Release
LucasArts offered a pre-release demo on two floppy disks bundled with Computer Gaming World. The single-mission demo, sponsored by Dodge and featuring an ad for the Dodge Neon, advertises a spring 1994 TIE Fighter release. However, TIE Fighter was not released until July 1994, 17 months after X-Wing's deput. The Defender of the Empire expansion, which adds three battles, came out soon thereafter. Later that year, LucasArts released a Collector’s CD-ROM version of X-Wing using TIE Fighter's updated graphics engine.
In 1995, TIE Fighter also received a Collector's CD-ROM. The CD-ROM version offered optional enhanced SVGA graphics, increasing the game's resolution from 320x200 to 640x480. The cinematic cutscenes were also enhanced, and the game received numerous voiceovers. The CD-ROM includes the previously-released Defender of the Empire expansion and an additional Enemies of the Empire expansion. This CD-ROM also added support for gameplay under Mac OS 8 and Mac OS 9.
TIE Fighter is part of the 1998 X-Wing Collector Series, which also includes updated versions of X-Wing and a pared-down version of X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter. This version drops DOS support, installing only under Windows 9x. TIE Fighter and X-Wing use the X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter flight engine, which adds 3D-accelerated graphics and texture mapping. The MIDI-based interactive soundtrack used in previous versions is replaced by looped Red Book audio recordings of John Williams' Star Wars score. This version also requires a joystick; previously, players could use a mouse and keyboard. This version was later bundled with the X-Wing Trilogy, which includes X-Wing and X-Wing Alliance.
Read more about this topic: Star Wars: TIE Fighter
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