Changing Retro

Posted on Sep 11th 2014 at 12:51:20 PM by (wildbil52)
Posted under DOS, Star Wars, Sith, Pew Pew


Sometimes it's fun to be the bad guys, especially when their ships are so freaking cool.  Tie Fighter is undeniably one of the best space combat flight simulators of all time.  It withstands the test of time because it does so many things well and, even though it is dated visually, it is just plain fun to play.



First thing is first.  Let's install Tie Fighter using the original CD-ROM (or floppies depending on which version you have) and DOSBox.  There are 3 basic steps here:

(1) Mount your DVD/CD-ROM or floppy drive in DOSBox so the program can run the setup.  I'll be mounting a DVD-ROM drive but the steps are exactly the same.  I would just mount it as A: instead of D: for clarity.
(2) Create a virtual hard drive in DOSBox for the game to install to
(3) Run the Setup/Installation for the game

Launch DOSBox and type intro cdrom.  This will bring up the cheat sheet for how to mount your CD-ROM drive as a virtual drive in DOSBox.  The DVD drive on my PC is drive H: so I entered the command:

mount d h: -t cdrom

and now DOSBox sees my the DVD drive on my PC with the Tie Fighter CD as the D: drive.

Back in Windows, create a folder called something simple like DOSGAMES as close to the root of the drive as possible to save you from unnecessary typing.  I created the DOSGAMES folder in the root of my D: drive and now I will mount that folder as a virtual hard drive in DOSBox. (type intro mount if you need a hint or check out the pic below


After entering 2 simple commands, my virtual DOS environment thinks I have a hard drive to install games on and a CD-ROM drive to install them from.  Now, simply navigate to the drive where the installation CD is (in my case, the D: drive so I enter D: and hit enter) and run the setup.  In the case of Tie Fighter, the setup file is called "install."  With any DOS game, I always recommend the maximum install option.

Remember that any reference to the C: drive in DOSBox is not refering to the local C: drive on your PC but rather the folder that you mounted as the C: Drive.  In the case of this install, a folder called TIECD will be created in the DOSGAMES folder since that is my virtual DOSBox C: drive.


I also recommend choosing the express sound install option.  Your sound card will be automatically detected and a few sounds will be played for you to confirm that sound has been set up correctly.  After you verify that the sound is working correctly, exit the install program.  From your DOSBox command prompt, navigate to the path where the game is installed (if you left the default values in the install process it will be C:TIECD) and type "TIE" and hit enter.  Now, get ready for a phenomenal intro!

Alright.  Down to business

In Tie Fighter, the player takes on the role of Maarek Stele as a pilot in training in the Imperial Navy.  The game is set shortly after the Battle of Hoth and ends just before the Battle of Endor.  As an Imperial Pilot, Maarek is charged with seeking out and destroying "Rebel scum," escorting cargo transports and defending them from "Rebel scum," and he even has to fight other Imperial forces who have decided to defect and become "Rebel scum."  The traditional Star Wars story crawl gives some basic setting info and after a few cut-scenes, Maarek arrives at Pilot Registration.

Just try to enter the doors on the right without telling the front desk your name, just try.

Once you have cleared security by telling them your name, you arrive at the Concourse.  This is the main hub of the game.  Your first stop should probably be the Training Simulator followed closely by the Combat Chamber.  The Training Simulator focuses only on ship handling.  This is very important.  Controlling the speed of your ship, while avoiding ships, asteroids, and other obstacles, is an essential skill.  Just like in a real Tie Fighter, all the controls are not on one input device.  You will have to use the keyboard as well as the joystick to operate your Imperial fighter.

Lots of options in the concourse.  Don't get frustrated in the training and combat simulators, stick with it.

Let's talk about the keyboard and how indispensable it is in a flight sim.  On a PC flight sim with a keyboard, you have much greater control over your ships and its functions than you do on a 6-button SNES or Genesis pad.  It's one of those things you don't think you need until you have it and then it makes it difficult to give it up.  For example, The + and - keys increase and decrease your speed, but you also have 4 hotkeys that set your engine to 0 power, 1/3, 2/3, and full.  You also have a key that sets your throttle to the current speed of your target.  I can't think of a single dogfight where I didn't use this key. The nine number keys on the keypad give you quick views of the entire clock around your fighter and the "5" key gives you a straight up view.  Many times throughout the game, you will be in a dogfight with several enemy ships.  With a keyboard, you have a key that targets the next available craft, one that goes to the previous target, another that targets the newest craft in the area, one that selects the enemy closest to you, and so on.   The downside to all of these keys is that there is a slight learning curve.  The upside is that once you have most of the controls memorized, you will have complete control over your TIE.

I have no tolerance for illegal cargo

Once you have the basic navigation and throttle controls down, it wouldn't hurt to try a mission or two in the combat flight simulator just to get your feet wet.  In many of the best flight and space combat sims, the projectiles that you fire don't reach the area where your crosshairs are pointing right away, they take a little time to reach this point in space.  Tie Fighter is no exception.  I hadn't really played any other PC combat sim before Tie Fighter and the first thing that jumped out at me was that you have to lead your target by aiming at the space where they are going to be, instead of where they are.  It is hard for me to describe just how cool I thought this was when i first saw it.  I felt like this was an actually three dimensional space simulation, not just some game where you hit fire and the lasers go right to the crosshair, wherever that may be.

As the training missions and the game progress, you will face stronger and faster ships (The A-Wing is an absolute pain, a little speed demon), but you will also unlock stronger and faster ships of your own.  The ships don't feel like carbon copies either.  Each ship has a unique cockpit, different weapon loadouts, different speed and handling, as well as a unique "feel."  The game is very well-balanced and has several difficulty modifiers so that you can tailor the experience to a difficulty that is the most enjoyable for your personal skill level. 

Oh, don't you worry, you'll be flying plenty of craft

I really can't say enough good things about this game.  I know I keep saying it, but it holds up incredibly well to this day.  If you happen to come across a Microsoft Side Winder PC Flight stick in working shape, snag that baby up.  That joystick and this game were made for each other.


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Comments
 
I loved the floppy version to death until one of my disks got corrupted. When I replaced it with the CD-ROM version, I hated it. The CD-ROM version requires higher specs, and forces you to have a joystick. I couldn't play it anywhere near as well. Cry
 
The version that I had way back when was the Collector's Edition CD-ROM.  I don't remember being forced to use a joystick, though.  The version I installed for this post was the Collector's Edition CD-ROM and was able to play with keyboard an mouse so it looks like you are good to go!
 
Really? Hmm... I thought that's what I had back then too, but it forced me to use my Sidewinder Joystick. Maybe it's because Mouse + Keyboard ran very poorly for my PC back then.

I need to pick up a new copy. I don't think all of the Secret Objectives were ever documented...
 
I'll raise my hand that this is a foolish question but not being too familiar with Dos box - if I have the Sidewinder (I used to at my parents), is there an adapter to have it work with a USB?

I have/had a bunch of great PC joysticks - the old Gravis Gamepad for EA games was a must. Also had the Microsoft 6-button pad.

Good piece there Bil.
 
I got a kick out of the "pew pew" tag.

Keep'em coming Smiley
 
@retrosportsgamer:DOSBox should automatically detect and allow you to use any USB joystick/gamepad attached to your PC as long as it is already set up and working in Windows but Serial isn't automatically configured.  So the question becomes "How do I configure my serial joystick for use with DOSBOX?" You need a serial to USB adapter.  StarTech and Cable Matters make good ones. The joystick won't just come to life when you plug it in like a native USB device.  You will need to go into device manager, see which COM port the adapter is assigned to, and then make sure the DOSBox config is looking for the joystick on the correct COM port.  OR you could buy a USB Sidewinder Precision 2 for around $20 Wink

I agree about the Gravis gamepad.  Everyone had one of those jams back in the DOS/Win95 days.  I needed it for platformers, NHL games, MKII and 3.
 
@Shadow Kisuragi: I had thought the Collector's Edition was mainly meant for old Windows systems (part of the reason I made a Windows 95 box), while the floppy is meant for pure DOS machines, but outside of that I thought the only difference was the SVGA (with the Collector's Edition).

Great article, bil.  This is one of those games that needs a tutorial with DOSbox (especially if you have the Collector's Edition, and you do a wonderful job of providing one.  Not the most annoying to get working with DOSbox, but a lot of people give up the ghost when they see the extra steps for a CD game.
 
It's actually possible to get the TIE95 version of this game working on 64-bit systems without using DOSBox, if you follow the directions at http://www.markusegger.at/software/games/.
 
@Flelmo:OOH!  Unofficial patches!  Thanks for the link!

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This is wildbil52's Blog.
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Like many of the people who visit this site, I am a lifelong gamer who loves and appreciates classic gaming as well as the current generation. When I started collecting games, I realized that some of the stories of my collecting might be interesting, educational, or just plain funny. The stories that I share here are meant to entertain as well as inform and they are all 100% true, which is why I include pictures.

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