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If you were on the hunt for all of the international copies and translations of Wing Commander, Dennis Mull has an extra twist for the German edition of Wing Commander 4! He's got two different versions with some minor differences. On a later printing, the back side font was cleaned up, the age rating sticker was printed on the box and a couple missing name credits were added. I love tiny things like this. Good luck hunting your copies down!

Release (right) and re-release (left). The differences are a different font on the back of the box and the sticker "USK 12" is printed on the box. Jeffrey "JC" Combs and Frank Roan are also added.

Quote from Freelancer News-Bot

Ash takes a quick glance at the big corporations that will feature in Aftermath.

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Former President Jasmina Halsey has joined the Federal Diplomatic Corps to become an ambassador to the Alliance.
In recent years Halsey served as an advisor to Prime Minister Mahon, but returned to the Federation in January to stand as a witness in the Starship One trial. She was a guest of Shadow President Felicia Winters at the Galactic Summit, and both were evacuated back to Mars when it was cancelled.
At a press conference, Ambassador Halsey said:
"Being at the conference reminded me that the political arena is where I belong. My new responsibilities allow me to continue serving the Federation while making use of my experience within the Alliance, and hopefully build stronger bridges between the two."
Elijah Beck, head of the Alliance Office of Diplomatic Relations, sent this message:
"Jasmina's level-headed advice has calmed many tense political situations. This is the ideal role for a

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Safeguard Interstellar has successfully received medical supplies for civilians wounded during the NMLA terrorist attack.
The bombing of nine starports across the Alliance, Empire and Federation left huge numbers of people injured, some with caustic burns due to Thargoid enzymes deployed by the explosives.
Noel Beaumont, the aid organisation's CEO, announced:
"We are immensely grateful to all pilots who brought shipments of basic medicines and advanced medicines. These have been transported directly to the relevant systems, where they will be used to ease the suffering of several hundred thousand civilians."
Safeguard Interstellar confirmed that its partner factions have made rewards available at the three systems used as staging areas for deliveries.
Pilots can collect from the Perez Ring Brewery at Krylov Ring in the He Bo system, Lavigny's Legion at Mackenzie

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Assistance is needed to track down an ACT operative who vanished while on a mission to identify NMLA suppliers.
The missing agent is Captain Niamh Seutonia of the Imperial Internal Security Service, one of the joint leaders of the anti-NMLA intelligence unit. She was following up on clues resulting from analysis of the 'Nine Martyrs' starport bombings.
Senior Agent Tanya Ramirez, a co-leader of ACT, gave this statement:
"Captain Seutonia and her team were travelling on an Anaconda-class vessel named the Valkyrie. Mission details are scarce as information was compartmentalised for security, but she was investigating a minor faction that may be supplying the NMLA."
"We know that her ship left the Mudhrid system on the 24th of March, on a heading toward the Marlinist Colonies. Captain Castile of the Marlinist Constabulary, on secondment to ACT, arranged a rendezvous that

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

ODVS' enhanced video packs are well known for boosting the visual quality of the movies for WC3, WC4 and Prophecy, but the audio is another undertaking unto itself. Owen made significant strides last year to upscale the footage for the Heart of the Tiger, but he was limited to what he had on hand. Requests have streamed in recently to add different languages, and ODVS has been happy to oblige after obtaining the corresponding language packs. As a result, we now have German, French and Japanese editions of the enhanced WC3 cutscenes to share! Note that these are just for direct viewing at this time - there is not currently any way to integrate them into the actual game, but they're all set in case fans eventually figure out a way to do it someday.

• Wing Commander 3 - English: version 2.0 (3.7 gig zip)
• Wing Commander 3 - German: version 2.0 (3.7 gig zip)
• Wing Commander 3 - French: version 2.0 (3.7 gig

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

President Zachary Hudson has announced that the new vice president of the Federation is Jerome Archer, replacing the deceased Brad Mitchell.
Archer was previously serving as the Secretary of Security. Prior to becoming a congressman, he was a director of the Federal Intelligence Agency and had a long career in law enforcement.
His predecessor, VP Brad Mitchell, died in the NMLA bombing of Li Qing Jao station in the Sol system. The attack also killed several members of the Federal Cabinet along with many government officials, who were attending a meeting at the starport.
Addressing a gathering of Congress, Vice President Archer said:
"My primary focus in this office will be to increase security throughout the Federation. I vow to build vigilance into the fabric of our society, and prevent such atrocities from ever happening again."
During the congressional session, President Hudson announced

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Today is the McDanielist—or Pilgrim—Holy Day of Acclivity! It celebrates the disappearance of the first sloship to reach Sirius on this day in 2311. Pilgrim theology teaches that the lost ship was translated to a higher plane of existence where it continues to guide the faithful. You can read all about it in our full writeup here.

The Final Exodus

By 2309, the governing body of the outer planets, the Outer Planet Policy Council (OPPC) was under the control of McDaniel’s followers and preparations were made to begin launching Morvan Drive “sloships” to settle distant stars. The first, the Exodia under Hella Ti and a crew of devout McDanielists, was launched on February 19, 2311 carrying McDaniel himself and 1,199 other colonists to settle Sirius A-B. On March 23, the Exodia made the final .22 light year hop to Sirius successfully. The slowship had barely launched its single-person scout when

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

The Marlinist Parliament has refuted widespread allegations of supporting or concealing members of the NMLA paramilitary group.
Fuelled by media speculation, many political and military leaders have suggested that the Marlinist Colonies should be occupied or destroyed to take revenge for the recent bombings. However, there is no evidence that these systems have any direct connection to the NMLA.
First Minister Jenna Fairfax gave this statement to Vox Galactica:
"The starport attacks were as sickening and terrifying to us as to the rest of the galaxy. The Neo-Marlinist Liberation Army follows a twisted creed that has no bearing on true Marlinism."
"We have sent our own intelligence team to join ACT, led by Captain Milo Castile of the Marlinist Constabulary. It is vital that we all work together to end the NMLA's campaign of terror."
There was also a comment from fellow parliamentarian Aaron

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Here's a gem straight out of the 1999 time capsule! It's from the May 24 issue of Video Business, a trade publication for the home video market that shut down in 2010. Everything about it screams "late '90s." TODAY'S HOTTEST YOUNG STARS! Freddie Prinze Jr. & Matthew Lillard of SHE'S ALL THAT!Trailered on Pushing Tin, Waking Ned Devine and Office SpaceAvailable Day and Date on DVD!The actual release happened on July 6. I remember we were all pretty darn excited that day, but not as excited as this poster ever was!

"Starship Troopers" Meets "Top Gun" in this $12 Million Box Office Blast! is a trade advertisement announcing the VHS release of Wing Commander.

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Mark Gabby-Li has a great physical Banshee model to share today. It might look like it came out of a bespoke kit, but this is actually made just from Snapships parts! Last year we highlighted how these new space toys could be tweaked to build some more familiar designs, and it's wonderful to see fans taking up the challenge. And that papercraft Banshee on the side is pretty slick too!

My first attempt at a remix of a spaceship from (relatively) popular culture: Wing Commander IV's Banshee!

You know, making fan models of spaceships with Lego or Snapships feels a little like a sort of poetry.You are trying to capture the essence, as the pieces you have limit your ability to perfectly replicate it.

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

The Affiliated Counter-Terrorism unit (ACT), formed by all three superpowers to combat the NMLA, has launched its investigation.
The organisation has been working closely with Alliance Interpol, the Imperial Internal Security Service and the Federal Intelligence Agency to collate data on the terrorist strikes against nine starports.
Captain Niamh Seutonia, one of ACT's joint leaders, told the media:
"Initial forensic results from the targeted stations suggest the use of a more compact bomb design than in previous attacks, possibly constructed on-site. Worryingly, the NMLA's new generation of weapons seem to be easier to transport and conceal."
"The good news is that a comparison of reports has revealed one very promising lead. I will personally take a team to follow this up, and we're hoping for an early breakthrough."
Inspector Mara Klatt also provided a brief progress report:
"Our working

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

I went back and compared those Wing Commander 2 WIP cockpits we recovered with the final assets. Check out these Broadsword turrets which lose, among other things, the hand graphics!

A set of three hard drives belonging to an unidentified Origin Systems employee was recovered by Joe Garrity of the Origin Museum and Dan Chisarick. The contents included installations of Wing Commander I and II and a copy of DeluxePaint with several Wing Commander II-related animation files saved.

While the images were originally stored as ANM animation files they are actually collections of static images, likely grouped together as animations for ease of organization and/or presentation. Inividual unique frames have been saved as PCX files and exported as PNGs for the galleries seen below.

Some are pretty similar, like the Epee...

... while others like the Ferret are very different!

You can find them all here!

Display

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Electronic Arts and Microsoft have announced that Xbox Game Pass (PC and Ultimate) members finally have access to the EA Play catalog on PC. We reported last year that this would include the five Wing Commander games on the service, however, it appears that they've been removed from the EA Play subscription as part of yesterday's big update. The screenshots below show what the WC pages looked like before and after the removal. It was also announced last year that EA's Origin storefront would be going away, but that transition is still in progress and the Origin-branded store portal still carries the WC games for $4.99 each. In comparison, GOG typically charges $5.99 each, but they bundle WC1&2 together into one. They also frequently have sales that bring each package down to $1.49. While this is a bummer for the (admittedly tiny) handful of WC fans who may have been holding out for the new Xbox

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We've got lots of pretty ships in the news this week! The designs that we've shared the last couple days have been high quality digital models, but today's work is a little different. Nightball06 has returned to his hand-drawn Hellcat sketch. At first glance, it might look like these are different rotated perspectives of a computerized model, but they're actually digital sketches. He's taken a few liberties to streamline and enhance a few general elements and is looking for feedback below!

Hey folks, Well since Corona has its deadly clasp all over the world - I hope you're all well.And with all those Lock-downs, the one good thing that disease gave me is time to work on my design again... (As I mentioned before - it's also some kind of stress relief for me)

So here’s my latest attempt:
I went back to my first drawing (the perspective one / left upper corner) because that's where all my ideas

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Private investigators Erik Gunnarson and Francesca Wolfe review the Neo-Marlinist Liberation Army.
Gunnarson: "We don't usually get involved with political cases, but it's hard to ignore the largest terrorist attack in history."
"The NMLA is a radical offshoot of Marlinism, a democratic movement named after the Republic of Achenar's original ruler, Marlin Duval. Most are peaceful protester types, but Neo-Marlinists want to overthrow the government by permanently removing the Imperial Family."
"What nobody knows is how the NMLA went from minor troublemakers to interstellar terrorists. The starport bombings last September came from nowhere, and their assassins have killed many Imperial bigwigs including Prince Harold Duval."
"Smart money was on them being funded by Empire's enemies, but now the NMLA treat the Alliance and Federation as equal targets. Hitting all three superpower capitals was a

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Klavs is back with his latest take on the renowned Rapier medium fighter. He's made quite a few variants over the years, but his latest version sticks close to the original WC1 inspiration. Side by side, there are actually quite a few notable differences in the spaceframe from WC1 to WC2, so Klavs has worked out a creative approach to both the original and "G" variant. The 2660s version pictured below is strongly rooted in the 2650s design, and various changes are shown as outgrowths of that. The results are pretty slick!

Hi everyone, I got to liking the A model rapier so much I started thinking about incremental tech advancements rather than a whole new spaceframe for the C-G models, so I've envisioned that here and I'm really liking the results so far! I think the 'chunkiness' fits the WC-1-2 era much better than the swoopy Rapiers I've done before.

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Safeguard Interstellar requires deliveries of medicines to treat casualties from the NMLA's recent terrorist attack.
The humanitarian aid organisation is helping to coordinate relief efforts for the starports in the Alliance, Empire and Federation that were bombed last week. CEO Noel Beaumont announced:
"Hundreds of thousands of civilians still require urgent medical attention after being evacuated from the damaged stations. Many have severe caustic burns inflicted by the corrosive enzyme payload of the explosives. We have already exhausted the majority of supplies in nearby systems."
"To reinforce overstretched health services, we request shipments of basic medicines and advanced medicines. These can be delivered to three starports being used as staging areas: Krylov Ring in the He Bo system, Mackenzie Relay in the Cemiess system, and Davis Terminal in the Duamta

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

The Alliance, Empire and Federation have created a centralised agency dedicated to investigating and eliminating the NMLA paramilitary group.
The new Affiliated Counter-Terrorism unit (ACT) is a direct result of the Cornelius-Lasky Convention, which was signed at the Galactic Summit.
This treaty requires the superpowers to share information on any large-scale threats to civilian populations. With a combined death toll rising over half a million, the recent starport bombings have obtained such status.
ACT will be jointly led by the veterans of the tri-superpower taskforce that defeated the League of Reparation in 3304: Captain Niamh Seutonia of the Imperial Internal Security Service, Inspector Mara Klatt of Alliance Interpol, and Senior Agent Tanya Ramirez of the Federal Intelligence Agency.
Captain Seutonia gave a brief statement:
"ACT is an independent organisation dedicated to bringing the

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

We've got a pair of fantastic new animated-style fighters from DefianceIndustries up today. The first is a Hellcat (featured in the first episode of WCA) in fancy green colors inspired by Tim Eldred's concept art. I like it. It fits the era when greens were much more prominent on ships like the Tiger's Claw or Exeter destroyers. On the Kilrathi side, we also get a nice orange Sartha. They're tiny weaklings, but you can't treat them like Salthi - those neutron guns will tear you up!

A bit of a grab bag. Got around to doing the WCA Sartha which should almost round out the fleet. Eventually I'll have to do the Jalkethi and I think that's all the fighters. Additionally I did a WC3 style Hellcat using the paint scheme from the Tim Eldred concept art that was posted here about a week ago. Enjoy as always.