The final game and feature list for the upcoming Amiga A500 Mini has been revealed, along with a confirmed release date of March 25, 2022 for the retro machine.
The Amiga A500 Mini is the latest in a wave of micro-sized recreations of retro gaming machines, with Nintendo arguably starting the trend with 2016’s NES Classic Edition. However, where most have been based on dedicated gaming consoles, the A500 is a scaled down replica of the 1987 A500 personal computer, right down to its integrated keyboard form factor.
The original hardware was intended as an all-round PC, but found greater success as a gaming machine. Although pricey – £499 at launch, equivalent to £1,474 in 2021 – its power and flexibility made it popular with players and bedroom coders alike.
While original Amiga manufacturer Commodore went bankrupt in 1994, the A500 Mini is made under licence by UK-based Retro Games, and is considered a successor to the company’s earlier C64 Mini. First announced in August 2021, a steady drip-feed of games that will be built into the A500 Mini hardware has followed since, with the likes of Zool and Alien Breed heading the line up, and 1989’s Stunt Car Racer the final addition.
The full list of games that will be included on the A500 mini is:
- Alien Breed 3D
- Alien Breed: Special Edition ’92
- Another World
- Arcade Pool
- ATR: All Terrain Racing
- Battle Chess
- Cadaver
- California Games
- The Chaos Engine
- Dragons Breath
- F-16 Combat Pilot
- Kick Off 2
- The Lost Patrol
- Paradroid 90
- Pinball Dreams
- Project-X: Special Edition 93
- Qwak
- The Sentinel
- Simon the Sorcerer
- Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe
- Stunt Car Racer
- Super Cars II
- Titus The Fox: To Marrakech And Back
- Worms: The Director’s Cut
- Zool: Ninja Of The “Nth” Dimension
Beyond the built-in games, Retro Games says that if players “own other original Amiga games, these can be played via USB stick utilising the WHDLoad functionality” of the A500 Mini. Users will also be able to “tweak setup, controller options and display settings”.
Games will be playable in 720p HD at original 50Hz and 60Hz refresh rates (for Europe and USA, respectively), and offers “multiple scaling options” and a CRT filter to really capture the late 1980s vibe. It will also feature upgradable firmware.
Like the NES, SNES, and Mega Drive mini consoles, the A500 will come with replicas of original controller peripherals, both a game pad and an authentic – if incredibly uncomfortable looking – two-button mouse.
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