Preview screenshots

[Tim Janssen]

When flicking through some old Amiga magazines I noticed some preview-screenshots which were very different from the final games. In this thread I would like to post some of these ‘obscure’ screenshots once in a while. Other entries are also accepted

Let’s start with the first one: Delphine’s Flashback. I have to admit I am not very good at this game and therefore haven’t progressed far so maybe the screenshot below may have appeared in the final game. However, I think the main character looks more basic in this preview which is taken from the September 1992 issue of Amiga Format.

[Drake1009]

Somehow the background looks different from the final game I think. The final game had more of a greenish quality of background as far as I recall. And the graphics were most definately more defined as where you could walk and what was background.

[TikTok]

That section definitely is in the final game; it's about level 4 or 5 IIRC. I think the picture in the magazine may have come from a photo, hence it is slightly blury. Maybe it was taken from the Megadrive/Genesis version?

[Drake1009]

The picture is from level 4. Though it felt like 5 or such because the second level was so immensely long.

[Tim Janssen]

TikTok,
You are right. I have scanned it from a photo in Amiga Format magazine. It was common those days to show preview-screenshots of a game on an other system. But somehow I remember the Amiga was the first platform which got Flashback.

[7-Zark-7]

Just a pity that a lot of people seem to even forget there WAS an amiga version,much less how good it was.
I recall when I played Abe's Odysee the first few times & good game that it is always thought of how much it reminded me of playing flashback on the Amiga.
But to get back onto Tim's original thread there's a no. of games where original screen mock-ups end up radically different. I recall an early screen shot of Walker,(The DMA-design game. (Lemmings designers)), from Zzap 64 & then seeing it previewed again in The One a couple of years later completely different bar the main sprite. And even the WIP of that had a sub-stage (w/ screenshots),planned that ended up being dropped from the final game.
Another example I can recall was Andy Braybrook's diary of Uridium 2,(Again for the One magazine). The early screen shots for Darkmere ended up being accurate though, as did Heimdall/ Heimdall 2 from memory.

[Tim Janssen]

Yeah, I remember. When Walker was released those days, it was said it took 3 years to program. Never saw any WIP-screenshots, though.

Here is another entry of a WIP-screen I found in Amiga Format: Entity. As one can see the female sprite looks much more 'saucy' than in the final game. I guess Loriciels had to change this sprite to avoid a 16+ rating.
By the way, the dinosaur-boss looks also more lifelike than in the final game.

[jmmijo]

All I can say is baby's got back

[Muzkat]

I remember a demo of the game Myth that I once had. It took place in the first level, a lovely location called Hades. Anyway, the background looked very similar to what it was to be in the final release, but the character sprite in the demo looked awful! He was blocky, and his colour scheme looked very messy. His animations were a little choppy, and he looked very, well, short! Overall he looked like nearly like an overweight hobbit.

Thank God for the full game! His designers had kept the core idea- a beefy, tough fighter- but had radically improved his animations, smoothed his graphics and regained control of their chosen colours. And now he was a little taller- now he looked like a proper fighter.

[CodyJarrett]

The character in Myth looks the part, but maybe System 3 could have fixed the controls? They are unresponsive and sluggish...

[Drake1009]

The controls are a bit strange in Myth. And I never finished a level since I didn't know how so I quickly grew tired of that game.

[Paul]

I also found The controls unresponsive and sluggish and never got past level 1 and gave up with it.

Maybe thats why it came free with the A600 HD pack.

[7-Zark-7]

I recall the demo version too. It's on that basis that I never bothered to find an ADF version based on that buggy crap.
Based on the demo version,this was another crud Amiga conversion of whats a superb C64 platform game.
(If Amigaboy see's this thread I'm sure he'll agree!).
Trust me get CCS64 or whichever is your fancy & find the C64 version the main sprite is nippier & has superb animation.
Even better if you have a joystick.
One word of warning,get a trained version as you'll never likely pass the egyptian stage to get to the last level otherwise!!

Hmm I liked the different controls of myth.It was a matter of getting used to it. In the egyptian level, somewhere inside of the pyramids there was a dog/wolf like enemy (anubis?) and I could not kill it because there was no sprite collision even though I had a real A500+ !!! Is that what you mean Zark?

[7-Zark-7]

I'll have to take your word on the Amiga version Burseg-I only ever played the demo.
But especially on the C64 version-it was impossible for me! I couldn't even make it into the rooms inside the pyramid-the spikes, axes etc. took care of my lives everytime.
I never saw the end 'til I read a cheat in Zzap about copying & renaming some gamefiles.
It was a shame as the last level made playing through to it worth it,(The C64 game was done by the guys who did the good C64 translation of Salamander.).

There was a cheat mode in the full Amiga version. You needed to pause the game and type the magic word This would give you unlimited lives.

[Amiga1992]

well, I love amiga Myth.,... is the C64 version really tht superior? I'd like to try it out!

(not emulated though)