Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe Longplay (Amiga CD32) [QHD]
152Game Info
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Developer: The Bitmap Brothers
Publisher: Renegade
Year of Release: 1995
Game Review & Impressions
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Ask any Amiga fan which game from The Bitmap Brothers is their favourite, and the majority will usually plump for Speedball 2. The brutally dystopian future-sport where players beat each other senseless while trying to sling a heavy steel ball into the back of the opposing team's goal was an absolute riot when it was first released, especially when played with a friend. The Bitmap's polish and presentation was never more evident than in this particular title, with Dan Malone's superb artwork taking centre stage.
Take a step back, however, and remember that Speedball 2 was released in 1990, a full five years before the CD32 version was released. Five years is a heck of a long time, with Commodore going bankrupt and the likes of the PC and PlayStation hammering more than a few nails into the Amiga's coffin in that time.
So, what's new in the CD32 version of the game, you might ask?
Starting with the most obvious difference, the colours for player, pitch and menu graphics have all been overhauled to take advantage of the AGA chipset. Sadly, much like the AGA edition of The Chaos Engine, the more vibrant colour-scheme is, in my opinion, a backward step, losing much of what made the OCS version look so great. There may have been less colours, but Dan Malone's choice of greys, silvers and blues in the original palette reflected perfectly the sterile hostility of the Speedball arena. That atmosphere of that original OCS version is largely absent, replaced by gaudy reds and garish purples that convey a neon, Cyberpunk vibe, which I don't think suits the game.
The game's audio has also undergone something of an overhaul, although much like the graphics, this isn't necessarily for the better either. The Nation 12/Richard Joseph music that accompanied the opening of the OCS version has been jettisoned in favour of a new, fully mastered CD track. Obviously, it sounds far more sophisticated and tonally rich than the Amiga's 8-bit, 4-channel Paula chip was capable of, but it just lacks the same kind of meaningful impact of the original music.
The CD also contains audio tracks of stadium crowds cheering, horns blaring and general excitement, which are now streamed from the disc during each match. This does work quite well, giving matches a sense of atmosphere the original disk version lacked.
Unfortunately, the downside with the crowd audio is the mix is so heavily biased toward the CD audio, the regular game sound effects get lost in the cacophony of vuvuzelas, drums and horns. This means the iconic, disembodied cries of "Icecream! Icecream!" from the stands are barely audible above the honking din - you'd certainly never hear it on the crappy speakers of most TV sets of the time.
The CD32 version of Speedball 2 isn't a total bust. It did, at the very least, contain new content, which is more than can be said for many of the other CD32 releases back then, which were just copies of the disk version stuffed on to a CD. However, the lack of any additional modes or updates to the gameplay, as good as it is, means this would have been a hard sell at the RRP of £15.99.
My advice is stick with the OCS version - it's still the best!
Video Notes
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I chose to play through the league mode, in which Brutal Deluxe fight to become champions of Speedball 2. The team starts in League division 2 and must play a total of 14 separate games against other teams, hoping to win enough points to gain promotion to division 1. This is where the game really hots up, because you'll need to assemble a really top-notch squad of players if you hope to defeat the likes of Super Nashwan or Lethal Formula.
Related Longplays & Videos
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Speedball 2 Longplay (Amiga OCS): https://youtu.be/ry_qLPOgIR8
Chapters
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00:00 Intro
03:18 League: Division 2 matches
1:21:11 League: Division 1 matches
Contact Me
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/Al82_Retro
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