Star Wars: TIE Fighter

Star Wars: TIE Fighter is a 1994 space flight simulator and space combat video game, the sequel to Star Wars: X-Wing. It places the player in the role of an Imperial starfighter pilot during events that occur between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Play Star Wars: TIE Fighter online!

Star Wars: TIE Fighter game description

You are a member of the Imperial Navy, eager to fight the Rebel Alliance and other scum to strengthen the rule of Darth Vader and the Emperor.

The follow up to X-Wing is a space combat simulation set in the Star Wars universe. There are 7 campaigns, taking in over 50 missions. You often have wingmen who can be given orders to help you out. The detailed storyline is driven by cutscenes. You will fly a variety of craft from the lowly Tie Fighter to the speedy Tie Interceptor to the high-powered Tie Advanced. On each of these, balancing engine/laser/shield ratios in real time is crucial to getting the most power and safety.

In-flight gameplay is similar to X-Wing, played primarily in first-person but with the option to switch to third person. All flight takes place in space; the player does not encounter gravity or atmospheric effects. Mission roles including dogfighting, escorting or disabling other craft, inspecting vehicles, and attacking capital ships and space stations. Initial missions place the player in unshielded TIE fighter variants; as the game progresses, the player gains access to advanced fighters with shields and better armaments.

Laser cannons and ion cannons serve as short range weapons, damaging or disabling targets respectively. Some starfighters carry limited warheads for additional range/firepower. As with X-Wing, the player needs to balance power allocation between weapons, engines, and shields (when available); some craft also require the player to further balance power for a beam weapon. The player can also change the firing modes of his or her fighter’s weapons (for example, having a pair of laser cannons fire together or alternately). If the ship possesses shields, the player chooses the shield balance between front and rear.

Shields are rechargeable; they protect from damage but are depleted when absorbing damage. When the player’s craft is unshielded, enemy fire will damage the player’s hull. Hull damage can disable systems, such as the engines or targeting computer. Disabled systems will slowly be repaired; TIE Fighter allows the player to choose the order in which systems are repaired. Hull damage may also cause cockpit displays to break, rendering them useless for the remainder of the mission. Heavy hull damage will destroy the player’s spacecraft. When the player’s craft is destroyed before completing a mission, or the mission is otherwise a failure, the player can attempt the mission again. However, the mission is still successful if the player’s craft is destroyed after all primary mission objectives are completed.

Despite the similarities to X-Wing, TIE Fighter does introduce several gameplay changes. The targeting system allows players to target capital ships’ and space stations’ components, such as shield generators and weapons. Additionally, the targeting display shows a 3D model and relative orientation of the player’s target. Mission objective status is accessible in-game, as is a log of in-flight messages.

Play Star Wars: TIE Fighter  online

You can play Star Wars: TIE Fighter online here, in web browser for free!