Star Wars: TIE Fighter | |
---|---|
Developer(s) | Totally Games |
Publisher(s) | LucasArts |
Designer(s) | Lawrence Holland Edward Kilham |
Composer(s) | Peter McConnell |
Series | Star Wars: X-Wing |
Platform(s) | DOS, Macintosh, Microsoft Windows |
Release | 20 July 1994 [1] |
Genre(s) | Space simulation |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Star Wars: TIE Fighter is a 1994 Star Wars space flight simulator and space combat video game, a sequel in the Star Wars: X-Wing series. It places the player in the role of an Imperial starfighter pilot during events that occur between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi .
The game was produced by Lawrence Holland and Edward Kilham's Totally Games studio. Based on X-Wing's game engine, TIE Fighter supports Gouraud shading and adds gameplay features and craft not available in X-Wing. TIE Fighter was updated and re-released several times, and it was a critical success. It is considered by some critics to be among the greatest video games of all time.
The game's plot begins soon after the Empire's victory on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back. As with X-Wing, the player's character is unnamed in the game; however, an included novella and Prima Publishing's strategy guide name the character Maarek Stele and provide a background narrative. In addition to fighting Rebel Alliance forces, the player fights pirates, combatants in a civil war, and traitorous Imperial forces. The original game ends with the player preventing a coup against Emperor Palpatine and being personally rewarded during a large ceremony. Subsequent expansions focus on Grand Admiral Thrawn's efforts to stop an Imperial traitor; the final mission of the second expansion concludes just before the climactic battle at the end of Return of the Jedi. Though playing on the side of the Star Wars saga's villain, the game presents Imperial forces as maintainers of peace and order in a tumultuous galaxy, which was reinforced as the player character mostly serves under the tactical genius Thrawn rather than the terrifying Darth Vader.
The storyline is divided across thirteen tours of duty (seven in the original game and three in each of the expansion packs), each of which has four to eight missions. Although some of the tours can be played out of order, individual missions within each battle are played linearly. Mission briefings and debriefings, cutscenes, and in-flight communication advance the story.
After selecting a pilot file, the player views the "concourse", a hub with doors to different features of the game. While the main focus of gameplay is completing battles, the concourse also offers several other areas. The training simulator lets the player fly each of the pilotable Imperial craft through a complex obstacle course. The combat chamber offers four extra missions for each craft, ranging from training scenarios to historical reenactments of important missions. There is also a room to view mission recordings, and a tech room to view information about every spacecraft that appears in the game. [2] When the player selects a mission, they are given a briefing, consisting of a dialog describing the mission and an animated map illustrating vessel positions and basic flight patterns. The player may optionally read a list questions and answers about the mission. [2]
In addition to the standard mission briefing covering primary objectives, there is often another briefing given by a mysterious figure who belongs to the Emperor's Inner Circle. This person informs the pilot of optional secondary objectives and provides additional plot information. Completing the primary objectives allows the player to progress to the next mission and earn Imperial military promotion; completing secondary and secret objectives garners additional medals and promotions within the inner circle. [3]
In-flight gameplay is similar to X-Wing, played primarily in first-person but with the option to switch to third-person. All flight takes place in space; the player does not encounter gravity or atmospheric effects. Mission roles including dogfighting, escorting or disabling other craft, inspecting vehicles, and attacking capital ships and space stations. Initial missions place the player in unshielded TIE fighter variants; as the game progresses, the player gains access to advanced fighters with shields and better armaments. [4]
Laser cannons and ion cannons serve as short range weapons, damaging or disabling targets respectively. Some starfighters carry limited number of missiles or torpedoes for additional range/firepower. As with X-Wing, the player needs to balance power allocation between weapons, engines, and shields (when available); some craft also require the player to further balance power for a beam weapon (a tractor beam which can prevent enemy fighters from maneuvering temporarily, or a jamming beam which can disrupt the defensive fire of enemy capital ships). The player can also change the firing modes of their fighter's weapons (for example, having a pair of laser cannons fire together or alternately). If the ship possesses shields, the player chooses the shield balance between front and rear.
Shields are rechargeable; they protect from damage but are depleted when absorbing damage. When the player's craft is unshielded, enemy fire will damage the player's hull. Hull damage can disable systems, such as the engines or targeting computer. Disabled systems will slowly be repaired; TIE Fighter allows the player to choose the order in which systems are repaired. Hull damage may also cause cockpit displays to break, rendering them useless for the remainder of the mission. Heavy hull damage will destroy the player's spacecraft. When the player's craft is destroyed before completing a mission, or the mission is otherwise a failure, the player can attempt the mission again. However, the mission is still successful if the player's craft is destroyed after all primary mission objectives are completed.
While based upon X-Wing, TIE Fighter does introduce several gameplay additions. [5] The targeting system allows players to target capital ships' and space stations' components, such as shield generators and weapons. Additionally, the targeting display shows a 3D model and relative orientation of the player's target. Mission objective status is accessible in-game, as is a log of in-flight messages.
The music for Star Wars: TIE Fighter was composed by Clint Bajakian and contains many of John Williams' themes from the original trilogy. However, many motifs (such as "The Imperial March" motifs) which were originally composed as dark motifs are used as heroic motifs. This is consistent with the theme of the game where the player plays as an Imperial TIE Fighter pilot working for the villainous Galactic Empire.
The in-game music played during flight sequences (missions) uses the iMuse game engine. The soundtrack uses leitmotifs to vary the music played during missions in reaction to the actions of the player or other mission events. For example, a special motif is played when player achieves a victory, when the mission is failed, when secondary or bonus goals or completed, when an Imperial or Rebel capital ship exits hyperspace, etc. This mirrors the use of leitmotifs in the original film music, while also varying the music sequence every mission.
LucasArts offered a pre-release demo on two floppy disks bundled with Computer Gaming World . The single-mission demo, sponsored by Dodge and featuring an ad for the Dodge Neon, advertises a spring 1994 TIE Fighter release. However, TIE Fighter was not released until July later that year: leaked by software pirates early in the month, with the official release on the 20th; [1] 17 months after X-Wing's debut. The Defender of the Empire expansion, which adds three battles, came out soon thereafter. Later that year, LucasArts released a Collector's CD-ROM version of X-Wing using TIE Fighter's updated graphics engine.
In 1995, TIE Fighter also received a Collector's CD-ROM. The CD-ROM version offered optional enhanced SVGA graphics, increasing the game's resolution from 320x200 to 640x480. [3] The cinematic cutscenes were also enhanced, and the game received numerous voiceovers. The CD-ROM includes the previously released Defender of the Empire expansion and an additional Enemies of the Empire expansion. This CD-ROM also added support for gameplay under Mac OS 8 and Mac OS 9.
TIE Fighter is part of the 1998 X-Wing Collector Series, which also includes updated versions of X-Wing and a pared-down version of X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter . This version drops DOS support, installing only under Windows 9x. TIE Fighter and X-Wing use the X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter flight engine, which adds 3D-accelerated graphics and texture mapping. The MIDI-based interactive soundtrack used in previous versions is replaced by looped Red Book audio recordings of John Williams' Star Wars score. [3] This version also requires a joystick; previously, players could use a mouse and keyboard. This version was later bundled with the X-Wing Trilogy, which includes X-Wing and X-Wing Alliance .
On October 28, 2014, TIE Fighter along with X-Wing were released digitally for the first time on GOG.com. Both the original DOS and Windows editions were included, with updates to run on modern PCs. [6]
Publication | Score |
---|---|
Computer Gaming World | 5/5 [7] |
GameSpot | 8.8 [5] |
Next Generation | [8] |
Macworld | [9] |
Publication | Award |
---|---|
CGW | "Hall of Fame" [10] |
GameSpot | "Greatest Games of All Time" (2004) [11] |
IGN | "Top 25 PC Games of All Time" #3 (2007) [12] |
IGN | "Hall of Fame" (2007) [13] |
IGN | "Top 25 PC Games of All Time" #2 (2009) [14] |
PC Gamer | "50 Best Games of All Time" #1 (1997) [15] |
Strategy Plus | "Best Game of the Year" (1994) [7] |
Gamebytes Magazine gave the original release its "very highest recommendation", citing numerous improvements over X-Wing. The reviewer called the graphics "astonishing" and noted improved artificial intelligence and in-flight information systems. The review's "single complaint" was the lackluster ending. [2] Edge praised many of the graphic and gameplay enhancements and new features over X-Wing, but described the missions as repetitive and complained the game loses appeal when the player isn't fighting for the underdog Rebellion. [4] GameSpot 's review of the Collector's CD-ROM Edition called TIE Fighter "the best space combat game ever made" and praised the updated graphics. [5]
Macworld's Michael Gowan summarized TIE Fighter as a "great game" that offers the "action of a World War II dogfight". [9]
Next Generation reviewed the Macintosh version of the game, rating it three stars out of five, and stated that "TIE Fighter, like the movies, isn't really at the cutting edge, but both still offer more depth and considered design than many young razzle-dazzlers." [8]
TIE Fighter was named the best "Fantasy Simulation" and best overall computer game of 1994 by Computer Games Strategy Plus , [16] while the editors of PC Gamer US declared it the year's top action game and "the best space-combat simulation ever created." It was a runner-up for the latter magazine's overall "Game of the Year" award, which went to Doom . [17] Similarly, Computer Gaming World nominated TIE Fighter in its "Action Game of the Year" and "Game of the Year" categories, but gave these prizes to Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger and X-COM: UFO Defense , respectively. [18]
In 1996, Computer Gaming World declared TIE Fighter the 56th-best computer game ever released. [19] TIE Fighter became the second Lawrence Holland game to be inducted into Computer Gaming World 's "Hall of Fame" [10] and was inducted into GameSpot 's "Greatest Games of All Time" in July 2004 [11] and IGN's "Hall of Fame" in 2007. [13] In 1996, GamesMaster rated the game 66th on its "Top 100 Games of All Time." [20]
PC Gamer US named Tie Fighter Collector's CD-ROM the "Best CD-ROM Enhancement" of 1995. The editors called it "an enhanced CD-ROM version that comes close to being a whole new game, and is well worth having even if you've already got the original TIE Fighter." [21] The magazine ranked the Collector's CD-ROM Edition #1 in its "Top 50 Greatest Games of All Time" list in May 1997. [15] It was ranked #3 on IGN's list of the top 25 PC games of all time in 2007 and #2 in 2009. [12] [14] The game was recognized again by IGN in 2010 when it was named the "best Star Wars game ever made". [22]
In 1998, PC Gamer declared the TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROM the 4th-best computer game ever released, and the editors called it "Now updated and looking better than ever [...] TIE Fighter is still an untarnished classic". [23]
In 1996 Next Generation ranked TIE Fighter and Star Wars: X-Wing collectively as number 23 on their "Top 100 Games of All Time", citing the graphics, sound effects, flight engine, and the sense of accomplishment after finishing a mission. [24]
Maarek Stele from the Prima Publishing strategy guide later appears as a TIE Advanced [25] and TIE Defender [26] pilot in the Star Wars: X-Wing miniatures game produced by Fantasy Flight Games.
Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance is a 1999 space simulation video game, the sequel to both Star Wars: TIE Fighter and Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter. X-Wing Alliance presents the story of the Azzameen family, a family of space traders. The player assumes the role of Ace Azzameen, the youngest of the Azzameen children, juggling military duty as a fighter pilot for the Rebel Alliance, and allegiance to his family, flying larger heavily armed freighters for the family business, amid a bloody family feud and in the larger context of a galactic civil war. It received favorable reviews.
Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter is a 1997 space combat game developed by Totally Games for LucasArts. It is the third installment of the X-Wing series.
Star Wars: Dark Forces is a first-person shooter video game developed and published by LucasArts. It was released in 1995 for MS-DOS and Macintosh, and in 1996 for the PlayStation. The story is set in the fictional Star Wars expanded universe and begins shortly before the original Star Wars film, before flashing forward to a year after the film's events. The game's protagonist and playable character is Kyle Katarn, a mercenary working on behalf of the Rebel Alliance who discovers the Galactic Empire's secret Dark Trooper Project, which involves the development of a series of powerful new battle droids and power-armored stormtroopers.
Strike Commander is a combat flight simulation video game designed by Chris Roberts and released by Origin Systems for the PC DOS in 1993. Its 3D graphics-engine used both gouraud shading and texture-mapping on both aircraft-models and terrain, an impressive feat at the time. Significant plot elements were presented through in-game cut-scene animations, a hallmark storytelling vehicle from Chris Robert's previous Wing Commander games. Strike Commander has been called "Privateer on Earth", due to the mercenary role-playing in the game.
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron is a series of Star Wars action video games jointly developed by LucasArts and Factor 5 and published by LucasArts for Nintendo consoles. Aspyr has expressed interest in bringing the series to the Nintendo Switch.
Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader is a flight action game co-developed by Factor 5 and LucasArts and is the second of the Rogue Squadron series. It was published by LucasArts and released as a launch title for the GameCube in North America on November 18, 2001, Europe on May 3, 2002, and Australia on May 17, 2002. Set in the fictional Star Wars galaxy, the game spans all three original trilogy Star Wars films. The player controls either Luke Skywalker or Wedge Antilles. As the game progresses, Skywalker, Antilles and the Rebel Alliance fight the Galactic Empire in ten missions across various planets.
Over one hundred video games based on the Star Wars franchise have been released, dating back to some of the earliest home consoles. Some are based directly on films while others rely heavily on the Star Wars Expanded Universe.
Star Wars: Rebel Assault is a 1993 rail shooter video game developed and published by LucasArts for DOS, Macintosh, Sega CD and 3DO Interactive Multiplayer systems, set in the Star Wars universe. It is the first CD-ROM-only game to be published by LucasArts. The game's story focuses on a young pilot called Rookie One as they are trained by, and subsequently fights for, the Rebel Alliance in the Galactic Civil War.
Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire is a 1995 video game developed by LucasArts. It is the sequel to Star Wars: Rebel Assault, set in the Star Wars expanded universe. It is played as a rail shooter; the player proceeds down predetermined paths, but has the ability to control aiming, shooting, and dodging. The player character, Rookie One, pilots ships such as a YT-1300 Corellian Transport, a B-wing, and a Y-wing, and encounters new enemy ships, including TIE Interceptors. They uncover, and eventually disable production of, a new TIE variant known as the TIE Phantom, which has the ability to cloak.
Star Wars: X-Wing is a space simulation video game, the first of the X-Wing combat flight simulation games series. The player's character flies starfighters, including the X-wing, for the Rebel Alliance. The narrative precedes and parallels the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
Terminal Velocity is a shooter video game originally developed by Terminal Reality and published by 3D Realms for DOS and Windows 95, and MacSoft for Mac OS. It is an arcade-style flight combat game, with simpler game controls and physics than flight simulators. It is known for its fast, high-energy action sequences, compared to flight simulators of the time.
Aces of the Pacific is a combat flight simulation game developed by Dynamix for MS-DOS compatible operating systems and published by Sierra On-Line in 1992. The game takes place during World War II. Players can choose to play a single mission or a career path in United States Army Air Forces, United States Navy, United States Marines, Imperial Japanese Army, or Imperial Japanese Navy. Dynamix followed-up the game with Aces Over Europe in 1993.
Wing Commander is the first game in Chris Roberts' space flight simulation Wing Commander franchise by Origin Systems. The game was first released for MS-DOS on September 26, 1990, and was later ported to the Amiga, CD32 (256-color), Sega CD and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and re-released for the PC as Wing Commander I in 1994. An enhanced remake Super Wing Commander was made for the 3DO in 1994, and later ported to the Macintosh.
Wing Commander: Prophecy is the fifth installment in the Wing Commander science fiction space combat simulator franchise of computer games. The game was released in 1997 for Windows, produced by Origin Systems and distributed by Electronic Arts. In 2003, a Game Boy Advance conversion with added multiplayer was produced by Italy-based Raylight Studios and distributed by Destination Software.
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron is an arcade-style flight action game co-developed by Factor 5 and LucasArts. The first of three games in the Rogue Squadron series, it was published by LucasArts and Nintendo and released for Microsoft Windows and Nintendo 64 in December 1998. The game's story was influenced by the Star Wars: X-wing – Rogue Squadron comics and is set in the fictional Star Wars galaxy, taking place primarily between events in the films Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. The player controls Luke Skywalker, commander of the elite X-wing pilots known as Rogue Squadron. As the game progresses, Skywalker and Rogue Squadron fight the Galactic Empire in 16 missions across various planets.
Star Wars: X-Wing is a series of space flight simulator video games based in the Star Wars media franchise that attempts to simulate the fictional experience of starfighter combat, while remaining faithful to the movies. The player took the role of a pilot of the Rebel Alliance, and, in later games, the Galactic Empire. To complete the games, players must complete missions such as simple dogfights with opposition starfighters, reconnaissance and inspection tasks, escort duty for freighters or capital ships, or attacks on larger opposition ships. In addition to dogfighting designed to resemble the free-wheeling duels of World War I, the games also offered the challenge of managing power resources and wingmen, and using weapons effectively.
Star Wars: Flight of the Falcon is a 3D first-person shooter video game developed by British company Pocket Studios and published by THQ for the Game Boy Advance in 2003. Based on the events of the original Star Wars trilogy of films, the game allows the player to pilot various space ships in the battles against the antagonistic Galactic Empire. The story follows the pilots of the space ship Millennium Falcon, Han Solo and his Wookiee co-pilot Chewbacca, as they help save the galaxy from the Empire's forces.
Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness is a fantasy real-time strategy computer game developed by Blizzard Entertainment and released for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows in 1995 and Mac OS in 1996 by Blizzard's parent, Davidson & Associates. A sequel to Warcraft: Orcs & Humans, the game was met with positive reviews and won most of the major PC gaming awards in 1996. In 1996, Blizzard released an expansion pack, Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal, for DOS and Mac OS, and a compilation, Warcraft II: The Dark Saga, for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. The Battle.net edition, released in 1999, included Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal, provided Blizzard's online gaming service, and replaced the MS-DOS version with a Windows one.
Star Wars: Squadrons is a space combat game set in the Star Wars universe developed by Motive Studio and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One, on October 2, 2020 and for Xbox Series X/S on December 3, 2020. The game features both multiplayer game modes and a single-player campaign. Set after Return of the Jedi, the campaign alternates between the New Republic's Vanguard Squadron and the Galactic Empire's Titan Squadron, both of which become involved with the Republic's Project Starhawk; Vanguard Squadron wants to ensure its completion, while Titan Squadron attempts to destroy it.
{{cite journal}}
: Cite journal requires |journal=
(help){{cite journal}}
: |author=
has generic name (help)