(03:42:12) Chris_Roberts [Chris_Robe@cpe-76-168-57-218.socal.res.rr.com] entered the room.
(03:42:19) music_guru: ya!
(03:42:20) AD: Hey
(03:42:21) jetlag: hey!
(03:42:22) Byydo: It's him!
(03:42:23) AD: Welcome
(03:42:29) music_guru: welcome!
(03:42:31) LOAF: Hello!
(03:42:31) Chris_Roberts: Hyey guys!
(03:42:32) powellXCIX: Welcome!
(03:42:44) TheyCallMeGrim: Good evening!
(03:42:46) AD: I made it back home just in time it seems
(03:42:46) Wedge009: Oh wow, you made it!
(03:43:06) music_guru: thanks for taking the time mr roberts!
(03:43:07) Chris_Roberts: Sorry to be late but I just got back from Disneyland.
(03:43:07) Byydo: The man who shaped all our destinies
(03:43:17) LeHah: Hey!!!
(03:43:19) ace: Hello!
(03:43:22) Chris_Roberts: Its also my daughters birthday on August the 10th!
(03:43:36) music_guru: what an awesome coincidence!
(03:43:40) ^Death_: Hello Mr. Roberts.
(03:43:46) Wedge009: Double the celebration.
(03:43:50) TheyCallMeGrim: Excellent! Did you all have fun?
(03:43:52) Byydo: No problem at all, we're glad you could make it!
(03:43:57) AD: How old is she now?  I know it's cliche but it all goes by so fast
(03:44:08) music_guru: funny if she was 14 :P
(03:44:24) Chris_Roberts: Well I have a two year old and a six month old - so probably not as much fun as when they're older!
(03:44:49) AD: hehe yeah, six month olds aren't much fun on rides unless you are a psychopath
(03:45:20) music_guru: congrats chris
(03:45:20) PopsiclePete: Hi !
(03:45:23) TheyCallMeGrim: Yeah, I went to Disneyland at 6 months, or so I've been told.
(03:45:28) AD: I liked that era... My oldest is 9 and the youngest is 3...
(03:45:33) Chris_Roberts: Nope! It was really for our two year old... Who had fun
(03:45:41) NinjaLA: congratulations on your daughter's birthday
(03:45:55) Byydo: yeah, congratulations
(03:45:56) Chris_Roberts: Thanks!
(03:46:21) NinjaLA: and awesome timing with it
(03:46:33) Wedge009: We crashed the CIC this year. We weren't sure if we missed you.
(03:46:51) TheyCallMeGrim: Yeah, I think it was a first.
(03:46:56) AD: Hehe yeah... we put some downloads up for the event the wrong way
(03:46:57) ChrisReid: my sister is taking my 1.5 year old nephew to Disneyland next week
(03:47:04) TheyCallMeGrim: We've slowed it down, sure...
(03:47:05) AD: and it overloaded everything for a bit
(03:47:06) ChrisReid: yeah, it was a great birthday
(03:47:08) ^Death_: hehe, I can just see it. 'Hold on a few more hours, honey, and our child can share a birth with the CIC'. :)
(03:47:09) Vinman: Wow!
(03:47:11) ChrisReid: kind of the best/worst
(03:47:12) music_guru: so, sounds like everything is going well, mr. roberts?
(03:47:22) NinjaLA: it was the best of times.. it was the worst of times
(03:47:31) Wedge009: Are we permitted to ask questions?
(03:47:33) NinjaLA: it was seriously down for an hour
(03:47:39) ChrisReid: we have such a powerful server, but we had too much of a load on the web side rather than the download side, so things got overwhelmed for a little bit
(03:48:33) LOAF: Haha yes we had a little too much content on the http side of things.
(03:48:37) music_guru: certainly gave the party a bit of a "bang" :P
(03:48:45) LOAF: ... 2.7 gigabytes too much ...
(03:48:48) ChrisReid: all of the storm was rather exciting though
(03:48:50) Vinman: haha wow
(03:48:58) Chris_Roberts left the room (quit: Ping timeout).
(03:49:05) Wedge009: Oh, snap.
(03:49:06) Byydo: oh my *(
(03:49:07) music_guru: oh no!
(03:49:09) NinjaLA: hehe
(03:49:11) Vinman: :O
(03:49:12) ChrisReid: well, that was cool
(03:49:12) LOAF: Ask more questions when he gets back on :)
(03:49:13) Pedro: oh no!
(03:49:24) music_guru: maybe he'll come back
(03:49:34) Chris_Roberts [Chris_Robe@cpe-76-168-57-218.socal.res.rr.com] entered the room.
(03:49:38) AD: Yat
(03:49:39) Byydo: yay
(03:49:40) AD: yay
(03:49:41) Wedge009: Heh, whoops?
(03:49:42) Pedro: hurray!
(03:49:46) AD: It seems like only yesterday that WC1 came out yet also like another lifetime ago
(03:49:53) music_guru: lol, we almost freaked out there - lol
(03:49:59) Chris_Roberts: Sorry - my 2 year old takes great delight in switching off my routers power
(03:50:00) Vinman: hehe welcome back :)
(03:50:08) Wedge009: Ha ha, well that explains that!
(03:50:11) PopsiclePete: I spent most of my life editing old WC games.. scary, isn't it ?  :p
(03:50:12) Byydo: hehehe
(03:50:16) NinjaLA: Outlander was amazing
(03:50:27) Chris_Roberts: Thanks!
(03:50:38) NinjaLA: just in case 2 year old happens again
(03:50:38) Wedge009: Oh, I got to see that a few months ago. I did rather enjoy it, actually.
(03:50:42) music_guru: well, we'll forgive your 2 year old.... this time.... lol
(03:50:44) Byydo: The Punisher was great too (I haven't seen Outlander yet though)
(03:50:58) ChrisReid: yeah, my girlfriend actually really liked Outlander too
(03:50:59) VaultTechie: WC1 got me into computers at the time it was the coolest thing I had ever seen
(03:51:02) Chris_Roberts: So are there any burning WC questions that nayone has beign dying to ask?
(03:51:19) Wedge009: May I?
(03:51:26) TheyCallMeGrim: You first.
(03:51:32) Chris_Roberts: I think Ben & co have probably covered everything but you never know!
(03:51:38) Vinman: hehehe
(03:51:53) AD: When is the special edition of the Wing Commander movie comming out?
(03:51:59) music_guru: lol :P
(03:52:05) Wedge009: Hmm, I might have missed some updates, but the quote at the top: 'I definitely want to do another Wing Commander...' has there been any progress on that front?
(03:52:14) music_guru: HD 3D version right?
(03:52:15) AD: I'm still amazed that it's not on bluray yet
(03:52:22) Wedge009: Or not allowed to say?
(03:52:27) PopsiclePete: Blu-ray with redone Kilrathis and all :)
(03:52:35) LOAF: Yeah, there's an HD transfer out there, it really needs a bluray release.
(03:52:39) Wedge009: Heh, a Blu-Ray WCM would be nice too.
(03:52:43) NinjaLA: very
(03:52:47) Chris_Roberts: One day I would like to do a full cut with digital Kilrathi, Merlin and the full Pilgrim subplot
(03:52:48) music_guru: i'm guessing it depends on fox
(03:52:57) ChrisReid: that would be wonderful
(03:53:03) AD: I'd love to see that
(03:53:06) Wedge009: Everything would make sense at last!
(03:53:14) Chris_Roberts: I get the US & UK rights back in 2015
(03:53:20) NinjaLA: oh neat
(03:53:21) music_guru: that would be awesome!
(03:53:24) Pedro: definiately. I really enjoyed the novelisation.
(03:53:28) PopsiclePete: Awesome indeed !
(03:53:29) TheyCallMeGrim: Fantastic.
(03:53:37) music_guru: rights to the movie?
(03:53:48) LOAF: Do you remember who did the ship models on the original Wing Commander? I've heard it was contracted out somewhere.
(03:54:12) ChrisReid: if the WC Movie were recut and rereleased, I'd love to go to a big fancy premiere showing for it 
(03:54:19) Chris_Roberts: Yes - Fox just got distribution rights for English speakign territories for 17 years
(03:55:04) Vinman: wow, has it really been 13 years??
(03:55:04) Wedge009: Odd number. Why 17?
(03:55:07) music_guru: 17 years, strange number but glad to hear it
(03:55:19) AD: So I know that you wanted Robin Williams to play Merlin... I always pictured Merlin as kind of being a dry straight faced type of humor...  What was your vision of the character?
(03:55:19) Wedge009: Heh, doesn't matter. It'll be over soon.
(03:55:20) Byydo: I was just thinking now that out of my generation (early 30's), out of those of us that were using computers in the early to mid 90's, there seem to be very few people who *didn't* play and enjoy Wing Commander at some point...  so your game had a major impact on a significant portion of our generation...
(03:55:21) TheyCallMeGrim: Any thoughts on a film sequel or reboot, then? I hear tell that reboots are all the rage these days...
(03:55:21) Chris_Roberts: WC1?  I dont remember exactly who anymore (its 23 years ago!) but it was a 3D modeler on the Amiga
(03:55:49) LOAF: Interesting! I just picked up an old Amiga (to play the Amiga port of Wing Commander I of course.)
(03:55:53) PopsiclePete: Can we ask about a future game ?  Within the next decade ?
(03:55:54) music_guru: did the modeler work at origin at the time?
(03:56:13) Pedro: If and when you were to return to the Wing Commander franchise do you think you would you be more inclined towards a continuation or a reboot?
(03:56:36) Chris_Roberts: I'm losing track of all the questions! My window isnt that big!
(03:56:44) PopsiclePete: hehe sorry
(03:56:50) LOAF: Haha okay, slowly guys...
(03:56:56) Pedro: sorry
(03:57:10) AD: If it's too much we could just send questions to LOAF or something to moderate
(03:57:33) TrelaneB: This is fine, just pump the breaks a tad
(03:57:48) Byydo: the brakes, man, the brakes
(03:57:48) TheyCallMeGrim: Sure thing.
(03:57:54) music_guru: i can be patient :P
(03:57:55) TrelaneB: That's the breaks
(03:58:05) AD: hehe
(03:58:05) Wedge009: I have a feeling people were typing and all the questions came at once.
(03:58:06) Zeether: whoa, the real Chris Roberts is here
(03:58:08) Vinman: haha, everybody's so excited :)
(03:58:16) pqp [pqp@adsl-065-005-218-152.sip.cae.bellsouth.net] entered the room.
(03:58:16) pqp left the room (quit: Quit: Leaving).
(03:58:36) Chris_Roberts: AD - I wanted Robin Williams because he liked and played Wing Commander and I thought he could handle Merlin's dry humor (he doesn't always have to be whacky Mork)
(03:58:37) Mike [Mike@c-98-247-105-25.hsd1.wa.comcast.net] entered the room.
(03:58:44) Chris_Roberts: AD - I wanted Robin Williams because he liked and played Wing Commander and I thought he could handle Merlin's dry humor (he doesn't always have to be whacky Mork)
(03:58:55) AD: Neat
(03:58:56) Byydo: man Tre, don't embarass us with your old-man puns in front of Chris Roberts... we're trying to look respectable here...
(03:59:03) Chris_Roberts: AD - I wanted Robin Williams because he liked and played Wing Commander and I thought he could handle Merlin's dry humor (he doesn't always have to be whacky Mork)
(03:59:14) AD: Yeah Willliams has had a few respectful serious roles that I've liked
(03:59:17) Mike: Is this THE Chris Roberts?
(03:59:21) music_guru: yes mike
(03:59:25) AD: Dead Poet's Society comes to mind
(03:59:27) Chris_Roberts: Argg.. This Jaav window is killing me. Sorry for the triple post
(03:59:27) Mike: oh my..
(03:59:35) AD: Hehe that's alright
(03:59:41) NinjaLA: no worries
(03:59:49) ^Death_: Actually Mike, he's part of a six-pack. Buy two of them and you get a 10% discount.
(04:00:01) Chris_Roberts: Funny thing is that I ended up working with him on The Big White
(04:00:02) Mike: I like six-packs
(04:00:13) pqp [pqp@adsl-065-005-218-152.sip.cae.bellsouth.net] entered the room.
(04:00:13) pqp left the room (quit: Quit: Leaving).
(04:00:28) Zeether: I have to say that although I haven't played the WC games much due to a massive backlog of games, they are really good and your work on them is just exquisite
(04:00:30) AD: Yeah, I think the Big White I've yet to watch
(04:00:37) AD: Not sure why I never got around to it
(04:00:39) Zeether: especially the ones with FMV
(04:00:47) ChrisReid: yeah, the java chat box is a little bit clunky.  in the long run, it's a lot easier to set up a dedicated IRC program, but it can be harder to set up to begin with
(04:00:55) AD: I think I've seen most of the rest of the films ascendant was involved with
(04:01:31) AD: I enjoyed Slevin quite a bit but wasn't entirely fond of the complete about face in tone  most of the way through
(04:02:03) Chris_Roberts: Pedro - If I did another Wing Commander I would definately do a reboot - Batman Begins or Sta Trek style. For me Wing Commander is really about the Kilrathi Confederation conflict
(04:02:16) NinjaLA: that's a relief
(04:02:26) Mike: Agreed.
(04:02:38) Sylvester [Sylvester@ip98-162-156-152.pn.at.cox.net] entered the room.
(04:02:38) PopsiclePete: So we'd experience the first steps of Blue Hair into the war again ?
(04:02:40) Pedro: probably a very wise decision after all these years.
(04:02:42) LOAF: Can you tell us what "Silverheart" was going to be?
(04:02:47) Vinman: phew! :)
(04:02:51) Mike: Though Wing Commander 4 was very well done as a post war game
(04:02:57) Wedge009: I thought it might. Personally, I want to see the Nephilim arc resolved, but it'd be good to get back to the Kilrathi.
(04:03:06) bob: Hello, sir
(04:03:45) Mike: CR are you talking game or movie
(04:03:55) music_guru: movei
(04:03:56) Byydo: Yeah, I actually played the FMV games before playing WC1 - and when I played WC1 I was amazed at what a great experience it was in terms of gameplay, pacing, plot, and the all-around feel of the game.
(04:04:02) AD: Game
(04:04:05) Mike: ah
(04:04:13) bob: It was WC2, for me
(04:04:13) music_guru: oh, sorry...
(04:04:23) bob: But 1 is a pretty different experience
(04:04:24) Chris_Roberts: With today's tech and what Ive learned from making movies I could take the immersion ad story to a whole new level
(04:04:29) Sylvester: Mr Roberts, just wantewd to say thanks. As I told the guys earlier, I take my Wing Commander pen with me when I fly as a Naval Officer.
(04:05:04) Delance: I played WC1 on a 286 with EGA, and it was *amazing*
(04:05:10) Mike: Oh man..that would make my decade if you made a WC1 reboot
(04:05:19) bob: Hehehe I didn't get around until Kilrathi Saga
(04:05:35) NinjaLA: I've got several wing commander CIC pens that I use for sketching. 
(04:05:44) bob: I guess it's hard for us kids to know what it was like back in 1990?
(04:06:02) music_guru: I concur with the thanks.  The original WC was one of the first games I ever played on PC and influenced my decision to become a programmer.
(04:06:15) Mike: Are we all generally late 20's or 30's here or do we have some pretty late comers in here as well
(04:06:30) Chris_Roberts: Loaf - Silverheart is cool _ I still have (and own) that IP and want to make it one day. Michael Moorcock (of Stormbringer fame) created the world and wrote the script.
(04:06:33) AD: WC2 really got me into the series.. I had played the first one but it wasn't until WC2 that I was seriously hooked
(04:06:37) bob: Yeah, I think everybody here has been shaped by by it pretty deeply
(04:06:40) Pedro: Like Sylvester I was inspired by you. Wing Commander IV was probably the game that made me certain I wanted to pursue and career in the games industry. So thank you! I don't regret it (yet :))
(04:06:54) Chris_Roberts: Thanks guys!
(04:06:55) Mike: I played one mission of WC1 and I was hooked.
(04:06:56) Zeether: I feel too young because I never really heard of WC until a few years ago
(04:06:57) AD: Didn't the silverheart novel eventually come out after the game fell through?
(04:07:12) Zeether: and then when III hit GOG I had to get it
(04:07:30) bob: I pretty literally grew up with Wing Commander
(04:07:36) Sylvester: I had it since almost birth - my dad put my baby seat next to the computer when he played WC1 back in 1990.
(04:07:37) ChrisReid: WC2 was first for me too
(04:07:40) Chris_Roberts: A novelization did. I think teh critique of it was that it seemed to be written for a game's format (which it was!)
(04:07:45) Mike: Even with all these new games COD, WoW and what have you, I will never be absolutly enthralled in a game or series of games like WC was for me
(04:07:46) bob: It came with my joystick when I was four years old
(04:07:55) bob: erm, six
(04:08:11) Anon441 [mousey333@c-68-47-37-164.hsd1.ga.comcast.net] entered the room.
(04:08:43) music_guru: so, mr. roberts, have you been doing anything in hollywood of late?  certainly you've had some great things happen in the family front :P
(04:08:54) bob: Mr. Roberts - Who do you think is doing the most interesting things in the gaming industry as of late?
(04:09:02) Byydo: For me, the biggest influence that Wing Commander has had on my life has been the people it allowed me to meet and the communities that it allowed me to become a part of...  Of course I really enjoyed playing the games too :D
(04:09:18) Mike: Agreed Byydo
(04:09:25) Chris_Roberts: We were in production on Silverheart at OSI before I left but we could never get the tech to work. We needed a livign breathing city - something Assasin's Creed does so well nowadays
(04:09:35) Byydo: So I also want to echo the thanks that others have already given
(04:09:38) bob: I remember that you did a PC Gamer interview back in 2000-ish where you said that Homeworld was pretty neat
(04:09:39) Vinman: yeah, we've all known each other for what, sixteen years at least
(04:09:40) LOAF: interesting1
(04:10:01) LeHah: Wow
(04:10:05) Vinman: yeah, the gods of gaming issue!
(04:10:11) LOAF: Yes I have known some of you since 1995... we all grew up together because of Wing Commander.
(04:10:15) TheyCallMeGrim: Thanks from me as well, Chris. WC1 and Privateer were co-op games for my brothers and me. They shaped our imaginations as much as anything else.
(04:10:22) Mike: I miss the hay days of Wing Commander clubs
(04:10:26) Mike: I ran one myself back in the day
(04:10:36) Mike: I'm so thankful CIC still exists
(04:10:37) Chris_Roberts: music_guru - Not films at the moment. I'm workign on something that I will sahre with you guys very shortly! I think you'll be happy
(04:10:40) Zeether: Chris, did you hear about Wing Commander Saga? What's your take on it?
(04:10:46) NinjaLA: thanks to the other Chris (reid) for getting me those pens
(04:10:54) ChrisReid: yeah, there's been very few days since 1995 that I haven't played Wing Commander or talked to someone about Wing Commander
(04:10:59) music_guru: thank you, whatever it is! :)
(04:11:11) Mike: You used to be WC Aces right?
(04:11:45) LOAF: Yeah
(04:11:47) Vinman: hahahaha oh man, the aces
(04:11:48) LeHah: That sounds like some good news
(04:11:50) Mike: That's awesome
(04:11:57) WtFPhragon [wtfdragon@184.151.222.238] entered the room.
(04:12:01) LeHah: Hehehe Aces
(04:12:18) bob: I was a bit too late to have caught ace's
(04:12:18) LeHah: We were talking about them the other da
(04:12:24) LeHah: *day
(04:12:27) Mike: I was in the Wing Commander Pilots Club back when when AOL was big
(04:12:33) Flashfire: I really like your thoughts about Wing Commander reboot...I loved the confed-kilrathi thing, and the "early" years were so ripe with adventure
(04:12:37) Byydo: yeah, it's great to hear that something is coming soon
(04:12:39) Chris_Roberts: Zeether - I havent had a chance to play WC Saga as I'm been busy on my secret project but I love that people had so much passion for the universe that they spent 10 years crafting an updated version for the fans
(04:12:59) ChrisReid: yeah, there's actually a number of complete Wing Commander fan games
(04:13:02) Vinman: yeah, certainly looking forward to hearing news about your future plans, Mr. Roberts :)
(04:13:05) ChrisReid: several that were in development for 5+ years
(04:13:07) AD: I've been curious about the WC TV show pitch from 2002 or so... back in the PNR days.  What would that have been like?
(04:13:08) Zeether: ah, I see
(04:13:18) LeHah: (By the way Mr Roberts, way back in 1999 you sent me some stuff in the mail from the movie. I may be a decade late but thanks!)
(04:13:37) Mike: See what kind of void you left Chris Roberts?? Everyone needed their fix so they had to start making thier own games! haha
(04:13:52) Flashfire: I also have very fond memories of WC 4: it pulled in so many of my friends who weren't into the *commander series because of the serious FMV components... very fun indeed
(04:13:54) music_guru: lol lehah - better late than never :)
(04:14:00) ^Death_: Heh. I tried applying to the Pilot's Club when I first got online via AOL (yeah, 'eww!'), never heard back from them.
(04:14:12) PopsiclePete: Mr. Roberts, if you'd have a chance to make a new WC game, would you make it PC or console-only ?
(04:14:19) ^Death_: Late-ish 1996 IIRC
(04:14:21) Delance: Wing Commander created an universe so immersive that fans want to come back and to keep it alive.
(04:14:24) LeHah: Hehehe pilots club
(04:14:26) Chris_Roberts: PC!
(04:14:30) Flashfire: yes!!!
(04:14:31) LeHah: I totally forgot about tht until now
(04:14:32) Pedro: *hug*
(04:14:33) NinjaLA: you, sir, are my hero.
(04:14:33) Wedge009: Hooray!
(04:14:34) Mike: YEAH!!!
(04:14:34) PopsiclePete: yaaaaay !
(04:14:40) bob: Hehehe, the first time I was able to get other people to acknowledge Wing Commander exists was because of Academy
(04:14:40) Chris_Roberts: And mayeb a console, but PC first and foremost
(04:14:42) Flashfire: PC also supports the modding universe so much better... I mean look at freespace
(04:14:43) bob: (the cartoon)
(04:14:59) Flashfire: I bet the programmers never imagined that the freespace engine would be sporting longbows, thunderbolts and hellcats 
(04:15:02) Chris_Roberts: PC is open 10x more powerful than current consoles and is always evolving
(04:15:07) WtFPhragon: PC FTW
(04:15:08) Mike: I played WC1 first but WC2 had already been released when I played
(04:15:10) Pedro: Do you see the decrease in popularity of Joysticks as an obstacle in producing a modern space combat game?
(04:15:30) Wedge009: That's the difficulty, isn't it? More flexibility, but so many more configurations to test.
(04:15:34) bob: Kind of sideways, but what are your thoughts on the Mechwarrior Online project?
(04:15:41) Flashfire: Chris_Roberts: do you have a favorite fighter and favorite capship from the WC universe (terran or kilrathi, whatever you wish)
(04:15:42) WtFPhragon: Though there are some good space sims for iPhone & Android.
(04:15:44) Mike: indeed. And I will buy me a new PC just to run the next WC
(04:15:47) Chris_Roberts: Its also the platfrom that most of the greatest games / franchises were born on (including some of the biggest console franchsies today)
(04:15:48) bob: That's a franchise that kind of went lockstep with WC
(04:15:53) PopsiclePete: ... of course PC games are easier to mod too, which is good for WC uber-nuts like me :p
(04:15:53) Delance: Yay for PC
(04:16:00) Mike: I miss the days of PC gaming
(04:16:03) NinjaLA: I keep my PC locked and loaded just in case.    
(04:16:04) Mike: stupid consoles
(04:16:08) Byydo: yay
(04:16:15) Wedge009: It's still around, just not as popular as it used to be.
(04:16:26) NinjaLA: heck.. until mass effect came out.. I was upgrading my PC regularly without any need at all.
(04:16:27) Zeether: I do like console games but PC games have started to leak into my life more and more
(04:16:31) Mike: yeah. if it wasn't or WoW it would be dead
(04:16:40) AD: Slow it down a hair guys... We're swamping poor Chris again I think
(04:16:43) Mike: Blizzard really
(04:16:59) bob: hehe, we really should have a more organized way of doing this
(04:17:08) Zeether: that and I think Valve kind of saved it too
(04:17:22) Mike: lol he's probably got the fire extinguisher in case his server starts melting
(04:17:37) bob: Different Chris
(04:17:38) Chris_Roberts: Pedro - not really. A gamepad has two analog joysticks on it, which makes it great for WC style action. BUt If I was making a space game I would also support the bad ass HOTAS setups you can buy as well!
(04:17:54) Mike: oh I thought you were talking about laggage again
(04:18:07) bob: Would you ever go Steel Battalion?
(04:18:20) LOAF: That would be great to see! I have a HOTAS setup on my DOS machine for the old games, would love an excuse to buy one for a new game.
(04:18:22) Byydo: If it hadn't been for Wing Commander when I was growing up, I might have gotten drawn into some horrible unsavory pasttime, like, I dunno, flashlight collecting or something.
(04:18:31) Vinman: hahaha
(04:18:32) Byydo: oh wait :(
(04:18:37) bob: which is not to say... beat me to it
(04:18:54) Chris_Roberts: I've been whatching the MechWarrior Online stuff. I'm curious, although I have to say Hawken looks better to my eye (closer to the style I like anyway)
(04:19:03) Zeether: Hawken does look pretty awesome
(04:19:33) Chris_Roberts: bob - you mean laggy kinect only? Not for all the money MS coudl throw at me
(04:19:45) ChrisReid: I think he means giant controller
(04:19:46) TheyCallMeGrim: Hehehehe
(04:19:50) bob: Hehehe, yeah
(04:19:50) Mike: Bless you, sir.
(04:19:52) Vinman: hahahaha amen
(04:19:53) wcnut left the room (quit: Ping timeout).
(04:19:57) ChrisReid: which is kind of where you were going with the hotas setup
(04:20:03) Zeether: I started following it around last year when they started showing early game footage, it looked great even when it was just a simple video
(04:20:09) ChrisReid: it's exceptionally rare to have game-exclusive PC hardware
(04:20:23) bob: Speaking of Mechwarrior Online, they were doing something similar with a special controller
(04:20:27) LOAF: Maybe do it Guitar Hero style -- bundle Wing Commander with a flight stick controller.
(04:20:43) AD: That could work...
(04:20:44) NinjaLA: the special edition box
(04:20:45) Mike: yeah
(04:20:54) Mike: mostly because FS controllers are getting harder to find
(04:21:02) Vinman: or a special Wing Commander guitar??
(04:21:09) Mike: and drums
(04:21:13) PopsiclePete: Hold on, Vaquero
(04:21:20) bob: http://www.razerzone.com/artemis
(04:21:24) TheyCallMeGrim: Brilliant, Vinman. ;-)
(04:21:26) bob: This thing
(04:21:27) ^Death_: Let's pass on Guitar Commander, shall we?
(04:21:28) ^Death_: :P
(04:21:31) Vinman: hahaha
(04:21:33) AD: Would you ever consider doing the quasi kinect style controls from Mass Effect 3 where you can order your wingmen around with voice commands?  
(04:21:39) LOAF: I remember being VERY drunk trying to play Wing Commander Arena with the Rock Band guitar... LeHah was there. It didn't go well.
(04:21:44) Chris_Roberts: But if its decent NUI then I would want to use some of it. Like voice recoginition for voice commands like "ship status". And there's a new device that's meant to be super accurate in tracking your finger motion - doing a combination of some minority report HUD stuff with a normal gamepad / joystick would be super cool. 
(04:21:45) bob: ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: KILL A DRALTHIWITH AN EIGHT-STRING
(04:21:58) LeHah: Hehehe I remember that LOAF 
(04:22:07) ^Death_: I guess that'd give new meaning to 'power chord'...
(04:22:13) ChrisReid: voice command in Wing Commander would be very cool
(04:22:35) Mike: For sure
(04:22:39) Vinman: when I was a kid I always pretended there was voice command for wingmen anyway :)
(04:22:45) TK_Sax [Tksax@99-3-69-12.lightspeed.rlghnc.sbcglobal.net] entered the room.
(04:22:45) Byydo: The average cost of controllers and peripherals seems to be a lot less than it used to be, for much higher quality stuff...  so I wonder if there might be a reasonable market for a simple but well-made flightstick bundle
(04:23:01) Zeether: yeah, no more opening the menu, just say "break and attack"
(04:23:01) Mike: I did too. When I cussed at them for getting in my line of fire.
(04:23:08) bob: By the way: I was in a computer class (A+) and I brought a Wing Commmander novel to read during downtime
(04:23:29) bob: And a guy, about 40-ish with kids and a family walked by and said "Hey, wasn't that a movie?"
(04:23:37) ^Death_: Mike, I think that was most of my verbal comments to my wingmen. 'You [censored by MiniPax]!'.
(04:23:39) Mirage [4c7f7a1a@ircip3.mibbit.com] entered the room.
(04:23:40) Pedro: I'd not heard about that. On a sidenote I did have the opportunity to implement Freelancer style controls with a a Wii remote, it worked really quite nicely. Were you not a fan of the mouse only controls of Freelancer?
(04:23:44) bob: And I kind of cringed because I thought there was going to be bitching
(04:23:51) AD: I could see kinect style stuff also being useful for head tracking to control somthing like strike commander's virtual cockpit
(04:23:53) Flashfire: Chris_Roberts: was Hobbes' feelings and comraderie with the pilots genuine during WC2 or was it all just a sham/personality overlay
(04:23:55) bob: But then he just said "that was pretty good" and passed by
(04:24:04) LOAF: It's funny, when we go to a sci-fi convention to promote the CIC... the NUMBER ONE comment we get is "I loved that movie, when are they going to make Wing Commander 2?"
(04:24:07) Flashfire: (replaying WC2 makes me a little sad when I talk to hobbes)
(04:24:08) AD: so less about controlling the ship but more about controlling your view
(04:24:12) LOAF: There's this entire fanbase that knows the movie and not the game somehow.
(04:24:25) music_guru: lol LOAF :P
(04:24:29) Pedro: really?!
(04:24:30) Mike: Oy...these people just don't know...
(04:24:34) bob: Hehehe, remember that guy in Japan who was making little ceramic movie ships?
(04:24:38) Zeether: "Wasn't that the movie everyone went to because of the Phantom Menace trailer?"
(04:24:54) ChrisReid: yeah, whenever it comes up in conversation, at work or wherever, that I have a Wing Commander website... most people are like "What's Wing Commander?   Oh yeah... wasn't that a movie?"
(04:24:59) ChrisReid: and they fondly remember the movie
(04:25:02) bob: I don't think the majority of normal people are crazy internet trolls
(04:25:09) Byydo: well there weren't really any WC games released after the big PC/Internet explosion around 98/99
(04:25:12) AD: There was a pretty cool review of the Wing Commander movie recently actually by some guy that writes books and such
(04:25:13) TheyCallMeGrim: Movies are more accessible than games used to be back in the day.
(04:25:22) Chris_Roberts: Pedro - The final muse controls we're the ones that were in teh game when I was leading it. I had a concept for the mouse controls that I thought would work - and maybe it woudl have - but the final implemnation wasn't soemthing that I was in love with
(04:25:23) AD: I interacted with him a bit on his site
(04:25:28) Mike: When was Prophecy released? 98?
(04:25:32) NinjaLA: let us know if we are overwhelming you again
(04:25:32) bob: Yeah
(04:25:35) Mike: wow...
(04:25:35) ChrisReid: LOAF made a good point, that just by sheer numbers - ticket sales, broadcasts, DVD sales, etc, millions of people have seen the WC Movie
(04:25:37) bob: I got mine Christmas 97
(04:25:58) Mike: yes bob, as did I. that's right
(04:26:17) AD: The WC movie has played constantly on tv over the last 12 years
(04:26:20) PopsiclePete: Question to Mr Roberts:  why was it decided to remove the cockpits in WC4 ?  What it because of time constraints or a deliberate decision ?  Many fans missed the realism of the "real" cockpit.
(04:26:23) AD: and much of that time in HD
(04:26:25) music_guru: Mr. Roberts, you stay in touch with any of your old origin colleagues or actors that you worked with?
(04:26:31) Pedro: I wonder how many people played the games because of the movie?
(04:26:48) Byydo: My dad never played a WC game even once, but even he saw the movie, when it was on TV
(04:26:50) Mirage: Good evening Wingnuts! and Happy Birthday CIC!
(04:26:57) music_guru: night mirage
(04:27:01) Chris_Roberts: AD - Yes I've actually looked at that and while the PC kinect skeleton trackign is laggy and just plain bad, the head tracking is quite good. The Occulus would be even better though!
(04:27:01) LOAF: It's a shame there was no game that came with the movie... would have been good synergy.
(04:27:02) Mike: Good question. I wondered that myself. Although I did like it w/o the cockpit 
(04:27:03) LOAF: Hello Mirage!
(04:27:17) Wedge009: Game based on the movie based on the game?
(04:27:23) bob: Wasn't there a plan to make a tie-in using Starlancer at one point?
(04:27:25) LOAF: The head tracking in Origin's Wings of Glory is a LOT of fun if you have the old hardware.
(04:27:46) bob: For that matter, wasn't there a plan to make a tie-in game with Wing Commander Academy (the cartoon)?
(04:27:57) TK_Sax: Head tracking on forza 4 is pretty cool
(04:28:01) WtFPhragon: Who here apart from LOAF has the old hardware?
(04:28:13) LOAF: Pix was here, he has the old hardware:)
(04:28:21) Chris_Roberts: music_guru - Yes. Whenever I'm back in Austin visiting my parents - and I also keep in touch with Richard, Fred & Dallas @ Portalarium
(04:28:25) WtFPhragon: Why am I not surprised?
(04:28:38) LOAF: Bob: yes, EA planned to rebrand a third party game as WCA... I can't remember what game it was.
(04:28:42) TK_Sax: Wings of glory is one of my fav games of all time.
(04:28:45) LOAF: It was released though.
(04:28:47) NinjaLA: oh neat.. I was going to ask about portalarium
(04:28:48) wcnut [chatzilla@c-67-186-170-250.hsd1.ct.comcast.net] entered the room.
(04:28:54) Mike: Wasn't Prophecy supposed to be a trilogy or am I remembering that wrong
(04:28:59) wcnut: hello 
(04:28:59) TheyCallMeGrim: Yes.
(04:29:04) bob: Darklight Conflict
(04:29:11) wcnut: sorry i was away
(04:29:14) ChrisReid: Darklight Conflict?
(04:29:14) Mirage: Unfortunately I have to get some sleep so I can't hang out and celebrate, gotta get up for work in about 5 hours. So have a great night all, and again Happy Birthday CIC!
(04:29:15) LOAF: We got to visit Portalarium last year around this time, I'm excited to see Richard Garriott take on EA for the Ultima legacy!
(04:29:28) LOAF: Thanks Mirage! Have a good night!
(04:29:30) Chris_Roberts: PopsiclePete - I hate that the cockpits were removed. Its my big regret.
(04:29:33) music_guru: g'night mirage
(04:30:01) Mirage left the room (quit: Quit: http://www.mibbit.com ajax IRC Client).
(04:30:02) Flashfire: Chris_Roberts: I remember that in WC1 or WC2 my love or distaste for a ship or how cramped it felt (eg epee) really was defined by the cockpit artwork and layout of the gauges
(04:30:04) AD: Was work done on cockpits for WC4?  Or was it scrapped early on?
(04:30:05) Chris_Roberts: It was a schedule thing and that part of the team felt they were uneccesary.
(04:30:09) Flashfire: did you have a favorite cockpit from the series?
(04:30:18) bob: Cockpits give the ship character
(04:30:27) Mike: Yes that is true.
(04:30:31) TK_Sax: I ww
(04:30:33) Flashfire: I did like the thematic red/green/blue colors from WC4--but it wasn't the same as the all out art in the other games
(04:30:37) bob: I mean, the Rapier was an amazing ship but the fact that I couldn't see crap out of it made me hate it
(04:30:45) TK_Sax: I liked the no cockpit 
(04:30:51) bob: Same with the Orion
(04:30:53) Chris_Roberts: Cockpits help create the immersion for me - and I think I'm hearing you all agree.
(04:30:54) NinjaLA: yeah.. the cockpits and gun loadouts were really what set ships apart in the games
(04:30:55) Flashfire: I loved the Rapier's cockpit
(04:30:56) Zeether: yeah the cockpits were cool in WC1 when I played it
(04:31:01) AD: There were some other features planned for WC4 that never seemed to be fully implemented
(04:31:12) Vinman: yeah, they provide so much of each ship's character
(04:31:13) music_guru: the cockpits were neat
(04:31:15) Flashfire: aack you could fly a wallmart between the sabre's guns 
(04:31:19) Flashfire: *walmart
(04:31:20) PopsiclePete: Like the leech missiles serving no purpose ?
(04:31:23) NinjaLA: privateer especially..   the tarsus cockpit makes you feel like you are in someone's bachelor pad... which also has guns
(04:31:29) Zeether: III kind of didn't have the full cockpit though
(04:31:32) AD: Like what happend with the idea that there would be secondary wings flying their missions at the same time as yours?
(04:31:40) ChrisReid: it's impressive how so much did come together in Wing Commander 4 in just a year
(04:31:40) bob: Just the visual constraint is great, though
(04:31:45) Zeether: like no view of the pilot hands 
(04:31:47) LOAF: Here's a question for Chris - do you remember anything about a Strike Commander followup called "Phoenix Force"?
(04:31:49) Vinman: leeches were good for when you didn't want to kill people unless absolutely necessary :)
(04:31:52) capi3101 [capi3101a@ip98-168-174-178.ok.ok.cox.net] entered the room.
(04:31:57) TheyCallMeGrim: With modern displays and HDTVs, I would think cockpits would be much easier to pull off today.
(04:31:58) Mike: Yes. Even though I did like w/o the cockpits just because you could see everything but...agreed that it did set the ships apart
(04:32:05) Pedro: a real inner cockpit when wearing the occulus would be immensely cool
(04:32:11) Zeether: I need to play Privateer again now, because I never got far at all
(04:32:12) Chris_Roberts: The fantasy I always wanted was to be a bad ass top gun star fighter and having the cockpit around me, seeing my legs and hand on a joystick put me in that world. With no cockpit you feel disconnected
(04:32:15) ChrisReid: hey Chris, do you know anything about the Super Nintendo version of WC2?
(04:32:22) Flashfire: agreed
(04:32:23) ChrisReid: it's one of the last few really big lost WC games
(04:32:32) ChrisReid: was redone with color VDUs and some neat differences
(04:32:32) Zeether: started off with meson blasters and realized it was a mistake
(04:32:33) bob: *The* lost game
(04:32:35) Mike: Chris Roberts: When you Made WC3, did you know there was going to be a WC4?
(04:32:42) Meson: the cockpits were great. THough, I don't know if some of them would pass in the real world
(04:32:45) ChrisReid: copies even went out for magazine reviews, but the game was never shipped and sold
(04:32:54) Meson: even if you factor in the space and time thing
(04:33:02) music_guru: chrisreid, that would be an awesome find...
(04:33:23) Zeether: are there ROMs floating around of it?
(04:33:28) music_guru: ni
(04:33:29) music_guru: no
(04:33:32) Zeether: oh
(04:33:47) bob: it's the "we can't find the cartridges or raw data" lost
(04:33:49) music_guru: there is a secret missions snes game
(04:33:50) LOAF: Nope, no ROMs
(04:33:55) ChrisReid: nope
(04:33:58) Zeether: mysterious game prototypes are always interesting
(04:33:59) ChrisReid: no trace
(04:34:05) Chris_Roberts: LOAF - No... I dont think it was during my OSI time, maybe after I left?
(04:34:15) LOAF: It was developed by a team at Origin, Billy Cain was in charge... this was 1995
(04:34:39) LOAF: Chris was probably shooting WC4 at the time.
(04:35:06) TK_Sax left the room (quit: Client closed connection).
(04:35:25) ChrisReid: yeah, we're really interested in all those old stuff
(04:35:42) ChrisReid: we've been to the University of Texas Archives to catalog what they had from Origin
(04:35:44) Chris_Roberts: Mike - No, I saw WC3 as the end. Then EA came and begged as it was a console change over (Sega had gone away, kind of like what is happening now) and WC3 was the buggest selling game EA had.
(04:35:49) music_guru: at least to archive it... some of this older stuff is more likely to fall through...
(04:35:52) ChrisReid: been to the EA Mythic studio in Maryland to catalog all the stuff that was sent there
(04:36:03) ChrisReid: do you have or keep any old material from the Origin days?
(04:36:12) ChrisReid: it'd be great to see that stuff some time
(04:36:12) Chris_Roberts: So I put Silverheart on hold and worked on WC4
(04:36:30) Chris_Roberts: It was tough because originally EA wanted WC4 in NINE months!
(04:36:36) NinjaLA: egad
(04:36:38) Mike: That's insane
(04:36:38) bob: I do remember that
(04:36:41) LeHah: Oof
(04:36:42) Flashfire: with FMV and everything, wow
(04:36:47) Mike: that game is brilliant for the amount of time you did it in
(04:36:49) Zeether: wow
(04:36:51) Chris_Roberts: Its why so much was spent on the FMV & Story and the game wasnt pushed so much
(04:37:05) Flashfire: I loved WC4 so much at the time, really bringing folks together
(04:37:08) bob: In the strategy guide postmortem, you said you missed the days when you had eighteen months
(04:37:11) bob: Or somesuch
(04:37:17) music_guru: still WC4 came out, turned out to be a great product despite the time crunch
(04:37:28) PopsiclePete: Mr Roberts, earlier Flashfire asked a question I too qould like to hear you about, if possible:  what was your intention about Hobbes ?  Why the treason ?  Personality overlay or he simply decided he could not betray his kind though the destruction of his homeworld ?
(04:37:41) Chris_Roberts: Its easy to add value / quality in the filmed side, but without 18 -24 months on the game side it was impossible to do much in terms of pushing the tech or gameplay
(04:37:45) AD: I was always a story player... more in it for the story so WC4 was amazing for me at the time - like living a movie
(04:38:08) AD: WC2 is still my favorite overall game in the series though
(04:38:17) Flashfire: and how genuine Hobbes' good feelings were towards the player and the other fellow pilots
(04:38:19) Flashfire: at the time
(04:38:23) PopsiclePete: Even the sprite-based WC were playing like movies... that's what made them so cool.
(04:38:25) AD: But I think highly of WC1 and it's branching
(04:38:33) music_guru: that's true, it did feel like a minor upgrade over the WC3 engine (compared to WC2 to WC3)
(04:38:35) AD: which seems unparalleled 
(04:38:42) bob: Nowadays even eighteen months would be an eternity for a dev cycle, wouldn't it?
(04:38:43) wcnut: Wow Mr. Roberts, its a real honor!  Huge fan of your work. Ever since my dad bought us WC1 for the snes when I was little.
(04:38:46) Mike: And...why wouldn't you let me go after Hobbes without Captain Eisen getting mad at me? LOL
(04:38:58) Flashfire: I've never seen a game branch as well as WC1--where you can play a mission--and FAIL...and the game takes that into account in a very organic manner and lets you keep going---that was an amazing part I've never seen again in a non-sandbox game
(04:38:59) eddieb [eddieb@cpe-76-167-168-82.socal.res.rr.com] entered the room.
(04:39:07) AD: Hey Eddie! 
(04:39:17) Zeether: yeah and if you fail too much in WC1...Hell's Kitchen
(04:39:18) eddieb: Ah, sorry I'm late, happy birthday gang
(04:39:18) PopsiclePete: Eddie !  The mand coding software for teh Curiosity mars probe !  :)
(04:39:20) AD: Eddie works on amazing Nasa projects
(04:39:21) Chris_Roberts: PP & FlashFire - Hobbes didnt know he was a plant so his feelings / inetentions were honorable at the time
(04:39:24) NinjaLA: I'd just like to take this moment to point out that eddieb is also a bit of a celebrity right now
(04:39:25) PopsiclePete: Congrats Eddie :)
(04:39:32) NomadTerror: eddie: congrats
(04:39:34) NinjaLA: coding for the curiosity rover
(04:39:41) Pedro: depends on the scale of a game. For a blockbuster like WC 18months would still be pretty average is not a little short
(04:39:44) eddieb: Thanks, it was an amazing experience, we had an awesome team working together
(04:39:51) LOAF: eddie! Congratulations!!!!
(04:39:54) Flashfire: seeing the consequences for your actions are amazing...and hells kitchen...that final stage when you let everyone down--it was unbelievably cool--when I was young I thought *that* was the ending...that was what you strived for lol
(04:39:55) eddieb: Thanks 
(04:40:01) TheyCallMeGrim: Congrats, Eddie!
(04:40:03) NinjaLA: I was glued to my TV during the landing
(04:40:07) music_guru: hey eddie! grats on the lander!
(04:40:11) Flashfire: Rover ftw
(04:40:13) NinjaLA: thank you NASA channel
(04:40:21) music_guru: we've got two celebs in the house now!
(04:40:34) LOAF: (Chris - eddie here is with the team that did the sofftware for the Mars mission... he also programmed his own fan made WC game engine for the community!)
(04:40:35) eddieb: haha, I'm not as famous as mohawk guy, 
(04:40:44) Chris_Roberts: Congrats Eddie!
(04:40:53) TheyCallMeGrim: Hah!
(04:40:55) Flashfire: yay eddie
(04:40:55) bob: Yes, well done
(04:41:02) Meson: thank you eddieb. That was a fun night. Too bad most of the networks only shows 1 or 2 minutes of the landing.
(04:41:05) Mike: Seriously? Nice work Eddie! Congrats!
(04:41:07) NomadTerror: eddie: several of us were hoping to see you behind one of the flight software or fault tolerance workstations
(04:41:11) NinjaLA: mohawk guy doesn't get to meet Chris_Roberts rightn now.
(04:41:11) eddieb: Thanks.  If that's the real chris roberts, wow it's an honor.
(04:41:16) Chris_Roberts: I'm guessing the mars landing was probably a bit more difficult? :-)
(04:41:17) bob: It is
(04:41:23) NinjaLA: very real.
(04:41:29) ***Meson wished he was in NYC at the time to take part of the Curiosty party in TImes Square
(04:41:30) PopsiclePete: Mr Roberts: so even if the "overlay explanation" scene wasn't in the PC version of the game, it's what better describe why he turned is coat back to the Empire ?
(04:41:46) Mike: Yes for the record (and I know I'm doing a poor job at it) I'm trying not to nerd out in front of Mr. Roberts here...haha
(04:42:01) eddieb: Wow.  
(04:42:28) music_guru: next time i'm at jpl eddie, i'd love to say hi sometime... for now - keep up the good work
(04:42:39) eddieb: Sure, if anyone comes down, I'm happy to give them a tour.
(04:42:50) eddieb: We have an exact copy of Curiosity we use for testing here.
(04:43:21) AD: The WC movie is heavily influenced by WW2 films... Tora Tora Tora, Dambusters, and others  Was that also how you saw Wing Commander 1 when you first designed it?
(04:43:24) LOAF: I'd like that! My brother lives in LA, I need to get out there to see him.
(04:43:34) AD: I mean in visual style
(04:43:39) music_guru: i know :P i saw it when i was on internship there (sadly, i didn't know you at the time...)
(04:43:42) LOAF: Plus you're getting a space shuttle any day now and I need to see that :)
(04:43:51) bob: Which one?
(04:43:51) Chris_Roberts: PP - When we were writing WC2 we hadn't plotted out WC3, so the deep plant (Manchurian Candisate style) was a device that the WC3 writers and I came up with later 
(04:44:06) NinjaLA: makes sense
(04:44:14) LOAF: Uh... Endeavour, right?
(04:44:31) LOAF: Or Atlantis?
(04:44:35) eddieb: Chris:  I'm wondering if you have any memories about how the wing commander AI was programmed.  Nested state machines?  Any recommended papers to read?  It's one of the programming tasks I find intriguing.
(04:44:37) LOAF: Endeavour.
(04:44:41) Jacob [Jacob@c-174-54-149-118.hsd1.pa.comcast.net] entered the room.
(04:45:00) AD: Hi Jacob
(04:45:06) Chris_Roberts: AD - WC was directly based on WW2, or more specifcally the war in the pacific. THe US Navy was teh COnfed, The Imeprial Japenese Forces teh Kilrathi, planets were islands and space the paciifc.
(04:45:17) music_guru: hehe eddie, if he remembers, that bit would be awesome :P
(04:45:46) Jacob: Hey everyone. Glad I could finally join in the fun.
(04:45:47) VaultTechie: Thanks guys this was awesome...good night
(04:45:52) VaultTechie left the room (quit: Quit: wcnews.com).
(04:45:54) Mike: oh wow. I never tied those together
(04:46:13) AD: So why cats?
(04:46:14) Jacob: No shit, Chris Roberts is here? Awesome!
(04:46:25) Chris_Roberts: eddieb - its been so long - I actually coded the original wingman AI system and my brother built the data / scripts. If I recall it was a pretty basic state machine
(04:46:27) bob: Hehe Dundradal became a Pacific War historian because of Wing COmmander
(04:46:29) music_guru: little known fact (i think...) there is a "brains.c" file that got packed into the original WC1 demo, you might find that an interesting read eddie
(04:46:57) NinjaLA: yeah.. our resident WWII guy appears to be present but unaccounted for
(04:46:57) Wedge009: I remember that file. I'm not sure if there was all that much 'meat' in it, though.
(04:47:14) bob: remove "present" and that is accurate
(04:47:15) music_guru: not a lot... but still a fun read
(04:47:26) AD: It's 1 am for Dund... he probably passed out on scotch
(04:47:28) Meson: the zombie file
(04:47:35) Vinman: haha
(04:47:36) bob: He does that every night
(04:47:46) LOAF: How is your brother anyway? I see his name on those Lego games!
(04:47:58) AD: The prophecy dev cds hav a bunch of the AI files in there...
(04:48:09) bob: Yeah, it'd be great to hear from him
(04:48:17) Chris_Roberts: He's great - he is also a proud father - he has a two and a half year old son!
(04:48:27) NinjaLA: yeah. if you could at all mention to your brother how much we *adore* privateer 2..  it'd mean the world to me.
(04:48:28) AD: also I unpacked abunch of the bevior files from the PSX version a while back IIRC
(04:48:30) Mike: Nice. Congrats to both of you
(04:48:34) bob: Speaking of which, happy birthday to your daughter
(04:48:49) LOAF: All of you gaming greats are having kids at the same time!
(04:48:50) AD: Priv 2 has a great film  noire style and unique setting
(04:48:55) LOAF: Richard Garriott, too.
(04:49:09) Mike: Clive Owen was a great cast
(04:49:13) Chris_Roberts: He runs the Travelers Tales Fusion studio which builds half the TT games (the open world lego game that everyone is talking about is his)
(04:49:27) NinjaLA: wow
(04:49:35) music_guru: awesome! those lego games have been a huge success!
(04:49:49) LOAF: We just need LEGO Privateer...
(04:49:56) bob: That would be great
(04:49:57) PopsiclePete: Lego Wing COmmander !
(04:49:58) Vinman: haha yes!
(04:50:01) capi3101: I'd play that.
(04:50:03) Mike: omg omg omg omg
(04:50:06) AD: Hehe that would be awesome and kind of wierd
(04:50:07) Chris_Roberts: the TT Fusion studio is basically the core EA Manchester team that built Privateer 2 and then later went onto to become Warthog and build Starlancer.
(04:50:07) NinjaLA: me too!
(04:50:07) bob: Although I doubt George Lucas would concent
(04:50:11) bob: consent, even
(04:50:15) music_guru: build your own lego ship!
(04:50:18) Vinman: kat fighters explode into clouds of bricks
(04:50:24) Wedge009: There's been a few fan Lego WC ships over the years.
(04:50:37) Zeether: that new Lego game on Wii U looks awesome
(04:50:38) music_guru: that's right wedge!
(04:50:55) Chris_Roberts: Loaf - I know, LOL - we're all late starters!
(04:51:03) Zeether: it's like they took the Lego Island games and made them even better
(04:51:21) Mike: Yes. The Roberts brothers are a great success at what they do...but what abour our needs!
(04:51:31) Mike: We need more WC!
(04:51:32) bob: What about my needs?
(04:51:32) eddieb: A new WC with 3d animated characters for cutscenes... like Old Republic cutscenes, that would be fun.  
(04:51:33) music_guru: let's hope all your kids get together to build a game studio someday - lol
(04:51:54) bob: I thought the way TES Oblivion dialogues worked was a lot like WC1
(04:52:02) bob: Zoom in, face front
(04:52:14) Vinman: hehehe
(04:52:22) eddieb: Chris, what games have your eye nowdays?
(04:52:24) Chris_Roberts: Mike - I love WC, but EA owns it, so its not eay for me to do another one on my own terms
(04:52:41) LOAF: So much of the industry owes itself to WC. Just the idea that you can make blockbuster million dollar games instead of stuff in garages for D&D hobbyists...
(04:52:53) bob: It's too bad the Conquest sequel is stuck in limbo
(04:52:59) AD: Speaking of WC1 dialogue... who decided to give up doing to proper lip synching?
(04:53:00) music_guru: do the own the rights to "Wing Leader?" - lol
(04:53:19) Mike: What about Wing Command...DER
(04:53:44) AD: Wing Orderer
(04:53:57) Mike: Really EA should just hand that over to you, they aren't doing anything good with it
(04:53:59) capi3101: I got it - GAME THAT IS MORE AWESOME THAN ANY OF THE REST OF THE CRAP EA HAS TRAWLED OUT IN THE LAST DECADE.
(04:54:07) capi3101: It's a bit long, admittedly.
(04:54:07) Byydo: You could always go for the license to do a Man-Kzin Wars game...  :P
(04:54:09) TheyCallMeGrim: How about we all break open our piggy banks and buy the rights from them.
(04:54:10) LOAF: Was there ever any thought to revisiting the Strike Commander world?
(04:54:21) powellXCIX: Oh good question
(04:54:34) Vinman: especially now that we're living in it :)
(04:54:37) LOAF: (Actually - did you see Strike Commander as being the same world as Wing Commander? Or are they unrelated?)
(04:54:38) Chris_Roberts: eddieb - This past year I've been busy, but the games that I liked were Uncharted 2 (stil havent unwrapped 3), Demon Souls, Battlefield BC2, Starcraft
(04:54:40) music_guru: Wing Dictator.... but seriously, i think Roberts and co. were goign to call it "Wing Leader" originally
(04:54:44) HotJob [HotJob@71-222-221-251.albq.qwest.net] entered the room.
(04:54:48) ChrisReid: well, EA's been rereleases the original WC games over GOG for the past year
(04:54:52) ChrisReid: and they sold super well
(04:54:53) bob: Strike Commander was two years ago
(04:54:53) NinjaLA: uncharted 3 is painfully hard
(04:54:54) LOAF: First it was "Squadron" then "Wingleader"
(04:54:57) Flashfire: Starcraft borrowed *so* much of the single player from WC it's unreal
(04:55:02) ChrisReid: so it's still a very financially viable/active franchise
(04:55:03) music_guru: that's right - thx LOAF
(04:55:05) Chris_Roberts: LOAF - different worlds
(04:55:07) Flashfire: def brought back good memories from WC years
(04:55:18) Flashfire: of walking around the carrier, interacting with your pals
(04:55:25) Mike: Yeah Chris I know...and though I'm thankful for that...I would love a new WC made by the man himself. I guess I just want to have my cake and eat it too
(04:55:52) PopsiclePete: Mr Roberts, how would you adress the problem with most attempts to multiplayer space dogfighting when people complain about flying circles trying to tail the other player ?  Make multiplyer co-op only ?  Have Descent-style terrain missions ?
(04:55:52) Chris_Roberts: Guys - I have to duck out for a few minutes to put my oldest to bed (its way past her bedtime). So I'll go silent for a few but be back
(04:55:56) Vinman: I always wondered, considering the difficult development of Strike Commander, what was your opinion of the end result?  Was there anything you really wanted in there that ended up being cut?
(04:55:58) bob: Sure
(04:56:00) Vinman: ok
(04:56:03) capi3101: Night, all.
(04:56:04) capi3101 left the room (quit: Quit: ).
(04:56:08) music_guru: take your time, we'll be here :P
(04:56:31) LOAF: Vinman: check out some of the scans we posted today. there's an early press release for Strike Commander that describes a pretty different game!
(04:56:32) bob: It's a shame Strike Commander got tied down
(04:56:34) NinjaLA: yeah.. you've already gone way above and beyond just by being here.   we can be patient
(04:56:42) bob: Privateer with that engine would have been amazing
(04:56:42) Mike: The Wing Commander Saga game is really pretty but I'm having a hard time getting used to the in flight commands
(04:56:43) #wingnut: mode (+v Chris_Roberts) by ChrisReid
(04:56:49) Vinman: is it safe to go back to wcnews? :)
(04:56:53) LOAF: Hehe yes
(04:56:55) ChrisReid: yup
(04:57:20) NinjaLA: so long as 50 of us don't simultaneously try to pull 2.7 gigs of data 
(04:57:21) LOAF: http://www.wcnews.com/newestshots/full/StrikeSheetBack.JPG
(04:57:39) LOAF: Check out some of the features listed on there... six different planes, from World war I biplanes to F-15s!
(04:57:40) bob: Hehe as soon as the CIC came back on I immediately downloaded a 1.2 gig file
(04:57:51) Mike: btw...Happy Birthday guys. And thank you for still keeping the universe alive.
(04:57:54) Wedge009: Mike, I re-configured the controls to be WC-style. You get some conflicts, but it's easy to eliminated them.
(04:58:00) Wedge009: eliminate
(04:58:03) Jacob: I always love the CIC's birthday because of all the crazy-ass news articles that come about. Always a really interesting read.
(04:58:06) TheyCallMeGrim: $79.95... Sheesh.
(04:58:11) LOAF: And P-38s!
(04:58:20) Mike: Oh cool, Wedge
(04:58:22) LOAF: Any time Mike!
(04:58:35) music_guru: ya, i was laughing at that too grim
(04:58:38) wcnut: personally I hope they put out Armada on GOG.  Would love to play multi with more people 
(04:58:45) TheyCallMeGrim: I never had to buy a game that that price.
(04:58:46) NinjaLA: that doesn't help the gameplay.. saga really needs a skip mission function that doesn't make you fail and land 5 times in a row.
(04:58:51) Mike: oh wow I forgot about Armada
(04:58:52) music_guru: software was expensive back in the day
(04:58:53) eddieb: Hmm... multiplayer.  We have the huge advantage now that everyone has fast internet, not like the aramda/tie fighter days.  I could see coop missions as being fun... 2-3 against teh computer
(04:58:57) Mike: I never did get to play that game multiplayer
(04:58:58) NinjaLA: I still haven't beaten the kinney mission
(04:59:15) TheyCallMeGrim: All my copies of the WC games were hand-me-downs growing up.
(04:59:24) NinjaLA: I got a late start
(04:59:25) music_guru: plus inflation, these games would be over $100 today... oh, and then you'd have to buy the speech pack and the expansion too :P
(04:59:26) wcnut: it works fine on dosbox if you ever get it running
(04:59:30) Mike: All my original WC games are safely in a box in storage
(04:59:31) Wedge009: Yeah, takes forever. Take a look at Q's Anger Management thread.
(04:59:35) NinjaLA: but I soaked up wing commanders as fast as possible after 1994
(04:59:45) bob: I don't think inflation has been that terrible?
(04:59:55) bob: In the past 17 years or so
(04:59:56) NinjaLA: there has barely been inflation
(04:59:59) LOAF: Wing Commander practically begs for co-op! You're flying with a wingman, after all.
(05:00:01) Mike: Are you kidding?
(05:00:02) ChrisReid: I am sooooo looking forward to Armada on GOG
(05:00:05) NinjaLA: but cost of living has increased by 3 to 4 times
(05:00:13) music_guru: inflation, hell yes
(05:00:13) Mike: I just went grocery shopping today. I can tell you...there is some serious inflation
(05:00:20) TheyCallMeGrim: Yep.
(05:00:21) Meson: the old idea of Privateer Online
(05:00:22) NinjaLA: that's cost of living
(05:00:26) Meson: would be great
(05:00:38) Meson: a bit of both co-op and head-to-head
(05:00:41) HotJob: Man, y'all are making me feel old.  I remember hunting around at different game stores looking for Rightous Fire!
(05:00:45) NinjaLA: inflation is different 
(05:00:59) LOAF: You want to see inflation, you guys should check out what's going on at the nation's mylar balloon factories.
(05:01:01) Mike: Righteous Fire is the only WC game I never owned
(05:01:05) bob: hehehe
(05:01:14) ChrisReid: http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm/
(05:01:16) Vinman: *rimshot*
(05:01:16) music_guru: funny thing is, game companies are trying to determine if they can make the leap safely to $69 or up for non-special edition console games
(05:01:21) wcnut: really you had super wing commander?
(05:01:22) ChrisReid: $80 in 1993 dollars is $127 in 2012 dollars
(05:01:24) Meson: LOAF, that's because of the helium shortage
(05:01:34) Mike: okay...no...
(05:01:37) Chris_Roberts: I'm back... I've got about 30  mins before I have to say good night...
(05:01:37) bob: well go to the FREAKING MOON then
(05:01:37) Mike: as far as PC goes
(05:01:37) music_guru: games are crazy cheap compared to when i was growing up
(05:01:44) bob: jeez, so simple
(05:01:47) NinjaLA: welcome back
(05:01:48) punkazzINC [androirc@71-94-177-188.dhcp.knwc.wa.charter.com] entered the room.
(05:01:50) Mike: I didn't own a Super NES so I never got the console WC's
(05:01:57) Mike: though now I wished I would have just for shits and giggles
(05:01:58) wcnut: I guess i was one of the few mac users durring thoes days
(05:01:59) Vinman: welcome back!
(05:02:08) Vinman: I hate to ask again, but I always wondered, considering the difficult development of Strike Commander, what was your opinion of the end result?  Was there anything you really wanted in there that ended up being cut?
(05:02:18) WtFPhragon left the room (quit: Quit: Colloquy for iPhone - http://colloquy.mobi).
(05:02:21) punkazzINC: Hey fellas
(05:02:23) Mike: Thank you for being here Mr. Roberts. It's a real honor to get to talk to you
(05:02:39) bob: Oh, and for what it's worth, I think Freelancer turned out well
(05:02:48) Mike: I enjoyed Freelancer!
(05:02:55) LOAF: When Wing Commander came out did you know that was YOUR universe, like Garriott had Ultima... or did you expect to move on to other things?
(05:02:55) LeHah: I did too
(05:03:05) Zeether: I really hope we can see Freelancer on GOG because it looks really fun
(05:03:21) Byydo: Yeah, thank you for coming tonight.  Actually I've been wanting to say "Thank you" to you directly since maybe 1995 or so, so I'm glad I finally got the chance.
(05:03:23) music_guru: i can't believe i'm sitting here typing to *the* Chris Roberts, this really has made my year! (btw, the movie was released on my b-day so double thank you for that present!)
(05:03:24) Vinman: it is! :)
(05:03:24) Mike: I'm looking at my Freelancer CD right now pondering to install it and get it to work lol
(05:03:25) Chris_Roberts: NO _ I actually rate Strike as one of my best games - it does everything I wanted it to do and had ground breaking tech - proper gouraud shading and texture mapping beofre anyone else.. Id included.
(05:03:25) punkazzINC: I  thought freelancer was pretty fun. 
(05:03:32) Zeether: thing is with Microsoft owning it and all I kind of doubt it
(05:03:37) wcnut: have you seen that freeworlds mod for freelancer, they are really pushing the engine
(05:03:39) Vinman: it really was a gorgeous game :)
(05:03:53) Jacob: Yes, Mr. Roberts. It's awesome that you took time to be here for this. And this might sound cheesy, but I love the Wing Commander movie, especially the kick-ass battle at the end.
(05:03:54) Chris_Roberts: The only problem was you needed a 486/66 for it to run well
(05:04:02) bob: Microsoft made MW4 Mercs free
(05:04:13) bob: and let the fans make addons to run with it
(05:04:16) Wedge009: I remember reading your Apocalypse letter on the manual. Good to know you were satisfied with the results.
(05:04:21) bob: and released the source code for Allegiance
(05:04:22) TheyCallMeGrim: Which I happened to have... In 1998.
(05:04:23) Zeether: yeah, maybe they can do something with Freelancer
(05:04:27) Vinman: the Big Damn Ending :)
(05:04:40) Chris_Roberts: But if you look at what we did you will see a lot of that in every current day sim (virtual cockpit was one of the innovations)
(05:04:41) Mike: Oh wait a tick. I have a question. What the heck happened with Wing Commander: KS?
(05:04:52) bob: Kilrathi Saga?
(05:04:54) Mike: yeah
(05:04:58) music_guru: Mr. Roberts, out of the Wing Commader games that you spend time on, which one did you enjoy working on the most?
(05:05:08) Vinman: going back and playing it, it really is way ahead of its time
(05:05:09) Mike: I bought it and it didn't work right. So I took it back. And I never was able to find another copy
(05:05:16) LOAF: Kilrathi Saga was after CHris left Origin!
(05:05:31) bob: Hehehe it was made for a different Windows
(05:05:32) AD: What did you guys think of that crazy 1991 movie pitch we posted today?  
(05:05:45) bob: I haven't gotten a chance to look at it yet
(05:05:49) music_guru: pretty awesome AD
(05:06:07) LOAF: It's interesting! Had no idea Origin was thinking of a WC movie that early.
(05:06:10) Mike: Oh. Well then screw that game! lol
(05:06:10) AD: It sounds like it was going to be using the WC1 engine or something combined with animations like in WC2... not sure exactly
(05:06:30) Chris_Roberts: WC1 & WC3 for different reasons. WC1 was magical and everythign just came together. You may not believe it but the missions were exactly the ones that Jeff George designed on paper - we didnt need to do any balancing at all!
(05:06:35) AD: it seemed elaborate for the tech descriptions thes script called for
(05:07:11) Chris_Roberts: WC3 was great because we pushed the story and characters - it really did feel like you were in a movie
(05:07:14) music_guru: wow, nice fun fact there
(05:07:19) NinjaLA: wc1 does feel pretty 'right' when you are playing it.
(05:07:25) ^Death_: CRoberts, so do we have to track down Mr. George to thump... err, thank him for the Ralari rescue mission in Kurasawa 2? :P
(05:07:27) Chris_Roberts: And it was fun learning filmmaking on the job
(05:07:33) Mike: LMAO!
(05:07:37) Mike: Nice Death...
(05:07:41) NinjaLA: and I've always been a fan of the FMV elements of WCIII and IV
(05:07:46) music_guru: lol, thinking the same thing death :P
(05:07:50) eddieb: Chris: The Standoff guys did an amazing job with the WC spirit, highly recommend giving it a try.
(05:08:06) bob: How do you feel about the progression from WC1 - 3 in terms of... scriptability I guess?
(05:08:07) Mike: That mission give me an ulcer every time
(05:08:08) AD: Who was the FMV producer/director you had working with you on WC3?  I never remember
(05:08:15) bob: I mean WC1 had lots and lots of branches
(05:08:18) bob: WC2 fewer
(05:08:26) NinjaLA: yeah.. if you haven't tried standoff, it's definitely worth it
(05:08:28) music_guru: i think the Kurasawa mission is as close to Kobayashi Maru as it comes :P
(05:08:33) LOAF: My favorite thing about Standoff was how they got Marten Davies to voice Admiral Tolwyn again!
(05:08:40) Jacob: If I remember correctly, everyone was signed to do more than one Wing Commander movie. Were the plans laid out where the universe would go? Would the novels by Peter Telep have been canon?
(05:08:52) Chris_Roberts: Mark Day was the FMV producer (I was the director)
(05:09:20) ChrisReid: yeah, the Wing Commander Standoff fan game actually got Marten Davies to contribute a few lines of dialogue as Admiral Tolwyn!
(05:09:22) Byydo: Mr. Roberts, this might be a trivial question, but what was your overall feeling on how the Dragon (or Lance) fighter in WC4 turned out?  I personally liked it but a number of people at the time were saying it was ridiculously overpowered and overkill and sent the balance of the game askew...  And on a related note, how do you feel about how missile-heavy the WC4 combat ended up being?  It 
(05:09:22) Byydo: felt more like a modern flight sim than a WWII sim in a lot of ways toward the end, was that the intention?
(05:09:22) LOAF: Mark was actually here last night, AD.
(05:09:24) Flashfire: Kursawa 2 FTL!! hehe
(05:09:35) bob: Hehe, he was?
(05:09:43) LOAF: Yeah, "Deathlok" is his IRC nickname.
(05:09:53) PopsiclePete: About Standoff, we also referenced the WC Movie in it :)
(05:09:55) bob: No, I know that, I just didn't realize he was here
(05:09:55) Flashfire: oh *that's* why he sounds so much like the admiral tolwyn I knew and (at the time) disliked hahaha in a good way
(05:09:56) Mike: I want to tell Colonel Halcyon LOOK! THERE'S NOT A DAMN THING I CAN DO!! OKAY?!? YOU GO GET THE DAMN SHIP!
(05:09:58) PopsiclePete: Mr Roberts, how would you adress the problem with most attempts to multiplayer space dogfighting when people complain about flying circles trying to tail the other player ?  Make multiplyer co-op only ?  Have Descent-style terrain missions ?
(05:10:31) bob: Do you think space is interesting?
(05:10:33) Chris_Roberts: The Kurasawa mission is a dead skill in games nowadays. In the old days you had to EARN progression. I guess that's why I liked Demon's Souls!
(05:10:56) Flashfire: Chris_Roberts: ya Standoff is definitely a wing commander game through and through that has the spirit of WC...it's like someone extended the universe you created: highly worth a playthrough if you have the time for another game
(05:11:11) Mike: What is Standoff? Fill me in 
(05:11:16) LOAF: Yes! Imagine a modern game having an addon like Secret Missions where they expected the player to be especially good...
(05:11:24) NinjaLA: hehe
(05:11:27) Flashfire: hahah I think I only beat that kursasawa mission twice in my life--- once for WC1 and once for KS
(05:11:29) ChrisReid: I think there were some good strategies for Kurasawa 2.. it's not so much a lost cause as everyone makes it out to be.  be sure to break your wingman loose, and go after the far Gratha that are already hitting the Ralari hard
(05:11:34) Flashfire: maybe another time...  3 max
(05:11:36) NinjaLA: I'd fail at so many modern DLCs if it were like that
(05:12:08) Mike: I basically fired my afterburners and fired my missles off and rammed them and hopefully would survive 
(05:12:09) Mike: haha
(05:12:11) Flashfire: I remember having to kamakaze into a gratha or two
(05:12:15) TheyCallMeGrim: Y'all are making me relive that mission. Stop it!
(05:12:19) NomadTerror: I would just exploit the mission
(05:12:20) ^Death_: Yeah, K2 was beatable, but you had to work at it.
(05:12:21) LOAF: Haha that's another thing Wing Commander made happen, DLC.
(05:12:31) Wedge009: Secret Ops?
(05:12:40) punkazzINC: Mr. Roberts, what was the biggest obstacle you had to deal with while at Origin?  How about Digital Anvil?
(05:12:41) LOAF: The great thing about WC1 was that you didn't *have* to beat it... you could still win the game, you just had to fly a few more missions.
(05:12:41) NomadTerror: once you read the waypoint, you can just burn away far enough until your auto light comes on, then auto back to the Claw
(05:12:52) NomadTerror: and the ship would usually be there
(05:12:55) music_guru: Mr Roberts, I know your brother Erin had worked on privateer.  Did you talk with him often about the game while it was developed?  Did any of your feedback go into the game or was it mostly him and his team?
(05:12:56) bob: Yeah, that's what my question was about
(05:12:56) ^Death_: And yeah, Flash, ramming does actually help a bit. When you bump the fighters they tumble a bit, throwing off their aim.
(05:12:58) AD: Well the secre mission disks are essentially hte precursor to DLC
(05:13:02) LOAF: Before Secret Ops - Secret Missions 1 and 2 are the functional equivalent of DLC... you just didn't... D... them.
(05:13:04) Klavs81 [Klavs81@c-71-237-227-128.hsd1.or.comcast.net] entered the room.
(05:13:04) bob: there's an article that addresses that
(05:13:15) ChrisReid: hey klavs!
(05:13:16) Klavs81: Happy Birthday CIC!
(05:13:18) ChrisReid: thanks
(05:13:19) eddieb: Hi
(05:13:20) Klavs81: Hey everybody
(05:13:21) LOAF: Thanks klavs!
(05:13:33) NinjaLA: hey Klavs81
(05:13:38) Klavs81: Love you guys! *salut*!
(05:13:45) NomadTerror: if you didn't D them, does that make them Loadable Content?
(05:13:50) music_guru: hi klavs
(05:14:31) Flashfire: yes that was the best thing about WC1: that you could lose...pay for the consequences and sometimes even recover from them
(05:14:33) Flashfire: amazing
(05:14:41) bob: Hehehe I hate how everything is an acronym nowadays
(05:14:42) AD: Was there ever any mission disks planned for WC3 or 4?
(05:14:50) Mike: WYTB?
(05:14:53) bob: Is it even possible to be as dynamic as it was in WC1?
(05:14:55) music_guru: omg, WC was just like life! j/k
(05:14:56) Flashfire: WC2 and standoff do it as well--to a slightly lesser extent--but I've not seen that kind of execution as in WC1 ever
(05:14:59) bob: I mean that was all text and talking heads
(05:15:04) bob: Today you'd need voice actors
(05:15:16) bob: If it was in 1996 you'd need real actors
(05:15:16) Flashfire: well-- maybe with better TTS software
(05:15:18) Flashfire: text to speech
(05:15:26) Flashfire: though it's hard to beat real acting
(05:15:27) bob: And today, 3D modelers for the people
(05:15:29) Flashfire: one day we may solve it
(05:15:31) bob: characters
(05:15:42) eddieb: It's easier to find voice actors, much better than text to speech.
(05:15:50) Flashfire: give it 20 years and we could probably have content as "easy" to create as the WC1 characters and dialogue
(05:15:58) Flashfire: well current text to speech
(05:16:00) Chris_Roberts: music_guru - are you talkign about the first or the second? The first was my concept and I produced it, so I had a lot of creative input. On the second that was all Erin and the guys in Manchester. Originally it wasnt even going to be Privateer (which is why the universe seems so different) but EA likes a brand.
(05:16:03) bob: It just seems like a declining cost-value ratio: you can strike a balance, but it's touch
(05:16:06) bob: tough
(05:16:12) ChrisReid: hey ChrisRoberts, if you're still there... do you still see live actor video as viable for games? or is it all animated cinematics now?
(05:16:13) music_guru: i was referring to the first
(05:16:22) Flashfire: the first privateer was so cool.... I loved ma' tarsus 
(05:16:40) Mike: When you cast Mark Hamill as Blair, did you think there might be some backlash because he was Luke Skywalker?
(05:16:51) Flashfire: the desire to get something better was always so strong hehehe but it was yours...and that's som'thin
(05:16:58) music_guru: sorry about the confusion... i didn't realize that you had produced it
(05:17:04) ZFGokuSSJ1 left the room (quit: Quit: Leaving).
(05:17:13) Chris_Roberts: CR - I dont know - I certainly wouldn't do FMV now - I would go Avatar style...
(05:17:26) Flashfire: blue kilrathis!
(05:17:28) Flashfire: j/k
(05:17:30) Mike: haha
(05:17:31) eddieb: :)
(05:17:33) bob: That's interesting
(05:17:39) AD: Mass Effect does a good job of Mocap
(05:17:42) AndyAldrich [AndyAldric@19.107.112.87.dyn.plus.net] entered the room.
(05:17:46) Flashfire: and that LA Noire game
(05:17:46) Mike: CG is so freakin realistic now you might as well go that route
(05:17:48) Flashfire: amazing mocap
(05:17:48) AD: hehe oop that came out wierd
(05:17:52) punkazzINC: Haha, the tarsus was such a workhorse. :) 
(05:17:58) bob: gonna mocap yo ass sucka
(05:18:10) LOAF: Plus Mark Hamill doesn't get old when he's a CGI character. :)
(05:18:11) Mike: dude I fly the hell out of the Tarsus
(05:18:12) jetlag: Mr. Roberts, thanks for making great games. I hope you find some more boundaries to push in game making.
(05:18:13) bob: CG has pretty much outpaced FMV, I think
(05:18:18) Mike: I go from Tarsus to Centurion
(05:18:21) bob: Yeah, I'll second that
(05:18:22) NomadTerror: ah mocap you sucka
(05:18:35) bob: (the thanks)
(05:18:38) Flashfire: thank you Mr Roberts: been waiting a long time to say thank you for making my childhood so fun with all the WC games
(05:18:50) Flashfire: and making me want to learn programming...it's why I got into the field
(05:18:59) LOAF: Yes as weird as it sounds we are all here because of you.
(05:19:00) eddieb: Yay, a fellow programmer !
(05:19:13) bob: Hehe, to think WC had "FROM THE CREATOR OF BAD BLOOD" printed on it
(05:19:23) Mike: And i've met some incredible people in my life because of you and the WC universe
(05:19:27) LOAF: Aside from just WC, I've made my best friends and traveled all over the country because of Wing Commander. It's been a great adventure!
(05:19:31) Chris_Roberts: Mike - I didnt think so - I just thought he would be cool because the blair we wanted had been through a lot and used to be a young buck full of ideals once. I felt his Star Wars background played into it. And it was amazingly cool to work with Luke SkyWalker!
(05:19:50) NinjaLA: Mr. Roberts, were you to make a new wing commander.. would you be tempted to use familiar faces (mark hamill, tom wilson, etc..) as voices or recast new and fresh?  
(05:20:19) music_guru: Mr. Roberts: (one last one from me and thanks!) If you ever find yourself using actors for a Wing Commander property, do you have some actors/actressed in mind for characters in the series? (i.e do you know who would play "blue hair?")
(05:20:23) Flashfire: it must have been a riot to work with Malcom McDowell and Tom Wilson
(05:20:24) punkazzINC: Absolutely. I've been a big fan of your games, Mr. Roberts.  thank you very much. :) 
(05:20:35) TheyCallMeGrim: Thanks again, Chris. I hope you understand the impact your work has had on those present and so many others.
(05:20:36) Mike: Admiral Blair. and the ever so screwed Major Todd Marshall lol
(05:20:36) Flashfire: :-D
(05:20:54) bob: Yeah, Ginger Lynn Allen has been on the boards
(05:21:14) LOAF: Haha yes Ginger showed up randomly the other day 
(05:21:16) bob: Says she'd love to work again, Prophecy was missing something without you
(05:21:19) Mike: By the way Tom Wilson...couldn't have made a better pick for Maniac
(05:21:25) Flashfire: so perfect for maniac...
(05:21:25) eddieb: It must be crazy backwards world, but I saw Clockwork Orange and said, hey it's the admiral.  Kinda backwards time order.
(05:21:32) Mike: and the same for McDowell and Tolwyns character
(05:21:33) music_guru: lol, ninja, you and i have like the same question :P
(05:21:33) bob: I understand Hamill was originally brought in as Maniac
(05:21:39) NinjaLA: at the same time
(05:21:50) NinjaLA: get out of my head! ;p
(05:21:50) music_guru: great minds... great minds
(05:21:55) Byydo: hehehe yes, and Wing Commander III has introduced many young and impressionable Wing Commander fans to the significant, erm, "body of work" of Ginger Lynn Allen...
(05:21:58) Chris_Roberts: You're welocome. I make games because I love them and I'm usually driven to make a game that I see in my head and want to play but doesnt exist. Its awesome that so many people liked the ones I made.
(05:22:30) Flashfire: that's the best reason! ;-)
(05:22:31) LOAF: (Somewhere there's a Times of Lore message board hoping you'll show up)
(05:22:36) HotJob: You know you are a wingnut when you see a reference to Tom Wilson and go "Maniac! Who the hell is Biff Tanner?"
(05:22:43) punkazzINC: Ahh, Ginger Lynn Allen.  I need to find my copies of WC3 and WC4. :D
(05:22:54) Mike: haha Biff Tannen also has a special place in my heart
(05:22:57) Byydo: Biff Tannen, man, the Tanners are the family that adopted Alf
(05:22:58) DMan [DMan@c-66-229-93-120.hsd1.fl.comcast.net] entered the room.
(05:23:02) NinjaLA: WC3 and 5
(05:23:02) ChrisReid: when we met Richard Garriott last year, he had that to say about you, Chris
(05:23:09) NinjaLA: she wasn't in 4
(05:23:14) ChrisReid: he said you have an extraordinary talent to really visualize a game and make it reality
(05:23:15) eddieb: WC might not translate too well to facebook, but the mobile market might work.
(05:23:16) Flashfire: when I saw Back to the future after playing WC it had a whole different look and feel hahaha
(05:23:23) AndyAldrich: I just dropped by to say thanks. Also, killing Angel was the move of a clever bastard, but mostly just thanks for the games and the memories!
(05:23:26) DMan: Happy B_day WC :)
(05:23:32) LOAF: Thanks DMan!
(05:23:33) ChrisReid: hey
(05:23:35) punkazzINC: Hehe, that's right. aceyping on my tablet
(05:23:43) DMan: Hi Chris and Loaf :)
(05:23:44) Flashfire: to this day I still remember the chilling death of Spirit....
(05:23:51) punkazzINC: typing*
(05:23:58) Wedge009: Frodo had a brief appearance in BttF 2.
(05:24:00) Flashfire: that really really shocked me at the time--probably the first ally death I'd seen in a video game that actually shocked the heck out of me
(05:24:16) Wedge009: Yeah, that was intense.
(05:24:18) Chris_Roberts: All teh actors were great to work with and they all had great, crazy stories. We had a lot of fun on WC3 and 4 and if I ever did another WC I would try to get them back to do the voices and mocap for the digital charcaters. 
(05:24:29) Flashfire: Chris_Roberts: when did you decide to kill off spirit... it was an amazingly cinematic choice
(05:24:35) Mike: CHEER!!
(05:24:39) PopsiclePete: yay :)
(05:24:40) Pedro: Huzzah!
(05:24:45) Flashfire: YES the wc3 actors in the WC1 timeline hahaha that would be sweet
(05:24:47) Jacob: Nice!
(05:24:57) Mike: okay i'm gonna write EA and demand they hand the licence over to you
(05:25:09) Flashfire: I wonder if we could pool the funds with a kickstarter (once we had an asking price)
(05:25:13) NinjaLA: we were just watching the Academy TV series before you popped in
(05:25:20) AndyAldrich left the room (quit: Quit: wcnews.com).
(05:25:25) ^Death_: Please don't, Mike. Fandoms in general already have reputations for being stupid, you don't need to reinforce it.
(05:25:42) NomadTerror: #YOLOAF
(05:25:42) Mike: I won't I won't
(05:25:43) NinjaLA: It's great having the wcIII alums doing voices for their drawn counterparts.
(05:25:43) LOAF: haha you could demand worse from EA :)
(05:25:44) Mike: I'm much too lazy
(05:25:58) TheyCallMeGrim: Exactly. Chris, if you need us for something, let us know.
(05:26:00) ChrisReid: the WC3 actors *are* sweet in the WC1 timeline in the Wing Commander Academy tv show :)
(05:26:02) music_guru: I'm sorry, I simply must ask this... If you ever build a studio where you need people (programmers, etc.) to work on a Wing Commander product, how would we get in touch with you? Through CIC maybe? :P
(05:26:03) Flashfire: the only thing EA would listen to is cold hard cash or a very good team and a fantastic revenue share model
(05:26:07) Mike: like I said...I appreciate them for distributing the games again on GOG
(05:26:09) TheyCallMeGrim: But we should not be goofy.
(05:26:28) Flashfire: yes---but imagine WCA tv show + interactive gameplay
(05:26:32) Flashfire: that would be off the charts
(05:26:40) Zeether: alright, I have to turn in for the night...really nice seeing Chris show up and once again happy birthday CIC
(05:26:44) Zeether left the room.
(05:26:50) music_guru: night zeether
(05:26:50) LOAF: Thanks Zeether! Have a good night!
(05:27:07) AD: Speaking of TV, what would the 2002 TV show pitch been like?
(05:27:09) NinjaLA: truly a birthday to remember
(05:27:16) NinjaLA: yeah.. what AD said
(05:27:24) music_guru: hazzah, the creator is here!
(05:27:26) bob: yeah, what Ninka and AD said
(05:27:28) ^Death_: Speaking of sleep, time for more caffeine.
(05:27:29) TheyCallMeGrim: Yes, this one's for the books.
(05:27:49) Chris_Roberts: I have to say, what really makes me smile is to hear everyone talk about the characters as if they were real people that you had a connection to.
(05:27:53) ChrisReid: the CIC Birthday Party is always a blast
(05:27:54) ^Death_: (Wish they sold Jolt cola here. Not quite the same with modern 'energy' drinks, for me.)
(05:28:06) Wedge009: But they are, Chris.
(05:28:24) Mike: All thanks to brilliant writing and your mind
(05:28:29) Chris_Roberts: Its easier today to acheive that, but WC1 did that 22 years ago when it used to be high scores and how many levels you cleared
(05:28:32) AD: One of the most memorable moments in the whole series is when Halcyon tells you that you can shoot Maniac 
(05:28:34) eddieb: Hey, I'm as close as you can get to Wallowitz on the big bang theory :).  Sometimes characters are creepily accurate :)
(05:28:40) music_guru: indeed... tangible characters
(05:28:42) Vinman: If you need to get pumped: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cohxgOVcK8E
(05:28:55) bob: Excuse me, sir?
(05:28:59) Wedge009: That's what drew me on WC2 (my first WC game) - the story. It wasn't just shoot shoot, kill kill.
(05:29:00) ChrisReid: yeah... there's been so many tens of thousands of usenet posts and message board posts about people's feelings on all the characters, ships, events.. Wing Commander's a way of life
(05:29:09) bob: Does that ever amaze you?
(05:29:26) DMan left the room (quit: Quit: wcnews.com).
(05:29:27) Chris_Roberts: It was a crazy idea back in 1989 when I started work on the game... 
(05:29:31) Wedge009: AD: And also to use guns, save missiles for the important targets.
(05:29:58) eddieb: I wonder what the relationship was with with X-wing/Tie Fighter crowd.  If they ever met the WC dev team.
(05:30:00) Mike: That game was so involved and so advanced for it's time. it's hard to believe it came out in 1990
(05:30:02) TheyCallMeGrim: I played WC1 at an age where your characters became my characters. I learned to write creative fiction at that time, inspired by those games.
(05:30:19) TheyCallMeGrim: That's not to say I'm any good at writing...
(05:30:44) bob: How *do* you feel about the connection with WC and X-Wing/Larry Holland?
(05:31:00) punkazzINC: I lived in the countryside, my nearest friend was a half mile away, and our entertainment was getting together and playing PC games and console games, Wing Commander really does hold a special place in my heart. :) 
(05:31:04) Byydo: Yeah, for me Hobbes's betrayal was one of the most somber video game moments I can recall
(05:31:05) NinjaLA: yeah. it blows me away that wing commander was 1991..   so much stuff came out for 5 years afterwards that didn't look near as good and certainly didn't have any of the soul
(05:31:09) LOAF: No one but us remembers who Larry Holland is today. :)
(05:31:16) AD: That was one minorly unfortunate bit in switching to FMV... you could no longer pick your name and have the characters say it
(05:31:20) bob: lest we forget
(05:31:34) Vinman: hahaha aww, Larry Holland
(05:32:29) Chris_Roberts: I was freindly with the Lucas guys (and Larry). In fact what Larry did on Battlehawks 1942 gave me inspiration for how I did the sprite 3D engine (previously I was going to do it with simple 3D wireframes / polygons like Space Rogue but I think that wouldnt have been nearly as immersive)
(05:32:30) Wedge009: It happened with Privateer as well, AD, with the voice-overs.
(05:32:40) Mike: I liked how Angel died...he grieves for a couple days...then starts pimping on Rachel and Flint 
(05:32:57) LOAF: Haha NO ONE remembers Space Rogue, even us. :)
(05:33:08) music_guru: i remember space rougue!
(05:33:14) bob: I read that you were initially interested in doing a top-down strategy-style game - does that idea appeal to you today?
(05:33:21) LOAF: What was the deal with those late 1980s origin games like Space Rogue anyway? Who decided having a male model posing on the box was a good idea?
(05:33:26) bob: Hehehe
(05:33:28) music_guru: it was privateer before it was privateer! j/k
(05:33:36) NinjaLA: wing commander strategy gaming is an idea I could get behind
(05:33:39) TheyCallMeGrim: Google remembers Space Rogue.
(05:33:47) NinjaLA: (they are all ideas I can get behind)
(05:33:49) Mike: I must look up this Space Rogue
(05:33:53) bob: Pepperidge Farm remembers
(05:33:55) bob: Parts of it
(05:34:02) LOAF: Space Rogue was an Origin space trading game from 198...8?
(05:34:03) music_guru: there's a let's play on youtube as well
(05:34:04) eddieb: I always liked the strategy aspects of armada.
(05:34:11) LOAF: 1989
(05:34:26) LOAF: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Space_rogue_cover.jpg
(05:34:30) ChrisReid: high five!  I really enjoy the strategy parts of Armada too, as simplistic as they are
(05:34:40) bob: I think the simplicity is the charm
(05:34:41) LOAF: Seriously, though, check out the box art. Extremely handsome man.
(05:34:44) NinjaLA: armada was a fantastic idea
(05:34:45) eddieb: Actually I really like the aramda ship stylings, kinda wish a campaign was built around them too
(05:34:51) NinjaLA: just a bit before it's time
(05:34:52) bob: A more streamlined interface would be nice
(05:35:04) Chris_Roberts: Originally Wing Started out as a top down action game (not so much RTS). The sprite rotation tech that I developed for rotating the top down views of the ships was used for rotating the appropriate 3D sprite view in WC1/WC2
(05:35:05) LOAF: there was actually a Star Trek game a few years back that was very similar to the Armada strategy... Star Trek Conquest I think, for the Wii and PS2
(05:35:18) Mike: Wow...that cover is obviously 1980s haha
(05:35:18) wcnut: i really enjoy the multiplayer aspects of armada XD. shame i couldn't arive sooner
(05:35:37) Chris_Roberts: I hated the cheesy photo covers!
(05:35:50) LOAF: They're so silly! Moebius was another one I think.
(05:35:51) Mike: HAHA what are you talking about they are awesome! (now)
(05:35:51) NinjaLA: yeah Conquest definitely drew inspiration from Armada
(05:35:54) music_guru: interesting about the sprite tech!
(05:35:57) Chris_Roberts: If you notice TImes of Lore and Bad Blood didnt have them
(05:35:57) bob: Yeah, years ago you said that Wing Commander was a game you saw primarily as a single-player game
(05:36:12) Worf: ChrisReid: how did you feel about the portrayal in that book about the WC movie? I read your reply, but what was your immediate reaction when you saw it?
(05:36:15) Mike: I only wished the model had a mullet
(05:36:19) Worf: gah, wrong chris
(05:36:31) bob: I guess I want to know what your feelings on multiplayer are?
(05:36:54) Chris_Roberts: I love multiplayer
(05:36:58) wcnut: lol
(05:37:15) Mike: what's your feelings on cheese
(05:37:20) Vinman: hahaha
(05:37:23) Chris_Roberts: The tech wasnt there in the old days. It is now. But it has to be approriate multiplayer
(05:37:30) bob: http://www.wcnews.com/wcpedia/Chris_Roberts,_Director_/_Executive_Producer
(05:37:31) Chris_Roberts: I hate tacked on MP modes
(05:37:48) NinjaLA: I'd love to see some co-op objective based missions
(05:37:48) bob: This is the interview, it's fascinating how closely things have hewed to it
(05:37:49) Chris_Roberts: Like in Uncharted 2 & 3 - great games, but I dont play them for MP
(05:37:58) NinjaLA: everything is always heads up these days.
(05:38:11) NinjaLA: hehe.. uncharted MP would be chaos
(05:38:13) Mike: MP is the way of the gun now it seems
(05:38:14) bob: I think Left4Dead was successful?
(05:38:30) NinjaLA: left4dead has been very successful
(05:38:34) bob: Obsolete in the age of nuclear warheads?
(05:39:21) Chris_Roberts: NinjaLA - For me teh co-op aspect is some of the most interesting. The co-op part of MP in Battlefield is one of its strongest pulls - its why I prefer BF MP to COD MP
(05:39:32) NinjaLA: couldn't agree more.
(05:40:05) ChrisReid: yeah, ace and I did quite a lot of Battlefield last year... definitely feels more team oriented, which is a big plus
(05:40:08) wcnut: I think marathon was one of the first FPS
(05:40:12) Chris_Roberts: Also I liked how Demon Souls tacked MP and persistence in a single player game
(05:40:16) wcnut: s to use coop
(05:40:19) ^Death_: 'Tacked on' anything usually winds up disappointing. Like Aramada's strategy campaign. :P I mean, it wasn't 'eww, get that crap away from me!', but it wasn't exactly 'Holy cow this is so f-ing awesome!' either.
(05:40:45) ace: Yeah
(05:41:16) LOAF: I guess we all need to check out Demon Souls
(05:41:17) eddieb: Think armada just needed a few more buildings and a few different resources.  
(05:41:26) music_guru: do you still find yourself still programming or focusing more on directing these days?
(05:41:26) NinjaLA: of course, in armada, had it been a full on RTS game.. you'd lose focus from the space fights in favor of building requirements
(05:41:28) eddieb: Otherwise, so fun
(05:41:32) Mike: It needed todays technology is what it needed
(05:41:32) NinjaLA: I think armada struck a good balance
(05:41:37) music_guru: demon souls is coming out for the PC soon
(05:41:44) LOAF: Armada needed for it to be a few years later so matchmaking would exist.
(05:41:51) bob: Sins of a Solar Empire reminds me of Armada, a bit
(05:42:05) Vinman: yeah, like real time armada
(05:42:08) bob: and Conquest: Frontier Wars, obviously
(05:42:12) Mike: Armada was a great idea that just came a lil too son
(05:42:13) Mike: soon
(05:42:34) wcnut: networking being what it was too...
(05:42:48) NinjaLA: I'm looking forward to Demon Souls on PC... I haven't gotten to play it yet.
(05:42:56) eddieb: Only sad thing is... we have good networks now, but most PCs don't have joysticks :(
(05:42:57) Chris_Roberts: DS is tthe game I have both loved and hated the most in equal measure of anything I've played in almost 20 years! Its not normal for me to put 300+ hours into a game
(05:42:58) bob: There was internet support, but it was rudimentary, LAN was still the byword
(05:43:15) LOAF: Interesting! I'll pick it up.
(05:43:22) music_guru: wow, amazing!
(05:43:35) Chris_Roberts: I think most people have a game controller though - and they do have analog joysticks
(05:43:55) Mike: Yes they do
(05:44:02) wcnut: blasphemy! XD 
(05:44:07) Mike: but Joysticks are starting to get scarce
(05:44:08) NinjaLA: in the last 10 years the only games I've put 300+ hours into were the mass effects.     unless you include wing commanders/privateers and several other mid 90s games I still play regularly
(05:44:21) bob: I have a joystick, a nice HOTAS one, but I don't even use it much because it's just so bulky
(05:44:32) LOAF: You can still get joysticks if you want one. There's a whole community of hardcore sim players.
(05:44:43) LOAF: You can build quite a cockpit these days really.
(05:44:47) music_guru: i know a lot of people that have broadcasted demon souls on twitch tv have put in that many hours too - great game to play and watch (hard as heck though!)
(05:44:50) Mike: I just bought one when I bought the GOG WC's. (my old one is locked up w/ all my original WC games) 
(05:44:51) Chris_Roberts: I like ME1 & 2... Havent played 3 yet (as I said I've been busy this year)
(05:44:52) bob: I guess it comes down to what kind of game you're playing
(05:44:53) Pedro: I tend to struggle with a gamepad for space combat unless it has auto-levelling; I'd be interested to see what you came up with
(05:45:00) eddieb: Point taken.  
(05:45:03) ChrisReid: all you need is a $12 receiver, and you can use your Xbox 360 controller on your computer
(05:45:06) bob: I play WC2 with a MOUSE
(05:45:19) LOAF: I liked ME1 a lot more than 2. It had a really unique character to it, ME2 seemed like it was drifting towards more mainstream sci-fi.
(05:45:21) punkazzINC: nice. I have a nice joystick... In a closet somewhere. I keep threatening to grab it for BF3. 
(05:45:29) LOAF: It improved the gameplay but lessened the world, I guess.
(05:45:29) NinjaLA: I got wrapped up in the story of mass effect..  gameplay ended up being pretty secondary for me.
(05:45:37) Mike: Bob- I tried that and it gave me an aneurysm
(05:45:46) bob: I'm still not even sure what Mass Effect is
(05:45:52) Pedro: I've also switched to mouse control for WC since I started moving around a lot. The WC mouse controls were surprisingly good, especially WCP.
(05:45:54) TheyCallMeGrim: I don't think controls will be a big impediment to future space sim success.
(05:46:05) bob: Yeah, same here
(05:46:25) bob: They're great for immersion, but I tried to play that Mechwarrior Living Legends game with a HOTAS and it feels clunky
(05:46:29) HotJob: Iread a lot of folks have joysticks in storage. What are you playing your Wing Commander games with?
(05:46:37) bob: Maybe a hardcore sim would be different
(05:46:48) Mike: Well like I said HotJob I just bought a new one from Best Buy
(05:46:58) AD: YEah I've played many of the WC cames with a gamepad with the controls mapped to the buttons... It takes a bit of figureing out to make an intuitive layout but it definitely plays nicely with the analog sticks
(05:47:01) LOAF: I have several Wing Commander setups, but my main machine for the classic games uses a Thrustmaster F-22/TQS/RCS setup.
(05:47:03) HotJob: Oh, mouse flight (shudder)
(05:47:07) punkazzINC: all keyboard. :) 
(05:47:10) Chris_Roberts: Yeah it was story and setting for me. Gameplay was standard 3rd person cover - nothing that interesting and with today's game design approach the gameplay seems to be busy work - there was never one time I was worried abotu dying as I would just re-spawn a second or so ealrier and start again until I won.
(05:47:14) TheyCallMeGrim: I still have my wingman from when I played Prophecy.
(05:47:21) bob: Keyboard is the hard part for me
(05:47:29) LOAF: Just bought an old CH Pro Throttle to add for Privateer 2 as the birthday present to myself!
(05:47:36) bob: but that's simply because how keyboards work/are designed
(05:47:50) Jacob: Have a good night guys!
(05:47:53) bob: night
(05:47:53) Jacob left the room (quit: Quit: wcnews.com).
(05:47:57) punkazzINC: night
(05:48:05) LOAF: I have a Thrustmaster FCS/WCS/RCS for the Mac games... and a Microsoft Sidewinder FF for the Windows 9x stuff.
(05:48:11) ^Death_: Right now I don't even have my joystick (TM Top Gun Fox Pro 2 USB) plugged in...
(05:48:13) bob: Bandit LOAF, the man with eight throttles for every game
(05:48:14) eddieb: Nice.  My 10 year old force feedback doesn't turn left so well anymore.  Don't think they make 64 bit drivers for so I'llhave to go shopping.
(05:48:20) bob: I main a laptop
(05:48:23) wcnut: I used a gravis mousestick on my mac 
(05:48:31) LOAF: And a Flightstick Pro for the 3DO games... and a Sony Analog Flight Stick for the PSOne games...
(05:48:33) Pedro: The Wii-remote was an interesting combination between mouse and joystick and gun. Your pointer was roughly where you aim, you twist it like a joystick (roll on the accelerometers). I was kind of hoping next gen would head in that direction, but now I doubt it will.
(05:48:40) Mike: I think I broke my first joystick on Kurasawa 2 if I remember correctly haha
(05:48:42) HotJob: I've worn through 5 Juysticks on Wing Commander games. Currently using a Logitech Extreme 3DPro.
(05:48:46) music_guru: sigh... i have a cheap usb joystick at the moment... not anywhere near as good as the joystick i used in the early 90s...
(05:48:56) LOAF: Oh I know what to ask you about! Your cameos! We know you were in the movie and in WC4...
(05:49:04) bob: and WC3
(05:49:07) LOAF: Flying the Broadsword that rescues Blair, and in the court
(05:49:12) LOAF: Were in in WC3 somewhere?
(05:49:16) bob: Coventry
(05:49:21) Chris_Roberts: Funeral seqeunce
(05:49:38) Pedro: I've never found anything better than the old sidewinder 3d pro for joysticks (possibly as I'm a leftie, had to learn to play righthanded when my sidewinder died)
(05:49:39) Worf: I think joysticks started falling out of favor as the popularity of FPSes rose... people just weren't needing 'em
(05:49:39) Wedge009: It was even in the picture you put up for Ginger's news update.
(05:49:41) AD: Yeah I remember that
(05:49:45) LOAF: AHh! Now I have to go get a wingman killed...
(05:49:49) bob: hehe
(05:49:56) Wedge009: Or whoever did that update.
(05:49:58) punkazzINC: Haha
(05:49:59) NinjaLA: hehe
(05:50:04) bob: Too bad you can't just kill them yourself like in the first game
(05:50:06) Mike: Kill Hobbes before he does anything bad
(05:50:11) AD: Which of the movies that you worked on did you cameo in? I heard you were in Punisher... any others?
(05:50:20) HotJob: When my daughter asked me what a "cameo" was, I used your scene in the Wing Commander movie as an example
(05:50:21) music_guru: LOAF, kill a wingman?! nevar!
(05:50:35) PopsiclePete: I don't remember seeing Chris in Outlander ?
(05:50:38) LOAF: You can actually get a Hobbbes funeral in WC3... if he dies in the Proxima series where you can't win the game you get a funeral video for him.
(05:50:44) Mike: Cameo is the guy who performed the song "Word Up"
(05:50:45) LOAF: Always so cool that they  bothered to include little touches like that.
(05:50:54) NinjaLA: good thinking, pete..  I don't remember an outlander cameo either
(05:51:22) Chris_Roberts: I only do a cameo in something I direct - I'm not in any of the movies I produced (I'm not in the Punisher)
(05:51:58) music_guru: good to know... so for future directoral work, we'll know to look :P
(05:52:32) Mike: Might I suggest you produce/direct an Evil Dead 4 before Bruce Campbell gets too old since it seems Sam Raimi doesn't want to
(05:52:36) Chris_Roberts: Yeah, although in a game I guess you'll have to look for my mo-cap!
(05:52:39) Worf: hrm, one of these days we should all get together, put in one of Chris' movies in our dvd player and go for a live commentary
(05:52:40) eddieb: So maybe I missed it, Chris_Roberts, could you tell the gang whatyour next projects (film/games/etc) might be
(05:52:40) wcnut: Use to kill the claw  when i was little.  Always just trying to see just how much i could do.. was actually surprised when it blew up.
(05:52:43) LOAF: You know what I always wondered about in Punisher? that scene where the little girl finds a horseshoe crab and says it's a stingray.
(05:52:53) LOAF: What's going on there?
(05:52:59) punkazzINC: haha
(05:53:02) music_guru: "Hey look, it's Chris Robert's Mo-Cap!"
(05:53:15) LOAF: (I don't know why but this is the main thing I remember from that movie.)
(05:53:29) LOAF: Maybe it was a boy. Kid.
(05:53:52) bob: Chris Roberts took the punch for Jazz
(05:54:05) Chris_Roberts: eddieb - I've got soemthign I'm going to announce soon - and in about three weeks I'll give you guys an early heads up
(05:54:13) PopsiclePete: "Roberts" is written on the pirate helmets in WC4
(05:54:14) Mike: Jazz....what a bag of douche
(05:54:19) NinjaLA: wow
(05:54:20) Vinman: awesome!
(05:54:35) TheyCallMeGrim: We're looking forward to it, Chris.
(05:54:36) punkazzINC: woohoo! :D 
(05:54:47) NinjaLA: hehe Roberts being on the pirate helmets was a trivia answer from earlier tonight
(05:54:48) LOAF: Shotglass mentions "Colonel Roberts" liking his tea in Secret Missions 2!
(05:54:48) music_guru: oh, and if you ever do a commentary track for the WC movie, that would be awesome
(05:54:49) bob: Hehe, when I was five I got yelled at in school for telling a girl in class to "Go to hell"
(05:54:49) ^Death_: Wait, wasn't the Coventry's comm officer in WC3 also CRoberts?
(05:54:50) PopsiclePete: woohooo !
(05:54:58) Mike: I remember that LOAF!
(05:55:04) Chris_Roberts: And with that, with my apologies I need to bow out for the night!
(05:55:10) bob: G'night
(05:55:10) LOAF: Yes! A commentary track for the WC movie would be great.
(05:55:12) music_guru: good night thanks!
(05:55:12) NinjaLA: you have been more than generous!
(05:55:15) LOAF: Thank you so much for coming!
(05:55:19) Wedge009: Thanks, Chris.
(05:55:19) eddieb: Amazing and and honor to meet you, thanks for the visit
(05:55:20) Mike: Thanks for EVERYTHING
(05:55:20) Chris_Roberts: Night guys!
(05:55:24) Vinman: good night, thank you so much for coming by!
(05:55:24) wcnut: thankyou!
(05:55:24) Mike: Good night
(05:55:25) Pedro: thank you so much for coming!
(05:55:25) powellXCIX: Night Mr. Roberts, thank you for everything!
(05:55:28) NinjaLA: don't be a stranger if it's too much to ask :D
(05:55:28) wcnut: good night!
(05:55:29) punkazzINC: good night!!!
(05:55:29) music_guru: best to your family
(05:55:30) ^Death_: Goodnight, Mr. Roberts. Thank you for coming and for your work.
(05:55:31) Chris_Roberts left the room (quit: Quit: wcnews.com).
(05:55:33) ChrisReid: yay
(05:55:36) PopsiclePete: Thank you so much for coming by !  Please come again from time to time !
(05:55:36) wcnut: wow
(05:55:38) LOAF: Yayyyyyyyyyy
(05:55:40) bob: Well I'd call that a successful test