Which Game should i get, what are the differences(story, music, gameplay, graphics)?

[LordJokiro]

I wanted to play the older Starwars space combat sims, during my research I came across the following titles: X-Wing Special Edition, TIE Fighter Special Edition, X-Wing Alliance and X-Wing vs TIE Fighter - Balance of Power
What are the differences in terms of story, gameplay, graphics and music?

[Garrec]

Story:

X-Wing's storyline leads up to destruction of the first Death Star, then has more tours dealing with the aftermath of Imperial counterattacks, and the introduction of the B-Wing starfighter into service.

TIE Fighter's first battle (tour of duty) begins with the aftermath of the Battle of Hoth, then continues into various events. Establishing a space station, ending a civil war between two factions, and dealing with various internal conflicts within the Empire. The storyline ends shortly before the Battle of Endor.

X-Wing vs TIE Fighter (XvT) is mostly a multiplayer game, though it can be played singleplayer. Unrelated combat scenarios as standalone multiplayer missions. The expansion campaign (Balance of Power) is a self-contained tour of duty comparable to X-Wing or TIE Fighter. Rebels trying to build a shipyard and negotiating with local factions, while the Empire is trying to stop those efforts. Can be played as either Rebel or Imperial and the storyline diverges somewhat for each faction.

Graphics:

The Special Editions of both X-Wing and TIE Fighter were a remastering of the earlier games to run on Windows 98 instead of MS-DOS. They were released around the same time XvT was, featuring XvT's rendering engine, as well as the ship models and soundtrack from XvT. So graphically they're all pretty much the same, running in 640x480, with the same cockpits and models. The models and textures are somewhat primitive, about what you would expect from 1998 graphics. A community ddraw patch allows them to use hardware 3D rendering in your native desktop resolution, with certain limitations.

If you get X-Wing and TIE Fighter, the original DOS games are available in the purchase. X-Wing's graphics are limited to 320x200 and TIE Fighter's CD edition is limited to 640x480. The models are even more primitive than the 1998 remastering, but they have their own charm.

Music:

The DOS versions of both X-Wing and TIE Fighter feature their own custom dynamic MIDI soundtracks. Loosely based on familiar themes from the movies, but it's mostly exclusive new music. The themes are dynamic, getting more or less intense depending on the gameplay action you're involved in.

XvT's music is completely static, John Williams' orchestral themes. Music is a significant point of contention among the playerbase. Most people prefer the DOS MIDI music for its dynamic soundtrack.

Gameplay:

Nearly identical between all of the games. Same kind of objectives. Recon, attack, defense, escort, assault, etc. The same core mechanics, with new features introduced as the later games in the series became more complex. X-Wing being the first game is more primitive, but most of the primary game mechanics were established there, and continued throughout the series.

TIE Fighter is more advanced, more ships, more quality of life features. Same core mechanics as X-Wing, you just fly different ships since you're flying for the Empire now.

XvT is largely the same as TIE Fighter but some of the weapon mechanics and ships were adjusted for the sake of multiplayer balance.

TIE Fighter is probably the easiest game to start with, as it has difficulty levels. X-Wing can be brutal for first time players since it's not intuitive and lacks the quality of life features that TIE Fighter has.

XvT also has brutal difficulty. Probably the most difficult in the series, even for experienced players.

There's also X-Wing Alliance, the last game in the series. Graphically the best, especially with the X-Wing Alliance Upgrade mod. Has its own storyline leading up to the Battle of Endor. Music is orchestral, but dynamic. Same mechanics, more features.

I recommend playing TIE Fighter or X-Wing Alliance first, since they're easier for new players. Once you're familiar with the gameplay mechanics, and if you enjoy the games enough to play more missions (across all the games, there's hundreds of missions), you can try X-Wing and XvT.

[4sng_Respawnz]

Just a FYI....
Steam, annually runs a Star Wars Franchise, 'Sale', on May 4th.
iirc, it is called "May The 4th, Be With You' sale.