Wing Commander is back on PC with restored video, and existing GOG owners get the upgrades free
Six Wing Commander and Privateer 2 anniversary releases have arrived on GOG, bringing a collection of 1990s space combat games back to modern PCs. If you already own a corresponding Wing Commander game on GOG, the store says its updated edition has been added to your library at no extra cost.
The releases were part of GOG's first showcase on November 5. Some include restored full-motion video and community enhancement work, and each anniversary package contains both an updated edition and a legacy build. GOG says the legacy builds will no longer be sold separately.
Road Rash also returned as a separate 30th Anniversary Edition during the event. Its motorcycle racing release is part of the same wider EA classics wave, rather than a Wing Commander game.
Image: Electronic Arts / Origin Systems
Which Wing Commander games are included?
The GOG announcement identifies the new editions as Wing Commander and Wing Commander II at the 35th-anniversary label, followed by 30th-anniversary editions of Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger, Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom, Wing Commander: Prophecy and Privateer 2: The Darkening.
Image: Electronic Arts / Origin Systems
GOG says it led the Prophecy restoration after EA encountered technical obstacles, working with the publisher and the game's modding community. EA led restoration of the other Wing Commander and Privateer 2 editions. Prophecy has also joined the GOG Preservation Program, through which GOG maintains supported classic games for modern systems.
The free-upgrade promise is tied to an existing copy on GOG: if you own one of the relevant games there, GOG says the corresponding anniversary pack is already in your library. It is not a promise that buying one game unlocks the whole collection, and players should check their own account if an expected upgrade is missing.
Image: Electronic Arts / Origin Systems
Original footage and optional enhanced video
For Wing Commander: Prophecy, EA says the release incorporates footage restored from source master tapes and a community enhancement patch. It also includes the Secret Ops episodes. The higher-resolution upscaled video is optional; the Steam listing says AI was used to enhance the resolution and frame rate of that optional footage.
The Wing Commander III listing describes restored source video and community patch features including controller and joystick improvements. Its anniversary edition is also available on Steam. EA says owners of the original digital editions on the EA App also receive the corresponding anniversary upgrade on that platform; check the relevant store for purchases elsewhere.
GOG's showcase had more than the restorations. The company announced a rebuilt GOG Galaxy client heading to Linux and a new publishing partnership called Retrovibe by GOG. Galaxy remains optional: GOG says its offline installers continue to be available.
For players returning to an older copy, the useful first step is to open the GOG library and look for the anniversary pack associated with that game. The updated and legacy versions are both included, giving owners a choice of which to launch.
