Looking back at gaming on the Commodore Amiga reveals a period when games were fun.  They weren’t all complicated, sprawling affairs needing hours to play – although some were – but instead they were quickly picked up but tough to master.  Many were also the products of small studios or even the brainchild of one person, all dealing with the limitations of the chosen platform.

The parallels with gaming on the iPhone are clear, so lets take a look at ten Amiga games which would be great on the iPhone, the iPad or both.

Game:  Alien Breed.

Team 17 have remade Alien Breed several times, however it’s the original we’re interested in.  It’s a top-down explore ‘em up in the same style as Gauntlet, but with the added bonus of shooting a lot of aliens with some increasingly cool guns.  The simple control system would translate to the iPhone easily, as would the basic gameplay.  Basic isn’t a bad thing though, as Alien Breed’s missions were challenging enough, especially as the aliens re-spawned often.  We’d need those cheat codes though!

Best For: iPhone and iPad.

Game:  Super Cars.

Another game viewed from the top down, this time recalling Super Sprint.  Super Cars was a racing game where wins would garner cash then spent on upgrades.  It featured a total of nine tracks and the difficulty would increase the more your raced on them, as would the number of rival cars.  Although the cars were ‘fictional’, fans would know the pictures looked very similar to the Honda NSX, the Alfa Romeo SZ and the Cizeta V16T!  Oh, and the music was awesome.

Best For:  iPhone and iPad.

Game:  James Pond II: Codename Robocod.

Like the iPhone, platform games were not that strongly represented on the Amiga, especially in terms of exclusive games, however James Pond was one of the exceptions.  There was plenty of platform action and humour throughout James Pond, including an amusing rendition of the theme from RoboCop, plus his robo-suit gave Pond some handy upgrades.  Currently available as a download from the PlayStation Network, this is ideal for conversion, but we’re going to say this would be best suited to the iPad thanks to the need for extra controls, but as the PSP happily runs it, the iPhone would probably be fine too.

Best For: iPad.

Game:  It Came From the Desert.

An adventure game with a fantastic ’50s monster-movie look and feel to it.  You play a scientist in a town where a meteor crash has spawned huge ants that are now terrorizing the population.  The game was a mixture of regular adventure elements with a dose of action and shooting, plus memorable hospital stays where finding a wheelchair was key to your escape!  The graphics were superb for the time, and would translate very well to the iPhone.

Best for: iPhone.

Game:  Stunt Car Racer.

Different to the majority of racing games, this saw you drive a custom car around a raised track with the intention of completing certain stunts, all the while being careful not to stress your car or fall off the track.  Filled wireframe graphics and basic sound FX belied what was a challenging game, as timing and speed were critical to completing the tracks.  Where Stunt Car Racer came alive though, was when two Amigas were linked together for multiplayer fun!  Of all the titles here, this is the only one which would benefit from a makeover and some more tracks before its release.  This should be iPad only, with Bluetooth multiplayer!

Best For:  iPad

Game:  Battle Squadron.

The Amiga always did well when it came to side and vertical scrolling shoot-em-ups, but with so many to choose from, it would be all too easy to fill this list with the things!  Choosing Battle Squadron over its prequel Hybris or well-known titles like Xenon and Xenon 2 is mainly due to the superb two-player mode, however this probably wouldn’t be possible on an iPhone/iPad version.  Otherwise this arcade conversion had great weapon upgrades, sharp graphics and a sensible level of difficulty.  It also nicely avoided over-crowding the screen, something many of today’s examples seem incapable of doing!

Best for:  iPhone.

Game:  Deflektor.

A challenging puzzle game actually ported over from the C64, but the Amiga version’s Ben Daglish music made it worthwhile.  This would be ideal for both platforms thanks to its simple gameplay – use a series of mirrors to deflect a beam around a minefield, destroying them as you go – and minimal controls.  Perhaps the most obvious title ripe for conversion?

Best for:  iPhone and iPad.

Game:  Archipelagos.

Another puzzle game which we could really see doing well on the iPhone and iPad.  You took the role of a spirit being wandering around a series of islands, where you had to destroy boulders and ultimately, a stone obelisk to progress.  Some rather strange visuals gave Archipelagos an odd feeling, and the graphics and style recalled Crammond’s The Sentinel.  So, why did we choose this over the classic Sentinel?  Because it was only available on the Amiga and the Atari ST.

Best For:  iPhone and iPad.

Game:  Millennium 2.2

A science fiction strategy game where you managed resources and production facilities and built new colonies.  A follow-up entitled Deuteros was also excellent, but the smaller and less complex Millennium 2.2 would better suit the iPhone.  As with many management titles, this quickly sucked you in and many hours would pass as you progressed further and further!  Millennium 2.2 wasn’t full of flashy graphics, so an iPad version would be largely redundant.  Keep this for the iPhone!

Best for:  iPhone.

Game:  Speedball 2.

Along with Psygnosis, The Bitmap Brothers name was synonymous with great quality Amiga games, all with a healthy level of difficulty!  A futuristic sports game along the lines of hockey, but without the sticks.  Speedball 2 improves massively over the original and would make for a fantastic Bluetooth multiplayer experience today.  Ice cream! Ice cream!

Best for: iPhone and iPad, but multiplayer is essential.

We’d love to see any of these converted over to the iPhone/iPad platform, as they represent our particular favorites, but we would also like to hear yours.  It would also be interesting to hear what you have to say if you never used an Amiga or heard of many of these games; do they look like something you’d want to play today?  Tell us in the comments below!