So, another best Amiga games list, it’s not as though it’s not been done before has itc? But that said, it is hard to resist putting together my own list of Amiga classics.
Like with many classic retro systems, it is hard to whittle down to a concise list of my favourite Amiga games, but I guarantee there are some crackers in here!
The Amiga had a long life, some would argue too long in that Commodore really scraped the barrel with the Amiga hardware, repeatedly launching different models of the Amiga, in slightly different forms.
The good news though is that with it being around so long, we saw classics from the mid-80s, right through to the mid-90s being produced, so was an amazing time to be a gamer.
Things went a step too far with the release of the CD32 in 1993, with Commodore banking on hardware that was not far off a decade old, but with a slightly faster processor and a touch more RAM that the original Amiga that launched. It was never going to compete in reality with the likes of the more powerful 3DO, Atari Jaguar and especially not the Sony PlayStation that would arrive a couple of years later.
All that said, business affairs aside, Commodore is a name that still brings a lot of joy and nostalgia to gamers of this era.
Best Amiga 500 Games
The Commodore Amiga range of computers had many variants, with some being able to play AGA-enhanced games such as the Amiga 1200, 4000 & CD32.
But sometimes the opposite occurred, many older OCS games would not work on newer AGA machines, so would require a kickstart disk such as ‘Relokick’, so that the newer Amiga’s would be compatible with a wider range of older games.
The following games are all standard ECS/OCS compatible, so all work with the trusty Amiga 500. So, get ready for some of the finest Amiga games you can still play today.
1. Lemmings – 1991
The original and arguably best Lemmings game. Lemmings was a breakthrough at the time for Psygnosis in terms of sales and the legacy it has left behind.
First released on the Amiga and then ported to pretty much every other system at the time, Lemmings has secured its place in gaming history.
The game has you guiding Lemmings across each level to the exit, using a range of skills that are limited to a fixed number of uses. And that’s it, easy to pick up, with a good learning curve.
That is the beauty of this game, the perfect balance of challenge and fun with excellent visuals and music to entertain you. Lemmings is a timeless classic.
2. Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe – 1990
A futuristic blend of sports culminates in the cyberpunk game of Speedball. Sequel to the original Speedball game, Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe has a much more zoomed-in field of view now with 9 players on your team rather than the original 5.
The action is fast and challenging as you try to beat down opponents and steal the ball from them.
Speedball 2 has some excellent visuals, music and sound, the ambient sounds in the game such as the announcer, crowd noise and ice cream sellers make this game immediately identifiable from the audio alone! A really great game both in single and multiplayer.
3. Super Skidmarks – 1995
The sequel to the original isometric racer, Skidmarks 2 gives you more of the same, but more of it! As well as a good selection of quirky vehicles, it is one of the few AGA games that brings improvements such as increasing multiplayer to up to 4 players simultaneously, you can even network two AGA Amiga’s together for up to 8 players!
Gameplay can initially be a bit frustrating since you collide with the circuit’s boundaries rather than being able to run off the track, but once you get the hang of things, this only adds to the feeling of carnage! A late game in the Amiga’s life, but a must play.
4. Another World – 1991
Another World is a cinematic action-adventure game and one of many classic Amiga games. You play as Lester, a physicist who is teleported to an alien planet when the particle accelerator he is working on is struck by lightning.
Waking up locked in a cage, the aim is to then escape a prison camp you have been placed in. A very simple premise but made very gripping by the excellent soundtrack and cinematic environments.
Another world is notable for its use of rotoscoping, an animation method where the target object is traced by using actual video footage, resulting in fluid, lifelike animation. A must-have game.
Also, check out the remastered version of Another World for the PC on Steam.
5. Cannon Fodder – 1993
One of many classic Sensible Software games that first saw its release on the Amiga, Cannon Fodder is a top-down shoot ’em up. The game has you controlling a small squad of soldiers around each level typically killing enemies, destroying buildings and rescuing hostages.
Cannon Fodder is a really challenging game spread across 72 levels and will have you applying more strategy to your approach as you progress through the game.
The game has all the hallmarks of a Sensible Software classic Amiga game with its unique small but beautiful graphics, a great soundtrack and excellent in-game audio. An absolute must-have and you’ll be hard-pushed not to find it on any top Amiga games list.
7. Prince of Persia – 1991
Prince of Persia, although well known on many other platforms, really found a lot of fans with the Amiga version. You find yourself imprisoned in a palace dungeon and need to escape to defeat Jaffar and rescue the Princess.
The whole game needs to be completed within a set time limit, this is what really sets the tone of things.
You will find yourself wanting to tentatively explore the palace, being careful not to set off various traps, but you have to keep moving at a reasonable pace to ensure that you beat the timer. It is a game of skill with lots of timed jumps, puzzles, and sword fights.
The game has a lovely ambiance achieved with its fluid rotoscope animations as well as excellent reverberated sound effects, which make you feel as though you are in that large stone palace. Prince of Persia holds its own in the wealth of Amiga platform games that are out there.
Prince of Persia also appears on our best Atari ST games list, I was surprised to find that it’s not a direct copy, with the visuals being actually far simpler on the Amiga, but has more fluid animation.
8. Sensible World of Soccer – 1995
Another Sensible Software classic. Sensible Soccer for many is the best series of Amiga football games.
I am going with Sensible World of Soccer due to its evolution into something more of a beast of a game, including a full career mode, a huge list of teams covering the whole globe and the addition of the now classic, Goal Scoring Superstar Hero theme song!
The game retains the mechanics that made Sensible Soccer great in the first place but now with all that extra depth.
The real beauty of Sensible Soccer is that you do not have to be either a fan or knowledgeable of football to get a great deal of enjoyment from the game. The use of a single fire button to perform shots, passes and tackles smoothly is amazing, a perfect example of a simple yet deep game. This is one of the finest examples of Amiga football games.
9. Syndicate – 1993
Syndicate is an isometric real-time strategy game from Bullfrog. The game sees you take control of a four-strong team of cyborg agents, carrying out rescue missions, assassinations and taking out the other enemy syndicates.
There are many aspects to the game such as carrying out R&D of upgrades and weapons for your team and managing tax levels for territories you have taken over while making sure these territories do not revolt against you.
The game has some really nice features including the use of a ‘persuadertron’ which can be used to recruit and gain control of other people in the game. Syndicate is a really nice RTS game for the Amiga and should definitely be given a look.
10. Wiz ‘N’ Liz – 1993
A lesser-known game, as it was released relatively late in the Amiga’s life and only received one port, onto the Sega Mega Drive. Wiz ‘n’ Liz is a platform game that takes place across eight different worlds where you rescue the ‘wabbits’ that have been taken away by a spell that has gone wrong.
You can either play as Wiz or Liz, running across each level and collecting the wabbits before the timer runs out. Wabbits then release a letter that spells out the magic word, once this has been spelled, you collect the remaining wabbits to unlock the exit.
There is also a 2-player mode to add to the fast-paced action! A fine choice when it comes to Amiga platform games.
11. Stunt Car Racer – 1989
Stunt Car Racer is a 3D racing game by Geoff Crammond where you race a dragster-style car across a number of elevated tracks.
Stunt Car Racer is renowned for its realistic physics and challenging gameplay which see your car flung into the air by the various jumps and cambered corners. There are 8 tracks to choose from and a league mode where you race against an opponent on each track, trying to progress through the 4 divisions.
The Amiga is often not the best system where 3D games are concerned, but Stunt Car Racer proves it’s possible and ends up being a top Amiga game as a result.
You can even race against a friend on their own via a null modem cable. Not only that, Amiga users can link Stunt Car Racer with those who own the Atari ST version for cross-platform multiplayer! Even more incredible is the C64 version, which is also rated highly in our list of best Commodore 64 games.
Check out our Stunt Car Racer Amiga Review.
12. The Chaos Engine – 1993
Released in 1993, The Chaos Engine is a well-revered title. Another game launched first on the system.
The Chaos Engine is a top-down view run and gun game where you can choose one of six characters to work through the game to defeat Baron Fortesque and his Chaos Engine.
All the characters have unique strengths and weaknesses and each come at its own price to hire. You play through each level collecting power-ups, coins and keys, working through the maze-like levels. To progress to the next level, the nodes on each stage have to be activated by shooting at them to unlock the exit.
Like many Bitmap Brother games, The Chaos Engine is known for its excellent visuals and classic soundtrack and is another game you’ll frequently see in people’s favourite Amiga game lists.
13. Pinball Fantasies – 1992
The sequel to Pinball Dreams by Digital Illusions, Pinball Fantasies again has 4 different themed tables to play.
I personally prefer this over Pinball Dreams because of the 4 tables available, although there is very little between the two games in terms of enjoyment and game mechanics.
The game has excellent physics and smooth scrolling, making shooting the ball around the table challenging but not frustrating. Each table has its own theme and you will find that the visuals, soundtracks and sound effects are all matched to their environment.
You will find all the classic hallmarks of pinball here, with skill shots, multipliers and even a tilt function that can be used to dislodge the ball. Still enjoyed by many, this game is part of a series that redefined the Pinball genre on home computers and consoles.
Such was the popularity of this game, it even appears in our best Atari Jaguar games list
14. Lotus Turbo Challenge 2 – 1991
The Lotus series on the Amiga is without a doubt one the best Amiga racing games series, and Lotus Turbo Challenge 2 is my favourite out of the three games available.
Moving away from circuit racing for positions, Lotus 2 adopts an arcade-style point-to-point race against the clock. Right from the moment you load the game, the presentation with both the intro music and design stands out.
The game moves at a great pace and is an exceptionally smooth racer, many attempts at Amiga driving games were often sluggish, but the Lotus games showed what could be done on the system.
Lotus 2 is full of nice features and a good level of challenge to keep you coming back years, even decades later.
15. North & South – 1989
North and South is a humorous strategy game based on the American Civil War. The game combines light strategy elements combined with more hands-on arcade-style gameplay.
You take part in battles and side-scrolling action where you capture enemies’ trains and forts. Choosing either to play as the North or the South, you battle to take over each other’s territories on the game map as you tactically move your players around the board.
North and South is a game filled with funny little touches which make this a joy to play. It is also great fun for 2 players, so grab a friend for this one.
16. Dynablaster – 1991
Also known as Bomberman on other systems, Dynablaster on the Amiga is an excellent conversion of the PC Engine original. It boasts a decent single-player mode where you blast your way across 8 worlds.
In each world, there are 8 levels, with a boss battle in the final level of each world. You progress through each level by blowing up all the blocks until you locate the exit, collecting power-ups along the way.
Multiplayer though is where this game really shines. You can get up to 5 players at the same time, achieved with the addition of a parallel port adapter which provides 2 additional joystick ports, as well as a 5th player using the keyboard.
A multiplayer classic!
17. The Secret of Monkey Island – 1991
The Secret of Monkey Island is a classic point-and-click Lucasfilm graphic adventure game. You take control of Guybrush Threepwood who spends his time pursuing his dream of becoming a pirate.
The game is filled with puzzles, exploration and lots of funny dialogue when you engage with other characters. There is a real sense of freedom which is cleverly implemented with the multiple choices you can respond with when having a conversation.
Monkey Island is a perfect game to escape into and relax with its slower-paced, but engaging gameplay. One of the top Amiga games of all time.
18. Pang – 1990
One of the best 2 player arcade games, Pang is faithful port to the arcade original with the Amiga version showing virtually no compromises.
You play as one of the Buster brothers (or as both of them in 2-player mode), traveling across 17 locations across the world working through each level, and destroying the balloons that bounce around. Each shot you take at a balloon will make it split into 2 more balloons until it gets to the smallest which then can be totally destroyed.
There are loads of power-ups to help you along your way including double wires, force fields, a freeze-time clock, and dynamite which pops all the balloons to their smallest size.
A really enjoyable game and a great example of what the Amiga was capable of.
19. Formula One Grand Prix – 1991
This game was always going to be on my list. Formula One Grand Prix, also known as World Circuit, is a 3D racing simulation by Geoff Crammond. Revolutionary at the time, it really set the standard for all credible racing simulations from that point forward.
Even though the Amiga typically struggles with 3D games, F1GP managed to pull it off and is arguably the best 3D Amiga game.
The game has a full World Championship mode where you can race a full season across all 16 tracks, a complete roster of drivers (although you have to type in the real-life names yourself!) and an in-depth physics system where you would feel the tyre wear, wet track conditions and effect on the car if damaged. It looks basic by today’s standards but still plays great.
Check out our Formula One Grand Prix Amiga review.
20. Worms – 1995
A classic game across many systems at the time, Worms was first launched on the Amiga in 1995 by Team 17 to great acclaim.
Worms is a 2D turn-based tactical artillery game where you control a team of tiny worms, with each team taking a single turn to kill the opponent’s worms.
There are over 50 weapons and tools to utilise, ranging from bazookas to ninja ropes, to exploding sheep. The destructible environments can be used strategically, often to hide away from being corned by your opponents.
Worms is huge fun in single-player, but it really stands out as an all-time classic amiga game, an absolute beast of a game in multiplayer too.
21. Theme Park – 1994
A hugely anticipated game at the time, Theme Park is a building and management sim by Bullfrog.
The premise is simple, choose your plot of land, design your theme park, and build everything from the paths, rides, and shops, adding plants, hedgerows and the like.
You also are in control of the management of the park, controlling elements such as employee wages, research and development budgets, right through to how much salt you put over your fries which in turn can make your visitors thirsty for a drink and stumble straight into your next shop to quench their thirst!
The aim of the game ultimately is to build a successful enough park to increase its value, sell it at a huge profit and then move on to other countries and do it all again.
An excellent sim-management game on the Amiga. The AGA version is also definitely one of the best amiga 1200 games available, with its improved graphics over the ECS version.
22. Turrican 2 – 1991
Turrican 2 is the sequel to the popular original. Although the gameplay is similar to the first title, the improved visuals and famous Chris Huelsbeck soundtrack add a lot more to the overall feeling of the game, making this my favourite in the series and a worthy addition to this list.
The game has many qualities and has had comparisons made to the likes of Metroid thanks to its large-level design. You progress through each sprawling stage destroying enemies, and collecting power-ups until you reach the end of level boss, pretty straightforward stuff!
You have a primary weapon, of which there are lots of power-ups to collect changing its firepower, a secondary laser beam and a special super laser blast which are limited to 3 uses. You can also use another special attack where you turn into a small indestructible wheel, destroying all smaller enemies in your path.
The game is a very tricky one, but certainly, something that you will want to come back to.
23. Zool: Ninja of the Nth Dimension – 1992
Zool: Ninja of the Nth Dimension is a 2D side-scrolling platform game developed by Gremlin Graphics and originally released for the Commodore Amiga in 1992.
The game features Zool, an intergalactic ninja from the Nth dimension, who is on a mission to prove his worth and gain the rank of Ninja Elite. Released as another attempt to compete with the likes of Sonic, Zool clearly had its work cut out, but is still a decent title in its own right.
Zool is fast-paced and requires quick reflexes as you speed through a multitude of levels filled with diverse enemies, collectibles, and various hazards. Armed with shurikens and a short-range attack, you’ll be leaping around at speed, climbing walls, and inevitably dying a lot!
Zool is a solid game, so as long as you don’t go in expecting a polished Sonic like experience, there’s a lot of enjoyment to be had.
24. Jim Power
Jim Power In Mutant Planet is a platformer game developed by Digital Concept and published by Loriciel for the Commodore Amiga in 1992.
The game features the eponymous character, Jim Power, a special forces agent tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter and saving Earth from an alien invasion.
Jim Power just looks classic Amiga, with its side-scrolling platform levels, and pseudo-3D parallax scrolling backgrounds, which provided a sense of depth and immersion for the time.
You control Jim Power through various environments, battling enemies and avoiding hazards while collecting power-ups and weapons to enhance their abilities.
It’s all very Amiga type platform shooter stuff so is very tough, but it looks very nice and has a great soundtrack, by the brilliant Chris Hülsbeck, so that alone is worth checking out!
Best Amiga 1200 Games
The Amiga 1200 and Amiga 4000 launched in 1992 with the biggest leap in hardware since the Amiga’s launch.
Sadly, it was too little too late as console and PC technology had already started to surpass what the new Amiga AGA computers had to offer. But that doesn’t mean that there were not some fantastic AGA games produced for the Amiga 1200 & 4000.
Here are the best Amiga 1200 games that you should absolutely play.
1. Banshee – 1994
Banshee is a top-down vertical shooter released quite late into the Amiga’s life in 1994. It appeared on both the CD32 and Amiga 1200 utilising the systems AGA chipset.
With the storyline consisting of wanting to take vengeance because your father was murdered, due to his refusal to invent the microwave oven, Banshee does come up short in the story department. This however makes no difference to the gameplay.
Banshee is a beautiful-looking traditional shooter where you blast your way through enemy waves, and boss battles collecting power-ups along the way. It’s nothing new in terms of game genre, but it pulls it off wonderfully. Certainly one of the best games for the Amiga 1200.
2. Deluxe Galaga – 1995
Deluxe Galaga is actually a PD game (Public Domain) and a very good one for the Amiga 1200.
A port of the Namco arcade original, Deluxe Galaga is a delightfully simple but addictive game. Collect power-ups and money when you shoot the enemies who dive bomb towards you, whilst avoiding their bullets.
The whole thing feels like an authentic Galaga game, which it has to be said on the Amiga, its arcade conversions typically left something to be desired.
Complete with bonus rounds, excellent sound and graphics, Deluxe Galaga is not just an Amiga public domain classic, but an all-time classic.
This one definitely sets off those nostalgic feelings!
3. XTreme Racing – 1995
Xtreme Racing clearly is a bit of a Mario Kart wannabe, with its SNES ‘Mode 7’ effect, albeit much blockier.
But XTreme Racing actually was half decent for the time and had Amiga owners feeling that maybe the end wasn’t in sight for their beloved machines.
With its 3D texture-mapped graphics and pretty good frame rate, XTreme racing was a blast with friends where up to 4 players could play at the same time. This increased up to 8 players if you utilised a null modem cable for a link-up between two Amiga systems.
XTreme Racing has plenty of charm and gave Amiga gamers one last glimmer of hope before the inevitable happened over the next couple of years. It was a great time whilst it lasted.
4. Slam Tilt – 1996
A very late game in the Amiga’s life harked back to the glory days of Pinball Dreams & Pinball Fantasies. Slam Tilt is pure classic Amiga pinball fun. It has some really nice visuals, great sound and really fast-paced action.
Carrying on the previous tradition of including 4 tables to play, Slam Tilt is very much more of the same on the Amiga, but it is very much appreciated still. It all comes across as very polished and slick, very commendable on the developer’s part when you consider the potential sales numbers at this stage in the Amiga’s life.
A big difference between Slam Tilt and the likes of Pinball Dreams and Pinball Fantasies, the LED score panel plays more of a part in your game, which is much more like real pinball tables of the era. There are small interactive pieces that play out on the LED score screen on the tables which is a great touch.
Slam Tilt is an excellent title and one that often gets overlooked in favour of Pinball Dreams & Fantasies.
5. Super Stardust – 1994
Super Stardust is an enhanced sequel to the original 1993 game, Stardust.
It is essentially a polished version of asteroids with additional features such as shields, power-ups and some really cool-looking tunnel levels which see you hurtling down a tunnel and shooting at enemies coming toward you.
The game’s selling point was primarily the use of ‘ray-traced’ graphics, which gave the game a really cutting-edge look and feel. The techno soundtrack certainly complemented the visuals and gave the same kind of vibes that Wipeout for the PS1 would later deliver.
Stardust was already a great game when released the previous year, but Super Stardust is allowed to stretch its legs a little bit more, utilising the Amiga 1200’s additional power.
A game that still stands up today.
Best Amiga CD32 Games
The Amiga CD32 was the final system released by Commodore before they went bankrupt, a final roll of the dice.
Essentially an Amiga 1200 without a keyboard and a CD drive instead of a floppy disk drive, the CD32 launched in 1993, just before the 3DO which could be considered its main competitor.
But in the typical Commodore style of that time, the launch was essentially botched due to the limited power of the system and the limited time developers had to familiarise themselves with the hardware to innovate.
Rather shockingly, many games on the CD32 is that they were often just ports of Amiga games, with the actual game only taking up a few megabytes on the CD!
All this being said, it wasn’t all doom and gloom (well, CD32 gamers wished it was more doom than gloom – see the game ‘Gloom’ below if you don’t understand that joke!). The CD32 did have a bunch of decent games and has become quite an expensive system to collect now.
Here are my top picks for the best Amiga CD32 games.
1. Gloom – 1995
At a time when Amiga owners were just plain desperate for Doom on their system, Gloom came along just in time before many took the jump to the PC. let’s face it, there was no chance at the time that Doom was going to be possible on the Amiga, so Gloom was actually well received, and quite rightly so.
It is a technical marvel considering the hardware it runs on. Sure, there are compromises such as a reduced size window and large chunky pixels, but beneath all this, Gloom plays well.
Gloom has a good atmosphere and quite frankly, hilarious gore effects with bodies exploding into chunks as you shoot them. A great effort in bringing the 3D FPS genre to the Amiga system.
2. Beneath A Steel Sky – 1994
The classic point-and-click adventure arrived on the CD32 in 1994, complete as a full ‘talkie’ version. The CD medium is being fully utilised here, so we now get actors reading the scripts as opposed to just the text on the screen.
This transforms the game and helps it become even more engaging, but there is no getting away from the fact that the main benefit the CD32 brings to the game is that you will not have to deal with swapping the original game’s 15 disks in and out of your Amiga’s disk drive!
The game sees you control Robert Foster who has been captured by soldiers, but their helicopter transporting him crashes. You need to escape the city, but uncover some secrets about ‘LINC’, the computer which powers the city.
Beneath A Steel Sky was already a classic but just made even better with the voice acting and no disk swapping. Definitely one of the best CD32 games.
3. Guardian – 1994
A 3D vector game, whilst visually drawing on inspiration from Star Fox on the SNES, Guardian’s gameplay is based on the arcade original, Defender. It turns out it’s a pretty good combination.
Guardian is a fast-paced shooter where you battle waves of enemies, protecting as many of your bases as possible. The more you defend, the more lives you gain. There are plenty of power-ups and shields to utilise to help you in your battle.
Guardian plays reasonably well and still looks pretty good in a retro 3D kind of way. Its fast gameplay keeps you engaged and is a real novelty to see a decent 3D game running so well on the CD32.
4. Flink – 1994
Flink is a 2D platform game that was also released on the Mega Drive & Mega CD. So, it is exclusive to the CD32 with regards to the Amiga platform.
2D platformers are right up Amiga’s street, so Flink is off to a head start already. Flink has some excellent graphics, which are all nicely drawn and move well. Some would argue that the game is, well, not that original due to its fairly plain platform game mechanics.
I guess this would be an easy criticism back when it was released, but looking back on it now, it’s actually an inoffensive and enjoyable platformer!
There’s nothing here except the audio that really requires it to be a CD32 exclusive, it could have easily found its way onto the Amiga 1200, or even Amiga 500 had they just scaled back the colours ever so slightly.
But, in terms of this system, this can go down as one of the best CD32 games.
5. Roadkill – 1994
Another type of game in which the Amiga excelled was the top-down racer, there are plenty of these around, so what does Roadkill on the CD32 has to offer?
Well, in standard 1994 fashion, a pre-rendered FMV intro is on some versions of Roadkill, so that’s a good start! But in terms of the game, Roadkill is a top-down racer/shooter, more like a futuristic faster-paced version of Super Cars with similarities such as the missiles you can shoot at your opponents.
Roadkill is visually nice with a good soundtrack and sound effects, but it has to be said is very difficult. Mainly because of the zoomed-in view, not allowing you to see corners approach at high speed, but this is the same with many other top-down racers of this era.
Whilst nothing ground-breaking, Roadkill is great fun and represents the CD32 well.
Now that you have had a taste of some of the best Amiga games, you might want to check out our WinUAE setup guide as well as our guide to the best Amiga emulators. These helpful guides will have you up and running in no time, ready to play all of these classics.
A lifelong avid gamer and computing enthusiast, Matt has decades of Retro Gaming experience. Now over 40 years old, Matt now even considers himself retro, but fortunately, nobody has developed a Matt emulator (not yet at least!).