''Crimson Skies'' is a tabletop and a video game

media franchise A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program, o ...

created by

Jordan Weisman Jordan Weisman is an American game designer, author, and serial entrepreneur who has founded five game design companies, each in a different game genre and segment of the industry. Biography Weisman graduated from Francis W. Parker High School, ...

and Dave McCoy, first released as a board game in 1998 and then as a PC game in 2000. The series'

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

is currently owned by

Microsoft Corporation Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

through its

Xbox Game Studios Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...

division. Weisman's former company, Smith & Tinker Inc., had announced in 2007 that it had licensed the electronic entertainment rights to the franchise, but no new titles were developed. The ''Crimson Skies'' trademark was renewed in 2013 by Microsoft for video games, although the trademark for other related media has been abandoned. The series is set within an

alternate history Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...

of the 1930s invented by Weisman and McCoy. Within this divergent timeline, the United States has collapsed, and air travel has become the most popular mode of transportation in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

; as a result,

air pirate Air pirates (or sky pirates) are a class of stock character from science fiction and fantasy. The characters are pirates who use aircraft or airborne aircraft carriers as their primary vehicles instead of ships. They target other aircraft for l ...

s thrive in the world of ''Crimson Skies''. In describing the concept of ''Crimson Skies'', Jordan Weisman stated he wanted to "take the idea of 16th century Caribbean piracy and translate into a 1930s American setting". ''Crimson Skies'' was first conceived as a PC game known as ''Corsairs!'', but was released first as a

board game A board game is a type of tabletop game that involves small objects () that are placed and moved in particular ways on a specially designed patterned game board, potentially including other components, e.g. dice. The earliest known uses of the ...

from

FASA FASA Corporation was an American publisher of role-playing games, wargaming, wargames and board games between 1980 and 2001, after which they closed publishing operations for several years, becoming an IP holding company under the name FASA In ...

. The franchise has since expanded to include a collectible miniatures game from

Wizkids NECA/WizKids, LLC (commonly known as simply WizKids) is an American company based in New Jersey that produces tabletop games. WizKids is best known for its collectible miniatures games (CMGs) Mage Knight, HeroClix, MechWarrior, and HorrorCli ...

, a

miniature wargame A miniature wargame is a type of wargame in which military units are represented by Miniature model (gaming), miniature physical models on a model battlefield. Miniature wargames are played using Toy soldier, model soldiers, vehicles, and arti ...

from

Ral Partha Formed in 1975, Ral Partha Enterprises, Inc. of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, is now known as ''Ral Partha Legacy Ltd.'' and produces miniature figures in 25 mm, 30 mm, 15 mm, and 54 mm scale. The company's products are m ...

, as well as a series of books. The series also includes two arcade flight-based video games published by

Microsoft Game Studios Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...

– '' Crimson Skies'' for the PC and '' Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge'' for the

Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...

. Both games were well received by critics, though only the second was commercially successful. ''Crimson Skies'' is an example of the dieselpunk genre, though it predated the genre name.

Development history

According to series creator Jordan Weisman, the original idea for ''Crimson Skies'' came after he had completed research on the early years of aviation; the era and historical characters inspired him to create a game about the period. For their game, Weisman and Dave McCoy settled on a post WWI European setting revolving around the "knights of the air". However, a game with a similar idea came out then; Weisman and McCoy subsequently moved the setting to the U.S. and changed the concept to placing

s in a modern setting. From there, they crafted an

to simulate the conditions that gave rise to

piracy in the Caribbean ]The Piracy of the Caribbean refers to the historical period of widespread piracy that occurred in the Caribbean Sea. Primarily between the 1650s and 1730s, where pirates frequently attacked and robbed merchant ships sailing through the region, o ...

in a 1930s setting. Weisman later said about the development of the universe:

Whenever I create different universes—''
MechWarrior ''MechWarrior'' is a series of video games set in the fictional universe of ''BattleTech''. Games Within the ''MechWarrior'' games, players take control of a single BattleTech technology#BattleMechs, BattleMech and combat other BattleMechs, ...
'', ''
Shadowrun ''Shadowrun'' is a science fantasy tabletop role-playing game set in an alternate future in which cybernetics, magic in fiction, magic and fantasy creatures co-exist. It combines genres of cyberpunk, urban fantasy, and crime fiction, crime, wit ...
'', ''Crimson Skies''—to me, it's all about looking at 'What are the fantasies that excited us when we were 5?' And if we can find a new and more sophisticated way to tap into that fantasy ..''Crimson Skies'' is just combining two classic male fantasies: You get to be a pirate; you get to be a pilot.

Work on ''Crimson Skies'' began under the name ''Corsairs!''. Development started for Virtual World Entertainment, and was later moved to a PC game when Virtual World merged with

FASA Corporation FASA Corporation was an American publisher of role-playing games, wargaming, wargames and board games between 1980 and 2001, after which they closed publishing operations for several years, becoming an IP holding company under the name FASA In ...

. Although the ''Corsairs!'' project was shelved, Weisman and a group of FASA employees worked outside of business hours to create the '' Crimson Skies'' board game. According to Weisman: "The board game was borne purely out of the fact that I needed to get this universe out of our heads and into the world, and it was the best venue to do so quickly". Developer John Howard has stated that the board game was built to "showcase the Crimson Skies property, with an eye towards expanding on it in other ways". When FASA Interactive became a part of

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

, Weisman and his team were able to start a new game, and work on the PC version of ''Crimson Skies'' began; the game was developed by Zipper Interactive. The game utilizes arcade flight mechanics, focusing on action, as opposed to a realistic portrayal of the physics of flight. The game's relaxed physics as well as its focus on

barnstorming Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in t ...

led

GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...

to comment that "''Crimson Skies'' is very much based on a 'movie reality' where if it's fun and looks good, it works". The

game '' Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge'' was later developed as a first-party title for

by FASA Studio. Like the previous game, arcade flight elements were incorporated in order to focus gameplay on action instead of flight mechanics. Early in the game's production, developers decided upon a "playable movie" concept, but found that gameplay would be restricted by this approach. Consequently, the game's release date was pushed back by approximately one year to allow the development team time to retool the game. The results of this extra development period include more open-ended gameplay features and

Xbox Live The Xbox network, formerly known and commonly referred to as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Gaming for the Xbox brand. It was first made available to the origina ...

support. After development concluded on ''High Road to Revenge'', the developers moved to work on another ''Crimson Skies'' title for Microsoft; development, however, was cancelled shortly into the project. When FASA Studio was later shut down, Microsoft retained the video game rights to ''Crimson Skies'', although it had no immediate plans for the IP. Weisman's latest company, Smith & Tinker, later "licensed from Microsoft the electronic entertainment rights" to ''Crimson Skies''. Although the company has made no formal announcement as to its plans with the franchise, Weisman has assured fans that there will be a new entry in the series.

Universe

Backstory

The ''Crimson Skies'' series takes place in an

alternate Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an alternative to mainstream superh ...

1930s in which the U.S. has broken apart into a number of independent

nation state A nation state, or nation-state, is a political entity in which the State (polity), state (a centralized political organization ruling over a population within a territory) and the nation (a community based on a common identity) are (broadly ...

s. According to series creator Jordan Weisman:

I needed to create a geo-political situation that would result in air-pirates, so I looked at the real political situation that gave rise to the pirates of the Caribbean in the 16th and 17th centuries. We needed a balkanized era so that pirates could escape quickly into another country's territory, we needed things of value to be moved by air, and we needed a constantly churning political environment so that things did not settle down quickly. ..It took only three little changes in the history of the United States to get us the dynamic world of ''Crimson Skies''.

This alternate timeline incorporates both fictional and actual historic events. According to the series' official backstory, the divergent timeline begins after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, when a " Regionalist movement" gains popularity in America following the

Spanish influenza The 1918–1920 flu pandemic, also known as the Great Influenza epidemic or by the common misnomer Spanish flu, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 subtype of the influenza A virus. The earliest docum ...

pandemic, rallying behind an isolationist platform. Meanwhile, President Wilson's authority was undercut when

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

failed as a

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...

leaving the matter to be decided on the state level. The nation soon became polarized between "wet" and "dry" states and checkpoints became a common sight on state borders to stop the flow of alcohol into "dry" states. As the decade progressed, state governments seized more authority, encroaching into areas formerly the responsibility of the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

, and formed regional power blocs. The optimism of the

Roaring Twenties The Roaring Twenties, sometimes stylized as Roaring '20s, refers to the 1920s decade in music and fashion, as it happened in Western world, Western society and Western culture. It was a period of economic prosperity with a distinctive cultura ...

was upset in 1927 when an outbreak of a deadly strain of

influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...

in America prompted states to close their borders, further dividing the Union. Though not as deadly as the 1918 pandemic, the epidemic had immense political fallout, bolstering regionalist "strong state" views and decreasing voter turnout in the 1928 election. Shortly after the Wall Street crash of 1929, Texas

seceded Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal is the c ...

from the United States, reforming the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

on January 1, 1930.

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

was the next state to secede, and persuaded

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

to merge with it to form the Empire State.

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

followed suit, creating the Nation of Hollywood, as did

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, which had already come in conflict with the federal government after the establishment of the Smith Law in 1928 that made

Mormonism Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationism, Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to va ...

the state religion.

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, essentially powerless, was unable to stop the country from falling apart. The federal government made its last stand against the "People's Revolt" of the bread basket states. When the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

was defeated by the People's Collective (formerly the

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

) forces in 1931, the fate of the United States was sealed, and the rest of the country dissolved into independent nations by the end of 1932 with the last legal remnant of the US being the neutral nation of Columbia in what used to be whatever area around Washington could be seized. Though not directly affected by the Texas Secession, Canada found itself dragged down by the collapse of the U.S., with

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

seceding in 1930 and the rest of the provinces siding with their nascent southern neighbors:

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

and parts of Quebec joined the Maritime Provinces of

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, New Hampshire, and

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

;

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

joined Quebec;

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

joined the People's Collective as did parts of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, with the

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan languages, Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of ...

nation laying claim to the rest;

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

merged with

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

and Washington in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

; and

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

claimed the

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

territories. The core of the former Canadian government established the Protectorate of

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. While

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

's authority technically extends to

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

and the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

, these areas are mostly no-man's land, while

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

and

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

comprise a self-governing body, commonly referred to as the Northumberland Association. In 1931, the Territorial Government of Hawaii was left defenseless in the wake of the fragmenting country and was overthrown in favor of reestablishing the Hawaiian monarchy with Jonah Kūhiō as its king. Likewise, America's territorial holdings overseas were surrendered following the nation's formal collapse and the formation of the Federal Republic of Columbia on March 1, 1932.Hartford, Chris; "The Airman's Gazetteer" The resulting nation states that formed were no longer unified—distrust between them strained diplomatic relations to the point that several small-scale wars broke out. After the dissolution of the United States, the country's interstate

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

and highway systems fell into disrepair or were sabotaged as they crossed hostile borders. Consequently, ground-based vehicles such as the

locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...

and

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

were replaced by

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

such as the

airplane An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, Propeller (aircraft), propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a vari ...

and the

zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...

as the leading mode of transportation in North America. Europe soon followed this fascination with aviation to make its own strides into the new, aerially-dominated market. Gangs of

s formed in turn to plunder airborne commerce. Although air militias formed to counter the threat, rivalries between the nations of North America reduced their capacity to effectively address this issue, and even encouraged the countries to sponsor pirates as privateers so as to direct their illegal operations against opposing nations. In Europe, privateers and other mercenary groups were widely adopted by nations who wished to avoid another world war, especially in the case of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. By the end of 1937, North America was a "hotbed of conflict", with multiple pirate gangs and air militias battling for control of the skies. Europe was no better, as

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

jockeyed for power while

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and Britain looked the other way. The Russian States continued to fight their

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, which threatened to spill over into the Eastern European nations and Alaska. Asia, too, was on the brink, with

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

's recent invasion of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and the continuation of the bloody civil war in Australia.

Aircraft and technology

The planes of ''Crimson Skies'' are fictional designs created to fit within the ''Crimson Skies'' universe. Although some planes were modeled after actual 1930s era

experimental aircraft An experimental aircraft is an aircraft intended for testing new aerospace technologies and design concepts. The term ''research aircraft'' or '' testbed aircraft'', by contrast, generally denotes aircraft modified to perform scientific studies, ...

and other "bizarre and outlandish designs" from the early years of aviation, they still take significant departures from conventional aviation design. Jordan Weisman has stated that the planes in ''Crimson Skies'' are designed to be the "hot rods of the air". According to

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

, "the planes in CS are built for style and not function with their redundant wing positions and rear propellers". For example, the Devastator aircraft features a pusher propeller and a

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

design. Because of the history of the world of ''Crimson Skies'', especially given that the nation states of North America are constantly at war with one another and that air travel is the primary means of transportation, advancements in both aircraft and weaponry technology would have proceeded at a faster pace than had actually happened in the same time period.

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...

s with hangar launch bays that can accommodate escort fighters are featured prominently in ''Crimson Skies''; in actuality, only a few zeppelin-based

airborne aircraft carrier An airborne aircraft carrier is a type of mother ship aircraft which can carry, launch, retrieve and support other smaller parasite aircraft. The only dedicated examples to have been built were airships, although existing heavier-than-air aircr ...

s saw service. Zeppelins in ''Crimson Skies'' are also armed with broadside cannons and are also heavily armored. Radio-controlled rockets are also available in the ''Crimson Skies'' universe, which can be controlled remotely after launch. Other technologies are exclusive to the world of ''Crimson Skies''. Magnetic rockets have the ability to track planes or weapon emplacements over a short distance.On-Screen Instructions: Your Devastator aircraft carries magnetic rockets that track for a short distance. Aerial torpedoes are similar to sea-based

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es, but are specifically designed to take out airships. Beeper/seeker rockets are designed to work in tandem. The "beeper" rocket attaches to a target and emits a homing signal; the "seeker" rocket follows the homing signal, destroying the target. The Choker rocket disables the target's engine by bursting into a fireball that burns all oxygen around it. The Tesla cannon is a tesla coil-style weapon that fires a bolt of electricity at a target, disabling it. Also featured in ''Crimson Skies'' is the wind turbine, a weather control mechanism designed to generate storms.Nathan: What is it? Dr. Fassenbiender: A wind turbine. ..Nathan: What exactly does this turbine do? Dr. Fassenbiender: It simulates extreme weather conditions by actively manipulating tropospheric convection currents. Nathan: It generates storms?

Games

FASA board game

The ''Crimson Skies'' board game was released by FASA in 1998. The base game came with card stock, assemble-yourself airplanes included, but later metal miniature planes were offered separately. While the focus was on fantasy over fact, many of the planes in ''Crimson Skies'' were modeled after real experimental aircraft of the era. The complex universe of ''Crimson Skies'' earned many devoted fans, as dozens of different weapons, planes, nations, air forces, bands of pirates, and characters were all given detailed pasts, and several additional supplemental campaigns were published.

Microsoft PC game

The

PC game A personal computer game, or abbreviated PC game, also known as a computer game, is a video game played on a personal computer (PC). The term ''PC game'' has been popularly used since the 1990s referring specifically to games on "Wintel" (Micr ...

''Crimson Skies'' was developed by Zipper Interactive and released in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

. The game's storyline is framed around a

radio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the liste ...

that chronicles the adventures of Nathan Zachary and the Fortune Hunters pirate gang during their rise to fame and fortune. Gameplay centers on the control of one of the game's playable aircraft, which the player can customize with different parts to alter performance. The game's flight mechanics were designed to be a compromise between realistic and arcade flight. One of ''Crimson Skies unique gameplay features was the inclusion of "danger zones"—challenging areas through which the player can fly for various effects. The game's focus on

and relaxed flight physics led

to comment that "''Crimson Skies'' is very much based on a 'movie reality' where if it's fun and looks good, it works". However, the game's original release was plagued with numerous technical problems, most notably the unreliability of the player's saved game files. Though a patch was released to remedy this issue, the game still retains many technical issues such as long loading times and sluggish menu screens.

Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge

''Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge'' is an

game developed by FASA Studio and released in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. The game centers on Nathan Zachary and the Fortune Hunters, in their crusade to avenge the death of a close friend, Dr. Fassenbiender, at the hands of the ''Die Spinne'' organization. Developers decided early on in the game's production cycle that the game would not simply be a

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

of the PC title, and by the end of the development cycle, many of the story elements that linked the game to the PC game had been excised."When I started work on the game we had a cut scene heavy, convoluted storyline that was weighed down by its perceived obligations to the past. ..Every change they wanted to make had to be triple-checked with the story to make sure they didn't break it, and even then things would slip through". Although the game is similar to the PC game in that gameplay centers on controlling an aircraft, a new feature is the ability for the player to switch aircraft or man fixed weapon emplacements during a mission. The game's mission structure also features a number of other open-ended elements that have led to comparisons with the sandbox gameplay of the ''

Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is an action-adventure video game series created by David Jones and Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan and Sam Houser, Leslie Benzies and Aaron Garbut. It is prima ...

'' games. The game additionally boasted a number of online gameplay modes over

WizKids collectible miniatures game

In 2003, Wizkids released the ''Crimson Skies'' collectible miniatures game. The game utilizes collectible figures featuring both planes and pilots from the ''Crimson Skies'' universe. These miniatures use WizKids' Clix system, by which a character's or plane's statistics and abilities can be altered during gameplay by way of an adjustable dial located on the base of the figure. The ''Crimson Skies'' miniatures game comprises two separate games, each with its own set of rules. The gameplay in ''Crimson Skies: Aces'' revolves around pilots battling each other on the ground, while the gameplay in ''Crimson Skies: Air Action'' focuses on

dogfight A dogfight, or dog fight, is an air combat manoeuvring, aerial battle between fighter aircraft that is conducted at close range. Modern terminology for air-to-air combat is air combat manoeuvring (ACM), which refers to tactical situations requir ...

ing between squadrons of aircraft. Figures were sold in "squadron packs" and "ace packs", which were formatted in blisterpacks as opposed to the random packaging format used in other Wizkids games.

Books

In addition to the tabletop and video games, the ''Crimson Skies'' series also features a number of tie-in books and short stories. ''Spicy Air Tales'' was published by FASA in 1999. The two-volume series featured short stories that originally appeared on the Crimson Skies website and supplemental material for using characters and planes from the stories with the boardgame. *''Volume I'' *''Fortune's Hunt'', by Michael A. Stackpole *''Volume II'' *''The Great Helium War'', by Robert E. Vardeman *''Manhattan Mayhem'', by Loren L. Coleman ''Wings of Fortune: Pirate's Gold'', by Stephen Kenson, was published by FASA in November 2000. It introduced Nathan Zachary and his famous band of air pirates, the Fortune Hunters. It follows Zachary's air exploits and daring escapes during his early days as a war pilot, and recounts a climatic confrontation with his nemesis. ''Wings of Justice: Rogue Flyer'', by Loren L. Coleman, was published by FASA in December 2000. It follows the transformation of Trevor Girard from a law-abiding security agent to a pirate with a heart of gold. ''Crimson Skies'' was published by Del Rey in October 2002 to promote the future release of the Xbox game. It features three novellas, two originally published on the ''Crimson Skies'' website, one previously unpublished. Each story is preceded by a brief history lesson about the ''Crimson Skies'' universe that acts as the prelude to the following story. *''The Case of the Phantom Prototype'', by Eric Nylund – Paladin Blake must fly a top-secret aircraft into the Mojave Desert. *''"The Manchurian Gambit'', by Michael B. Lee – Jonathan "Genghis" Kahn, the leader of the Red Skull Legion pirate gang, rescues a lady in distress and fights air battles from Manhattan to Manchuria with, surprisingly, no plunder in sight. *''Bayou Blues'', by Nancy Berman and Eric S. Trautmann – Nathan Zachary and his "Fortune Hunters" square off against a Cajun sky-thief, a crooked businessman, and a pair of star-crossed lovers in a high-stakes, high-altitude con game.

Notes and references

External links

MIRROR SITE of the ''Crimson Skies'' official site
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