All the way back in January of 2010, Ryan Mitchell Games released Necromancer Rising [Free], an RPG of impressive scale. Utilizing their own in-house developed “Soul Engine", the game comes packed with tons of content and customization while still being capable of running well on ancient iOS devices. The graphics look a little dated, but if you can get beyond that you’ll be in for 60 hours of gameplay across 50 in-game dungeons with 49 different bosses.
Check out the trailer which shows a bunch of bosses, dungeons, and gameplay:
Anyway, the whole reason that this game is free is because of the launch of Mission Europa, a Sci-Fi themed title based on the same engine which has an additional year of development under its belt. Again, the graphics in Mission Europa are definitely rough around the edges compared to modern video games, but the amount of content and customization is crazy. The 50 hours of gameplay is comprised of 50 different levels over 5 episodes and 170 missions. Also included are 180 different enemies, 50 bosses, and 30 unique armor sets.
Give the trailer a look:
One odd thing about Mission Europa is that it comes in two different editions. First off, there’s Mission Europa Collector’s Edition HD [$9.99] and Mission Europa Standard Edition HD [$3.99] they seem to be the same game, but the Collector’s Edition comes with all of the content while the Standard Edition has it for sale in-game via IAP.
It sounds weird, but people on our forums are absolutely in love with the game. It had a ridiculously huge thread in our upcoming games forum, and now that it’s out there’s an equally massive thread in our games forum. In addition, there’s even a FAQ thread filled with forum members helping others with the game.
I’d definitely give Necromancer Rising a try first, as the game mechanics are similar enough that you’ll easily be able to get a feel for whether or not you can deal with how the game feels before getting involved in Mission Europa. Either way, it’s impressive seeing indie developers like this releasing games of this scope and scale, so swing by the forums and see what others are saying about the games.
This game sucked on the Genesis and it will suck on iOS.
Yes, we by far prefer the Amiga version over the Genesis version, which for various technical and organizational versions was below par. The iOS version is a 100% port of the very well received Amiga version...
Come on that's stupid. Have you got a crystal ball or something? At least wait until you try it
I can assure you this is a translation of the Amiga original, not the Genesis port. I've played both, extensively, and agree that the Amiga original is much nicer than the Genesis version.
The amigaOS version was excellent! music, graphics, playability, simply excellent.
Crappy conversion that's all
The Amiga version was a huge hit in its heyday - the Genesis version was anemic from what I remember.
I'm sorry this is not bullet hell. This is just a ghetto shooter. Or "retro" if you want to call it that.
Not all shooters are bullet hell -- the same way not all RPGS feature PlaySkool-looking characters with blue spiky hair that live in a cute little town with talking dogs and a midget king to save.
I never liked bullet hell shooters, this one is just a classic shooter, the way they were before someone decided that you should spend your time finding a pixel perfect way to dodge stupid bullets
I remember this fondly from my Amiga days. Although the bullets get considerably more intense in the later levels, I wouldn't describe it as a bullet hell shooter where you have to weave your way between kaleidoscopic patterns of bullets. But it looks like an excellent port of the Amiga version, so I'll definitely be getting this. Any word on price yet Martin?
Yes, we have done everything we could to make it 100% like the Amiga version... so thanks :-) We are looking at a price of $1.99.
Among the first shooters I've played, how I loved it when I wasn't even a tween... I didn't pay for it then, but as soon as I see this on the App Store, I won't wait for sales to make amends!
Just *please* change the buttons to match the game design/style.
It's not that hard, is it? Those above completely don't suit the game!
Thanks for the feedback. This is a pre-beta version. We we will consider all comments for the final version. We are also about to start more formal beta-testing in a weeks time with 15 testers...
Thank YOU for reading the feedback!
looks nice, didnt think ipad could tilt games like that....woow :o)
It also took a few "adjustments" to make it like that... so thanks :-)
The one thing the genesis version had going for it was a bomb button.
Ive managed to one-life finish this on amiga though.
I love how performance is a concern considering how the 3G is 400mhz and the Amiga was running at a measly 7mhz. ;)
Anyway, the game looks great. The original was a fantastic shooter and this looks like it's faithful to that. Instant buy in other words.
Thanks for the positive feedback... great to hear :-) Some things in BS ONE were made differently than on the Amiga, and for simplicity in such a way that it costs quite a bit more CPU power. But you are right... it should run on 3G as well :-)
Really looking forward to this.
I think many are a bit harsh on the Genesis version.. Only really the sounds was markedly sub-par, which hurt the overall experience, but the added paralax, and the enemy ships moving at 60fps made it very slick. The weapon changed made it a nice change for people familiar with the Amiga one already.
Oh, and Dear Martin Pedersen, thanks for showing what a well coded Amiga could do! Battle Squadron was a big influence when I was starting out in programming and reasons why I'm a game coder today! (Great to hear Ron Klaren's incredible music without the old 4 channel limit dropping some out for Sound Effects too.)
I am very happy to hear that Battle Squadron on the Amiga not only supplied some fun... but actually was part of generating another coder... that is a new one me personally :-)
Oh yes, you can't beat the Amiga for producing a whole generation of coders! It's really a pleasure to have been able to say "Hi, and Thanks!" to the creator of Battle Squadron for me though!
(I must admit I was kind of hoping the addition of "One" on the title meant we might finally get some new levels as a Battle Squadron 2 though :o)
Yes, it was great fun coding on the Amiga. Also a pleasure to hear from you :-) ... And your last point is indeed correct... as you will see when you complete Battle Squadron ONE in a few weeks time ;-)
Looks fantastic!
My iPad is FULL of retro games. They're a bit of an obsession with me.
Two things:
1) (as stated earlier) Please, change the button design to better-compliment/match the game's art style, and..
2) Please, arrange the buttons in closer-proximity to one another so that the user doesn't have to maneuver their thumbs so drastically across the large iPad surface (or at least make this an option).
Thanks!! Can't wait!
Great to hear :-) Thanks for the input. Yes, right now the buttons have the same relative position on iPhone and iPad... good idea to update that on the iPad :-)
Two words: Pure awesomeness! Please release it soon.
How about an autofire option?
actually there is.. One only needs to hold down the firebutton for 1 sec. and autofire is activated. ;)
First, I have to say: Thanks guys for bringing one of my favourite Amiga shooters to the Devices. From my old A500, to A1200 and A4000, Battle Squadron still gets good play here (now on WinUAE) .. it's awesome with the HotRod/X-Arcade controller. ;)
So, what about Hybris then, eh? :) (While not as flashy as Battle Squadron, Hybris is still an awesome shooter .. its the best Terra Cresta like game the Amiga had.)
Pedantic footnote: Battle Squadron wasn't the first Amiga game re-coded from the original assembly-language for iOS. That honour goes to Pinball Dreams and Pinball Fantasies. Still, pretty cool that it got the full recoding treatment though. It's much appreciated.
Thanks for being a long term player of Battle Squadron :-) We did not forget Hybris. After BS ONE is released we will make BS ONE for Android. Hybris will come after that for iOS :-) Thanks for the details regarding Pinball Dreams. I guess we have to change the story to "the earliest" game re-coded for iOS... unsless somebody else beat us to it ;-)
I would give it a vote for most awesome game re-coded for iOS. Seriously, from my first use of a friends A500 I was in awe of this game. Those invisible ships (which I both loved and hated) :) ..the tanks coming out of their bunkers ..the many shot-configurations of the player ships. Really a very polished product.
The Pinball Dreams/Fantasies/Illusions series are interesting in that the table formats are almost perfectly sized for the iPhone screen. It's like they were released on the Amiga, but what they were *really* waiting for was the release of the iPhone. :)
I'm wondering what arcade, or other shooters were your inspiration for Battle Squadron? Hybris feels like an homage to Terra Cresta, but I can't quite pick if there were specific games that inspired this one.
Very nice to hear the specific details you love... and hate ;-) in Battle Squadron. And thanks for the pre-vote :-) Hybris was heavily inspired by Terra Cresta, but Battle Squadron was more our own inspiration, though somewhat the movies "Predator" and "Alien(s)" ;-)
Awesome, i will buy the game immediately!
This is probably one of the best games ever. Like 5 years ago, i was screenshotting all parts of every animation and inch of the first gamelevel from my amiga 600 onto my PC and made the complete 1st level of the game in Flash, just to learn flash. The funny thing is that some months ago I started the same work for iOS to learn objective C =) as i understand i can take a break and move on to another project now, hehe. I still have my illegal copy of battlesquadron for amiga in a box here somewhere. Too bad i didn't know better back then (i was 8 years old and don't remember how i got the game). The formerly white sticker with lines to write the content of the disk, is now yellowish, and has text that says "BattelSqadron" in ink and below is my highscore written with a pencil. Greyish background from the not too good eraser that was used when a new highscore was set, back then i didn't understand what the "disc-readonly-thing" was.
Well this game will kick all other topdownscrollshooting games on the appstore. Best of luck getting rich :P
Hi Conrad, Very happy to hear from you. And thanks for all the details in your post. It is always fun for us to hear all these things. You sound like a big fan of Battle Squadron :-) BS ONE should be in App Store in a matter of weeks...
Great! is the videoquality fooling me, or is the temporary green tinting missing when hitting an enemy? hehe
Hi again, It must be the video quality... the enemies surely flash slightly green when you hit them ;-)