better beam convergence anyhow.
Oh speaking of Bearcats...

This is oddly one of my favorite Confed designs, it's clearly an evolution of the Hellcat but there's some definite Excalibur influence as well. Also on paper, it's actually quite a nice fighter; she's fast, nimble, and has better shields and armor than her big sister. About the only gripe are the lackluster guns. While working on this one I thought: "With the Excalibur they built a sword, with the Bearcat, they made a scalpel." Not sure why but that sums the F-104 up nicely in my mind.

And a fun little fiction sales brochure cover because... why not?

Happy CIC Easter! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Soo... either the grocery store changed up the preservative on the shells or the dye crayons got cheap this year, so you can't really make out our Wing Commander themed easter eggs. At least these eggs don't shoot Steltek guns at you!

Matthew Lillard vs Instagram Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The Maniac has become the poster child for social media support hell this month as he found himself locked out of his Instagram account. The saga began on or about April 1 when he got a new phone and was unable to log in. His password resets didn't work and he encountered some baffling "user not found" errors. And despite being an IG-verified celebrity with more than 150,000 followers, he couldn't reach a live support human to get him sorted out. So, he resorted to Twitter and various news outlets to get the word out. Apparently it worked, and as of last night, his account was reset so he could begin posting again.

Matthew Lillard is currently starring in NBC's Good Girls, so he's got plenty of promotion to catch up on! Social media platforms have long since moved beyond being frivolous sharing outlets and are a bonafide component of any professional marketing strategy, so something like this could be serious business. We're happy to see he's back up and running now!

All Wings Considered - Episode 9 - LIVE! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The latest episode of ALL WINGS CONSIDERED is live now! All Wings Considered is the CIC's first ever streaming variety show which features news, conversation and gameplay relating to our favorite series. This week's Nav Points include:

  • Special Operations 1, Series 2: Testing the Morningstar!
  • Privateer 2 ship of the week: the Velacia
  • Book Club: Fleet Action, Chapters 2 & 3

We encourage anyone interested to sign in to the Discord Live Chat to talk about Fleet Action... or ask questions live via Discord or YouTube during the show!

Missed the stream? The replay will be available below once it has been processed by YouTube. You can subscribe to the AWC channel for future notifications here.

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Goodbye, Owen Garriott Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

We've got some sad news to report today. Noted astronaut Owen Garriott passed away on Monday at age 88. Mr. Garriott was one of the early pioneers of long-duration space travel with a 60-day stint aboard Skylab in 1973. He also flew on the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1983. Early on in his career, he served in the US Navy before going on to teach physics at Stanford and hold a variety of positions at NASA.


The elder Garriott also served as one half of the first American father-son astronaut duo when Richard Garriott went to the International Space Station in 2008. And while we often refer to Richard as "Origin founder" in our news stories, Origin Systems was actually co-founded by Richard and Robert along with their father, Owen, and programmer Chuck Bueche. In various interviews, Richard credits being sent to a programming camp that Owen picked out as a major influence that set him on the path towards game development. In addition to this connection to the Wing Commander series, in a broader sense, we all continue to benefit from the advances in spaceflight, technology and engineering that he advocated for over many years. We're all better off thanks to you, sir.

All Wings Considered Episode 9 Trailer Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Episode 9 of All Wings Considered is almost here! This week the team reviews another ship from the Tri-System and then heads over to the Deneb Quadrant to fawn over the Morningstar. It's also the second iteration of the Wing Commander book club - we'll be reading chapters 2 and 3 of Fleet Action. Join us this Thursday, April 18, at 7 PM Eastern US Time (4 PM Pacific) on YouTube and Discord.
Join us Thursday, April 18 on or about 7 PM Eastern for another thrilling episode of All Wings Considered!

Tabletop Game Tests Pilot Console Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Adm_Maverick has mocked up a neat 'pilot console' for his Wing Commander tabletop game. He's built a template for the variety of fighter status that a ship would want to track, and it's been paired with a simple peg counter system so everything is neatly tracked. In the future, it could even be modified to hold the miniature ship and any associated cards. Something like this would even be pretty neat for the official WC CCG too!
I had posted a design idea for the pilot console the other day. Well I spent a decent amount of time cutting and drilling and came up with a sort of prototype of the pilot console. It's not perfect, and still nowhere near what I envision when I try to market the game, but then again at this point I'm nowhere near that stage anyway. This is just for alpha testing of gameplay mechanics.

The design is such that it's intended to allow you to track the information on each fighter at a glance. So no 'calculations' or references. Just counting... mostly. For most items on the pilot console, it's just a matter of how many pegs you have in that section. 2 pegs in missile slot 1 means you have 2 missiles in that slot.

The only sections that are different are the shields and hull points section. Because some ships have upwards of 50 shields or hull points, the console needs to be able to account for that range. But have 2 groups of 50 pegs would make it rather difficult to see what you have at a glance. So the idea here is that you have 2 columns of numbers, running 0-9. A peg in the first column represents the 10's, while a peg in the second column represents the 1's. So a peg in 1(10) and a peg in 2(1) under shields means the ship current has 12 shield points.

Like I said, it's not 'final' but for play testing purposes it works. When I get to a point of marketing this game, I'm hoping to make the pilot console a storage item as well. So you can store your ship model, base, pilot card, ship card, and pegs in the pilot console itself meaning you only have this one block to store rather then several items.

Hornet Model Revamped for 2019 Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Klavs is back to tinkering with his iconic Hornet design. In the progression shots below, you can see how he's got the overall spaceframe super solid, there's some neat engine nozzle action happening, and he's even got a new take on the fighter's familiar long bore laser cannons. Looking good!
Starting over!

WC Side-by-side with BSG Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Dardael has created another YouTube video, and this one is highlights a number of similarities between Wing Commander and the classic Battlestar Galactica. This isn't necessarily to say that WC copied BSG - rather, WC plays on a lot of classic themes from Star Wars, anime, famous sci-fi novels and more. A few noteworthy ones here include the look of the initial intro logo, the fighter launch sequence and even Dralthi/Cylon Raider similarity. It's a fun comparison to see them side by side like this!
Comparative video between the famous 1978 series and the Origin Systems Space Game from 1990
In 2007, Auran Games and Sierra published a Battlestar Galactica game for Xbox Live Arcade, and numerous reviews noted how close it was to Wing Commander Arena.

Check Out OEM WC4... and More Goodies! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here’s why weird eBay listings are so much fun. I took a chance on this “NEC PowerPlayer CD Collection” which claimed to include Mechwarrior 2, Command and Conquer, Descent 2... and Wing Commander IV! I had never heard of this bundle and thought it might be a case of a PC owner storing his game discs in a random booklet. But worth a look for a few bucks. Then I saw the WCIV discs: “not for resale” with a unique EA number! It’s an OEM WC4. By searching for the included games, I discovered that it's a software bundle included with two models of computer in late 1996: the NEC PowerPlayer 2010 and the PowerPlayer 2020! Here are some very old stats for the 2020. As I write about this, the postman delivered two more neat pickups! Here’s a German Wing Commander IV promotional mousepad with a second design I’d never seen before. And here’s the original painting for the Kilrathi “Ram” maneuver card from the 1995 Wing Commander CCG!
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All Wings Considered - Episode 8 - LIVE! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The latest episode of ALL WINGS CONSIDERED is live now! All Wings Considered is the CIC's first ever streaming variety show which features news, conversation and gameplay relating to our favorite series. Join us this week for an all-singing, all-dancing celebration of Privateer 2's starter Straith, the first missions of Special Operations 2 and a surprise jump to a universe so weird you're going to need to wear shades. Missed the stream? The replay will be available below once it has been processed by YouTube. You can subscribe to the AWC channel for future notifications here.

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WC3 Heavies Get Sharper Skins Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

DefianceIndustries has revisited the two iconic Confed heavy fighters of Wing Commander 3. Both the Excalibur and Thunderbolt have been retextured, and the results look great. Thanks to the new normal maps, they have excellent detail without overdoing the greebles.
So I was looking over my stuff on lunch break the other day and realized that I hadn't done any WC3 skins for my Tbolt or Excalibur. I am pleased to say this has been rectified. I also did a few small tweaks to the normal maps to make a few things pop (pun intended) that wasn't as obvious before.

As a side note: a few folks have asked if they can use my renders in their personal projects. My thoughts on that in general are that if I post it up here on the forums the community is perfectly welcome to them. Go forth and be creative! I only ask that if you do use my renders I get a nod somewhere in the credits is all.

As always fellow wing nuts - enjoy!

All Wings Considered Episode 8 Trailer Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

After LOAF's successful completion of Ghorah Khar 2D, the team moves on to Special Operations 2 this week. They're also taking a good look at Privateer 2 ship identification, which is subject we could all use a refresher in!
Join us Thursday, April 11 on or about 7 PM Eastern for another thrilling episode of All Wings Considered!

WC Fan Jumps Into Hornet Cockpit Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Dardael has put together a neat live action interpretation of Enyo 1 from the original Wing Commander. It starts with the run from the briefing room, engages the Kilrathi in space and then successfully heads home to the Claw. He employed a couple clever video editing techniques to blend a small amount of green screen footage with cockpit action. The language is Italian, but most Wing Commander fans are familiar enough with what's going on here to infer the meaning. This style of Wing Commander fan tribute has a lot of potential - it'd be great to see more like this, including new missions/stories!
First mission reimagined with the help of Blender and Da Vinci Resolve
You can also find Dardael's extensive Italian WC retrospective here.

Ellen Guon Beeman Profiled by SyFy Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

SyFy's Fan Grrls team has recently started up a neat feature called 'Forgotten Women of Genre', which highlights various science-fiction creators that have done great things behind the scenes or are otherwise under appreciated. Ellen Guon (now Beeman) was recently profiled for both her video game and writing credits. She's well known as the co-author of the Wing Commander Freedom Flight novel, but she also had a huge influence on the narrative style set forth in Secret Missions 2 as well as Wing Commander 2. In recent years, she's mentioned that she pitched allowing the WC2 player character to be male or female, but was shot down. She's currently a senior professor at the DigiPen Institute of Technology, but she has quite a history! Check out the audio article for a thorough rundown.


Beeman was writing in genre long before her stint in video games. She worked as a writer for the Jem and the Holograms animated series, and contributed to the realm of science fiction and fantasy as an author under the name Ellen Guon, even co-writing several books with another one of genre's best-known female authors: Mercedes Lackey. But her career in the games industry, which began back in the early '90s on the popular Wing Commander franchise and has since spanned over 40 different titles, is undoubtedly where she's had — and continues to have — the biggest impact on the next generation of rising female game developers, writers, and producers.

What's Your Favorite Part of the Show? Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The new poll is about All Wings Considered, the CIC's weekly streaming program. The options below are a list of the the common features that fill out a typical episode. There's lots to like about each one, but which is your favorite? If you're not familiar with the show, you can find back episodes online here. You can also provide feedback or make requests at the CIC Forums here.
Our old poll asked which Talon variant peopled liked to shoot at the most. The Retro model was overwhelmingly popular with more than half the vote. Pirates got about a fifth of the vote, and the Privateer 2 easter egg actually got about a sixth.

The Battle for Earth is About to Begin... Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here's a better look at the really cool Japanese brochure that accompanied the launch of the Wing Commander Movie in theaters there. Wingnuts got a preview in this week's episode of All Wings Considered now that LOAF has added one to his collection. Even if you can't read the text, it's easy to appreciate what a gorgeous collectible this is. It'd be great if these types of things were more common!
In Japan, theatrical movie releases have printed programs (sort of like a non-interactive @themoviebill.) After some hunting, I’ve found the one for Wing Commander!

All Wings Considered - Episode 7 - LIVE! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The latest episode of ALL WINGS CONSIDERED is live now! All Wings Considered is the CIC's first ever streaming variety show which features news, conversation and gameplay relating to our favorite series. This week we're going to look at some of the ships from Super Wing Commander, play a little more Special Operations 1 and then have an in-depth conversation about the prologue and first chapter of Fleet Action! You can join in the Book Club chat via Discord during the show. Missed the stream? The replay will be available below once it has been processed by YouTube. You can subscribe to the AWC channel for future notifications here.

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The Guardian Highlights Video Game Actors Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The Guardian has posted an interesting article on the strangest star cameos in video games. It's an interesting lot. Even the bad cameos are fascinating in their own way. Mark Hamill is included on the list for Wing Commander 3, and both John Rhys-Davies and Malcolm McDowell are mentioned too. Wing Commander actors indirectly dominate the list as both John Hurt and Tim Curry are mentioned for their roles in Tender Loving Care and Command & Conquer 3. Hurt played Joe (Kane) the Bartender in Privateer 2 and Curry was the voice of Melek in Wing Commander 3. I'm very surprised Clive Owen didn't make this list! Check out the full article here.
Mark Hamill – Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger

Ten years after Return of the Jedi, “Luke Skywalker” Hamill made his onscreen video game debut in this science fiction epic from Origin Systems. Mixing interactive space battles with quaintly low-res cinematics, the game starred not just Hamill but Malcolm McDowell and John Rhys-Davies playing the almost identical roles of “British character actors wondering how they got here”. At the climax of the game, Hamill’s character, space hero Colonel Christopher Blair, must destroy the evil Kilrathi army by … flying his fighter craft along a fortified trench then delivering a bomb.

Thanks to st3lt3k for the tip!

All Wings Considered Episode 7 Trailer Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Another action packed episode of All Wings Considered is fast approaching! Check out LOAF and Dundradal reenacting a key scene from the beginning of Fleet Action below. This week kicks off the start of the new Fleet Action book club - read the prologue and first chapter, and then join us on Discord and YouTube this Thursday!
Join us Thursday, April 4 on or about 7 PM Eastern for another thrilling episode of All Wings Considered! We'll be reading the prologue and the first chapter of Wing Commander: Fleet Action and want YOU to be part of the discussion!

Happy Birthday Memes! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

No, this isn't a listing of memes related to birthdays, today marks one year since we kicked off our frivolous diversion: Wing Commander Meme of the Day. To celebrate, here's a rundown of our top nine favorite memes.
  1. Most Interesting Man in the World
  2. Wingfinity
  3. Evil Kermit
  4. Third World Skeptical Kid
  5. That's a Paddlin'
  6. Nerves of Peele
  7. One Does Not Simply
  8. Yo Dawg Heard You
  9. Bad Pun Dog
  10. Think About It
  11. Too Damn High
  12. Excaliburz Wit Attitudes
  13. The One About Akkbar, of course...

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