Honourable Mention 6: Superfrog

Honourable Mention 6
Superfrog

This choice was not based on the views of Amiga Power, who in both its regular Amiga and CD32 forms found it to be a fine platformer, just nothing extraordinary. Instead, I chose it based on its notoriety: it is still quite fondly remembered by Amiga fans even today, whereas other games given a warmer reception by Amiga Power, such as Arabian Nights, seem to have been forgotten about. Given the platform games that actually did make the list, it would be unreasonable to leave out such a well-loved example of the genre.

You are a frog, blessed with the ability to run and jump, and the basic premise is to collect a certain amount of coins before you then exit the level - similar to Zool, and in fact, the game controls rather similarly. Where it differs is in the powers the two characters possess: Superfrog can jump on certain enemies' heads, and employs the help of a small putty-like creature to be used as a short-range projectile. You can also collect a power-up to your cape that allows you to float, enabling you to reach extra platforms full of bonuses.

Okay, it's another platformer, as if we don't have enough, but Superfrog was yet another game to show gamers that you didn't need a Japanese console to have a good platform experience, and I can just imagine plenty of middle-aged Amiga addicts scanning this list and saying "what about Superfrog?", so it had to be here. Personally, I don't mind the game, if you can get used to the twitchy controls, which are not helped by needing to press up to jump. The WHDLoad and CD32 versions do allow for this, so you'd be better off with them.

Recommended TOSEC disk(s):
Superfrog (1993)(Team 17)(Disk 1 of 4)[cr CSL][t +15 ATX]
Superfrog (1993)(Team 17)(Disk 2 of 4)[cr CSL]
Superfrog (1993)(Team 17)(Disk 3 of 4)[cr CSL][bootable]
Superfrog (1993)(Team 17)(Disk 4 of 4)[cr CSL]
Superfrog (1994)(Team 17)[!] (CD32)