Wing Commander
| Developer: Chris Roberts | Graphics: |
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| Publisher: Origin | Sound: |
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| Year: 1992 | Difficulty: |
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| Genre: Shoot’em up | Lastability: |
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| Number of players: 1 | Rating: |
7/10 | |
Join the elite space pilots to wage war against the Kilrathi (big alien cats). Complete various missions with your favourite wingman (recon, escorts, or just plain old alien shooting). Earn medals, save humanity. And afterwards, you can deal with the leaky pipe in the dormitory.
The success of this series can largely be attributed to its cinematic presentation. The interactions with fellow pilots, animated briefings, and epic music create an atmosphere reminiscent of (Battlestar) Galactica. The story is engaging, and the characters have a certain charm (tragic moments when one of your partners gets shot down, or you yourself, which leads to a poignant ceremony—prepare your tissues).
Amusingly, the game begins with a short space battle, after which you get blown up, followed by a game over screen and an invitation to enter your name on the high score table. Immediately after, you leave the simulator to have a drink at the bar with your mates…
The “shooting” component is no slouch, provided you own/emulate a powerful enough setup to ensure smooth animation. The 3D is well rendered (the enemy ships remain in 2D, sparing us from ugly polygons), and the controls aren’t too hard to grasp. You feel real progress as you rack up successes, unlock new ships, or notice how your actions influence the course of the campaign.
The only flaw in this Amiga version is that it only displays a limited colour palette (a noble attempt to make it playable on a modest Amiga 500, though I don’t think it fully succeeded). Today, I’d recommend opting for the original PC version (1990) or CD32 (1994, a picture?).
This game also exists on Sega CD and Super Nintendo, but again, the technology forced some graphical compromises.
A dozen sequels and add-ons have been released and continue to come out. A true merchandising has developed around it (books, a movie, a cartoon, and even a card game like Magic).
Personally, I wasn’t lucky enough to experience this game at the time. I discovered the genre much later with Colony Wars Vengeance, for which I remain a little biased (and also, I can’t stand Battlestar Galactica, there, I’ve said it).
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