Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance (1999)

Right...we've reached the final entry in the Star Wars: X-Wing series. I loved the first game in the series, and I thoroughly enjoyed the second game as well.

The third game...well...not so much. It wasn't bad, but it was also a bit of a disappointment in comparison to its predecessors. With that in mind, heading into the fourth game, I was more than a little wary.

Still, I figured I'd give the fourth game a fair shot, unfortunately, things didn't go according to plan. With that in mind, here's X-Wing Alliance.

The Final X-Wing Game

I didn't find much on the development of this one, but here's what I did find.

X-Wing Alliance added in-flight dialogue and a full voiceover soundtrack. Players were also able to link different weapons, and pilots now had rudder control.

The graphics were also overhauled, and textures were given the high-resolution treatment. The models were more complex, and the cockpits were upgraded to be fully three-dimensional. That said, the game's in-flight HUD was changed, and players were now able to fly multi-crew ships, which was great. Another cool addition was the ability to leave the battlefield to rearm before re-joining the fray.

Alliance also added a mission editor, which allowed players to build their own mission scenarios.

A More Story-Focused Game

Unlike the previous game, X-Wing Alliance introduces a proper storyline. You play as Ace Azzameen, the son of a trader who ends up joining the rebellion after his father is killed.

Time for a Rant

Okay, now, usually I cover the good stuff first, and I really don't like to rant in my reviews, but in this case...yeah, I have to.

If you've been following me for a while, you probably saw my most recent review on Shadow of the Tomb Raider. I had to review that game through observation. I got the game to run, but it wouldn't run properly, and so I had to approach that review more like a film review than a game review.

Now, what does that have to do with X-Wing Alliance? I couldn't get it to run...at all. It would get to a certain point, then crash. I tried everything I could think of, including community fixes, and nothing worked. This meant that I couldn't actually play the blasted thing! I had to look into gameplay on YouTube, which was frustrating!

What makes this especially upsetting for me is that I was really looking forward to a more story-driven game. After the other games, where I was just a faceless name on a wall, I wanted something more character-driven, and X-Wing Alliance seemed to bill itself as exactly that.

Of course, since I couldn't get the game to run at all, I couldn't experience this stuff first-hand.

First-hand experience is crucial for a game, and if you're going to release a game on Steam, or GOG, or any platform, you MUST make sure that it works! This is especially true when you're re-releasing older games that might not run on modern hardware! It feels like the guys in charge of the game just didn't care enough to work out the proverbial kinks, resulting in a game that is pretty much unplayable - even with community fixes installed.

So...Did I Actually Like Anything?

Okay...so, did I actually like anything about this game, even though I couldn't actually play it?

*sigh*

Yes, there are a few things I did like.

• First, I liked the visuals; the graphics got a huge overhaul, and they look great.
• I loved the music.
• The combat looks very satisfying.
• The story is nice. It's well-written and nicely paced.

That's all I can really say about this game as far as positives go.

Closing Thoughts

Look, the game looks good, the music and the story are nice...BUT...being unable to play the game myself was beyond frustrating. I wish I could've played it myself to get first-hand experience. From what I've found about the game, is that it's notoriously buggy, which explains why it crashes all the time, but it's still irritating.

This is the second time I've had to review a game through observation instead of first-hand experience. Hopefully, this doesn't become a habit.