Amiga shoot 'em ups: Are any worth playing?

[samanosuke]

A 2019 shoot 'em up designed for the AGA chipset. Looks like a modern indie shooter.

If we’re counting AGA games then there was also a game released in the Amiga’s twilight years called T-Zero, but it’s a bit like Project-X in that it looks great, but is very repetitive with swarms of the same enemy appearing over and over again. The bosses in it do look fantastic, though.

[Leon Retro]

aren’t we all overlooking one particular shmup that plays to the Amiga’s strengths and at the same time manages to be awesome to play?

Yeah, Stardust was a pretty big thing at the time. The developer was clever with the graphic design, so it looked vibrant and colourful on the A500. Plus you have fitting music and sfx. The tunnel sections were quite amazing.

a game released in the Amiga’s twilight years called T-Zero, but it’s a bit like Project-X in that it looks great, but is very repetitive with swarms of the same enemy appearing over and over again.

https://youtu.be/W-z1STXHho8?t=455

It looks much better than Project-X. I think it looks and sounds very much like something you'd get from NGDEV. You can also tell that it makes good use of the extra speed AGA machines have -- and the developer delivered both sfx and pumping music.

I can sort of see why Project-X impressed people, but I've always disliked it. There's something very 'cut & paste' about the design that makes it feel cheap and repetitive.

[Leon Retro]

Amnios runs really smoothly and is filled with colour and detail, but it's a bit frustating to play. I wish the developer had simply gone for a vertical scrolling style. A great showcase of the A500 tech though. Psygnosis always managed to make the most of the Amiga hardware.



Just look at how vibrant and colourful the graphics are.

[samanosuke]

Yeah, Stardust was a pretty big thing at the time. The developer was clever with the graphic design, so it looked vibrant and colourful on the A500. Plus you have fitting music and sfx. The tunnel sections were quite amazing.

You can really see the developers’ demo scene roots in the soundtrack, the graphics, and the tricks it pulls off. There’s always been the argument that demo scene programmers, whilst clearly talented, lack experience when it comes to game design (case in point: Project-X). So in this situation, the developers simply took a formula which was already highly playable - Asteroids - and pumped it up with steroids. Was a great idea even if the game itself was rather unoriginal.

[Leon Retro]

There’s always been the argument that demo scene programmers, whilst clearly talented, lack experience when it comes to game design (case in point: Project-X).

Well, there are always exceptions to the rule.

But seriously -- it's not easy to create original, inspired design. Just look at all the terrible animal characters that tried to compete with Sonic the Hedgehog.

So in this situation, the developers simply took a formula which was already highly playable - Asteroids - and pumped it up with steroids. Was a great idea even if the game itself was rather unoriginal.

There had been plenty of versions of Asteroids on computers, but the developer of Stardust managed to take the formula and create something that felt fresh and exciting. Easily one of the better Amiga games -- and it stands the test of time really well.

[Nu-Eclipse]

Like others on here have already done, I was going to suggest Menace.

It appears to have aged really badly though.

[Leon Retro]

It appears to have aged really badly though.

I think it looks OK, but quite basic in many ways. Later shooters took far more advantage of the hardware.



This vertical shooter from CORE runs at a decent pace.



Someone copied TwinBee for the AGA chipset.

[samanosuke]

Was Banshee any good? I remember the Amiga mags went crazy over it BitD but I’ve never played it.

[buzz909]

The sequel, Battle Squadron, is also something special. It seemed quite amazing back in 1989.

I could never get into Battle Squadron. I tried really hard to like that because it got great reviews! It was great from a tech standpoint though.

An early[1988] game that showed off the potential of the A500 hardware. I remember seeing screenshots and thinking it looked stunning.

The sequel, Blood Money, was also something special. It's a bit too slow, but still impressed.

I always liked the look of Blood Money. Dave Jones did a series in Amiga Format magazine where he showed you how to make Menace. Step by step. It was great at the time for learning stuff. In that he said he used hardware scrolling for Menace but software scrolling for Blood Money. There were more objects on screen in Blood Money and by using software scrolling - you don't have to save the background behind each blitter-object and then redraw it when the object moves. With software scrolling you can simply redraw the whole background each frame. Its faster when you have a lot of objects on screen... according to him anyway

Last week I got ReshootR for CD32 (also AGA Amigas) but my CD32 is in the loft/attic so haven't been able to play it yet.

I have Banshee - that's very good, although still quite not up there with the best MD/SNES schmups. As a massive Amiga fan I was disappointed with the power of AGA at the time, also the sound chip was just the same. I saved up for a (Jap) SNES and having that and an A500 was probably the best combination ever. I only got a CD32 years later.

[Anpanman]

Hybris and Battle Squadron are ace. There was another one loosely based on Galaxian with loads of levels and one of the first games from memory that allowed you save high scores on the disk.

[Leon Retro]

Was Banshee any good? I remember the Amiga mags went crazy over it BitD but I’ve never played it.

The graphic artist(s) did a great job. There's so much craft and detail to admire. The actual game plays pretty well, but the constant rattling sound of the plane's guns is really annoying. And the lack of music spoils things quite a bit.

I could never get into Battle Squadron. I tried really hard to like that because it got great reviews! It was great from a tech standpoint though.

I love everything about Battle Squadron - great graphics, awesome sound, and it feels nice to play. I remember how amazing it was in 1989.

I always liked the look of Blood Money. Dave Jones did a series in Amiga Format magazine where he showed you how to make Menace.

I remember that - it was really interesting. But I never attempted to make games, except for messing around with AMOS.

Last week I got ReshootR for CD32 (also AGA Amigas) but my CD32 is in the loft/attic so haven't been able to play it yet.

Looks like a really nice shooter. I like the graphics and the music sounds good. Runs at a decent pace too.

[Leon Retro]

There was another one loosely based on Galaxian with loads of levels and one of the first games from memory that allowed you save high scores on the disk.

Is it this game?

[Anpanman]

Is it this game?

Thanks LR but no, it almost looked like a homebrew title but it wasn't. It came out fairly early in the life of the A500, again memory is woolly but I'm sure it boasted something like 99 levels of action.

[Leon Retro]

Thanks LR but no, it almost looked like a homebrew title but it wasn't. It came out fairly early in the life of the A500, again memory is woolly but I'm sure it boasted something like 99 levels of action.

I have a vague memory of the game you're thinking off. I will do a bit of investigation.

[Jaz]

Datastorm, Silkworm and SWIV are.