Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger

Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger from 1994 by Origin Systems took the space simulator series a big step further through its extensive use of live-action full-motion video cutscenes that linked the individual missions into a cohesive, cinematically told story. The lead role of pilot Christopher Blair was played by Mark Hamill, best known as Luke Skywalker from Star Wars, which was an unusual and heavily promoted move toward film production for the gaming industry of the time; other roles featured additional experienced actors who lent the scenes a credibility that games of the era rarely offered.

The game continues the raw, more serious narrative of the ongoing war with the Kilrathi and offers a branching story in which the player's choices and performance in individual missions influence which direction the plot takes and how the conflict ends - the game even allowed the story to be completed with the war lost, an unusually bold approach for its time. The space combat itself remains true to the previous entries - fast, action-packed dogfights between starships with an emphasis on managing energy, weapons and formations - but visually and technically it represented a major leap thanks to full use of CD-ROM media for video and sound, plus an improved 3D engine for the combat itself. Production was costly by the standards of the time, and it showed in every detail, from costumes to set design, and the game also demanded a more powerful computer than players had been used to until then.

Wing Commander III is often remembered as one of the high points of the so-called interactive movie era of computer games in the mid-1990s, when studios experimented with live actors and high production budgets. Even years later, the game remains an interesting example of where game storytelling could go with the arrival of CD-ROM, and for fans of the series it remains one of the most striking and ambitious entries in the entire franchise.

Why play it: For players curious about the era of interactive film with live actors and high production budgets — one of the most ambitious and striking entries in the entire Wing Commander series.