The X-Wing revival keeps rolling - XWVM devs give us some details on TIE Fighter and their plans for the future
We had a chance to talk with the XWVM team behind the X-Wing mod. Now it’s TIE Fighter’s turn to shine. The devs teased multiplayer features in XvT and some tricky AI challenges ahead.
1
The XWVM team spent a decade working on their a fresh, high-def makeover. And the good news doesn’t stop there. We got to ask the dev team a few questions, and it turns out they’re already working on a TIE Fighter mod, with plans to tackle X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter next.
XWVM team revives a classic and shares what’s on the horizon
Olga Racinowska: How big is the mod team, and how long have you been working on the project?
XWVM dev team: The size of the mod team is a difficult number to pin down, as the team has expanded and shrunk over the course of the decade the project has been around. It is additionally a volunteer work, so team contribute as and when they can. But there are around 10 people who work on the project to provide the code, graphics, music, and a similar number of testers.
OR: What's the exact status of the TIE Fighter mod you mentioned on Reddit, and what has been the biggest challenge so far?
XWVM dev team: The TF is progressing well. Battles 1 through 7 are playable inside XWVM, but a lot of the surrounding game elements are missing (such as cutscenes and awards), and noticeably TF includes for a huge list of craft. The largest challenge with TF has been making sure the AI behaves in the manner of the original. Small, trivial-looking changes to the AI can have consequences which affect the balance of the whole mission.
Here’s a sneak peek at how the TIE Fighter mod was coming along in their 2024 update.
OR: Do you think a future refresh of X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter (including online features) might be possible?
XWVM dev team: Adding network play will be a challenge but will eventually get done. Can't give a timeframe. After that, ing XvT will be relatively straight forward since our intel insists that the differences between TIE Fighter and XvT are way smaller than between X-wing and TIE Fighter.
OR: What improvements are you focusing on now that XWVM has been released?
XWVM dev team: Now that XWVM has been released we're focusing on ironing out the issues people have reported back to us, and ensuring that accessibility and customisation options provide an enjoyable gameplay experience. Alongside that we hope to provide more HD models for planets, craft, cockpits, and the game rooms.
Source: XWVM mod
OR: Are you surprised by the growing publicity around the project?
XWVM dev team: The publicity is not unexpected, even if we are a little surprised at how quickly it occurred. The X-Wing series of games is highly regarded by a lot of people, some of whom may not have played it for 30 years but still have fond memories from growing up with it. We paid a great deal of attention to making sure that the fundamental aspects of the game were faithfully recreated and then optionally improved, and the same is true for the music and the graphics. And we think that the attention to detail is evident.
OR: Thank you for your time.
If you want to keep up with the XWVM mod and what they’re working on next, the best place to do that is on their Discord. It’s where all the latest updates and info get shared.
- Realm of Thrones 6.0 might be the best Bannerlord mod out there - and now it takes us even beyond the Wall
- Unexpected news for The Witcher 3 fans. CD Projekt RED's huge hit is set to receive mod on consoles
- A modder is bringing back multiplayer in RDR for PC. The project is expected to offer heavily customized gameplay
- FromSoftware's big mistake has been fixed. Elden Ring: Nightreign now has two-players mode thanks to a mod
- X-wing from LucasArts returns with a modern makeover thanks to XWVM team
- Someone rebuilt the Scuttling the U-529 mission in Unreal Engine 5 and now I desperately need a full Medal of Honor remake
