LynxEffect Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 So I was thinking, what were the best multi-format games up to 1995 that could have realistically been released on the Atari Lynx, but weren't? By this, I mean games that were available to be converted and the Lynx and would have been powerful enough to run them. I'm not including Mario, Sonic etc. because they were exclusive to other systems. Also, I haven't included any fighting games because these work far better on consoles IMO. Here's my Top 40. 1. Sensible World of Soccer - would have been amazing 2. Worms - the original was amazing on Jaguar (and not so good on SNES) 3. Secret of Monkey Island - I've never played it, but Dracula The Undead works well 4. Flashback - an all-time classic 5. Another World - a bit short, but still a good game 6. NHL 94 - the best ice hockey game of all time 7. Jungle Strike - superb sequel (and no on-foot sections that ruined Urban Strike) 8. Cannon Fodder - works well on the Gameboy Color and could have been lovely on the Lynx 9. NBA Jam TE - the Game Gear version has stood the test of time 10. Prince of Persia - the SNES version would be an excellent edition to the Lynx library 11. The Chaos Engine - also known as Soldiers of Fortune in the USA 12. Speedball 2 - futuristic sports game 13. Turrican - a cool run and gun game 14. Turrican 2 - might as well have the sequel too! 15. Bubble Bobble - another all-time classic 16. Pang - this was pretty playable back in the day 17. Alien Breed - another game with a good reputation 18. Syndicate - this might be pushing it a bit in terms of the Lynx's power! 19. Super Frog - the best platformer on the Amiga 20. Centipede - I believe a demo of this already exists, however a full update would be cool 21. Lemmings 2: The Tribes - the sequel to one of the top Lynx games 22. R-Type - classic shoot 'em up 23. R-Type II - and its sequel 24. Star Wars Arcade - now this would have been great on the Lynx! Why didn't it happen? 25. Tempest - Tempest 2000 might be a bit much, but a version of Tempest would be welcome 26. Defender - another arcade classic 27. Defender II - and its sequel 28. Zool - this was a snazzy platformer 29. Zool 2 - with the sequel on the Jaguar 30. Smash TV - the spiritual sequel to Robotron 2084 31. Total Carnage - also made it to the Jaguar 32. Rainbow Islands - fun two player game 33. Millipede - could have been updated for the Lynx 34. Temple of Doom - the arcade game 35. Empire Strikes Back - would also have been a great addition 36. Galaxian - very playable shoot 'em up 37. Galaga - also very playable, would have worked well on the Lynx 38. Q*Bert 3 - conversion of the SNES game 39. Gauntlet - the proper game, rather than the one the marketing guys got hold of... 40. Gauntlet II - and its sequel So there you have it, 40 games that would have been great on the Lynx. Who knows, maybe one day some people far more talented than me will do the honours. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miker Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 (edited) Well, maybe... Ahem... https://atariage.com/forums/topic/82555-to-all-non-programmer-idea-peddlers/?tab=comments#comment-1006689 Edited February 22, 2020 by miker 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 (edited) It's still fun to play with the thought(s) and dream. I would've loved Rainbow Islands and Ghosts 'n' Goblins myself (amongst many, many others of course). It's nice in a way that there's gaping holes in the Lynx library, so that developers don't have to feel like a game they're contributing is a drop in the ocean, like on some of the most popular systems. A point and click game in the vain of monkey island, sam and max or day of the tentacle would probably be easier to produce these days with 512k carts readily available. I think you could make really good looking games in that kind of cartoony style too, since the Lynx can show 16 colors anywhere on screen (should be enough for anyone ). I remember dreaming of Speedball II for the Lynx back in the day, but after playing it on game gear I'd say the game really is at its best played with a joystick. Of course wouldn't mind it for the Lynx anyhow! Edited February 24, 2020 by Turbo Laser Lynx 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christo930 Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 Rainbow Islands and Parasol Stars. Not sure if the Lynx could handle them, but both of them would be my top picks. Bubble Bobble would have made a great addition too. Might be a little too new, but Rayman would have been a nice way to show off the color screen. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 5 hours ago, christo930 said: Rainbow Islands and Parasol Stars. Not sure if the Lynx could handle them, but both of them would be my top picks. Bubble Bobble would have made a great addition too. Might be a little too new, but Rayman would have been a nice way to show off the color screen. Ahaa, another friend of colorful, cartoony platformers! On paper the Lynx should be able to handle those games fine, I mean some of the much older 8-bit systems have excellent ports of those games. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 (edited) Ah, forgot to add this unbearable / nice looking teaser mock-up someone put up on façadebook! Edited February 25, 2020 by Turbo Laser Lynx 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agradeneu Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 30 minutes ago, Turbo Laser Lynx said: Ah, forgot to add this unbearable / nice looking teaser mock-up someone put up on façadebook! So...is it coming? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 No, I think he made the box 'n' stuff just for fun, I mean it looks really nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordKraken Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 I loved Rainbow island as a kid, it was our sonic on 8bits home computer in a way Looking at the NES and Amstrad CPC version (I personally prefer the latter, more colorful) I don't see anything not achievable on the Lynx. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 I agree that the absolutely fantastic Graftgold home computer ports of Rainbow Islands are better than the console ports. I love the graphics in the CPC port! ☺️ In fact I would even go as far as saying that the Amiga and ST versions are sliightly better than the arcade version, because of the simple fact that they have a more pleasing/cartoony (without being too garish) color palette. Andrew Braybrook wrote a really interesting blog about the development of the Rainbow Islands home computer ports: https://uridiumauthor.blogspot.com/2018/03/rainbow-islands.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fadest Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 On 2/22/2020 at 9:44 PM, LynxEffect said: So I was thinking, what were the best multi-format games up to 1995 that could have realistically been released on the Atari Lynx, but weren't? By this, I mean games that were available to be converted and the Lynx and would have been powerful enough to run them. 25. Tempest - Tempest 2000 might be a bit much, but a version of Tempest would be welcome If you want a taste of Tempest on the Lynx, just find an old pair of blue/red 3D glasses and have a look on Ouragan : https://atarigamer.com/lynx/game/Ouragan/556279747 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SavagePencil Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 I think it’s more interesting to ask which games could *only* exist on the Lynx due to its capabilities. Space Harrier, for example... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Laser Lynx Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 (edited) 4 hours ago, SavagePencil said: I think it’s more interesting to ask which games could *only* exist on the Lynx due to its capabilities. Space Harrier, for example... That's also interesting! One thing is that there is quite a few great games that make use of the Lynx's sprite scaling in a similar way, like blue lightning, stun runner, road blasters, checkered flag, hydra etc. Obviously wouldn't say no to Outrun or Space Harrier for the Lynx! One game in that style that immediately comes to mind is Yoomp! https://youtu.be/0P4UlkkhgpI?t=41 Mikey also inherently seem to sound quite a bit like Pokey in the right hands, so perhaps even the excellent music could be closely ported. Sadly I can't remember THAT much creative use of the Lynx hardware capabilities. My personal favorite is Slime World with its pulsating slime levels and creatures, the stretching clouds, the stretching and moving slime-'water falls' etc. Electrocop is really unique too, I can't remember seeing anything quite like it elsewhere. We had a little discussion about this earlier here too: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/274653-epyx-creative-use-of-lynx-hardware-features/?tab=comments#comment-3942096 but it would be really nice to try and come up with something new and unique that would make use of the scaling, even if it would only be cosmetic. Somtimes I've been playing with the idea of making some simple arcade game called "nose invaders" (inspired by tooth invaders) where you could have nice droplets of snot pulsating haha. Edited February 26, 2020 by Turbo Laser Lynx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy the Atarian Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 (edited) On 2/22/2020 at 1:44 PM, LynxEffect said: 24. Star Wars Arcade - now this would have been great on the Lynx! Why didn't it happen? Licensing. I assume you mean Sega's SWA that was released in 1993 and a version brought to the 32X; then Atari would've had to pay Lucasfilm as well. The only way it might have happened is if anything had moved forward on the Atari/Sega settlement, although that happened after the Lynx was considered dead, and nothing came of it for the Jaguar anyways. While the Lynx could do 3D polys or psuedo-3D stuff, I don't know if SWA would have been that fun, as it would have run quite slow. Granted, if you meant the 1983 Atari release, it would've been possible and more playable...still a licensing fee in place with Lucasfilm though, so that's probably why it never came along. An updated Centipede/Millipede pack would've been nice too, although I'm still partial to trackball controls over D-pads for that kind of game. In terms of what would have moved more Lynx units though, some fighters like Mortal Kombat would have raised the system's profile, as those are the kinds of ports that everyone wanted BITD. Atari would've been happy to pump the "Take Fatalities with you on the go!" One game I think get's overlooked a lot that would have been a perfect fit for the Lynx is Namco's Final Lap. It was essentially a sequel to Pole Position II and it was the first arcade game to employ networked races. While the Lynx had Checkered Flag, FL would have been a great game to accompany the library. Edited February 26, 2020 by Shaggy the Atarian Added a link to Final Lap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynxEffect Posted February 27, 2020 Author Share Posted February 27, 2020 17 hours ago, Shaggy the Atarian said: Granted, if you meant the 1983 Atari release, it would've been possible and more playable...still a licensing fee in place with Lucasfilm though, so that's probably why it never came along. Yes, I meant the 1983 Atari release. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidGameR186496 Posted July 31, 2020 Share Posted July 31, 2020 Sorry to everyone for bumping this thread but speaking of Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Island, a Japanese company who managed to get the IP rights of multiple Toaplan titles (including Snow Bros.) fairly recently has them available for licensing to be ported on other platforms. So, if anybody's up for the task, anyone could port them to the Lynx... http://tatsujin.tokyo/custom.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+davidcalgary29 Posted July 31, 2020 Share Posted July 31, 2020 And I'm going to use this space to needlessly add that I'd really, really love to see Yoomp! on the Lynx. And someone please finish that Bubble Bobble demo. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sd32 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 (edited) I would settle for this 10 games: Turrican 2 (Lynx needed some decent run and gun action) Bubble Bobble (cant get enough of it on any system) New Zeland Story (fantastic platformer) R Type (i need this game on every system) Splatterhouse (love it) Ghosts and Goblins (we never got a truly great port of it back then) Mortal Kombat (its happening!) Street Fighter 2 (it was everywere else dammit!) BC Kid (the Amiga version of Bonk) Street Racer (some 3d kart action would have fitted the Lynx well) Edited August 3, 2020 by sd32 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+davidcalgary29 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Having played Magical Drop 2 on the Evercade, I'm thinking that the original game would have been an excellent addition to the Lynx library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidGameR186496 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 19 hours ago, sd32 said: I would settle for this 10 games: Turrican 2 (Lynx needed some decent run and gun action) Bubble Bobble (cant get enough of it on any system) New Zeland Story (fantastic platformer) R Type (i need this game on every system) Splatterhouse (love it) Ghosts and Goblins (we never got a truly great port of it back then) Mortal Kombat (its happening!) Street Fighter 2 (it was everywere else dammit!) BC Kid (the Amiga version of Bonk) Street Racer (some 3d kart action would have fitted the Lynx well) I'm still baffled that R-Type never got an NES version, despite the original arcade release being distributed by Nintendo here in America. Another game that would absolutely kick ass to see on Lynx is Tiger-Heli... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Dragon Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 On 2/22/2020 at 8:44 PM, LynxEffect said: So I was thinking, what were the best multi-format games up to 1995 that could have realistically been released on the Atari Lynx, but weren't? By this, I mean games that were available to be converted and the Lynx and would have been powerful enough to run them. I'm not including Mario, Sonic etc. because they were exclusive to other systems. Also, I haven't included any fighting games because these work far better on consoles IMO. Here's my Top 40. 1. Sensible World of Soccer - would have been amazing 2. Worms - the original was amazing on Jaguar (and not so good on SNES) 3. Secret of Monkey Island - I've never played it, but Dracula The Undead works well 4. Flashback - an all-time classic 5. Another World - a bit short, but still a good game 6. NHL 94 - the best ice hockey game of all time 7. Jungle Strike - superb sequel (and no on-foot sections that ruined Urban Strike) 8. Cannon Fodder - works well on the Gameboy Color and could have been lovely on the Lynx 9. NBA Jam TE - the Game Gear version has stood the test of time 10. Prince of Persia - the SNES version would be an excellent edition to the Lynx library 11. The Chaos Engine - also known as Soldiers of Fortune in the USA 12. Speedball 2 - futuristic sports game 13. Turrican - a cool run and gun game 14. Turrican 2 - might as well have the sequel too! 15. Bubble Bobble - another all-time classic 16. Pang - this was pretty playable back in the day 17. Alien Breed - another game with a good reputation 18. Syndicate - this might be pushing it a bit in terms of the Lynx's power! 19. Super Frog - the best platformer on the Amiga 20. Centipede - I believe a demo of this already exists, however a full update would be cool 21. Lemmings 2: The Tribes - the sequel to one of the top Lynx games 22. R-Type - classic shoot 'em up 23. R-Type II - and its sequel 24. Star Wars Arcade - now this would have been great on the Lynx! Why didn't it happen? 25. Tempest - Tempest 2000 might be a bit much, but a version of Tempest would be welcome 26. Defender - another arcade classic 27. Defender II - and its sequel 28. Zool - this was a snazzy platformer 29. Zool 2 - with the sequel on the Jaguar 30. Smash TV - the spiritual sequel to Robotron 2084 31. Total Carnage - also made it to the Jaguar 32. Rainbow Islands - fun two player game 33. Millipede - could have been updated for the Lynx 34. Temple of Doom - the arcade game 35. Empire Strikes Back - would also have been a great addition 36. Galaxian - very playable shoot 'em up 37. Galaga - also very playable, would have worked well on the Lynx 38. Q*Bert 3 - conversion of the SNES game 39. Gauntlet - the proper game, rather than the one the marketing guys got hold of... 40. Gauntlet II - and its sequel So there you have it, 40 games that would have been great on the Lynx. Who knows, maybe one day some people far more talented than me will do the honours. Worms, Cannon Fodder and SWOS would have suffered somewhat from control issues and running on the small, low resolution Lynx screen i fear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordKraken Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 I would disagree on these 3 examples actually. Lemmings is the proof that it can work with small adjustement. Worms being turn bases we could use zoom in/out easily. As for cannon fodder and swos I have the feeling that the sloppy scrolling might be more a problem than the screen resolution. But I would love to "port" swos on the lynx thats my favourite soccer game of all time. Not sure there is a demand for it though as the lynx fan base seems to be very NA rather than europe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+karri Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 There is always these copyright problems in making ports. The Worms is interesting as you destroy scenery. With the limited Lynx memory you have to store stuff somewhere. Perhaps a big eeprom? One of the games I believe would suit the Lynx is Team Buddies as an isometric game. Here a mockup in Lynx resolution and 16 colours. Part of the charm is the foul language in the game when team members curse each other. Hilarious. But not for kids. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Dragon Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 1 hour ago, LordKraken said: I would disagree on these 3 examples actually. Lemmings is the proof that it can work with small adjustement. Worms being turn bases we could use zoom in/out easily. As for cannon fodder and swos I have the feeling that the sloppy scrolling might be more a problem than the screen resolution. But I would love to "port" swos on the lynx thats my favourite soccer game of all time. Not sure there is a demand for it though as the lynx fan base seems to be very NA rather than europe. Lemmings I personally found, lost a lot in translation to the Lynx and Game Gear, but Lynx especially. I'd pumped hours into it on the ST and you can tell it was designed for mouse control. Putting the icons on the pause screen just killed the frantic nature of the game as well on Lynx. I'm not a footy fan, so would have to ask others how titles like Kick Off and Sensible Soccer worked, i used to suffer eye strain from playing fast moving games with titchy sprites on handheld. Cannon Fodder i went from Amiga to Jaguar and again here, lack of mouse control threw up issues. Personal preferences here of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordKraken Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 For swos, I would probably go with a closer view so that the sprite are a bit bigger but thats mostly because the original screen is hard to read when it's scrolling. For cannon fodder I would drop the mouse pointer and give direct control of the "sergeant" with the 4 other soldiers following you. Pretty sure it would work ok 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.