News - TIE Fighter: Total Conversion (TFTC) mod for Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance

Hello everyone, Its been another minute since the last TFTC update but I'm pleased to announce the 1.3.4 patch release for TFTC. There's not a huge amount to say about this one other than A: I should never ever give a possible release date to anything because I always go past it and B: This patch is largely to bring TFTC up to date in line with XWAU v6.0 and to issue more fixes and balance updates to TFTC. That said, there are still a few notable improvements for this version which I'll cover in a moment. This is however intended to be the last patch we will release for TFTC until Reimagined is completed which I will tenuously dub TFTC v2.0. I will go into the details of this after I first go through what things you can expect to see with 1.3.4 starting with:

Vastly improved mission loading times and hangar transition times. Both of these were rather painful waits, mission load times in particular, but this has now been reduced by a staggering 60-70% at least if not more so they should all load a LOT quicker now. This is thanks to a new compression method for things like background and explosion textures which are often huge files. This does unfortunately mean the patch size is quite large as well but this is can't be helped. As for the hangar transition time, well thats more like a second or two instead of 10 seconds!

A fix has finally be introduced for the issue of high framerates and AI behaviour. This mostly affects things like ships trying to dock with another one causing them to circle around endlessly. This is caused by your ingame FPS being too high and the only real way to resolve it was to limit your FPS to 60. This fix introduces limit to the AI's behaviour calculation to 30FPS, regardless of your own inflight FPS, so this should resolve all such docking issues.

A new pilot backup system from the launcher is available. This is useful if you want to do a reinstall or make other copies of your game. Pilot files will be backed up to your Documents folder under X-Wing Alliance\Pilots Backup by default when using this feature.

Some new visual updates including new cockpits for the TIE Bomber, Advanced and Defender, some minor shader and texture improvements and the addition of ambient engine sounds to some capital ships - not just when you hit their engine wash - and will change in volume dynamically based on your distance to the ship. This is currently working for the stock Calamari Cruisers, Modified Frigate as well as the Victory and Imperial Star Destroyers.

Other than that, the rest is all about fixing various bugs including a couple of critical ones which left you unable to complete a mission.

So as I mentioned, it is our intention that this will be the final patch for TFTC until I have completed Reimagined and this includes any subsequent patches for XWAU in the meantime. The reason for this decision to not maintain compatibility with future XWAU until we are ready is due to one thing really - the installer. The installer we currently use is great and allows you to seamlessly install everything without fuss AND allows you to swap versions of TFTC and XWAU. However, this is becoming now extremely cumbersome to manage with each passing version, due to the sheer size and complexity of TFTC and the fact we essentially have two versions of the game you can choose to play. Several issues and bugs can stem from improper swapping of files, leading to bugs or other issues which can result in you having to reinstall from scratch.

How we will approach this in the future has yet to be decided for certain, but its likely we will instead split Classic and Reimagined into separate installs unless we can find a more efficient and effective method in the interim. Whatever happens, I will keep you informed!

Until then, I will continue to very slowly work on Reimagined and do at least a weekly let's play video if I can get the time anyway. Until next time though pilots, fly safe!

Hello everyone, I have a quick update on TFTC since we released the 1.3.3 patch. So far its been pretty successful and has certainly attracted the biggest interest of any patch we've released since v1.0 with Ars Technica giving us some love and over 25,000 views of the patch release update as of this video. Its always a pleasure to welcome new players to our mod and we hope you enjoy all our efforts.

Sadly though, 1.3.3 has thrown up some issues which we feel need addressing sooner than later so we will start working on a 1.3.4 patch to fix these issues. For example, B1M2 Classic is impossible to complete due to an error with the primary goal trigger and a vital setting was left enable instead of disabled which can make B7M3 Reimagined near impossible to win because the ISDII Majestic can be destroyed before you can even get there to defend it. I have already put up a zip file of quick fixes which should resolve most of this which you can find on our Discord server under the #quick-fixes section, or from our website which also has a quick fixes section under the installation category.

There were also some new advances made just as we released 1.3.3 which in particular address the rather long loading times of missions as well as launching/landing in a hangar causing a several second pause as the game transitions between inflight and the hangar screen so it is my hope we can include this for 1.3.4. I'm not entirely sure on the timeline for a patch release but I am hoping we can release something by the end of August and I may also make any beta's we test public so the entire community can help us if they wish to do so!

So stay tuned to our Discord, Twitter - sorry 'X' -, our website or my YT channel for future updates and until next time, fly safe.

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s been a very long time since I last posted an update but I finally have something new for you and its to announce the release of the 1.3.3 patch as well as other updates that have been happening since! This new patch will bring TFTC up to date with the recent XWAU 5.6.2 patch that was released back in May and will also introduce a bunch of bug fixes, balance updates and even some new updates. Let’s quickly go through what you can expect to see in this patch.

A brand-new main concourse screen - This was showcased some months ago but didn't make it into 1.3.2 at the time. Now though you can fully enjoy this updated visual feast in 1.3.3. The concourse will show new animations and backgrounds depending on your current progress in the campaign.

New models including the Imperial-I Star Destroyer and the addition of several new ships, including the Predator Star Destroyer, Zaarin's new flagship for TFTC Reimagined and the Valiant Cruiser which will serve as a flagship for the Nami faction. The inclusion of this new ship has meant some minor changes to Reimagined have been made to account for this wherever the ISDII Glory previously showed up. The Glory will instead be first introduced as this new ship in Battle 6, Mission 4 whereas previous appearances of the Glory will simply be a different Star Destroyer now. You will also find the new Valiant cruiser in B6M4-R as well, replacing the Venator that was previously there. Don't worry, Venators will still be showing up later in future Reimagined missions!

Ray Tracing - Yes, the wizards of the XWAU team have added Ray Tracing to the game! This further improves the visuals but at the expense of performance so make sure your system is capable of handling it. By default, it is disabled, but you can enable it by going to the Babu Frik Configurator from the launcher under the Ray Tracing checkbox.

Gimbal Lock Fix - This issue has plagued all versions of the engine from the original X-Wing to XWA. What is this gimbal lock issue you ask? Well, you may have noticed when flying directly up or down, particularly when chasing enemy targets, it suddenly feels like you're fighting your controls to stay straight and steady, almost as if a magnet is pushing you away. Basically, the game is programmed to use pitch, yaw, and roll as defined axes. Based on how the numbers crunch down, if any of the axes overlap on the same plane, gimbal lock will happen and so your craft ends up pushing away from the direction you're trying to go in. Well, I'm happy to say that this issue has been fixed by rewriting this function of the flight mechanics.

Along with these changes, you can also expect to see new explosion visuals and hopefully some noticeable improvements to both VR and non-VR performance levels.

A full list of all changes made can be viewed on our website via the changelog section which is also included in the patch download itself. A brand new, completely re-written installation tutorial video has also been posted along with this announcement. This tutorial should better address and explain things than previous versions, including a more expanded approach to VR and other more common issues people tend to face.

To install the patch, make sure you restore your current version of TFTC back to XWAU by using the Palpatine Total Converter to 'Restore the Light Side' and then run the installer and follow its instructions. If you are new to the mod and installing from a fresh copy, then make sure you first install v1.3. You don't need to install any of the older TFTC patches first as 1.3.3 contains all updates since the initial release of 1.3. If in any doubt, please take a look at the aforementioned new tutorial video that has also been posted to my channel for details.

So, what else has been going on these past few months? Well work is slowly continuing on finishing the Reimagined campaigns. Battles 9 and 10 are now fully playable in their entirety and have been under beta testing and Battle 11 is well on course to becoming fully playable by the end of August, this then just leaves Battles 12 and 13 to finish creating which I'm hoping will be done by late Autumn or at the end of 2023. Its slow going, but as my scope is much bigger than previous battles, the increased narrative complexity and the fact I'm the only one designing and making these missions, it will take time, but I hope the wait will be worth it.

Aside from mission creation, we have also been working on designing new HD concourse screens for every room. On your screen you can see examples of current WIP scenes including the new pilot's room and an updated briefing room, giving you even more immersion as we can also tie in more cutscenes and animations to them. We are also considering our options for remaking all cutscenes using in-game engine footage for exterior shots and then 3D interiors created specifically for the cutscene with some character interactions. If we think we can pull this off well enough, I will probably be adding a lot of new cutscenes as well as remaking the existing ones, as I believe its a much better way to give additional context and flavour to the narrative vs just relying on the giant walls of texts we're forced to use in the briefings. If and when we get a concept ready, I will post it publicly for further feedback from the community.

And that pretty much covers it for this update. I will be back in the future of course with new updates as I have them and I promise I'll try to get back to doing some development livestreams which I've not done for a few months now. So, until next time pilots, fly safe.

Edit: This article was updated on 15/10/22 to change references from 1.3.1 to 1.3.2. The 1.3.2 patch was released after a serious bug was discovered in 1.3.1. Aside from the extra critical fixes, 1.3.2 is otherwise the same patch.

I'm pleased to announce the release of the v1.3.2 patch for TFTC! Its a relatively small patch, but fixes a few critical issues with v1.3 along with a few other fixes, balance updates and new concourse animations. Changelog can be found in patch-notes section on our Discord or on our website. The installation tutorial has also been updated to account for the patch.

But while I'm here I thought I'd share with you a couple of other things we've been working on. Whilst work on the Reimagined campaigns continues, TFTC team member Ual002 has been working on designing a brand new Concourse for a future patch that will also include redesigns of other rooms and even new shiny medals to replace the original ones! But what makes the Concourse room special is we can now place animations that will play and loop on specific missions. This basically means the Concourse will change what is playing and what is displayed outside the window from mission to mission. Perhaps you're at a planet in one mission and in hyperspace the next. Capture some Rebel prisoners last mission? You'll see them walking by. Maybe even a personal appearance by Thrawn himself! Take a look at the video below for more details.

I also recently posted a concept video for remaking the TIE Fighter cutscenes for Reimagined (not counting the Intro cutscene being remade by the infamous Otaking) using the ingame engine to render. This concept video is from Battle 3's ending. On the plus side it allows us to tailor cutscenes to fit the narrative of Reimagined and give us greater flexibility in the retelling of the TIE Fighter story within Reimagined framework. The downside at the moment is the loss of any character cutscenes until we find a suitable solution. But we appreciate your feedback on this subject and any suggestions going forward. Check out the video below.

That about wraps it up for this update. Don't forget to check out our website, join us on Discord, subscribe to us on YouTube or follow us on Twitter.

Fly safe pilots!

Hello pilots! First off, we have a new website! This site aims to be a comprehensive center of information about the project in its entirety with in-depth guides to installation, tweaking settings, joystick and keyboard info, version changelogs, ship information and even every single mission that you can play! Take a good look around and let us know if you have any suggestions on anything else we could add in the future.

But the main reason we are here today? Well it is with great pleasure that we finally announce the release of the TFTC Version 1.3 patch! This patch is the culmination of 8 months work and provides a whole plethora of balance changes, bug fixes, new missions, sounds, visuals and gameplay behaviours including:

• The new performance enhancing ddraw that shunts rendering power from the CPU to the GPU. Expect massive FPS gains from this and also in VR!

• 3 new missions for the Reimagined campaigns as well as several extensive gameplay changes for several Reimagined missions.

• New package of sound effects.

• New interdiction effect when in hyperspace.

• New voice actor for all reimagined Thrawn dialogue.

• New iMuse hook which improves behaviour of the ingame music.

• New time acceleration hook which allows you to speed up the game by 4x.

• Countless fixes

• Countless balance improvements.

To see the full extensive list of changes, please check the Changelog section on the website. We have also updated our installation tutorial video for the new version.

As there will always be bugs and other issues that can plague us all, we have now created a Quick Fixes section on the new site where we will post updated files for any issues discovered with v1.3 until the next patch can be released. If you do find any issues, please do post them here or join our Discord for assistance.

We will be monitoring the deployment of v1.3 to make sure there are no significant issues popping up and assuming there are not, work now will shift focus fully on the remaining Reimagined campaigns that are in development. You can check out this section to get an idea of what sort of things you can expect from those campaigns or see some individual mission information. Please note these do contain spoilers so if you want it to be a surprise what happens, turn away!

Until then, do join us on Discord, follow us on Twitter, subscribe to us on YouTube. These are the best methods for keeping up to date with the project and for interacting with our community.