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@ Cotetapper,
Fantastic thread!
Here's my thoughts as a near 10 year veteran professional pixel artist who learned pixel art and the love of the art-form itself on my Amiga computer:
I find it fascinating in the best way possible that even strict theoretical tasks like this end up more of an argument over what people personally value in a game, more than simply arguing over technical methods.
In this case, our task seems to be to make as close a copy of this specific game as possible, presumably leaving ALL aspects as close to the original as possible, but leaving game-play and level layout as the highest priorities.
This is VERY different from statements like “the Amiga can make games as good or better in a similar style”. That is (in this case) a completely moot point. The question is “can the Amiga reproduce THIS game”, with these layouts, number of enemies etc, and what is the BEST hardware banging trickery to be used to come as close as possible without severe visual compromise (read as "ugly, grainy, colorless, no parallax etc")?
This game can not be compared to Shadow of the Beast etc. for sheer color count etc, as the level design and enemy placements were designed completely around the hardware trickery that Beast used, and the vast majority of this falls apart in Rygar where most of these different colored things can overlap on-screen at the same time.
In cases like this task, you need to develop the best UNIVERSAL solution, which will work across the board, on all levels, no mater what happens to be on-screen and overlapping at the same time. (there are time-limits, not matter how awesome a game studio, we cant realistically custom program every level from scratch)
For this reason, to maintain highest visual quality WHILE allowing for remotely close approximations of the color variety in the games enemies, environments etc, I would immediately rule out Duel Play-field mode.
That said, I would ask the art director and licensor (if they have a say) if keeping the same exact layout of the back play-field per level is important. Most likely it is NOT a top priority as compared to overall visual quality, number of colors, and the likeness that the actual playing layer (foreground playfield), player “sprite” and enemy “sprites” have to the original arcade game.
If this is was the case, I'd do as Codetapper said, and use the repeating sprite trick for a repeating sprite pattern, along with copper color changes to make very pretty, and similarly themed, but definitely somewhat different back layers from the arcade version.... but this would allow either 16 or 32 (roughly) colors to be used for the foreground layer, player, enemies etc...at which point, a very passionate artist, skillful with color usage could definitely make a very similar looking game, which could keep the same exact maps, enemy placements etc as the original arcade game.
IF the background layer designs and layouts were somehow too important to give up on (highly unlikely), I would suggest actually using 16 colors with processor and blitter simulated dual play-field effects, as found in games like Xenon-2 Megablast, and then use the 8 sprites as overlays to add additional color to the player, enemies, HUD etc. As well as using copper-color changes on one or two of the 16 base colors in the background to make the environment more colorful as well.
I and the vast majority of players would be perfectly happy with 25 FPS (especially if scrolling were at 50 or 60), as a great many of the most popular Amiga games were 25FPS or less. What was the FPS of Blood Money? Xenon 2? (and these are SHMUPS) Can we verify the actual arcade Rygar ran at 60 FPS?
-Mike
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