BREAKING NEWS: Wing Commander III on Origin (June 11, 2014)

Bandit LOAF

Bandit LOAF

Long Live the Confederation!
GOG is no longer the only place you can purchase classic Wing Commander titles for the PC! Electronic Arts has added the original PC version of Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger to their unfortunately-named "Origin" digital distribution service. WC3 runs $4.99 and can be purchased online here. Eight of the nine numerical Ultima titles are also available (VII is missing.)

The release comes as a surprise, as EA had previously opted to license the Wing Commander series to GOG instead of continuing development of a system for classic titles on Origin. Note that the release date is incorrect; Wing Commander III shipped in November, 1994 and not March. WC3 is also not eligible for Origin's "Great Game Guarantee"... but trust us, this one is worthwhile!

Thanks to Joe for the report! Here's to hoping this is only the beginning for a wider release of Wing Commander digital titles.

Adrenaline, romance, humor, danger - Wing Commander III has all this and more

Professionally scripted and filmed in Hollywood, ORIGIN's multi-million dollar production combines the entertainment of film-making with the interactivity of computer gaming. The result is far more than an action packed and spectacular spaceflight experience.

Become immersed in a futuristic adventure that combines Hollywood's movie making expertise with the adrenaline-pumping game play of a space combat simulation. You are the star, your actions will determine the eventual outcome of the Terran Confederation. Adrenaline, romance, humor, danger - Wing Commander III has all this and more.

This sequel completes the turbulent chronicles of the Terran-Kilrathi war. The final showdown is near and only you can write the ending.
Click to expand...












--
Original update published on June 11, 2014
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Interesting...

If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would speculate that this is a step towards getting WC back on the radar, with a view to launching a new title sometime in the future.
 
Well, I guess they want to squeeze some money out of SC. People come to SC and don't know WC, so some of them want to play it. Money for nothing.
 
FredDude32 said:
Is this a Dos version with Dosbox installed or is it a Windows conversion?
Click to expand...
Their listed system specs seem a little high for a windows version so I'm would guess it's a Dosbox pack-in. Has anyone bought it from Origin yet? (That feels like such a weird question)
 
dosbox typically doesn't use a graphics card, there is a direct draw renderer, but it doesn't have to be standard. Directx is only in some non standard builds. Even then I don't think it really uses the graphics card unless it's some non standard build with shaders.

That being said, it could just be not actually true and only because they have to list something for graphics card. So they put something incredibly basic.
 
Last edited:
Not a fan of Origin myself. They always struck me as a "me too" sort of service, and no where as useful as steam or gog. At least with Gog I get a copy not tied to some DRM. Though if it is indeed just a dosbox-packin (I'd be surprised if they actually put any money/effort to do anything else), I guess that wouldn't be too much of an issue.
 
This is an unexpected surprise. A pity they did not start with Wing Commander 1 + 2. I'd expect 4, Prophecy and Privateer 2 to follow. GoG and EA can't get the original release date right for WC3.

1.81GB Download, 1.79GB Installed.
Definately DOS BOX.
Appears to be exactly same release as GOG.com, warts and all. Subtitles enabled by default.

Extras:
PDF Playguide (Manual)

GOG.com is the superior version for just having all the additional extras and probably works out that little bit cheaper too. And for not having any DRM.
 
I just have a concern, If too many people buy it on origin, legitimizing that people don't care about DRM with old titles, wouldn't it be possible EA would consider pulling their library from GOG and putting it on their own origin service.
 
Hi everyone,

I'm Joe and the one who shared this discovery with the staff last night (thanks for the kudos LOAF!). I bought it today (even though I already have the GOG version) and it is indeed DOS Box (lite version possibly). A big difference is it seems far better configured from the get-go as I do not experience the flickering movie issue like the GOG one and I've never been able to correct it. Word of warning though, it is not eligible for their great game guarantee so if you have an issue, you'll be S.O.L.
 
Gimpy said:
I bought it today (even though I already have the GOG version) and it is indeed DOS Box (lite version possibly). A big difference is it seems far better configured from the get-go as I do not experience the flickering movie issue like the GOG one and I've never been able to correct it.
Click to expand...

I agree that it seems to be a particularly well-configured DOSBox setup. Runs very slick and smooth here.

wcnut said:
I just have a concern, If too many people buy it on origin, legitimizing that people don't care about DRM with old titles, wouldn't it be possible EA would consider pulling their library from GOG and putting it on their own origin service.
Click to expand...

I don't think we should ever be worried about too many people buying a Wing Commander game and that being a bad thing. :) If you read the documentation that comes with the Origin WC3, it actually mentions other 3rd party digital resellers and even disc based installs. So if anything, if this sells well on Origin, they've set themselves up to sell it in more places, not less.

wcnut said:
Not a fan of Origin myself. They always struck me as a "me too" sort of service, and no where as useful as steam or gog. At least with Gog I get a copy not tied to some DRM. Though if it is indeed just a dosbox-packin (I'd be surprised if they actually put any money/effort to do anything else), I guess that wouldn't be too much of an issue.
Click to expand...

I was actually surprised how slick the Origin interface is these days. It's actually even easier to download and install than GOG (the install being completely invisible once you download it through the My Games page). And like you mention, the "DRM" isn't built into the game at all. If you uninstall Origin, the 1.8 gigs of WC3 files are all retained on your machine, and you can simply drop in a fresh dosbox.exe and it'll still run with their nice preset configs and everything.
 
Did anyone know, how I can change the soundsetup? Looks they not using MPU-401. In the GOG Version I can change the settings in the old Install setup. But here?
 
The Origin WC3 defaults to 'Roland MT-32 or LAPC-1'. You can change the settings by going into the dosbox.conf file located in your Origin WC3 install folder (defaults to C:\Program Files\Origin Games\Wing Commander III\Game\Game\DOSBox). Scroll down to the [autoexec] section and add a " -i" with the space and without the quotation marks after wc3.exe. Then save, launch the game and it'll launch into the game's installer. Delete the -i and save to launch the game normally.
 
Now also Wing 2, 4 and Privateer goes to Origin:

https://www.origin.com/de-de/store/buy/wing-commander-2-origin/pc-download/base-game/standard-Edition
https://www.origin.com/de-de/store/buy/wing-commander-iv-the-price-of-freedom/pc-download/base-game/standard-Edition
https://www.origin.com/de-de/store/...vateer/pc-download/base-game/standard-Edition

I don't know if you come to the US sites of Origin. German pay the 4,99 as Euro. Thats about 6,75 Dollar. Don't know if Wing 2 and Privateer has the Addon Disc or CD Version.
 
Looking back into the horrors of Google Groups, Wing Commander III was advertised as supporting LA MIDI (MT-32, CM-32, LAPC-I, etc.) Despite that, I don't think the game actually does... the music was certainly composed for General MIDI (SCC-1, SC-55, etc.)
 
Was it? I have an MT-32 and an LAPC-I and love what they do (early Wing Commander, Sierra games)... but the GS MIDI stuff (SC-55 Mk.2 and a RAP-10) seems so much more sophisticated to my untrained ears. Maybe just the change in composers? (The drums in Privateer on the -55 just sound so much more complex than anything I've heard on the MT-32.)

And a slight update; the WC3 box does, indeed, promise MT-32 support.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top