"Whether the Name’s Armstrong or Christopher Blair, the Heart of the Classic is Still Here"

Super Wing Commander was an enhanced port of the PC version of Wing Commander released for the 3DO in 1994. This version featured, among other additions, enhanced graphics, additional missions, and voice acting. Whereas some ports of this nature go horribly wrong, Super Wing Commander is a perfect example of where an enhanced port went right.

For this rendition of the game, we get the missions of the original PC game, both Secret Mission expansion packs, and a new line of missions set between the two expansions. This leaves us with a very large bank of missions to play through, each offering a varying variety of objectives, playable fighters, and enemy spacecraft to battle. Missions are played from the cockpit of your chosen space fighter. You guide the ship in three dimensions in this manner, engaging in firefights with enemy ships, escorting supply ships, or any number of other objectives.

This is all accomplished in surroundings that look very pretty. The original looked good for its time and this version has been updated to look good for its slightly later release. The cockpit you pilot from also features a number of interesting details, however this leads to one of the game's biggest problems, in my opinion, being that this blocks a larger portion of the screen than it really should. This makes it difficult to see the action at times, but it is a small nuisance easily overcome.

The story of Super Wing Commander centers around the crew of the Tiger's Claw, a Terran ship on the frontlines of a war between Earth and a feline alien race called the Kilrathi. Through the course of the missions you undertake the direction of the war is determined. Complete your missions well and the Terran forces will march towards victory. Fail repeatedly and the war turns towards the Kilrathi. Added are the expansion missions, guiding the war further through so-called “secret missions” for the Terran Confederation.

This seems like a good opportunity to mention the branching mission design signature to many entries in the franchise. Mission can be completed without fully completing their objectives, leading to alternate missions as the game continues. Put simply, winning a mission completely sends you to one mission, while failing a mission will send you to a different one. This leads to multiple game paths that can be taken in the war, some ending positively and some negatively.

In conclusion, Super Wing Commander is one of the best games on the 3DO. Fans of flight simulation games will be immediately drawn to it, while those who have never tried one before will not go wrong with this one.

Gameplay: (43/50) A classic title redone in the right ways. Although the play screen is overly cluttered for my tastes, the 3DO version of Wing Commander is the one to have.
Story: (7/10) Features the story of the original, both expansion packs, and a new scenario, plus added voice acting and enhanced graphics for the cutscenes.
Challenge: (10/10) No two-ways about it, Super Wing Commander is hard. If you want a challenging flight simulator, this is your game.
Graphics: (20/20) Both in-game and cutscenes look very nice. I have said it before and will repeat it here, the 3DO's problems were never due to subpar graphics.
Replayability: (10/10) With branching mission paths and alternate outcomes, there is a lot of replayability to Super Wing Commander.
Overall: (90/100) One of the best games on the 3DO.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/05/08

Game Release: Super Wing Commander (US, 1994)