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Another World 15th anniversary edition now on GOG.com
You see that beautiful, HUD-less vista above? It's from Another World, the European name for the beloved Amiga game from Eric Chahi (later ported to PC, Mega Drive / Genesis, SNES, GBA, among other platforms). Released stateside as Out of This World, the game's 15th anniversary edition (featuring a remastered version of the game, as well as a "making of" video and some other neat bonuses) has just landed on GOG.com for $9.99. As is the case with other titles on GOG, you're all set to run it in Windows XP or Windows Vista (both 32 and 64-bit). If you've yet to play Another World, well, what's wrong with you? Seriously, it's a great game (not to mention highly influential). Speaking of platform support, why hasn't this made its way to XBLA or PSN yet?
Karate Champ, Amiga games coming soon to iPhone
Two companies have announced new iPhone releases of old games. First, Pocket Gamer reports that Cobra Command developer Revolutionary Concepts will release another Data East classic, Karate Champ, on iPhone and iPod touch. The port will feature Bluetooth and local wi-fi two-player, and will simulate the original dual-joystick interface of the arcade game. In addition, Manomio, developer of the on-again, off-again Commodore 64 emulator for iPhone, has gotten an Amiga emulator working and plans to release Amiga games as standalone apps. According to Touch Arcade's report of a Retro Gamer magazine article, one of the first games in the works is another early karate title, International Karate+ -- a slightly more modern version of a C64 fighter. The two titles will then face off in a one-on-one battle to be the most popular retro fighting game.
MMOrigins: Life's funny like that, page 2
What started as simple forum posts on tanking and a little number crunching bloomed into a full guide in Issue 2 of EON, EVE's official magazine. When the article was finally in print, EON editor Richie 'Zapatero' Shoemaker came to me with a work proposal. After writing several more articles for EON and acting as editor on countless others, university work began piling up and I had to stop.
MMOrigins: Life's funny like that
We all got started gaming somewhere. For a lot of people, it was the Sega Mega-drive, the Atari 2600 or the NES that signaled their first steps into gaming. For me, it was the Commodore Amiga, a machine that was more a complete home computer than a games console. It was on the Amiga that groups like Team 17, Ocean, Electronic Arts and Blizzard first really made their mark on gaming and it was a great time of innovation in the industry. I recall long nights spent playing Frontier: Elite II, scooping hydrogen fuel from the corona of a star or wormholing into deep space. Another favourite that I still play occasionally was K240, an early space 4x game and still one of the best I've ever played. It was the public domain market on the Amiga that really caught my attention. It's one thing to play a game, but here was the opportunity to make one and sell it via a page in CU Amiga magazine or a PD order disk. I've always been more interested in making games than playing them but being young with no programming experience, I was limited in what I could do. I tooled endlessly with the "Shoot 'em up Construction Kit" and "Reality Game Creator" packages, making countless primitive prototype games that only I ever played.
MorphOS for Amiga adds Mac mini support, someone in Europe is delighted
Amiga owners are a loyal bunch. And they have to be -- stuck with a machine frozen in time (even if OS 5 was claimed to be "better than OS X") and little in the way of support, the manner in which they've stubbornly stuck with the platform over the years can only be described as a labor of love. If you've been wondering what all the fuss is about but no longer have a PowerPC-based Amiga system handy, the MorphOS Dev Team has just announced that its latest -- MorphOS 2.4 -- now supports Mac mini G4 machines. Available now, you can either hit the read link to download for yourself, or wait until the upcoming Amiga user group meeting in Bad Bramstedt, Germany. You know, whatever you find more convenient. As for us, we're going to go play a game of Ooops Up! for old time's sake.[Thanks, Antti Jarvinen]
European Nintendo downloads: Oscar in Troll-land
This week's European Wii/DSi Shop update includes no Virtual Console game, but it does almost include Trolls! That's right, Oscar in Toyland is a DSiWare remake of an Amiga game called Trolls! Thankfully for people who value sleeping at night without those faces burned into their minds, the Trolls license has been removed. Even if it's a Trolls game, a near-direct port of an old game on DSiWare is pretty cool.On WiiWare, Gameloft offers a Texas Hold'em Poker that isn't the same game as the Texas Hold'em Tournament that's been available since March. Want Texas Hold'em without the pressure of the tournament setting, or something? Well, there you go. In addition, this week's WiiWare Mr. Driller game is now available. There's also new DLC for My Life as a Darklord. Texas Hold'em Poker (WiiWare, 1-5 players, 600 Wii Points) Mr. Driller W (WiiWare, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) Oscar in Toyland (DSiWare, 1 player, 800 DSi Points)
There's something fishy about Flashback on iPhone
You likely remember (maybe with just a tinge of embarrassment) our giddy delight at the release of adventure/platforming classic Flashback on the iPhone. But a report from Pocket Gamer indicates you might want to hesitate before you plunk down the $5 asking price.For one, it seems you're actually paying for an emulator that downloads a ROM independently (kind of a shady workaround of App Store policies against otherwise copyrighted material). Since this version of Flashback apparently isn't designed for the phone there are also complaints of wonky controls. Speaking of which, can anybody tell us how to pick up the holocube? ... Anybody?
Flashback now available on iPhone
iPhone users, today could very well be one of the most important days in your life, because Flashback is available right now in the App store. It's a port of the Amiga version of the game, done by platform newcomers Manomio LLC, and features the requisite touch-based controls and a redesigned menu system. We'd like to say that this iPhone version of one of the greatest games ever made is a surefire hit, and you should download it immediately, but, frankly, we just don't know. It could be another Mega Man 2, which is an amazing game on just about every platform besides the iPhone.Flashback ($4.99, Manomio LLC) %Gallery-51820%
Great Giana Sisters! Infamous Super Mario Bros. clone cloned for DS
Released in 1987 for the era's gaming-focused personal computers – Commodore 64, Amiga, Amstrad, Atari ST – The Great Giana Sisters was a solid platformer, which isn't surprising. It was, by and large, a staggering Super Mario Bros. rip-off. Nintendo's lawyers had the sisters promptly locked away, but they've somehow escaped.Now, of all things, the game is being remade for a June 2009 release on Nintendo DS. German publisher dtp entertainment is working with Spellbound Entertainment and Bitfield on the title, which will – in addition to updated graphics – support the DS touchscreen and microphone, although exactly how has not been disclosed. In fact, we're not entirely certain that Nintendo knows about the game's existence. Check out the original game's (potentially NSFW) box art after the break. %Gallery-38960%
The DS Life: Phosphorescence
Even as a kid (or perhaps especially as a kid), artist David Gibbons had a fascination for all things glow-in-the-dark. Really, though, what's there to not like about glow-in-the-dark junk? David covered his bedroom walls with every glow-in-the-dark decoration he could find -- posters, stickers, and stars. He even wore glow-in-the-dark pajamas and braces! While we never went that far, we happen to have a glow-in-the-dark rosary hanging off our car's rearview mirror (It's a Filipino thing! Also, it makes it easier for us to pick out our car in the mall parking lot at night.).Anyway, David used his childhood glow-in-the-dark obsession as inspiration to create the art piece we've featured a today, an illustration depicting all of the Christmas toys he wished for as a kid while laying awake at night, gazing at all their glow-in-the-dark incarnations blue-tacked to his walls and ceiling.
Team17 confirms Alien Breed resurrection
No longer slave to its garden variety artillery game, Team17 has pledged to revisit its classic Amiga series, Alien Breed, based on the popular Alien film franchise a totally original idea. The upcoming sequel (or perhaps remake) was confirmed with a new logo, above, first posted on videogaming247. Late last month, Spong published an exchange with studio head Martyn Brown, which indicates that Alien Breed will be a self-published, downloadable title. We're speculating that Xbox Live Arcade, PSN, and PC are the likely targets, with WiiWare a distant possibility. "We're doing it with a budget far in excess of anything that has been spent anywhere on a digital title to date," Brown reportedly said. Alien (the New) Breed is expected for release within the next 12 months.
OLPC hacked to run Amiga OS
Clearly a match made in heaven, the doomed-but-beloved Amiga OS has been made to run on the maybe-doomed-but-beloved OLPC. It's not running natively, sadly, so the real hack here is getting the Amiga Forever emulator running on NickNeg's baby, but still, this combination is just beautifully tragic.
Third party Amiga development continues as lawsuits drag on
We pretty much assumed we'd never actually see the "better than OS X" Amiga OS 5 as the suit between Amiga, Inc. and Hyperion (developers of OS 4) drags on , but our curmudgeonly hearts were stirred just a little by reports that third-party Amiga development soldiers on. Spurred by the twice-as-high-as-expected sales of "OS 4 for Classic Amigas with PowerPC Accelerator Boards" (say that three times fast), and the development of an open source Amiga OS replacement called AROS, it seems like enough people are still interested in the platform to potentially keep it alive while Hyperion and Amiga battle it out. There's even recently-released commercial software available -- something we'd have never thought possible. Just goes to show that you can't keep a good (or kinda neat) OS down, eh?
CE-Oh no he didn't! Part XLV: Amiga head says new AmigaOS 5 "better than OS X"
Sure, we know you and your Video Toaster have been gutted over this whole AmigaOS 4 debacle... what's that? You've never heard of OS 4? You didn't know Amiga was still around? You hadn't heard that Bill McEwan, CEO of Amiga says the company's next OS is going to be "better than OS X?" Well time to perk up those ears, kiddo. In a truly enthralling read, the head of the defunct hardware-maker / software company says that Amiga is hard at work on a number of projects, not the least of which is the follow up to company's OS 4 -- which has been mired in development disputes with a company called Hyperion Entertainment since 2001 -- AmigaOS 5. A piece of software guaranteed to surprise and thrill the technology community at large, mostly (we suspect) due to the fact that no one even knew the company was still in business. Sure, some of the detractors say they haven't released a product in seven years, but what's seven years when you've got that pile of platinum that is OS 5? Exactly.[Via Slashdot]
Amiga returns to the hardware game, promises two new PPC desktops
Don't call it a comeback. Or, um, something like that. Amiga hasn't been exactly prolific since 2001, when it "began" development of AmigaOS 4.0, but now that it's finally shipping that retro-modern OS, attention has turned to hardware: where oh where is a modern PowerPC machine to run this on? To that end, Amiga is teaming up with ACK Software Controls to build two new desktops, both offering complete experiences to new and seasoned Amiga users. Twelve months in the making, the flavors are a $500 consumer version and a $1500 "power design." Both seem rather cheap, given the exclusivity of the Amiga market these days, but we're not complaining -- and we're sure the imaginary people who will actually buy these aren't either. Full launch deets and hopefully specs should be unveiled next week sometime. [Via TG Daily]
Defender of the Crown is back, and ready for more jousting
Indie PC game developer/publisher Stardock has picked up a brand-new remake of the 1986 Cinemaware smash hit Defender of the Crown. Storm enemy castles! Win jousting contests! Make out with princesses! And now, experience all these things which would never be possible for most geeks (especially that making-out part) in glorious modern graphics that look even better than the original Amiga version (but only barely). This game is so old, you can legally get it drunk!
What motivates DS homebrew developers?
The rewards for a homebrew developer's labor are few. The majority of their games and applications will never see a commercial release or any cash return. The number of people who can even appreciate their work on the DS is limited because of hardware requirements (i.e. third party storage carts). To find out why these programmers pour countless hours into projects that they won't likely profit from, Modojo interviewed the minds behind four of the homebrew scene's most visible games: Tetattds, Tower Defense, The Lemmings Project, and QWAK.Tetattds is a polished clone of Tetris Attack/Panel de Pon for the SNES, adding online support to the puzzler. Tower Defense is an adaptation of the popular Warcraft 3 mod. The Lemmings Project jerry-rigs the PC classic to work with the DS' touchscreen and resolution limits. QWAK, a GBA puzzle platformer reminiscent of Bubble Bobble, was actually self-published with a small run of 300 carts. So what is it that drives these homebrew developers? Several of them cite community participation or the need to fill a gap in the DS library. Others have a reason that's even more simple and obvious: They just want to make the best games they can.
AmigaOS 4 reviewed
ArsTechnica got a look at a pre-release version of AmigaOS 4 a full two years ago, but as those familiar with the much-loved platform know all too well, things move slowly in Amigaland, which accounts for why the final version of OS is only now available for download. As before, the folks at ArsTechnica got one of the first looks at it, installing the OS on their coveted Micro AmigaOne box in hopes of reliving good old days of 1989. While they end up giving the OS a thumbs up for the most part, it's unfortunately not without its failings, and probably only of interest to die-hard Amiga fans and those curious what all the fuss was about. On the upside, the installation is apparently fairly straightforward, and the OS itself has been given a bit of facelift, with the usual shininess added to spruce things up. The OS hits its biggest snags when you go online, with a browser that doesn't support CSS and an email application that doesn't support HTML, although both would seem to be only temporary problems should development pick up. Of course, to try out the OS for yourself, you're gonna have to track down an AmigaOne system of your own, which is no easy feat, given that the only company making 'em has ceased production. Those of us not so lucky will just have to hold onto the faint hope of an Intel port somewhere down the line.
Have your lemmings and edit their levels, too
If any system is well-suited to guiding chains of lemmings through levels filled with danger, it's the DS ... and thanks to homebrew developer Matt, that potential has been realized. LemProject brings a homebrew Lemmings game (based from the Amiga version) to the DS, with full stylus functionality and all the tools you need to build your own levels. And if you're the type who wants to dig around on the back end, it's all open source.It's not perfect -- not all the old levels could be transferred to this game, there are a few reported bugs, and some people are pulling sad faces that it doesn't work with DS-X, but nothing's perfect. All in all, this looks like a great homage to a classic. [Via Digg]
Cannon Fodder announced
The retro games keep on coming back. IGN has an exclusive where they reveal the very first details and screenshots of Codemasters' upcoming game Cannon Fodder, a remake of the classic Commidore Amiga game. But unlike most of the other retro games that we've seen, this goes the extra mile and is a real remake: with new graphics and gameplay, updated for the current generation. You and a team of soldiers will fight it out on-foot and in vehicles, while being able to call air strikes and radar sweeps. The game will offer four player deathmatch and co-op modes.
