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</ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </nav> </header> <div id="container-site" class="clearfix"> <div id="content-news"> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/15"> <time datetime="2025-03-15">2025.074 (March 15, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16850"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/15/gog-needs-a-shooter-promo">GOG Needs a Shooter Promo</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=GOG%20Needs%20a%20Shooter%20Promo%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16850"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16850&t=GOG%20Needs%20a%20Shooter%20Promo"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=GOG%20Needs%20a%20Shooter%20Promo%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16850"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>In a shocking turn of events, the Wing Commander games on <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/">GOG</A> have been included in yet another big sale! This month's theme is "Shooter Game Promo," which frankly isn't really trying that hard. This time around everything is a whopping 75% off, or $1.49 per package. That's about as cheap as it gets for these releases! You can find all the games at the links below or indexed <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/en/promo/20250306_shooter_promo?order=desc:trending">here</A>.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_1_2/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-wc12-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_3_heart_of_the_tiger/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-wc3-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_4_the_price_of_freedom/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-wc4-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_5_prophecy/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-wcp-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_privateer/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-priv-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/privateer_2_the_darkening/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-p2-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_academy/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-wca-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> <A HREF="https://www.gog.com/game/wing_commander_armada/?pp=f38cfe2e2facbcc742bad63f91ad55637300cb45"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/gog-armada-button.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="120"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16850" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16850" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16850" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/14"> <time datetime="2025-03-14">2025.073 (March 14, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16859"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/14/reminder-wingnut-movie-night-tonight">Reminder: #Wingnut Movie Night Tonight!</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16859"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16859&t=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16859"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>This is a reminder that we have another fun #Wingnut movie night planned on <A HREF="https://discord.gg/vwKE8Tc">Discord</A> this evening! The ongoing theme will be movies that inspired Wing Commander in some way. Tonight's film is Run Silent, Run Deep (1958) which was one of the sources for the Wing Commander's submarine and crew drama elements. You can find details on that as well as how to watch along with us in <A HREF="/news/2025/02/24/wing-commander-movie-night-alien">the announcement post here</A>. The movie will start about 7 PM PST/10 PM EST but feel free to drop by and hang any time!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Poster.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Postert.jpg" WIDTH="163" HEIGHT="250" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Postert_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16859" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16859" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16859" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article> <article class="news-post" id="16860"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/14/after-action-report-silent-running">After Action Report: Silent Running</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Silent%20Running%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16860"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16860&t=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Silent%20Running"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Silent%20Running%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16860"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>Greetings WingNuts,</P> <P>We have watched Silent Running and agree that it's an interesting movie but that it doesn't quite come together (like Wing Commander?). The special effects are incredible, the sets and costumes are excellent, the setup is an excellent story… but it never quite comes together into anything satisfying. A lot of that comes down to the lead, we thought, who ends up being somewhat difficult to root for. It's a movie I'm glad to have seen but it's definitely more cult than classic.</P> <P>This will be a short report, though, as the movie had no known creative connections to Wing Commander beyond being incorrectly referenced in the film's original treatise. But we did note a few little genre connections! One little coincidence is that both films have acts set in ring systems! Silent Running's director famously used the film as an excuse to do the Saturn special effects he had envisioned for 2001: A Space Odyssey. Meanwhile, Wing Commander's second act battle is set in the "rings of planet 415" in the Dakota System.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/silentrunning-rings-sr.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-rings-srt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-rings-srt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/silentrunning-rings-wc.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-rings-wct.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-rings-wct_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The premise of the movie–flying forests out into space to preserve them-did remind me somewhat of one of the copy protection facts about the Goddard colony from The Secret Missions:</P> <blockquote> Goddard is famous for its Conservation Forest, spread out over 12500 square km. An estimated 7225 varieties of Terran trees have been transplanted to Goddard to prevent their extinction on Earth. </blockquote> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/silentrunning-dome-sr.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-dome-srt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-dome-srt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The repair droids that become characters had me thinking about the droids in the original Privateer which kind of work the same way. You get one tiny, static image of your repair droid… but it's your friend every moment you're in the cockpit!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/silentrunning-droid-sr.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-droid-srt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-droid-srt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/silentrunning-droid-wc.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-droid-wct.jpg" WIDTH="240" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/silentrunning-droid-wct_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>By the way, one fun fact that I love and will preserve here is that in Italy the movie was presented as a sequel to 2001 called 2002: The Second Odyssey. They made some minor changes to connect it to 2001's lore including an introductory voiceover and replacing the ship's computer with the same voice actor that performed HAL (in Italy). And while that seems pretty weird, there is a strong creative connection behind the scenes, with Silent Running directed by Douglas Trumbull who did the SFX on 2001. But then I don't see how that would be like Wing Commander!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/2002_la_seconda_odissea.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/2002_la_seconda_odisseat.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/2002_la_seconda_odisseat_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/2002_la_seconda_odissea-wc.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/2002_la_seconda_odissea-wct.jpg" WIDTH="124" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/2002_la_seconda_odissea-wct_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/sully-silent-running.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/sully-silent-runningt.jpg" WIDTH="113" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/sully-silent-runningt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <CENTER><P><I>I would absolutely murder the rest of the crew to rescue Sully.</I></P></CENTER> <div id="comments-16860" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16860" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16860" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/13"> <time datetime="2025-03-13">2025.072 (March 13, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16864"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/13/goodbye-thomas-lee">Goodbye Thomas Lee</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Goodbye%20Thomas%20Lee%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16864"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16864&t=Goodbye%20Thomas%20Lee"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Goodbye%20Thomas%20Lee%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16864"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>Sad news: Game Developer <A HREF="https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/obituary-thomas-lee-ea-alum-and-strategic-advisor-has-died">is reporting</A> that veteran Origin artist Thomas Lee has passed away after a battle with cancer. Early in his storied career, Mr. Lee worked as an artist on a range of projects from The Sims 2 to Final Fantasy IX. Later, he entered the business side of the industry as a development executive where he was fondly remembered. And his game career started in our universe! </P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/thomas_lee_obit_modernphoto.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_modernphotot.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_modernphotot_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>In March 1994, Origin was staffing up to cover the unprecedented development needs of the Wing Commander III project. They were desperate for artists, TDAs, quality assurance personnel and more. One of their advertisements caught the attention of Thomas Lee's brother, James Lee, at William Paterson University in New Jersey. James applied for a job as an Advanced Graphics Specialist and during the hiring process ended up getting his brother the same job on the strength of his experience with ALIAS.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/thomas_lee_obit_pointoforigin.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_pointoforigint.jpg" WIDTH="114" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_pointoforigint_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The Lees' job was to help build the huge amount of textured 3D models that would populate Wing Commander III's missions. That meant building everything from spaceships to tanks to storage containers and skyscrapers… and building them under the extreme technical limitations of Wing Commander III's early 3D engine. Using the processes and techniques that Paul Steed had developed for Strike Commander and operating with the new style for Wing Commander developed by project art director Chris Douglas, Origin's team of "graphic specialists" worked endless miracles to build a new world.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/thomas_lee_obit_3dship.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_3dshipt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_3dshipt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The entire process was a learning experience. No one was doing real time textured 3D in games, no one was putting the amount of assets into a game that Wing Commander III needed. In the process, the young team members developed a set of first-in-the-industry skills that would propel their careers forward for years. Many would later refer to the experience as "Origin University". Thomas Lee seemed to recognize that, happily remembering those early days when sharing George Oldziey's orchestral project on Facebook:</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/thomas_lee_obit_facebook.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_facebookt.jpg" WIDTH="102" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_facebookt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>Our condolences to Mr. Lee's family and friends, this is a true loss. We will close by noting that he lives on in a small way you wouldn't consider: he's credited alongside several other members of the Wing Commander III art team as an interior artist in the Victory Streak manual… which is presented in universe! That means that there's always going to be another Thomas Lee working on art aboard the TCS Victory six hundred years from now. And through that–and his work–we'll keep his memory alive.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/thomas_lee_obit_victorystreak.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_victorystreakt.jpg" WIDTH="97" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/thomas_lee_obit_victorystreakt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16864" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16864" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16864" data-threadid="32238"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/12"> <time datetime="2025-03-12">2025.071 (March 12, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16858"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/12/border-worlds-flag-vs-roundel">Border Worlds: Flag vs. Roundel</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Border%20Worlds%3A%20Flag%20vs.%20Roundel%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16858"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16858&t=Border%20Worlds%3A%20Flag%20vs.%20Roundel"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Border%20Worlds%3A%20Flag%20vs.%20Roundel%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16858"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>The topic of Wing Commander IV's texture files recently came up and a question came up: what's that spiky logo on the side of the Vindicator? If it's intended to be the Border Worlds logo, why is it so different from the circular 'phoenix' seen elsewhere?</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-concept.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-conceptt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-conceptt_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-concept.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-conceptt.jpg" WIDTH="172" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-conceptt_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P>The answer is that it's a roundel which represents the Union of Border Worlds Navy! It differs from the more familiar Border Worlds logo which represents the entire Union of Border Worlds. Compare the United States flag to the roundel used on military aircraft, for instance:</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/roundel-usaflag.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/roundel-usaflagt.jpg" WIDTH="285" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/roundel-usaflagt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/roundal-usaf.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/roundal-usaft.jpg" WIDTH="283" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/roundal-usaft_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The Border Worlds roundel is actually more common than you think. It appears throughout the game, including on many Border Worlds ships (including all the fighters):</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-banshee.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-bansheet.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-bansheet_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-vindicator.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-vindicatort.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-vindicatort_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-avenger.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-avengert.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-avengert_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-cruiser.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-cruisert.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-cruisert_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepid.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepidt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepidt_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P>It even shows up inside the Intrepid where it's intended to match the FMV... unfortunately the texture is mirrored incorrectly!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepid-internal.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepid-internalt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-intrepid-internalt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-fmv.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-fmvt.jpg" WIDTH="300" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-fmvt_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P>It's also pretty distinct in gameflow, where it represents an available mission briefing on and again shows up clearly on the Banshee.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflow.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflowt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflowt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflow-banshee.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflow-bansheet.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-ship-gameflow-bansheet_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>It even appears on two ships cut from the final game but left in the files: a Border Worlds space station and an R-type shuttle in Border Worlds livery.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-cutship.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-cutshipt.jpg" WIDTH="201" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-cutshipt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-cutship2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-cutship2t.jpg" WIDTH="201" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-cutship2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>Its similarity to the band Metallica's ninja star logo also can't be ignored!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-concept.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-conceptt.jpg" WIDTH="172" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-conceptt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-roundel-metallica.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-metallicat.jpg" WIDTH="169" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-roundel-metallicat_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The 'flag' logo appears throughout the game, too. It's on the uniform shoulder patches, in the Intrepid's UI and shows as the default comm video for Border Worlds capital ships! I've always liked the amount of thought that went into the logo, with the colonies, a moon, appearing with a phoenix rising from the Confederation star.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-patches.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-patchest.jpg" WIDTH="300" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-patchest_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-ui.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-uit.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-uit_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-comms.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-commst.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-commst_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The logo must predate the union, though, as it actually makes an appearance in the background of the Wing Commander movie! It's displayed on one of the Tiger Claw's bridge monitors and can be seen most clearly behind Captain Sansky when Blair delivers the message from Tolwyn. It's easier to pick out once you've seen it in BTS footage.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-wcm.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-wcmt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-wcmt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ubw-flag-wcm-bts.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-wcm-btst.jpg" WIDTH="225" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ubw-flag-wcm-btst_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16858" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16858" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16858" data-threadid="32237"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/11"> <time datetime="2025-03-11">2025.070 (March 11, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16849"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/11/a-brief-history-of-the-darkening">A Brief History of The Darkening</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=A%20Brief%20History%20of%20The%20Darkening%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16849"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16849&t=A%20Brief%20History%20of%20The%20Darkening"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=A%20Brief%20History%20of%20The%20Darkening%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16849"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>One of the most rousing debates in the history of the Wing Commander fandom is over Privateer 2: The Darkening's name. Many remember that the game was announced as 'The Darkening' and only became a Privateer game close to its release. We aren't here to relitigate the debate over whether that was right or wrong; instead, we're going to try to answer a specific question: when were the multiple decisions to change the name made? To do that, we've put together a brief timeline of Privateer 2's development that we believe tells the story.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Sketch5.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Sketch5t.jpg" WIDTH="523" HEIGHT="150" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P><B>Privateer II: Dark Side - Mid-1994 to February 1995</B></P> <P>Producer Erin Roberts pitched what would become Privateer 2: The Darkening to Origin in mid-1994. Erin had joined Origin several years earlier, coming from his home in England to Austin to assist his brother finish development of the original Wing Commander. He would go on to join the famed Strike Commander team as Associate Producer. He quickly gained a reputation for being effective in the role, someone with the rare capacity to balance managing a team and moderating the demands of the studio and corporation. He would go on to again serve as Associate Producer on the original Privateer and then as Producer on the Privateer CD-ROM release. During this final project, he famously got so fed up with Electronic Arts cancelling and then restarting development that he stopped checking his company email and had the team finish the game in peace. It would go on to sell well and to form the basis of several major OEM deals; it still generates profit today in digital release! Instead of again joining his brother on Wing Commander III, Erin wanted to return home to England. Electronic Arts had a growing presence in Manchester and he reasoned that with his experience and connections he could build a team that would produce Origin-quality games in Europe instead of Texas. He pitched this idea alongside a new game the team would build, a sequel to Privateer.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p1cdrom-box.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p1cdrom-boxt.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p1cdrom-boxt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>At the time, Origin had something of a hub-and-spoke system for financing game development. They would invest significant amounts of money in high risk projects from proven creators and then amortise those high budgets with spinoff games that would reuse technology and other assets. Wing Commander begat Wing Commander II, Ultima VI begat Worlds of Ultima, Strike Commander begat Wings of Glory and Pacific and so on. Erin's pitch was for a second Privateer game that would take advantage of the updated RealSpace engine being created for Wing Commander III. His project would take the bones of Wing Commander III and then, just as the original Privateer built itself on top of Wing Commander I's 3space engine, build a new Privateer where you could trade, dogfight and travel anywhere in an area of the Wing Commander universe. Additionally, the game would use a to-be-determined amount of current buzzword Full Motion Video that could be shot on a much tighter budget in the United Kingdom. </P> <P>Origin, familiar with Erin's work well beyond his family connection, approved the project and the earliest development of Privateer II began in Manchester in the second half of 1994. Erin quickly assembled a world class team and production of the game began in earnest. The first task was to produce a proof-of-concept prototype which would prove to the powers that be that the new team was capable of adapting and improving on the Wing Commander III engine. This work would be the first step to securing funding for the intended FMV shoot. One offshoot of this work was that the team created a model of the original Privateer's Talon for the demo; it would be added back to the game for a special mission once it was again made part of the Wing Commander universe! As expected, the team proved themselves and Electronic Arts opted to budget three million dollars for the film shoot. It is not known precisely when the title was decided but by January 1995 the project was known as Privateer II: Dark Side.</P> <P>The game was announced (but not shown) at Winter CES in January 1995. Electronic Arts happily boasted of the promising project just starting to take shape, promising members of the press that they would see the game and its intended-to-be-spectacular film portion later in the year. </P> <UL> <LI> June 12, 1994 - Wing Commander Privateer CD-ROM released. <LI> Late 1994 - Production of Privateer II: Dark Side begins. <LI> January 6, 1995 - Privateer II: Dark Side is announced at Winter CES. </UL> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Player-1995-03_0029.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0029t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0029t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Reporting on the initial announcement of Privateer II was light but word that the game was being discussed filtered to the early internet from the Wing Commander-loving German press.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/DARKLOGO.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/DARKLOGOt.jpg" WIDTH="507" HEIGHT="150" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P><B>The Darkening - February 1995 to May 1996</B></P> <P>Erin Roberts would spend the next eight months pulling double duty producing both the game in Manchester and putting together the star-studded film shoot at Pinewood Studios. FMV was new and at this time nothing on the scale of Privateer II had been attempted. Roberts was responsible for putting together the director, actors, below the line talent, the studio and more. He also worked directly with (and hired) screenwriter Diane Duane to build the story and the world (a duty shared with the team in Manchester that wrote the game's incredible breadth of text material while the live action material was being shot). It was during this time that the decision was made to step away from the Wing Commander universe: the technology and the idea was so promising that it seemed like it could stand on its own. The name was changed to simply "Darkside" (Draft 5) by April and by the time the shoot began in May (Draft 7) it was known as "The Darkening". The game was still a Wing Commander III technology spinoff but it was no longer expected to take place in the same world. </P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2d-script5cover.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2d-script5covert.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2d-script5covert_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2d-script7cover.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2d-script7covert.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2d-script7covert_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Cover pages for Draft 5 and Draft 7 of the script.</I></CENTER></P> <P>Another major reason for the change to "The Darkening" was that Chris Roberts, then deep in development of Wing Commander IV, was interested in doing a Privateer sequel himself. This wasn't a case of his stealing the project from his brother; rather, Electronic Arts was looking at Wing Commander IV and interested in pushing a larger, connected multimedia IP going forward. This would lead to things like the animated series and the card game but it was envisioned at first in much grander terms. Chris began development of a fascinating idea to make two Privateer sequels (Privateer 2 and 3) with a TV show that would take place between them. Players would follow one character on TV over the course of the season as they played the first game; then the second game would conclude the overarching story with both characters teaming up. It was a fascinating idea and it got so far as to be passed to a studio in Los Angeles for further development… but in the end it was more transmedia than was possible at the time. Still, Chris continued to plan to follow Wing Commander IV with a second Privateer game and eventually went into preproduction with a story by famed fantasy author Tracy Hickman.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/unused-3-press-release.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/unused-3-press-releaset.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/unused-3-press-releaset_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-1t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-2t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-2t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-3.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-3t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-3t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-4.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-4t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-4t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-5.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-5t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-5t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-6.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-6t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-6t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-7.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-7t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-7t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PrivTV_Bible_High-8.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-8t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PrivTV_Bible_High-8t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Privateer TV series bible with rough plans for the two Chris Roberts-produced games. Unfortunately nothing from Tracy Hickman's Privateer 2 pitch has surfaced.</I></CENTER></P> <P>Meanwhile, Electronic Arts conducted the first press junket for The Darkening in July. They allowed reporters to visit the sets at Pinewood Studios during the shoot and then to meet the team in Manchester to see how the game portion was being completed. This resulted in a swath of long form articles praising the imaginative production from July to November, mostly in the European press. These were mostly missed by Wing Commander fans at the time because, of course, they didn't mention Privateer. The game was fully "The Darkening" at this point and so a lot of this was completely ignored. Origin issued a November 1995 press release to support this media push listing the intended release date as simply 1996.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/november-1995-press-release-1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/november-1995-press-release-1t.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/november-1995-press-release-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/november-1995-press-release-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/november-1995-press-release-2t.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/november-1995-press-release-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Origin's first formal press release regarding The Darkening. Previous press was managed by Electronic Arts in Europe.</I></CENTER></P> <P>Then, a major change that would delay the game into the second half of 1996: around Christmas the team decided to drop the Wing Commander III engine. They believed it had been pushed to its limits by Wing Commander IV and was not conducive to the game world they wanted to build. Instead, they licensed BRender and converted existing work to the new engine. Two months later, Wing Commander fans would be forced to notice The Darkening when an advertisement for the game was included with the Wing Commander IV play guide…. Promising a now scrapped spring release date. Manchester's marketing artists began the initial development for its visual presence, complete with mockup advertisements and box covers for "The Darkening".</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/wc4booklet-thedarkening.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wc4booklet-thedarkeningt.jpg" WIDTH="148" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wc4booklet-thedarkeningt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/wc4uk-thedark.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wc4uk-thedarkt.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wc4uk-thedarkt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>US and European versions of the Wing Commander IV The Darkening advertisement.</I></CENTER></P> <UL> <LI> February 1995 - Preproduction for the film shoot begins. <LI> April 7, 1995 - Draft 5 of the script is completed; it is called "Darkside". <LI> May, 1995 - The film shoot begins. Draft 7 of the script is titled "The Darkening". <LI> July, 1995 - First major press junket (at Pinewood). <LI> November 1, 1995 - Origin issues press release about the film shoot <LI> December 1995 - Wing Commander III engine dropped <LI> February 12 1996 - Wing Commander IV released </UL> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ComputerPlayerVol.2Issue6November1995_0048.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ComputerPlayerVol.2Issue6November1995_0048t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ComputerPlayerVol.2Issue6November1995_0048t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/ComputerGameReview-September1995_0006.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ComputerGameReview-September1995_0006t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/ComputerGameReview-September1995_0006t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A 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HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Joystick063_0040.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick063_0040t.jpg" WIDTH="115" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick063_0040t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Jun161995TheTimes65295UK_0036.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Jun161995TheTimes65295UK_0036t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Jun161995TheTimes65295UK_0036t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/micromania3epoca013_0001.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0001t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0001t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/micromania3epoca013_0020.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0020t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0020t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/micromania3epoca013_0021.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0021t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0021t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/micromania3epoca013_0022.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0022t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0022t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/micromania3epoca013_0023.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0023t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/micromania3epoca013_0023t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/NEXT_Generation_09_0004.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0004t.jpg" WIDTH="112" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0004t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/NEXT_Generation_09_0058.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0058t.jpg" WIDTH="112" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0058t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/NEXT_Generation_09_0076.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0076t.jpg" WIDTH="112" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/NEXT_Generation_09_0076t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2-pc-gamer-september-1995.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2-pc-gamer-september-1995t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2-pc-gamer-september-1995t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PCReview60_0009.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCReview60_0009t.jpg" WIDTH="114" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCReview60_0009t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N037.1995.10-fl0n_0007.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N037.1995.10-fl0n_0007.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N037.1995.10-fl0n_0007.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0045.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0045.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0045.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0046.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0046.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N041.1996.02-fl0n_0046.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pc_home-1995_08_0025.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pc_home-1995_08_0025t.jpg" WIDTH="101" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pc_home-1995_08_0025t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pc_power-issue_019-1995_07_0011.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pc_power-issue_019-1995_07_0011t.jpg" WIDTH="113" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pc_power-issue_019-1995_07_0011t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_29_August_1995_0014.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_29_August_1995_0014t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_29_August_1995_0014t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0003.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0003t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0003t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0045.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0045t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0045t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0046.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0046t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0046t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0047.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0047t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_30_September_1995_0047t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_36_March_1996_0088.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_36_March_1996_0088t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_36_March_1996_0088t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pchome_sept1995_p2a.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pchome_sept1995_p2at.jpg" WIDTH="102" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pchome_sept1995_p2at_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pchome_sept1995_p2b.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pchome_sept1995_p2bt.jpg" WIDTH="102" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pchome_sept1995_p2bt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Player-1995-03_0029.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0029t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0029t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Player-1995-03_0030.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0030t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-03_0030t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Player-1995-08_0005.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-08_0005t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-08_0005t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Player-1995-08_0006.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-08_0006t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Player-1995-08_0006t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-1.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-1t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-2.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-2t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-3.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-3t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-3t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-4.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-4t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-4t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-5.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-5t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-5t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-6.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-6t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-6t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pixPCFormat1095-7.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-7t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pixPCFormat1095-7t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PlaystationPlus05_0020.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PlaystationPlus05_0020t.jpg" WIDTH="113" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PlaystationPlus05_0020t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PowerPlay_10_1995_0009.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay_10_1995_0009t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay_10_1995_0009t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PRO_Igry_4-1996_0022.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PRO_Igry_4-1996_0022t.jpg" WIDTH="99" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PRO_Igry_4-1996_0022t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/TheGamesMachineNo78Settembre1995_0017.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/TheGamesMachineNo78Settembre1995_0017t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/TheGamesMachineNo78Settembre1995_0017t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/the-games-machine-italia-79_0019.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/the-games-machine-italia-79_0019t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/the-games-machine-italia-79_0019t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>A bounty of "The Darkening" preview articles resulting from the July 1995 press junket.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/concept1-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT5.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCEPT5-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT5.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCEPT5-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT6.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCEPT6-2.jpg" WIDTH="190" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT7.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCEPT7-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT8.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCEPT8-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCEPT9.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/concept9-2.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCPT10.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCPT10t.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCPT11.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCPT11t.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCPT12.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCPT12t.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CONCPT14.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CONCPT14t.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2_hughes16.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2_hughes16t.jpg" WIDTH="159" HEIGHT="200"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2_hughes15.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2_hughes15t.jpg" WIDTH="159" HEIGHT="200"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2_hughes17.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2_hughes17t.jpg" WIDTH="159" HEIGHT="200"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Early box explorations for 'The Darkening'.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pDARKLOGO.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pDARKLOGOt.jpg" WIDTH="485" HEIGHT="150" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P><B>Privateer: The Darkening - May to July 1996</B></P> <P>And then, some big changes. Chris Roberts left Origin in May 1996 which effectively ended work on his version of Privateer 2 (the Tracy Hickman storied game). The Darkening's next big press exposure was at E3 1996 where it made a big change as well: it was announced as Privateer: The Darkening. Privateer: The Darkening. Marketing artwork, starting to resemble the final version, was created bearing this name and Origin put out this press release. This came as a massive shock to the Wing Commander community which at this point was familiar with the project from the WC4 announcement but which wasn't particularly engaged with it beyond an interest to see what a beloved developer had put together. Frankly, there were a lot of upcoming space sims in 1996! But now this one was a Wing Commander game and the Usenet and #wing-commander went wild!</P> <blockquote> NEWS RELEASE - Contact Media Relations Department<br> <br> For immediate release<br> Contact: David Swofford or Teresa Potts<br> Origin Media Relations<br> <br> Privateer: The Darkening Debuts at E3<br> <br> Los Angeles, Calf., May 16, 1996 - ORIGIN Systems® takes the Privateer® gaming experience to a new frontier with its first European interactive movie.<br> <br> Privateer: The Darkening creates a new dimension in the Privateer universe by offering SVGA graphics and sophisticated gameplay including several hours of live action video. The Darkening is expected to ship during the holiday season on CD-ROM.<br> <br> Privateer: The Darkening adopts and enhances the superlative gameplay of the original Privateer, ORIGIN's award-winning space exploration/action game which shipped in 1993. Choose for yourself whether you're in the mood to trade goods, be a scout, bounty hunter, escort, courier or reconnaissance agent. Up to 18 different ships and a wide variety of technology upgrades let you decide which ship can carry the advantages and weapons you'll need in your new career. Hire wingmen and cargo ships to help you blaze a trail across the galaxy as you take on hundreds of missions. As in all ORIGIN Interactive Movies you take control of the lead character, in this case Lev Arris (Clive Owen), and guide him through a multitude of adventures and missions. Its Origins most action-packed interactive movie to date!<br> <br> Privateer: The Darkening features a top-of-the-line cast starring noted European actors John Hurt, David Warner, Jurgen Prochnow and Clive Owen, as well as American actor Christopher Walken. Filming for The Darkening took place over a six-week period last summer at the famed Pinewood Studios outside of London.<br> <br> The Storyline<br> <br> Lev Arris awakens from cryogenic storage, a coldsleep that might have lasted for as long as ten years. He was allegedly suffering from a disease for which (10 years ago) there was no cure. His pod has been pulled from the wreckage of a star-freighter called Canera, which was mysteriously attacked by ships of an unknown origin. He has lost his memory and is now faced with rediscovering his identity by interacting with dangerously devious and sinister characters, some of whom are out to kill him. Arris must endure a roller-coaster journey of bribery, corruption, deception and violence. However, the decisions you make will decide his plight.<br> <br> ORIGIN Systems develops and publishes state-of-the-art entertainment software. To date, the company has released more than 50 titles, including the award-winning Ultima, Wing COmander, and Crusader series of games. ORIGIN is based in Austin, Texas, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS).<br> <br> ###<br> <br> ORIGIN, ORIGIN Systems, We Create Worlds, Privateer, and Ultima are registered trademarks and The Darkening, and ORIGIN Interactive Movie are trademarks of ORIGIN Systems, Incl. Electronic Arts is a registered trademark of Electronic Arts Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners. </blockquote> The traditional story is that the change was gradual: first they decided on Privateer: The Darkening and then, with the cancellation of Chris Roberts' Privateer 2 as he left Origin they decided it would be preferable to add the number to this one. It turns out that's not totally true: we've found a copy of the E3 press release that calls the game Privateer 2: The Darkening rather than Privateer: The Darkening. This was obviously a debate that was going on internally at Origin at the time. The release date in this press release was also changed between drafts from October to "the holiday season" before publication. </P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/unused-3-press-release.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/unused-3-press-releaset.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/unused-3-press-releaset_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Draft press release renaming the game Privateer 2: The Darkening for E3 1996. The final version removed the '2'... for now!</I></CENTER></P> <blockquote> Well he helped produce Privateer and so The Darkening is very much like Privateer. I think we may even call it Privateer 2. And, you know, it's going to be very much in the Privateer game format. But a lot better designed and thought out and care taken on the gameplay itself. The characters and story haven't got anything to do with Privateer, though. But it looks really, really cool. So, I think it's going to be out this Christmas. I think it's going to do really well. </blockquote> <P>What we learn here is that the debate over what to name the game was going on for some time before fans had any idea. Most interesting is this clip from a Chris Roberts interview in the June 1996 issue of PC Action. This was most likely shot at ECTS in April before he left Origin and it suggests pretty strongly that he was pushing for the game to be renamed Privateer 2 at that time. Which makes quite a bit of sense: Chris would've wanted to support his brother's project and he was the decider for everything creative and technical about the Wing Commander IP at the time. It wasn't purely a faceless Electronic Arts executive insisting on the change… it was the executives running Origin like Chris Roberts, people whose direction we have always implicitly trusted. (It's also believed that Chris did an uncredited edit on the Privateer 2 intro sequence around this time, again simply to assist his brother's project.)</P> <div class="lazyframe" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JBCiuiEiWtI" data-vendor="youtube"></div> <UL> <LI> April 14 1996 - ECTS; Chris Roberts speaks publicly about possibly renaming the game Privateer 2. <LI>May 1996 - Chris Roberts leaves Origin to found Digital Anvil. <LI>May 16 1996 - E3; Origin announces the game as Privateer: The Darkening </UL> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/privdarkbox.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/privdarkboxt.jpg" WIDTH="119" HEIGHT="150"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>E3 box mockup for 'Privateer: The Darkening' dated May 13, 1996.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/P2LOGO.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/P2LOGOt.jpg" WIDTH="389" HEIGHT="150" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/CG-StrategyPlus-69_0037.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CG-StrategyPlus-69_0037t.jpg" WIDTH="113" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/CG-StrategyPlus-69_0037t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/great_white_hope.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/great_white_hopet.jpg" WIDTH="76" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/great_white_hopet_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/IntelligentGamer1996-07_0033.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/IntelligentGamer1996-07_0033t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/IntelligentGamer1996-07_0033t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0003.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0003t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0003t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0004.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0004t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0004t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0013.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0013t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0013t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0045.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0045t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0045t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0046.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0046t.jpg" WIDTH="109" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC_Zone_42_September_1996_0046t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PCGameParade41_0010.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCGameParade41_0010t.jpg" WIDTH="112" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCGameParade41_0010t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PCGameParade42_0026.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCGameParade42_0026t.jpg" WIDTH="111" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCGameParade42_0026t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PowerPlay1996-10_0005.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0005t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0005t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PowerPlay1996-10_0006.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0006t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0006t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PowerPlay1996-10_0071.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0071t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0071t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PowerPlay1996-10_0073.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0073t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PowerPlay1996-10_0073t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Ultra_Game_Players_89_October_1996_U_0053.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Ultra_Game_Players_89_October_1996_U_0053t.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Ultra_Game_Players_89_October_1996_U_0053t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Joystick074-Page004septembre1996.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick074-Page004septembre1996t.jpg" WIDTH="114" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick074-Page004septembre1996t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Joystick074-Page136septembre1996.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick074-Page136septembre1996t.jpg" WIDTH="115" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Joystick074-Page136septembre1996t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>A collection of "Privateer: The Darkening" preview articles mostly resulting from the 1996 E3 showing.</I></CENTER></P> <P><B>Privateer 2: The Darkening - July to December 1996</B></P> <P>Less than three months later, the powers that be at Origin changed their mind again. An updated version of the E3 press release was posted to Origin's home page retitling the game Privateer 2: The Darkening. Six weeks later, it was shown at ECTS under that name. And in December the game shipped first in Europe and then the United States. </P> <UL> <LI> July 31, 1996 - The game is officially renamed Privateer 2: The Darkening <LI>September 8, 1996 - ECTS; the game is shown as Privateer 2: The Darkening <LI>December 13, 1996 - The game ships in Europe. <LI>December 28, 1996 - The game ships in the United States. </UL> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/p2_hughes18.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/p2_hughes18t.jpg" WIDTH="198" HEIGHT="250"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Early European box mockup for 'Privateer 2: The Darkening'.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/release-date-press-release-1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/release-date-press-release-1t.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/release-date-press-release-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/release-date-press-release-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/release-date-press-release-2t.jpg" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/release-date-press-release-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>Final press release for Europe using the release title.</I></CENTER></P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N030.1995.03-fl0n_0009.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_1.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_1t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_2.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_2t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/cgw_privateer2preview_oct1996_2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaIssue22_0037.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaIssue22_0037t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaIssue22_0037t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0038.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0038t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0038t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0039.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0039t.jpg" WIDTH="116" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/MicromaniaTerceraEpocaSpanishIssue22_0039t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0000.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0000.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0000.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0043.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0043.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0043.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0044.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0044.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0044.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0045.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0045.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0045.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC.Games.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0047.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0047.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PCt_2x.jpg.N049.1996.10-fl0n_0047.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0000.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0000t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0000t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0023.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0023t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0023t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0024.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0024t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0024t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0025.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0025t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0025t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0026.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0026t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0026t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0027.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0027t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0027t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PC-Action1996-09_0029.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0029t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PC-Action1996-09_0029t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pcgamer_october_1996_3.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pcgamer_october_1996_3t.jpg" WIDTH="108" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pcgamer_october_1996_3t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/pcgamer_october_1996_4.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pcgamer_october_1996_4t.jpg" WIDTH="107" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/pcgamer_october_1996_4t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/PlayStationProIssue01_0080.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PlayStationProIssue01_0080t.jpg" WIDTH="103" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/PlayStationProIssue01_0080t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/powerplay_1996october1.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october1t.jpg" WIDTH="106" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/powerplay_1996october2.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october2t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/powerplay_1996october4.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october4t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october4t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/powerplay_1996october5.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october5t.jpg" WIDTH="105" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/powerplay_1996october5t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/SecretService_12_1996_0007.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/SecretService_12_1996_0007t.jpg" WIDTH="103" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/SecretService_12_1996_0007t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P><CENTER><I>A small fleet of "Privateer 2: The Darkening" preview articles mostly resulting from the 1996 ECTS presentation.</I></CENTER></P> <P>What does this all tell us? The simple story that the game was 'The Darkening' and then it became 'Privateer 2' right as it was released is true only in the broadest sense. In the end, the game was in development from idea to release for about thirty months and for fifteen of those it had Privateer in the name. That said, the change happened when only a small amount of the setting had been established and so much of the game was indeed created without thought for it being part of the Wing Commander universe.</P> <P>THAT said, there's no moral to the story, you should decide for yourself how you feel about Privateer 2 and the decision to change its name yourself, understanding that the latter was made without the input of the team that bled to make the game happen. My opinion will always be that Privateer 2 is an incredible game and a worthy addition that expands the Wing Commander universe in some very necessary (if unexpected) directions. At the same time, there's no question in my mind that the internal issues that caused the rift between the Manchester and Austin teams were completely valid… but again, their cause wasn't the team that worked so hard to build the game in the first place.</P> <div id="comments-16849" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16849" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16849" data-threadid="32236"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/10"> <time datetime="2025-03-10">2025.069 (March 10, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16851"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/10/wing-commander-movie-night-run-silent-run-deep">Wing Commander Movie Night: Run Silent, Run Deep</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Wing%20Commander%20Movie%20Night%3A%20Run%20Silent%2C%20Run%20Deep%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16851"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16851&t=Wing%20Commander%20Movie%20Night%3A%20Run%20Silent%2C%20Run%20Deep"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Wing%20Commander%20Movie%20Night%3A%20Run%20Silent%2C%20Run%20Deep%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16851"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Poster.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Postert.jpg" WIDTH="163" HEIGHT="250" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Run_Silent_Run_Deep_1958_Postert_2x.jpg 2x" CLASS="align-right" class="twittercard" CLASS="align-right" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P>The Wing Commander movie club has swung back around from the outer planets to finish Silent Running. This week we're going back to World War II for the 1958 submarine film Run Silent, Run Deep. You can join us <A HREF="https://discord.com/invite/vwKE8Tc">this Friday via Discord</A> to watch along.</P> <div class="lazyframe" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-0ybOUrFqrc" data-vendor="youtube"></div> <P>Run Silent, Run Deep is a 1958 action/war film about an American submarine captain desperately pursuing revenge against the Japanese destroyer captain that sunk his last boat. It stars Burt Lancaster as Clarke Gable as the captain and XO at odds over the battle and alongside the previous year's The Enemy Below helped establish the standard beats for a submarine movie. It was directed by Robert Wise who would go on to helm Star Trek: The Motion Picture and it was also heavily referenced in Star Trek's Balance of Terror.</P> <P>As we discussed last week, Run Silent, Run Deep is almost certainly the movie Chris Roberts meant to reference when he described Wing Commander thusly in the film's initial treatment:</P> <blockquote> Space combat in this universe follows the tradition of naval warfare in the Pacific during WW II. The two opposing sides maneuver around strategic planets and jump points, playing a deadly game of Silent Running-esque cat and mouse, with certain doom to whoever's located first. </blockquote> <P>So we will be looking at the film in a pretty broad sense! It will be especially interesting to see how it establishes a lot of the submarine 'tropes' that Wing Commander will continue to use four decades later. The internal chaos aboard the American submarine is also worth looking at as a prototype the Tiger Claw's embattled warriors. </P> <P><B>Where can I find a copy of the movie for the watch party?</B></P> <P> Run Silent, Run Deep is currently available for free in the US <A HREF="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqjIzyylcoA">on YouTube</A>. It is streaming on several free services including Roku and PlutoTV. You can also download a copy from the <A HREF="https://archive.org/details/run-silent-run-deep-1958-homervision">Internet Archive</A>. It is also currently available for rent or purchase on all the standard services. If you would like a physical copy, the movie was released on Blu-Ray in 2024 and remains in print around the world. If you are not able to locate a copy please stop by <A HREF="https://discord.com/invite/vwKE8Tc">the Discord</A> and ping a CIC staff member before Friday's showing.</P> <P><B>How do we watch the movie together?</B></P> <P>It's pretty low tech! Simply join the <A HREF="https://discord.gg/vwKE8Tc">Wing Commander CIC Discord</A> on Friday and we will be chatting (in text) along with the film in the main channel. Everyone who wants to join in should bring their own copy and we will count down to play them together at 10 PM EST. Everyone is welcome and we encourage you to join in the conversation; sharing your thoughts helps make the experience better for everyone!</P> <div id="comments-16851" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16851" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16851" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/09"> <time datetime="2025-03-09">2025.068 (March 9, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16818"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/09/surprise-uniforms-surface">Surprise Uniforms Surface</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Surprise%20Uniforms%20Surface%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16818"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16818&t=Surprise%20Uniforms%20Surface"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Surprise%20Uniforms%20Surface%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16818"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>A Reddit user named BackpackTwo recently posted something pretty interesting to the <A HREF="https://www.reddit.com/r/Wingcommander/comments/1il5qwt/wing_commander_prophecy_cutscene_props/">r/wingcommander subreddit</A>: a photo of some costumes from Wing Commander Prophecy! They explained: "I worked at Origin in the late 90's around the launch of WC Prophecy so I had a few pieces of memorabilia that i had forgotten about when cleaning out the closets." Lucky person! These are Terran Confederation Navy uniforms worn by Seth Walter as comm officer 1st Lt. Anderson and Mindy Hester as science officer Lt. Commander Finley. A great, high resolution look, especially valuable for anyone interested in making their own costumes!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/wcpuniformsreddit.jpeg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wcpuniformsredditt.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wcpuniformsredditt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/Anderson_and_Finley_VDU.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Anderson_and_Finley_VDUt.jpg" WIDTH="143" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/Anderson_and_Finley_VDUt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16818" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16818" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16818" data-threadid="32235"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/08"> <time datetime="2025-03-08">2025.067 (March 8, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16848"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/08/and-the-winners-are">And the Winners Are...</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=And%20the%20Winners%20Are...%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16848"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16848&t=And%20the%20Winners%20Are..."><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=And%20the%20Winners%20Are...%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16848"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/wc3_enhancementpatch4.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/wc3_enhancementpatch4t.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https:/newestshots/thumb/wc3_enhancementpatch4t_2x.jpg 2x" CLASS="align-right"></A> </div> We may have taken our time to get here this year, but Wingnuts have cast their votes and we now have the winners of our annual fan project contest! We once again had an excellent <A href="/news/2025/02/16/fan-project-vote-kicks-off">slate of nominees</A> but a handful of undertakings rose above the rest. Sometimes we also have so many high achieving projects that it's not clear we have one winner, so we end up with multiple top selections. This year is one of those cases! So without further ado: </P><P> Our first winner for Fan Project of the Year 2024 is <a href="https://wcrespace.com/">WC4 Remastered</a>! Excitement remains high for the fan remake of The Price of Freedom, and the steady drumbeat of comprehensive updates gives Wingnuts high confidence that their patience will be rewarded (in <A href="/news/2025/03/04/wc4-fan-remake-deploys-new-assets-to-the-masa-system">about a year</a>)! </P><P> Our second top spot is taken by the combination of AllTinker's two contenders: <a href="/news/2024/09/05/originator-adds-extraction-features-for-arena-wc4-secret-ops-and-more">Originator</a> and <A href="/news/2024/10/27/new-confederation-fan-mod-features-and-wc1-slowdown-patch-in-the-works">Confederation</a>! The Originator tool is a phenomenal program used far and wide to hack into WC code to learn its secrets and extract assets for modern projects. The Confederation endeavor is quasi-related undertaking that leverages this kind of knowledge to enhance Wing Commander 1 with modern updates while retaining the original charm. <div class="gallery"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/fanprojectoftheyear_winner_2024.png"></A> </div> We try not to overload the winners' circle, but there were two compelling nominees that were neck and neck here as well. First up is Mash's <A href="/news/2024/05/15/new-enhancement-patch-upgrades-wc3-resolution-and-video">WC3 Enhancement Patch</a>! If you haven't tried this yet, you're missing out! After 30 years, Mash finally cracked the code to get The Heart of the Tiger playing in modern high resolutions with the addition of ODVS' high quality movies. Don't miss it! </P><P> Finally, Mac's <A href="/news/2024/09/04/heavy-sabre-profiled-in-impressive-new-lore-video">Lore Videos</a>/<A href="/news/2024/12/21/flight-deck-lighting-gets-a-stylish-upgrade">Art</a> had a very strong showing this year as well! Wingnuts love his comprehensive WC videos, but there's also plenty of wallpapers and other treats sprinkled between the longer form content to keep people excited. <div class="gallery"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/fanprojectoftheyear_runnerup_2024.png"></A> </div> Congratulations to all! And 2025 is already off to a great start, so we can't wait to see what the rest of the year brings! <div id="comments-16848" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/70.gif" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">ChrisReid</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16848" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16848" data-threadid="32232"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article> <article class="news-post" id="16799"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/08/announcing-the-hall-of-fame-winners">Announcing the Hall of Fame Winners</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Announcing%20the%20Hall%20of%20Fame%20Winners%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16799"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16799&t=Announcing%20the%20Hall%20of%20Fame%20Winners"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Announcing%20the%20Hall%20of%20Fame%20Winners%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16799"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/mac_klavs.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/mac_klavst.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https:/newestshots/thumb/mac_klavst_2x.jpg 2x" CLASS="align-right"></A> </div> But wait, there's more! For the first time, we also asked fans to vote this year for the greatest fan projects of all time. We reached back into nearly thirty years of community history to come up with <A href="/news/2025/02/16/fan-project-vote-kicks-off">five</a> worthy contenders. This was a very interesting experiment in nostalgia and recognition, and while every nominee was evocative in its own way, the results speak for themselves: </P><P> Perhaps with little surprise, we are happy to announce our Hall of Fame winner is <A href="/news/2024/05/13">Klavs</a>! It's been not quite a year since Adam Burch's passing, although we can say definitely that this untimely shock was not the reason for his boost in the polls. Rather, his decades of dedicated service to the community and legacy of assets left to the fans make him a clear winner. Once again, Klavs, we salute you. <div class="gallery"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/halloffame_winner_2024.png"></A> </div> We weren't aiming to give a runner up for this, but through the vote tallies and discussions with the community, it became clear that we did have a strong second place award to give. <A href="https://hcl.solsector.net/">HCl</A> is our runner up Hall of Famer! Mario Brito is also a legendary contributor whose programming exploits formed the backbone of the Wing Commander modding and patching scene in the late '90s and 2000s. Projects to this day continue to build on the work he's done. Well deserved here as well! <div class="gallery"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/halloffame_runnerup_2024.png"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16799" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/70.gif" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">ChrisReid</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16799" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16799" data-threadid="32233"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section> <section class="daily-content"> <header> <a href="/news/2025/03/07"> <time datetime="2025-03-07">2025.066 (March 7, 2025)</time> </a> </header> <article class="news-post" id="16841"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/07/reminder-wingnut-movie-night-tonight">Reminder: #Wingnut Movie Night Tonight!</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16841"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16841&t=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=Reminder%3A%20%23Wingnut%20Movie%20Night%20Tonight%21%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16841"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>This is a reminder that we have another fun #Wingnut movie night planned on <A HREF="https://discord.gg/vwKE8Tc">Discord</A> this evening! The ongoing theme will be movies that inspired Wing Commander in some way. Tonight's film is Silent Running (1972) which inspired... maybe nothing in Wing Commander You can find details on that as well as how to watch along with us in <A HREF="/news/2025/02/24/wing-commander-movie-night-alien">the announcement post here</A>. The movie will start about 7 PM PST/10 PM EST but feel free to drop by and hang any time!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/SilentRunningHD.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/SilentRunningHDt.jpg" WIDTH="167" HEIGHT="250" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/SilentRunningHDt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div id="comments-16841" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16841" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16841" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article> <article class="news-post" id="16842"> <h1> <a href="/news/2025/03/07/after-action-report-alien">After Action Report: Alien</a> <span class="permalink">  <a href="https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Alien%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16842"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" title="Share on Bluesky" alt="Share on Bluesky" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcnews.com%2Fnews%2Fupdate%2F16842&t=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Alien"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" title="Share on Facebook" alt="Share on Facebook" width="20" height="20"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/home?status=After%20Action%20Report%3A%20Alien%20https%3A%2F%2Fwcne.ws%2F16842"><img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" title="Share on Twitter" alt="Share on Twitter" width="20" height="20"></a> </span> </h1> <P>Greetings WingNuts,</P> <P>We all love Alien! Is there anyone that doesn't love Alien? It holds up so well today, despite how 'slow' the first half is compared to movies today. But you aren't bored slowly creeping through the Nostromo's empty rooms for minutes and minutes at a time… if anything, the quality of the visual world building around you makes you wish you could stop and look around. And then once the movie gets going, you're in.</P> <P>The biggest connection to Wing Commander is that both Wing Commander II and the Wing Commander movie referred to the Ripley character in adapting Angel. In both cases, it's clear what they were trying to do… but making your love interest a stronger female character doesn't approach Alien's treatment of Ripley as the lead. In the case of Alien, the character wasn't gendered until casting, leaving her the sum of her actions. Wing Commander couldn't really get there!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-ripley-alien.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-alient.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-alient_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-ripley-wc2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-wc2t.jpg" WIDTH="240" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-wc2t_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-ripley-wcm.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-wcmt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-ripley-wcmt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>Here's John Hurt as Kane in Alien and as Joe (Kane!) in Privateer 2: The Darkening. Despite the seventeen years between the two roles he's effortlessly charming in both.</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-kane-alien.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-kane-alient.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-kane-alient_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-kane-priv.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-kane-privt.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-kane-privt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>Of course, we've also got the famous seats! Ron Cobb designed these acceleration seats for the Nostromo's bridge and then the Wing Commander II team… borrowed… the design for all of the rear cockpit views!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-seats-alien-1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-alien-1t.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-alien-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-seats-alien-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-alien-2t.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-alien-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-seats-wca.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-wcat.jpg" WIDTH="240" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-seats-wcat_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>But that's not the only piece of Ron Cobb art Wing Commander borrowed: Privateer's Galaxy freighter is a tribute to Cobb's Nostromo. The ship is often obscured in the final film…</P> <P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-nostromo-alien-1.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-1t.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-1t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-nostromo-alien-2.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-2t.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-2t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-nostromo-alien-3.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-3t.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-alien-3t_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>... but looking at the original concept art makes the connection pretty clear!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-nostromo-cobb.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-cobbt.jpg" WIDTH="256" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-cobbt_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-nostromo-privateer.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-privateert.jpg" WIDTH="240" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-nostromo-privateert_2x.jpg 2x" class="twittercard"></A> </div> <P>Alien also created visuals that are 'tropes' today, imitated unconsciously countless tiems. A little example: the alien being 'spaced' at the end of the film is the standard for something being thrown out an airlock. Here it is in the first episode of Wing Commander Academy!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-eject-alien.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-eject-alient.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-eject-alient_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-eject-wca.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-eject-wcat.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-eject-wcat_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>The Wing Commander movie's official magazine features Peter Lamont talking a little bit about how H.R. Giger's biomechanical sets (seen in Alien on the space jockey derelict) was both an influence and something to specifically avoid for the Kilrathi ship sets. In the final movie, you see so little of them as to make it hard to compare!</P> <blockquote> As the plot evolved, they became more bionic, or bio-mechanical, though not as much as H.R. Giger's stuff. These were different creatures, not oxygen breathers; they lived in an atmosphere of green mist. Their controls aren't screens but long slits of moving lights which look almost cat-like."<br> <br> Although the word "bio-mechanical" has been used over the years to describe countless ALIEN knock-offs, Lamont was careful not to fall into that trap with the Kilrathi sets. "Look at Giger's work, like the early ALIEN, and you'll find a lot of repetition [in other films]. We wanted to keep away from that. These ship interiors looked almost like entrails, and the set decorators had a great time creating it." </blockquote> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-biomechanical-alien.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-biomechanical-alient.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-biomechanical-alient_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-biomechanical-wc.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-biomechanical-wct.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-biomechanical-wct_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <P>And then there's the alien itself! It would be a stretch (well, a lie) to say that Alien's magnificent creature inspired Wing Commander's rubber Kilrathi… but Alien did inspire the final edit of the Kilrathi which sought to follow in that film's footsteps by reducing the amount you actually see the Kilrathi to simple flashes until the climax. Wing Commander was shot with multiple cutaways to the Kilrathi planning their attack and that was all dropped in the hopes of making the awkward costumes seem scary. Alien had pioneered this but it wasn't to hide a faulty creature… they had a perfect life form and they knew how to present it!</P> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-alien-alien.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-alien-alient.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-alien-alient_2x.jpg 2x"></A> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-alien-wc.png"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-alien-wct.jpg" WIDTH="267" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-alien-wct_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <div class="gallery"> <A HREF="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/alien-sully.jpg"><IMG SRC="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-sullyt.jpg" WIDTH="113" HEIGHT="150" SRCSET="https://cdn.wcnews.com/newestshots/thumb/alien-sullyt_2x.jpg 2x"></A> </div> <CENTER><P><I>Sully is glad that Ripley rescued Jonesy. Although he also kind of looks like the alien.</I></P></CENTER> <div id="comments-16842" class="container-comments"></div> <footer> <div class="outer"> <div class="author-avatar"> <img class="news-author-avatar" src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/avatars/5.png" alt="author avatar"/> </div> <div class="author-info"> <a href="mailto:news@wcnews.com">LOAF</a> </div> <div id="comment-count-16842" class="comment-bubble discuss-link" data-updateid="16842" data-threadid="0"> Comment on this </div> </div></footer> </article></section><div id="archive-links">All news for March 2025 can be found <a href="/news/2025/03">here</a>.<BR/>Older news can be found in the <a href="/news">archive</a>.</div>   </div> <div id="m_right">  <section id="search"> <a href="/news/search"><h1>Search News</h1></a> <form class="content" action="/news/search" method="POST"> <input id="search_keywords" type="text" name="keywords" placeholder="Search..."><input id="search_button" type="submit" value="🔍"/> <div id="search_advanced"><a href="/news/search" title="Advanced search">advanced</a></div> </form> </section> <section id="social"> <a href="/contact.shtml"><h1>Follow or Contact Us</h1></a> <div class="content"> <a href="https://discord.gg/vwKE8Tc"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/4180408_discord_squircle_icon.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="Discord" title="Discord chat with staff and fans"> </a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@WingCommanderCIC"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986962_youtube_icon.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="YouTube" title="Follow us on YouTube"> </a> <a href="https://www.twitter.com/wccic"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986958_twitter_icon.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="Twitter" title="Follow us on Twitter"> </a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WingCommanderCIC"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/986944_facebook_icon.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="Facebook" title="Follow us on Facebook"> </a>  <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/wcnews.com"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/bluesky_icon.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="Bluesky" title="Follow us on Bluesky"> <a href="/contact.shtml"> <img src="https://cdn.wcnews.com/design/images/buttons/2569496_email_icon_s.svg" height="32" width="32" alt="E-mail" title="Contact the staff & FAQ"> </a>   </div> </section>  <section id="awc"> <a href="/all-wings-considered"><h1>All Wings Considered</h1></a> <div class="content"> <span class="awcheader">Episode 37 - 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