[Scotty]

Do they have much of a story, he asks.

Son, TIE Fighter has one of the finest stories you'll ever play.

And also Thrawn.

The games also have the graphics of an early 90s space sim, giving the original Wing Commander a run for its money (and a slight edge, honestly, on account of having real 3D models for ships you fight.  Complete with .midi music.  Go into it expecting a game released five full years before FS2 in terms of graphics and effects and you won't be disappointed.

[Klaustrophobia]

all i've got to compare it to from that early is D1.  thoughts on how it compares to that?

[Scotty]

Flight model is simpler, maps are actually open space.  Cutscenes are all sprites and manipulated sprites.  Think old XCOM for quality.  Energy management is a thing and it's much more about trade offs than FS.  In game graphics are probably pretty similar, with TIE Fighter getting the edge in models.

It's a good game, but you can tell it's from 1994.

[AdmiralRalwood]

TIE Fighter has the better engine, better writing, better mission design, better soundtrack... TIE Fighter remains, to this day, the best Star Wars game ever made.

[Colonol Dekker]

TIE Fighter has the better engine, better writing, better mission design, better soundtrack... TIE Fighter remains, to this day, the best Star Wars game ever made.

It's true.
Bastilla would make it faultless. But she wasn't around at that time so ill allow it.

[Klaustrophobia]

better than rogue squadron? 

[NGTM-1R]

better than rogue squadron? 

Rogue Squadron is garbage compared to TIE Fighter. If you catch me in the right mood I will gladly declare it to be better than any other space sim ever produced. Even when I'm feeling ungenerous towards it, the only reason I'd rate FS2 higher is because we have the works of Blaise Russel and the Blue Planet duology. It sure as hell beats FS1 or any Wing Commander I've actually played.

[Thaeris]

As per the old versions of X-Wing and TIE Fighter, the Mac versions were probably the best, and LA thought so as well. These had all the old, awesome, shaded polygon graphics, and were quite a cut above the DOS versions to be honest. The resolution was also a bit higher. They also had the MIDI sounds... I never had Windows growing up, so I never had a shot at playing the upgraded versions from '98. From the screenshots, the textures in TIE Fighter look passable, but the X-Wing textures were definitely a secondary consideration.

If you're curious about the Mac versions, you should look up SheepShaver. I think there's just something about my hardware or settings that won't let me get my old copy of X-Wing to run properly, but I may just have to give it another go at some point. Or, I could try and load it up on the new computer, but no matter. If you do happen to be interested in Mac emulation, send me a PM. Otherwise, do yourself a favor and buy this from GOG!

[AdmiralRalwood]

The Mac version Thaeris is describing sounds like it's related to the '95 DOS CD-ROM Collector's Edition, which GOG sadly does not have, despite it being considered the definitive version of TIE Fighter.

[-Sara-]

These games nearly gave me arthritis back when I was a tween. If only there were mouse sensitivity settings back then.

[OverDhill]

Check this video out. XWA upgraded and using Freetrack


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CpZtIzxMck

[OverDhill]

X-Wing running on my pit

[Grizzly]

What steering wheel is that on the left there?

(Also, that setup is beautifull! 0_o - How much money did you sink into that if I may ask?)

[OverDhill]

That is an older Logitech Wingman Formula Force GP which I finally found a driver for Windows 7 64 bit that worked (Logitech said it would never work).

I presume your talking about the custom built items.

The buttons were about $1.50 each. The GP-Wiz40 was about $40 and the BU0836X 12-Bit Joystick Board was about $80 (US).
The momentary rotaries were $7 each and the emergency buttons were $7 each

I custom designed the desk/frame and was made out of MFD board and PVC pipe.
 
The PVC pipe and fittings were dirt cheap. So overall not that much compared to some flight sim frames that run around $500 for just the frame.


For more info see this thread

http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php?topic=85509.msg1765438#msg1765438

[Colonol Dekker]

Xw:a would be glorious on that. Also do you mechwarrior in that?

[OverDhill]

I have Hawken but have not tried it on there yet.  I have seen videos of XWA with upgraded graphics and it was ok. Personally still think FS2 Open looks so much better and plays so much smoother.

Right now I am using it for

IL-2 1946 with the HSFX 7 upgrades  (supports extracted gauges to the 19")



IL-2 Cliffs of Dover with the Team Fusion upgrades  (supports extracted gauges to the 19")



DCS:Lockon Flaming Cliffs 3  (supports extracted gauges to the 19")



And of coarse Freespace 2 Open

[An4ximandros]

You must we gist er
You must we gist er
You must we gist er
You must we gist er

I swore to myself that if I ever made a flight sim, it would have a registry start. You would get a message if you tried to get in without registering. If you tried that twice in a row you would get shot and the game would auto quit.

Tie was the only one I never played... maybe it's time I fixed that...

Nowe gib egs-gwin Alience pliese.

[TrashMan]

Bummer. Got everything, installed everything (X-Wing missions too), but my 3D graphics card (Sapphire Dual-X R9 280) isn't recognized/supported when the mission starts.

[Colonol Dekker]

[LHN91]

Bummer. Got everything, installed everything (X-Wing missions too), but my 3D graphics card (Sapphire Dual-X R9 280) isn't recognized/supported when the mission starts.

On X-Wing? I remember that the Collector's edition I have never recognized a single 3D accelerator card. It always ran fine in Software mode.