Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf Longplay (Amiga) [50 FPS]

Developed and published by Electronic Arts in 1993

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Foreword: To keep the video length down I removed the loading screens between missions. I appended the loading screen/music at the end of the video (3:52:53). I also spent a (very) long time cropping and re-positioning most of the video to bring the game and map screen footage to the centre of the screen to improve the overall viewing experience; hopefully, nothing slipped through in editing!

The original Desert Strike caused quite a stir when it first launched on the Sega Mega Drive back in 1992. With great graphics and involving gameplay, this was a game that typified what the 16-bit generation was capable of. Between 1992 and 1993, the Amiga was still enough of successful gaming platform to warrant EA developing a conversion for Commodore's home computing platform.

Viewed from an isometric perspective, the game puts the player in charge of the iconic AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, saving an unnamed Middle Eastern country from an evil military dictator. The game is set across four campaigns, each subdivided into a number of missions that must be completed in order to succeed. Although there is a recommended order to how missions should be completed, it's possible to do them out of order, which represented a level of freedom not typically seen in these types of games.

In addition to completing objectives, the player must keep a constant eye on the Apache's supplies of fuel and ammunition. The chopper guzzles fuel very quickly, so you must be on the lookout for fuel drums with which to resupply - run dry and it will be a very long walk back to base.

It's worth stressing that the this isn't merely the Mega Drive version ported to the Amiga. The coders and artists took the base game and refined/tweaked just about everything to create something that I would be happy to call the 'definitive' edition of the game. To fully appreciate just how good the Amiga version is, you need to see it running next to the Mega Drive edition.

Firstly, the graphics have received quite a noticeable upgrade, with sprites appearing more detailed and colours more striking and vibrant. A number of additional effects (e.g. transparency) were added, evident in some of the smoke effects and motion blur applied to the Apache's rotors. Probably the most obvious (and my personal favourite) of graphical upgrades is the new artwork for explosions - rather than disappear in a puff of smoke, troops, tanks and buildings now explode in huge, mushroom-cloud conflagrations that white the screen out with the initial intensity of the blast!

The game's sound has also undergone a significant upgrade, replacing most of the original Mega Drive version's effects and music. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the Amiga version sounds fantastic - from the massive explosions, to the brilliant opening title music, the Amiga's superior sound chip is put to good use.

Perhaps the one area where the Mega Drive version remains superior is scrolling speed and overall performance. The Amiga version's scrolling is nowhere near as smooth as it's console counterparts, but it never gets in the way of enjoyment - a stock A500 configuration (used for this video) is still delivers an excellent experience.

Perhaps related the the difference in scrolling is the handling of the Apache. The console version plays much faster and the control more precise - here, the Apache feels a lot heavier and seems to have more momentum when banking and turning, which makes avoiding enemy fire more problematic. With three buttons and excellent D-pad, the Mega Drive's joypad certainly means the console version is easier to control, but the developers made sure that the Amiga version is still never less than playable.

Whatever you might say about EA as a publisher today, the Amiga version of Desert Strike bears all the hallmarks of a developer and publisher determined to make the game a success, certainly one that plays to the machine's strengths. The game is still a lot of fun to play and, the Amiga version in particular, comes highly recommended!
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