Excalibur 3D Print Time Lapse is Really Cool Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Knight26-77 has posted a very cool video of his 3D printer manufacturing a slick Excalibur fighter. We've seen a lot of gorgeous plastic craft in recent years, but I don't think we've seen a perspective quite like this before. Definitely check it out!
Timelapse 3D print of the Excalibur Fighter from Wing Commander 3. Original design by Origin Systems. Redesign by Klavs and 3D printable model by Chronocidal Guy
Here's a fleet shot of some of his other craft all together:
I did a rough rip and transfer to stl off of his old model release and printed it on my old printer along with several other models. The scales might be slightly off in some cases. All should be 1:72.

See How the Original WC4 Nephele Intro Would Have Played Out Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here are storyboards for an establishing shot in Wing Commander IV that would've had Colonel Blair arrive at the Nephele bar on a speeder bike.

"I bet they didn't want it to look TOO much like Star Wars!"... the final version of the bar exterior would beg to differ. The establishing shot ended up not being necessary because they dropped a previous scene where we see Blair as a sad drunk haunted by the war. So instead they match cut from the Senate scene to a news broadcast in the bar and pan over to Hamill entering, which is a neat trick! (I'm VERY curious what the backlit poster to the right is; sadly, not much set photography has survived!) Here are boards for the dropped scene. You would've gotten a brief 'dear John' video from the lady you chose in Wing Commander III. This was on the schedule up through when the shoot started, so it must've been dropped very late! I always wondered if they had Jennifer MacDonald and Ginger Allen lined up for their scenes, but I see now from the boards how it would've worked: Hamill would've shot this and then second unit would've done the messages later.
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3D Printed Tarsus Sports a Banging Paint Job Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Today we've got a really beautiful little Tarsus by Cpt. Streets. What really stands out here is the intricate and highly detailed paint scheme. It's got lots of very fine accents that are very pleasing on the eyes. The engine nozzles are painted with a blend of yellow and orange fluorescent acrylic paint that even seems to glow under a black light. We're looking forward to seeing how his Hornet turns out next!
These are some pictures of my 3D-printed Tarsus Freighter from Privateer. It is my first ship model from the Wing Commander universe so far.

I did not made the 3D mesh itself. I only painted it and modified it a bit as well. It is about ~16cm (6,3") long.

Currently I´m working on a Hornet Fighter in approximately the same scale as the Tarsus. I will do ships from WC1, WC2 and WC Privateer. But more about this at another time...

Star Engine Clip Includes Nod to Classic Origin Conductor Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

During Roberts Space Industries' October festivities for the anniversary of Star Citizen, they spent some time going through the features of "Star Engine." The material was embedded in larger streams at the time, but they have now released the clip as a standalone. A number of folks have written in to point out the similarities between the conductor that kicks things off in the new clip and the Origin conduct that kicked things off at the start of many classic WC games. Here is for anyone who missed it!
Of course, as LOAF reminds us, it didn't just appear in front of Wing Commander games!

Own a Piece of Prophecy History Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Here's something you don't see every day! Billy Joe Cain was the lead designer on Wing Commander Prophecy, and his connections to the team have helped him come into possession of a highly collectible jacket! If you haven't followed his adventures in our previous updates, Billy has been out of the commercial game scene for a bit. He's founded the Radical Empathy Education Foundation to fight human trafficking. If you're in an especially giving mood, the jacket has been listed on eBay for $8,900 with the proceeds going to these anti-trafficking efforts. The price will gradually decrease until it goes to a good home!
Today, a Wing Commander "holy grail" came into my life and I'm selling it to raise money to end human trafficking through prevention education.

If you liked Wing Commander Prophecy, this is the ultimate collectible. There may have been 30 of these "Development Team Only" bomber jackets made? Anyone have any ideas? This one was literally in storage and only taken out to Dragon's Lair Comics ONE TIME.

If you want to change lives and protect children from human trafficking, this is a huge opportunity to make an enormous difference immediately. https://www.ebay.com/itm/155905652379

Much love to the whole CIC!!!

Happy Black Friday! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Whether you're looking for the perfect WC gift or trying to fill out your collection, here's a rundown of various Wing Commander items on the market today. You might be surprised to see how many things are still being sold! Although most items are digital, there are some fun physical items in the mix too. New additions this year include a stunning print of the End Run cover art by artist David Mattingly (pictured right) as well as the new CIC pint glass. The pint glass and coaster set are 25% off right now for Black Friday. If you see this after that coupon has lapsed, hold off until they issue their Cyber Monday coupon!

Print Art
PC Games ($5.99 each)

Console Games
Movies & TV
Novels ($6.99)
Audio Albums
  • Team Fat's Wing Commander 1 Complete MT-32 Archival Edition Bandcamp $10
  • Team Fat's Wing One: Amazon $7.99 | iTunes $9.99
  • Wing Commander Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Amazon $9.49 | iTunes $9.99
  • Cobalt 60: Prophecy EP iTunes $3.96 | Twelve with Prophecy Bonus Tracks iTunes $10.99
CIC Stuff

Happy Thanksgiving! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Hey all, the CIC staff is trying to have a low key Thanksgiving this year. To those who celebrate, we hope you stay safe and manage to connect with those you love. And if you're tired of hearing about terrestrial pilgrims and would rather read about the space variety, why not check out Wing Commander Pilgrim Truth? Check it out online or grab it in .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (iBooks and other) formats.

Just Our Cup of Tea Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

I got curious about one of the transports from Secret Ops; turns out "Kyoto Rose" is a kind of tea! So we ordered some from Amazon to try. And it was just fine! Make your own fun!!! You can also listen to all of the Kyoto Rose's comm transmissions in the WCPedia Holovids section here!
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Drakhri Construction Process Sounds Like Fun Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

It's been a killer week for Wing Commander models! Today we've got a Drakhri built by Ardias and based on Klavs' original 3D model. There's actually two variants depicted below that differ in a clever way. The first was built as one piece by the printer. It's a convenient way to manufacture something... although carefully removing the connection points still takes some time. This is the version that was painted, and it looks great in the end! There's also a second take that comes in several pieces. In theory, someone with a smaller 3D printer could still produce this with each element manufactured separately. This always makes it so tempting to buy a 3D printer! You can read all about the construction process or download the associated files at the CIC Forum.
This model is an exact duplicate of Klavs original model. The only modification I made was altering the underside slightly to allow for the placement of a 3.375mm diameter hole approximate 4mm deep. (That dimension being the metric equivalent of a 1/8" diameter typical of many widely available flight stand pegs, plus a 0.1 mm tolerance all around to allow the pegs to be inserted and removed easily without damaging the model.
I'm also working a printable 1/72 version that can be printed in parts. This means 1. that the largest parts should fit in something as small as a Elegoo Mars. And 2. you won't have to support the entire starfighter as a single printed unit. Which at a larger scale for something shaped like an aircraft or starfighter be both difficult to properly support structurally so it is held in place during printing, would require supported touching a considerable surface area of the model marring many of the surfaces of the resulting print, and finally could be difficult to remove from the supports without risk of breaking smaller detail parts.
Though my intent is eventually to print a 1/72nd scale version from the parts illustrated above, I did do a quick FDM print as a proof of concept. This was mostly to confirm that my part divisions were clean and everything fits together as intented. I let Bambu Slicer do its thing using tree supports to minimize the contact points, and the result turned out better than expected. Though it was a %*#@! to remove the supports from the fuselage without snapping off the laser cannons. (I might see about trying to make those separately printable parts, or maybe as a gun cluster.) Unsurprisingly the underside of roll bar is very rough, but it was a quick test print where I did not attempt to manually add more supports there. This also is an earlier iteration where I have not made the engine exhausts separate from the wings yet.

New Centurion Print Rocks Sleek Black Look Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Longscope has posted a pic of a beautiful Centurion that he built with an Elegoo Saturn 2 8K 3D printer. I know we just posted another gorgeous Centurion model last week, but I see these as being slightly different animals. LYP's design is the result of lots of bespoke paint and custom detail work. On the other hand, this seems like a more approachable creation with fewer pieces. It's obviously unpainted, but I'm really liking that stark black. In retrospect, why haven't we seen more varieties of Centurion paint schemes over the years?
A Centurion from Wing Commander Privateer. 16 hours print time in ABS Resin.

Whenever I played Privateer, it was always a race to get it as fast as possible. I loved that ship.

These Vintage Wireframes Are Great, But... Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

I would give so much to be able to read the text on these monitors from Wing Commander III. Look, there's a designation for the Hellcat V right there! F-86 maybe? F-46C?

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Secret Ops Video Archive Now Online! Plus Bonus WCP Announcements Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

LOAF and AD have completed another game in their march to completely overhaul the CIC's Holovids video archive. Secret Ops is the latest addition. You might be thinking, "Did that gave have video?" It didn't have a live action shoot, but it had a bunch of in-engine and specialty cutscenes/trailers. Plus, it had a ton of in-game audio, which the new archive also fully includes. There were also narrated ICIS briefings, and you can find them all here!
Although I may have called WCSO 'complete' above, is anything ever really complete? AD has added a new specialty page to the recently added WCP video archive. It now has all the public address announcements spoken over the loudspeakers aboard the TCS Midway. It's VERY COOL to have them all consolidated in one place! Check them out here!

Centurion 3D Print Demonstrates Expert Craftsmanship Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

LYP Studios has done it again! Lee Yee Pei has built a second Wing Commander model, and it is absolutely gorgeous. This time it's the Centurion from Privateer. The bulk of the ship was 3D printed, but a handful of custom parts were added for detail. He also painstakingly masked and layered different colors of hull texture to simulate the adjoining panels as well as the shark mouth on the underside. Fortunately he's also an excellent photographer, so we get plenty of beautiful shots to admire. You can find even more here! If this inspires you to craft your own, you can download the source files at Cults 3D or Thingiverse.
Centurion Heavy Fighter from Wing Commander Privateer. 3D-printed PLA & resin, with additional detailing parts.
LYP previously put together an incredible Morningstar fighter.

Kilrathi Magazine Art Is My Passion Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

I love finding magazine articles where they've commissioned their own Wing Commander art. Even this one. From "PC Games" magazine.

Modern life may be rubbish, but it's worse in the future. So relieve tense headaches with this plethora of combat tips..."
This one is good too, from a UK PC Gamer.
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Classic Gaming Arena Supports WC Armada Internet Play Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Does anyone out there use Classic Gaming Arena? We've seen it come through Anatoly Shashkin's DOS Nostalgic feed in the past, and it supports DOSBox and Wing Commander Armada's IPXNet/NetBIOS protocols. Looks like it's another great option to get some online dogfights (or sector-wide domination) going. They have detailed instructions on how to get things set up here. Stop by the #Wingnut Discord if you're looking for fellow pilots to compete against!
Classic Gaming Arena is a website based portal to link up with friends, family or just random people to play DOS based IPX network games over the Internet via the use of DOSBox and out small client program, the CGA Client. The CGA Client is installed locally and the website uses it to launch DOSBox and get you connected to your networked game. The website essentially passes off all the required information about the game you want to launch and the person or server in which you will be connecting and does it all for you.

You may ask, "really? that easy huh?"...yes, it is that easy. The CGA website functions much like MPlayer.com or heat.net from the days of yore. The combination of CGA and DOSBox actually functions more like the software Kali, however we are providing dedicated server software so that the player community can host their own servers instead of all the servers being hosted by us.

The dedicated server software communicates with the website so that players can use it when setting up their games. Players will also be able to connect up via a peer-to-peer mechanism since DOSBox has a built-in server as well if they do not want to use a dedicated server. Players are required to create an account (for free of course) and through the website configure their DOSBox and game settings (ie: local paths and CD information if needed). Once that is all setup they will then be able to setup game rooms which will use either a dedicated server or themselves as the server and allow others to join the room and get connected.

We have tried to make the process as thin and streamlined as possible so as to create a great gaming experience for the players. (one of the things that killed the services of the past was bandwidth issues and lag) We have done quite a bit of testing over the past several months with different platforms (Windows and Linux) and network scenarios, including wireless, desktops and laptops and any combination there of. So far it has all been very successful.

WC3 DOS to Windows Update Preps for Future Enhancement Pack Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Destro recently launched a big update to his Wing Loader program that adds speech to WC1. In preparation for a future update that would aim to add high quality videos into WC3, Destro made this simple patch to upgrade the commercially available GOG DOS edition into an updated Kilrathi Saga Windows version. I think a couple iterations of this have been made by various folks over the years, but it's still good to have a modern update handy. You can grab the patch here (51 meg zip). You can also learn more about and download the current edition of Wing Loader here.
Also on another note, I made up a little patch that will upgrade the GOG version of WC3 to the Kilrathi Saga version. Trying to make Wing Loader work with current purchase options available for the games.
WING COMMANDER 3 GOG TO Kilrathi Saga

1) Install Wing Commander 3 via GOG.
2) Right Click DATA.DAT inside Wing Commander III and use something like 7zip to extract the contents into the Wing Commander III folder. https://www.7-zip.org
3) You can now Delete DATA.DAT.
4) Copy the Patch contents to the Wing Commander III folder and overwrite.
4) Optional: Install the DirectDraw Hack for smoother videos https://www.wcnews.com/wcpedia/DirectDraw_Hack

WC Music Highlighted at NDC Oslo Conference Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Lars Ivar Igesund tipped us off about a neat feature shown at NDC Oslo. It includes a brief segment on how Wing Commander leveraged its audio design in the "A Brief History of Computer Music" panel. It's an interesting topic overall, and Wing Commander fits right in! Jump to 29:38 below if you'd like to skip straight to the WC chapter.
Computer programmed music has come a long way since the CSIR Mark 1 played a scratchy Colonel Bogie back in the early 1950s. In this talk we'll go on a journey through the history of music made with code. We'll meet the pioneers who invented computer music, visit classic video game soundtracks, learn how computer musicians made big sounds with tiny tech, how algorithms create never-ending soundtracks and the huge impact computer music has had on popular culture. Expect lots of nostalgia, vintage code on vintage computers and a musical experience of epic proportions.

Exploring a Cockpit Artpiece Mystery Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

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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Invincible Show Celebrates Classic WC Run Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Accelerwraith tipped us off about a wonderful little easter egg segment in the animated show Invincible on Prime Video. He captured the clip below where a bunch of purple people in helmets and suits run down a red corridor. The way it frames both their heads and their feet seems to confirm it's an intentional nod to the classic Wing Commander dash from the briefing room to the flight deck. Here they are side by side so you can appreciate the similarity!
Did you know there are actually several different running sequences in the original Wing Commander? You can get different combinations of crew wearing a flight helmet, cap, long hair and short hair. Pretty neat!

First Chapter of Freedom Flight Comic Completed Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

EmuMusicFan has posted the final page of chapter one in his boldy artistic take on Wing Commander Freedom Flight. Emu's got quite a knack for conveying emotion in his Kilrathi sketches, which is really visually pleasing to see. The emphasis here is primarily on the interrogation of Hobbes. There are nearly 20 pages all told and it took almost exactly one year to draw everything out. We applaud the diligent pace and commitment to see this through! For the first time, here is the completed chapter!

Klavs Releases High Quality Next-Gen Models Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Klavs is back with a gift to share with Wing Commander fans this week. He's officially releasing a handful of enhanced 3D models that were put together over the last couple years. The direct art assets were originally available in exchange for a donation towards his family's medical bills, but now they are available at SketchFab for free. Hit the links below for links to each. These designs have made their way into a variety of fan projects over time, and we're excited to see what else fans can do with them!
Hi everyone, the Wing Commander redux models are now available for free on Sketchfab. MANY many thanks go out to those who purchased them, your support is so greatly appreciated, and if we ever meet in person I owe you a coffee!

They are a little rough in spots! As with the original models, I was using them as a way to learn substance a little better.

You're welcome to use these for games, mods, 3d printing (they're not optimized for this so it'll take a little elbow grease to make them work for this) etc. Just please don't re-sell them.

Additionally if anyone wants to play with the Substance painter files and create your own paintschemes/liveries I will host them here for the next 6 months or so.

Thanks everybody for your support!

Wing Loader Releases Improved Enhancement Pack for KS Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Today we've got an exciting update to Wing Loader to share! Destro is back with a major overhaul to the project. As you may recall, Wing Loader is a mod to The Kilrathi Saga to fully add original (Sega CD) speech to the PC version of WC1. As the years have gone by, the scope has expanded to add things like the new Secret Missions from SWC and the bonus SM1 intro from the SNES. A huge upcoming development will be the addition of enhanced WC3 video to a future release. In order to facilitate that update, Destro has significantly streamlined and improved the functional code of the existing material. You can download the latest update here (350 meg zip) and follow the latest at the CIC Forums. You can also find detailed installation instructions here.
Version 0.90 - (Engine Re-Write) Released!​

Wing Loader aims to create the most definitive version of Wing Commander possible by supporting the most advanced versions of the game, mods such as WCDX and adding fully voice acted dialogue previously only seen in the SegaCD version of the game release back in 1994.

New in Version 0.90
- Complete Engine re-write.
- Greatly Improved performance and memory management.
- Memory Usage down from 831mb to 98mb!

Features:
All Conversations and in-flight coms added to the game!
In-flight coms added to all Secret Missions (Testing Phase)
Allows you to transfer your Pilots between addons.
SNES intro to Secret Missions 1 added!
Wing Commander 1.5 Mod Compatible!
Support for Wing Commander 2 & Wing Commander 3!

Large Excalibur Model Nearing Completion Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Chronocidal Guy's new Excalibur 3D print has come together nicely. We got a good status update on the component pieces last month, and now we can see how nearly everything has come together. Here he's put together a lengthy rundown of the latest updates. If you'd like a copy of his printing files to test build your own, let him know!
Progress update, all the parts are printed, and I think at least the digital part of the model is something I can call "done" after about 20 years.

The big upgrades for this were mainly the larger size and the cockpit, but the larger scale made a lot of smaller details possible that wouldn't have shown up on my smaller models if I had tried to print them. I do think the model will be better if using a liquid resin printer, but I'm very happy with how well the ABS turned out.

One of the biggest things I changed were all the greeblie panels. I did my best to estimate how they were supposed to look from the Victory Streak diagrams, but I realized that many of the panels were just random mechanical-looking stock textures. The ones on the top and bottom of the fuselage and engines were the most detailed, but the side panels tended to just be dark panels of little smaller panels, so I did my best to follow the general feeling of them. The last experiment I did tonight was testing whether I can make a clear canopy for it. I don't have a vacuform machine (though I might invest in one), but I was able to print myself a two piece mold. With that made, I heated a piece of plastic packaging over a space heater for a few moments, and then pressed it between the mold halves, and clamped it. When it cooled, I had a fairly decent clear canopy to trim and use, though it's still a little rough, and has a few scratches and wrinkles. I might try a few more attempts later, since the material came from my recycling bin, and I have a ton of it. I am considering selling this model for printing eventually, but I do want to offer it freely here for people to try it out first, and give me feedback about anything that might need changing to print more easily. One thing I'm very aware of is that this model started very small, and got almost twice as big, so the model is heavier than it needs to be, and uses more material than necessary. The structures are really thick and sturdy at this size, because the original model was only 7 inches long.

Right now, I have the model broken into segments that separate the outer shells from the inner structure, since that made it the easiest to build the internal walls. If I can find a way to distribute the model in this format, it will allow for easier adjustment of the wall thicknesses.

As it is now though, I think my original 7-10 inch size is probably ideal for printing with all of the new details on a resin printer. It needs to be bigger for an FDM printer to pick up all of the greeblies, which is why I made this newer one, but I didn't change the internal wall thicknesses at all, and it uses quite a lot of plastic.

All told, the parts for this print took almost 200 hours with a 0.1mm layer height (not counting the stand), and used about 700g of material, or roughly 1.5 lbs. There was a fair amount of plastic expended in support structures to keep the prints steady, but even then, the model is substantial, and feels easily over a pound. My printer is pretty old now though, and newer ones can go much faster, probably cutting the print time down substantially. Many of the components for this took over a day to print.

Once I get the model in a presentable format, I'll post it here for download for a little while, and let people take a shot at it. I'll probably give it out for free here until the end of the year, and then put it up for sale after that.

Vintage Mag Scan Highlights WCM-Era Digital Anvil Office Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

A profile of Digital Anvil's swanky downtown office from... ugh... the March 2000 issue of PC Accelerator. Complete with full sized Kilrathi!

...ngl this double-page StarLancer ad is also fire. You can see pics from our own March 1999 visit to the office here!
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Amazing WC Prophecy Video Archive Now Online! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

The phenomenal expansion of the CIC Holovid video archive continues! Having recently vastly expanded what was available for Privateer 2, LOAF and AD have moved on to Wing Commander Prophecy. Their complete catalog of the game's cutscenes includes every clip in high quality, complete with transcripts, storyboards, alternate languages, variations and branching choices depicted. The game's ICIS mission briefings have also been digitized and transcribed, and THOUSANDS of in-flight audio communication clips have been added. This even applies to the 3Dfx Test and playable demo. Plus, a fun variety of behind-the-scenes and bonus videos are available as well. You don't want to miss it! Here's LOAF with more detail:
  • A page for every cutscene in Wing Commander Prophecy! Each page embeds the cutscene in question and collects all sorts of bonus materials:
    • The alternate, higher quality DVD footage
      • The German dub
      • A game-accurate transcript
      • The shooting schedule and set list for each scene
      • Two different versions of the script (the initial draft from December 1996 and the shooting script)
      • Storyboards where available along with other media (script segments from the EPK, the GBA intro, etc.)
  • Every ICIS briefing's audio embedded and available for download.
  • Every single communications message, over 4,000 in total! Organized by series and character. These include both the unique 96x96 in-flight flicks (ie, Anderson debriefing you or Dekker boarding a space station) and the 'loops' which are presented as audio files alongside their silent videos. Every comm is embedded or can be downloaded!
  • The Privateer 2 comms have been brought up to parity; they will now load properly on your phone and each has a download link. Find them here.
  • A new, comprehensive collection of Behind the Scenes material that includes everything from German TV specials to Polish video reviews to the Cobalt 60 Wing Commander Prophecy music video! Prophecy didn't get as much attention in the media as WC3 or WC4 but we're dedicated to adding anything we can find.
  • ALL of the above for BOTH the 3Dfx Test and the longer unique demo! Who could forget the original Prophecy redshirts, Unicorn and Limbo?!

True Origins of End Run Covert Art Revealed! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

THRILLING ART NEWS! It turns out that the amazing cover to Wing Commander: End Run was NOT painted by Paul Alexander (as credited)... but David Mattingly! And... HE SELLS PRINTS AT HIS WEBSITE! Cool kids will know David Mattingly for his Animorphs covers while extremely hip gentlemen will know him for his Honor Harrington ones. End Run credits its cover art to Paul Anderson - the same as Freedom Flight, Fleet Action and Action Stations (which was commissioned for the WC3 novel). Those other three look like Paul Anderson paintings, though, and End Run kind of sticks out in its style. The painting was certainly sold years ago as a Paul Anderson original, but now that we have this super high res photography: His wizard art is also worthy of song: I don't know if there's a story behind the incorrect credit... but it's worth remembering that this is the same series that also credited a whole book to the wrong author. To find the art on his website and order your own print, visit this page and search for Wing Commander. Alternately, it's on page 14 of his Other Gallery. Click on the image and four options appear:
  • 8.5 × 11 print on Epson Art Velvet paper $20
  • 13 x 19 print on Epson Art Velvet paper (matte) $50
  • 13 x 19 print on Epson Legacy Platine paper (glossy) $70
  • 17 x 22 print on Epson Art Velvet paper (matte) $100
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Initial Sketch of SNES SM Box Art Revealed! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Today we have a truly incredible find! VGDensetsu shared this piece of art by Greg Winters. It's the source sketch for what eventually became the phenomenal box art for Wing Commander: The Secret Missions on the Super Nintendo. We absolutely love finding stuff like this under any circumstances, but there are some extra quirky elements here. One, it reveals that the first cut of the drawing depicts a more typical brown Salthi. In the final piece, the ship is tinted green, which is an excellent nod to the fact that the SNES version of the game replaces its Jalthi art with a green Salthi model. That's such a cool info bit. And two, this sketch is on the opposite side of a piece of paper with the SNES Wizard of Oz game. Wild! The original piece is up for auction throughout this month.
Greg Winters The Wizard of Oz & Wing Commander: The Secret Missions SNES Original Preliminary Box Art (Seta, Mindscape, 1993). Offered is a rare pairing of preliminary paintings adorning a single artboard, initially conceived for the production phase of Super Nintendo's The Wizard of Oz and Wing Commander: The Secret Missions. Crafted by Greg Winters, a prodigious video game box artist acclaimed for his work across the Mega Man series, the aura of these pieces, created with pencils and acrylics, is palpable. The poignant ensemble of both artworks spans an image area of 9" x 5." In excellent condition, they encapsulate a rich history of the gaming world's artistry.
The box art was also folded up and made into a posted included with the game. elend made the nifty version without crease lines above!

WC Movie's Fuel/Repair Truck Exposed! Update ID Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Little discovery: the firefighting truck seen fleetingly in the Wing Commander movie is a rented Saracen tank. Now I have an excuse to own a tank. More of the truck from AD!
AD: Don't forget to ask for the spray foam kit when you order yours! Off-camera, this vehicle is shoring up the breached bulkhead. It was shot at least twice with multi-cam setups to only show us the tires.
And its cousin, the fuel truck:
AD: I think this also settles that they used the same truck as the fuel truck in the movie, but dressed it differently with extra panels, wheel covers, and more tanks. You can spot it very briefly and a handful of flight deck scenes. You get a decent look at the back of it in an unused angle of Maniac's reckless landing, which apparently almost crashed into the fuel truck.
Concept art from the movie's set folks! You can see it's supposed to be an unmanned repair truck that sprays self-sealing goo on hull breaches. Even more thrilling: there’s a classic Matchbox toy of the Saracen tank so you can get a little pocket Tiger Claw repair truck!!! For a full rundown of tanks seen throughout Wing Commander, check out our article here!
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