The best sci-fi video game of the ’90s is also the worst space movie of the decade
By Jonathan Klotz | Published
It’s a niche genre today, but back in the ’90s, space combat games were all the rage thanks to the massive success of the 1990s. Wing Commander. Combining solid gameplay with a branching narrative involving the Terran Confederacy in open war against the Kilrathi Cat, the video game changed the industry forever.
On March 12, 1999, Wing Commanderthe film, was released in theaters and on March 19, it was forgotten forever.
Ironically, the success of the video game and the failure of the film are opposites. The game, developed by Origin Systems under Chris Roberts, was one of the most expensive games ever made, and it looked it. Wing Commander the film was made for $25 million, the same budget as its contemporary, Puppets in space had. The movie with felt Muppets that looks better than the sci-fi space opera starring the hottest teen star of the ’90s.
Freddie Prinze Jr. gives his all to the wing commander
Wing Commander stars Freddie Prinze Jr. as Chris “Maverick” Blair. His frequent co-star, Matthew Lillard, plays Todd “Maniac” Marshall. Both are new pilots thrust to the forefront of the intergalactic conflict, alongside Saffron Burrows as Jeannette “Angel” Deveraux, their new wing commander.
It turns out that Maverick is a Pilgrim, an evolved human with an impeccable sense of direction and the ability to crunch billions of calculations in a second, a trait he uses to accomplish miraculous feats with his fighter. As usual, Freddie Prinze Jr., a big nerd, gives his all to even the cringiest sci-fi dialogues. He takes no responsibility for a space combat movie that keeps the action in cramped, sterile spaceship corridors instead of giving fans the awesome dogfights they came for.
The creator of the game made the film
Chris Roberts, creator of the video game series, purchased the rights to the live-action film from EA and decided to direct the film himself. Roberts directed the live-action scenes in Wing Commander 3 And 4which included Mark Hamill as Maverick, and other stars including Malcolm McDowell and John Rhys-Davies.
Putting together a massive Hollywood production proved to be a much more difficult process, with small problems adding up to hamper the film, incomplete sets in Furless Kilrathi and worst of all for a sci-fi epic, a short time frame that only gave them six months to add special effects.
No space combat in a movie based on space combat?
The end result is battle scenes that include lots of shots of the pilots’ faces. Imagine Avengers: Endgame if all we saw was the view inside Tony Stark’s helmet.
There are a few flashes of what could have happened during the flight sequences, but these are too few to offset the story’s tonal whiplash that ranges from pranks to tearfully demanding to die after watching a teammate crash.
How Star Wars Kneed the Wing Commander
Wing Commander the lack of time impacted every aspect of the film, thanks to the impending revival of a small, independent sci-fi franchise called Star Wars.
Wing Commander was scheduled to be in theaters before May 16, the premiere date of Star Wars Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace. Roberts knew that the return of Star Wars after a 16-year absence would overshadow all other films, especially a science fiction story about a young pilot with mysterious powers that make him more attuned to the world around him. This decision didn’t matter, thanks to poor special effects and an absurd storyline that left viewers bored and confused. The video game adaptation only grossed $11 million during its run, unable to recoup even the modest $25 million budget.
Wing Commander Now
Wing Commander has been on the ice since 2007 Wing Commander: Arenabut Chris Roberts continued to develop Star Citizenan ambitious space opera game that has raised over $800 million since it broke Kickstarter records over a decade ago.
The film, despite Freddie Prinze Jr.’s growing credibility as a voice actor for Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Star Wars: Rebelsis largely forgotten today, except when someone writes a “worst 90s” list. There, finally, Wing Commander the film becomes number one.
