Wing Commander III Demo (3DO)

Wing Commander III Demo
Platform	3DO
Engine	RealSpace
Release Date	January 31, 1995
Language	English

Wing Commander III Demo is a playable demo of the 3DO port of Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger. The demo consists of a trailer for Wing Commander III followed by a playable mission. The interactive section starts in gameflow on the Victory's flight deck. It allows you to travel to Flight Control and talk to Ralgha nar Hhallas before attending the Orsini 1 briefing. The briefing is followed by wingman selection and the option to play the initial conversation with Rachel Coriolis. The gameflow section does not include transition scenes or launch scenes. The video player is closer to the one used in the PC release than the final 3DO version. Once the mission starts, the player has five minutes to complete it and land on the Victory or it will end automatically. Much of the content of the demo, including the mission layout, is significantly different from the final release and a number of features are not present or not complete. The demo ends with a card displaying a list of features that will be included in the final game.

The demo was released on January 31, 1995 as part of The 3DO Interactive Sampler CD #3. The CD was available at retail or directly from The 3DO Company for an MSRP of $4.95. It was packaged in a folded slipcover that contained a short manual. The disc included demos and trailers for several other games. In Europe it was released in a jewel case as The 3DO Multi Game Sampler Volume 3. The packaging for the European release incorrectly indicates that the demo is just "Viewable" (i.e., a trailer); this misinformation is routinely repeated online.

Controls

On the Victory, the shift keys (L and R) cycle between activation points.

Fire Guns	C
Fire Missiles	A
Cycle Guns	L+C
Cycle Missiles	L+A
Cycle Targets	R+A
Autopilot	R+C
Roll Left	B + ←
Roll Right	B + →
Increase Speed	B + ↑
Decrease Speed	B + ↓
Afterburner	L + R
Toggle Cockpit	PAUSE + B
Break and Attack	PAUSE + ↑
Request Landing	PAUSE + ↓
Taunt	PAUSE + →

Cheats

R + B activates the 'finger of death' and destroys a targeted enemy.

Differences

Note that this section compares the demo to the 3DO port rather than the PC release where the two differ.

• The video player is different, much more similar to the one used in the original PC release.
• The font used for gameflow selections is different.
• The control scheme used does not match the one in the final game.
• The Hellcat has a top speed of 500 kps and an afterburner speed of 760 kps. It carries a pair of mass drivers, 4 Dumb Fires and 6 Heat Seekers.
• Darket spawn with low shields. The Darket carry two red guns and at least one heat seeking missile.
• Damaged and destroyed ships generate a different type of grey wreckage.
• The mission layout is different from the final 3DO version featuring 10 Kilrathi ships instead of 6.
• The Victory's three escorts are labeled 'Exeter' instead of their final names.
• The skybox has significantly more nebulae, galaxies, etc.
• The graphic used for the Hellcat overlay is different.
• The Hellcat UI is different including the shield indicators, the text used for datareadouts and the startup animations.

Screenshots

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Physical Release

The 3DO Interactive Sampler CD #3

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Copy

TEASE YOURSELF with these samples of eleven brain-frying 3DO titles. Hunt aliens in a three-dimensional city in PO'ed. Scramble a British Harrier jet in Flying Nightmares. Search for the golden tile in Shanghai: Triple-Threat. Break formation with your wingmen to attack Kilrathi fighters in Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger. And when you're done, you can make your way back to the store for the complete titles.

Wing Commander III®: Heart of the Tiger™ by ORIGIN Systems

In Wing Commander III, you direct the action, control the plot, and even determine the ending. The exciting space combat keeps pace with the movie style of the story with multiple camera angles, realistic synthetic sets and explosive sound. More than 3 hours of live-action video and 50 pulse-pounding missions. Incredible sound effects in full stereo Dolby Surround® sound. Select your ship and load out from an arsenal of weapons. Starring Mark Hamill, Wilson, Ginger Lynn Allen, and Malcolm McDowell as "Tolwyn".

The 3DO Multi Game Sampler Volume 3

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Manual

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Text

Wing Commander III®: Heart of the Tiger™ by ORIGIN Systems

A - Fire Missiles
C - Fire Guns
L-Shift + A - Switch missiles
L-Shift + C - Switch guns
R-Shift + A - Autopilot
R-Shift + C - Cycle targets
B + D-Pad L/R - Roll left or right
B + D-Pad Up/Down - Change Speed
To communicate in flight, press Play with the Directional Pad. P + D-Pad Up will order your wingmen to break attack. P + D-Pad Right to taunt your enemy. P + D-Pad Down to request a landing on the Victory.
On the Victory, the Shift keys cycle between activation points.

Mission Layout

Wing Commander III Demo
Fighter	Hellcat V
Wingmen	Ralgha nar Hhallas

Location	#	Faction	Ships	Notes
Victory	3	Confederation	Southampton (Exeter)	friendly
	1	Confederation	Yorktown (Victory)	friendly
Sweep 1	2	Kilrathi	Darket	wave one
	2	Kilrathi	Darket	wave two
Sweep 2	2	Kilrathi	Darket
	1	Kilrathi	Dukara (Lumbari)
Sweep 3	3	Kilrathi	Darket

Stellar Objects

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Music

There is no gameplay music in the demo.

Characters

Does not include the trailer contents.

Speaking

• Captain William Eisen
• Lt. Colonel Ralgha "Hobbes" nar Hhallas
• 1st Lieutenant Ted "Radio" Rollins
• Chief Petty Officer Rachel Coriolis
• Unnamed Kilrathi pilot

Non-Speaking

• TCS Victory pilots

Ships

Does not include the trailer contents.

Terran Confederation=

• Hellcat V
• F-27 Arrow V
• R-Type Shuttle
• Southampton ("Exeter")
• Yorktown ("Victory")

Empire of Kilrah

• Darket
• Dukara ("Lumbari")

How to Play

The disc image will load in a 3DO emulator like Phoenix.

Download

• WC33DODemo.zip: ISO of 3DO Interactive Sampler CD #3 (348 M)