EA Brings 25 Classic PC Games to Steam, Including Restored Wing Commander and Road Rash
Wing Commander, Ultima, Theme Hospital, Crusader and Road Rash are now on Steam for the first time, with seven restored Anniversary Editions and launch pricing through November 19.
Electronic Arts has opened its vault. On November 5, the publisher released 25 classic PC games on Steam for the first time, with the same lineup also available on GOG and the EA app. Seven of them are restored "Anniversary Editions" with new quality-of-life features and remastered cinematics, while the other 18 are faithful ports of the original releases, according to EA's announcement.
The seven restored Anniversary Editions
EA singled out seven games that received the most work:
- Road Rash: 30th Anniversary Edition
- Wing Commander: 35th Anniversary Edition
- Wing Commander II: Vengeance of the Kilrathi: 35th Anniversary Edition
- Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger: 30th Anniversary Edition
- Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom: 30th Anniversary Edition
- Wing Commander Prophecy: 30th Anniversary Edition
- Privateer 2: The Darkening: 30th Anniversary Edition
The Wing Commander restorations lean heavily on the series' fan community. The first two games now include the Kilrathi Saga versions, released digitally for the first time, along with community-built patches that add speed fixes, better controller support and a windowed mode. Wing Commander III and IV bundle the community Enhancement Patch, which EA says brings 60 FPS gameplay, higher-resolution full-motion video and widescreen cockpit options.
The FMV work is the headline. EA says it digitized the original source master tapes and re-edited them frame by frame, restoring more than 1,000 FMV scenes across Wing Commander III and IV. Optional upscaled versions of those cinematics are included as well. Privateer 2, which features Clive Owen, John Hurt and Christopher Walken, gets a similar treatment plus a "Director's Cut" version of its scenes prepared by the game's original cinematics director.
Road Rash returns with its soundtrack
Road Rash: 30th Anniversary Edition is the first digital release of the 1996 PC version of EA's combat racer. The Steam listing highlights a fully relicensed soundtrack, higher-resolution cinematics and up to 60 FPS gameplay. EA's post names the bands on that soundtrack, including Soundgarden, Monster Magnet, Swervedriver and Therapy?.
The faithful ports
The remaining 18 games are straight ports for players who want the original experience: Wing Commander: Privateer, Academy and Armada, Strike Commander, Theme Hospital, Crusader: No Remorse and No Regret, Ultima I through Ultima IX (including Ultima VII: The Complete Edition and Ultima VIII Gold Edition), and both Ultima Underworld games.
How it started
According to EA, the project began in March 2022, when senior producer Jim Vessella found a physical media vault at the company's Redwood Shores campus holding almost 20,000 archival assets, including master tapes for Wing Commander and Road Rash. The team says it has preserved an estimated 2,500 hours of historical footage since then. Vessella tells the full story in a separate EA article.
Why it matters for PC players
Several of these games defined PC gaming in the 1990s, but legally buying them on a modern storefront has been inconsistent for years. Steam availability puts them in the same library as everything else, with cloud saves and controller support where the store page lists it.
EA says all 25 games have special pricing on Steam and GOG from November 5 to 19. When we checked the Steam store on November 6, Road Rash: 30th Anniversary Edition was 50% off at $4.99 (regular price $9.99). You can find it, along with other verified discounts, on our PC deals page.
