Mega lo Mania / Tyrants: Fight Through Time (Amiga)

Developer:

Sensible Software

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Release Date:

1991

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Systems:

Amiga, Atari ST, Mega Drive, SNES, DOS, X68000, PC-98, FM Towns

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Today on Super Adventures, I'm finally taking a look at classic Amiga strategy game MEGA lo MANIA (or Mega-Lo-Mania). It's also occasionally known as Tyrants: Fight Through Time in the US. It's never just called Megalomania, though maybe it'll help someone find this page on Google if I mention the word anyway.

This one's by eccentric British developer Sensible Software, creator of games like Wizkid, Cannon Fodder, Sensible Soccer and Sensible Train-Spotting, so I'm expecting to see tiny men running around the screen at some point. I should probably know already if they're in it as I've played the game before, but that was ages ago, I didn't play it for long and my strongest memory of it is being amazed that I actually worked out how to do something. It's one of those games where the first challenge is the interface.

Here's some random trivia for you: when Virgin Games published the game they decided to release a tie-in single called "Mega-Lo-Mania (Goin' All the Way)" to promote it. I don't think the song has any relation to the game or anything that happens in it, but it does have the same cover at least!

Okay I'm going to play this for an hour or so to see what it's like. Which means I'll either make it through a bunch of levels or just get really frustrated on the first one, depending on whether I'm able to figure any of it out. I actually started making some progress in Populous when I wrote about that, so there's always hope.

Sensible Soccer (Amiga)

Developer:

Sensible Software

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Release Date:

1992

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Systems:

Amiga, Atari ST, DOS

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Hey I've got a terrible idea, how about I play Sensible Soccer?

I haven't written about a sports game on Super Adventures for about five years now because I realised early on that they weren't working out for all kinds of reasons. These reasons include: I'm terrible at them, I usually don't know the rules, they don't give me much to write about, I often end up with a lot of empty green screenshots with tiny people standing around, and I hate them.

But I'm making a special exception for Sensible Soccer, on account of it being perhaps the most beloved Amiga game ever. It seems to have a spot reserved in every top 100 list right up near the top (unless they've chosen its sequel Sensible World of Soccer instead). Plus the spiritual successor, Sociable Soccer, is coming out soon, so it seemed like a good time for it.

Okay, I'll try to get this over with quickly, with as little whining as possible. I'll show a few screenshots of bland looking menus, a few of me losing a match, then we can both get on with our day.

Sensible Train-Spotting (Amiga)

I knew I'd have to find something really special today to drag people's attention away from e3, and I think I may have found it. From the legendary Sensible Software, creators of Wizkid, Cannon Fodder, and Sensible Soccer, comes their ultimate Amiga game: Sensible Train-Spotting. I mean that literally, as it's the last game they ever made for the system, released on a magazine coverdisk (Amiga Power issue 53 to be precise) in 1995.

There's no catchy theme song like they usually have though. No music at all in fact.

Cannon Fodder 2 (Amiga)

The first Cannon Fodder game caused a little bit of controversy due to its use of a poppy for its logo. The Royal British Legion apparently thought the game was offensive to millions and didn't much appreciate their symbol being associated with it.

So for the sequel, Sensible Software went with a nice safe inoffensive image of a hand grenade for their logo. Fortunately for them Something Awful hadn't been created yet, so they got away with it this time. And everyone was happy.

Cannon Fodder (Amiga)

Okay straight away I should admit that I'm only playing this game to give me an excuse to link to the theme tune on youtube. It's maybe not the first video game theme with vocals, but I reckon it's pretty good for something running off a floppy disk.

It'd be fair to say that I've played Cannon Fodder before. In fact I've played it a lot, and I even played the Cannon Soccer special for the site last Christmas, but I'm going to write about it anyway. Because the game's a classic and I had to get around to it sooner or later.

Cannon Soccer (Amiga)

Super Adventures at Christmas - Game 3:

It's Cannon Soccer, aka Cannon Fodder Amiga Format Christmas Special (1993)! Okay maybe it's technically more of a two level demo given away on a magazine coverdisk (issue 54 if you're wondering) than a proper game, but it's Christmas related so I'm playing it anyway.