Lemmings Ports Blog Comparisons

16-Bit Qtr Final 3 - Megadrive VS SNES

2011-07-20T21:50:00.001+01:00

16-Bit Qtr Final 3 - Megadrive VS SNES

Contenders:	Sega Megadrive	Super Nintendo (SNES)
Graphics
Title screen	A great rendition of the original version, the Lemmings have been remade and look quite good and it stays accurate as possible. Running points total 1-0	Oh dear!...another cheesy intro straight out of Japan from Sunsoft! Quite why they left the Megadrive alone and made the SNES suffer is anyones guess, but this is just sonically awful!
Menu Screen	The Megadrive version looks fairly accurate and has the 1-2 player mode, sfx or music option, the background lacks a nice texture however, but its all animated nicely and the logo and icons are pretty faithful. Running points total 2-0	Well the graphics are more accurate on the logo on the SNES, but the fact they couldn't be bothered to put a selection screen in instead just 3 lines of text is just lazy programming! So for that the Megadrive version gets the point for being more faithful!
In-Game Graphics	Well it's not quite upto the Amiga version graphically, the backgrounds on some levels have shifted colour palettes, or the they were used better on the original, the skill selection bar looks ok with bold easy to see Lemmings.	The colours and backgrounds are more accurate to the original here, and even though the selection bar isn't quite the same, I like it with its big colourful icons, the SNES pulls a point back here. Running points total 2-1
Animations	The Megadrive is pretty much identical to the original as expected given the hardware it's running on. The Lemmings, fire ,w ater are all spot on running smoothly.	Again identical on the SNES, even side by side it's hard to tell any difference, with both looking to contain all the frames of animation from the original, so no extra point for either here.
Music
	Although faithful in the fact they are the same tunes, some of the samples are different and end up sounding strange, and the music is slightly speeded up, still pretty good though.	Cheesy music between levels does nothing for me! but during the game itself the SNES version just pips the Megadrive for having better samples and the music is overall closer to the Amiga's. Running points total 2-2
SFX
	speech on the Megadrive is tinny, mainly due to the pretty poor sound chip, same for other SFX i.e when they reach the exit they sound like they do some kind of fart noise! And the splatting noise has been replaced with a rubbish beep...	The speech is clearer on the SNES version, same too for some of the other samples used, and overall are much closer to the Amiga's, easily awarding a point to the SNES for SFX. Running points total 2-3
Controls
	control is via the pad of course for the megadrive, (the sequel had mouse support on both MD and SNES but the original didn't) the movement is smooth and quick enough, unlike some console versions you use the crosshair to pick your skills as well, giving a more closer feel to the original too.	Again pad only here, and you can use the crosshair to select a skill or select using the pad buttons which when used to makes it quicker, another advantage with this version is you can use the shoulder buttons to scroll the game screen left or right, very handy when your Lemming gets to the side of the screen! Running points total 2-4
Overall
Game Info: Other Aspects For Bonus Points	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 180 Price Machine was when game released: £129 (1992 EU) RRP of game: £39.99 Downers: Not quite upto par gfx and sound! Uppers: More Levels!	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 125 Price Machine was when game released: £149 (1992 EU) RRP of game: £39.99 Downers: Cheesy intro & music! Uppers: Closer port of the original!

Lemmie's Final Thought!

Before I have my final thought, bonus points go to the Megadrive version for having more levels, though both have 2-player modes, and both load quickly due to cartridge format, so lets see the final result;

Result : Sega Megadrive/Genesis 3 Super Nintendo (SNES) 4

I know this is one of the comparisons some of you wanted to read, and i hope it didn't dissapoint, as it had to be one of the hardest comparisons so far, whilst the SNES didnt have the original intro or a proper menu screen, it made up for it with better graphics, better sfx and music, and in the end it delivered a overall better Lemmings experience for 16-bit console owners at the time!

16-Bit Quarter Final 3 Winner - Super Nintendo (SNES)

16-Bit Qtr Final 1 - Amiga VS ST VS PC (DOS)

2011-07-16T18:00:00.000+01:00

16-Bit - Qtr Final 1 - Amiga VS ST VS PC (DOS)

Contenders:	Commodore Amiga	Atari ST	PC (DOS)
Graphics
Title screen	Of course the Amiga is the benchmark the others have to try and beat, with the great backdrops and animation along with the familar title rendition. Running points total 1-0-0	Very close to the Amiga version, although you can notice the lack of colours and the lack of speech and music during the Intro.	Well the PC DOS versions didn't put up much of a fight here as there was no Intro as upon loading it went straight to the menu screen!
Menu Screen	The menu screen in all its glory, with bright and bold options, and animation on the scroll bar and Lemmings eyes. Running points total 1-0-0	Virtually identical to the Amiga, with only the backdrop a tone lighter... so much so, that I don't think any point can be awarded here.	Again pretty close to the Amiga's, the slight change with the 2 player mode removed and replaced with 'exit to dos' and control options.
In-Game Graphics	Well perfection as you would expect! Compared to the other two versions they are pretty much identical, no point's are awarded here! Running points total 1-0-0	Spot on for ST owners, all the backdrops and colour is here, the only noticable difference is the selection bar is a shade or two lighter.	Selection bar distracts after playing the other versions with its garish colours, even in VGA its awful! Other than that the graphics are spot on!
Animations	From the fluid Lemmings to the water/lava and fire animations, of course it's all here! Running points total 1-0-0	Again there's nothing here that I can see is missing from the Amiga version.	Same for the DOS version, it's all here, again all virtually identical.
Music
	A major part of Lemmings being so succesful was its great tunes, from classical to remixes they all had a unique charm! Running points total 2-0-0	All the tunes are here, but the limitations of the ST's sound chips made them sound tinny and lacking definition, and certainly a reason why the Amiga won the hearts of many.	Well again all the tunes are in this version, it's just they sound all very tinny again and the lack of sound channels is noticable and not a patch on the Amiga's versions.
SFX
	Every Amiga owner will know the wonderful 'oh no' 'lets go' samples from this game that make it part of the love of the game! Running points total 3-0-0	The ST version has no sampled speech, and all the other sound effects have turned into beeps and dull tones, a real disapointment.	Like the ST version, the DOS version is also missing the sampled speech and goes as far as making the ST's tones and beep's even worse!
Controls
	Really simple controls via the mouse for precise aiming and movement, the Amiga also allowed two mouse's for the 2-player mode! Running points total 3-0-0	Again control was via the mouse, and is as smooth and fast to control here, also the ST version allowed either keyboard joystick or mouse for the 2-player mode.	Mouse again was the control method for the DOS version, with the same easy movement for all 3 versions no points again here.
Overall
Game Info: Other Aspects For Bonus Points	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £399 (Feb 1991) RRP of game: £25.99 Downers: Impossible! Uppers: Best Music & Samples!	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £299 (Mar 1991) RRP of game: £24.99 Downers: Music and SFX! Uppers: Retains 2-Player Mode!	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £600+ Equiv (May 1991) RRP of game: £24.99 Downers: Selection bar and Music! Uppers: Still plays brilliantly!

Lemmie's Final Thought!

The Amiga and ST versions get another point for having a great fun 2-player mode that was sadly missing from the PC DOS release.

It's just the overall experience with the music and SFX that makes the Amiga version pip the others to the post, whilst they all play pretty much the same, the overall feel has to go the Amiga.

Well it was always going to be a tall order to beat the original Amiga release, although if identical or improved upon in other ways then we will see what the next round brings us!

Result : Commodore Amiga 4 Atari ST 1 PC DOS 0

16-Bit Quarter Final 1 Winner - Commodore Amiga

Handheld Final

2011-02-20T15:25:00.001Z

Handheld Final - Game Gear VS Lynx

Contenders ----------->	Sega Game Gear	Atari Lynx
Graphics
Title screen	A watered down cheesy intro for the Sega kids market, no resemblance to the original!	Easist the best of the two, featuring the full proper intro animation and title screen. Running points total 0-1 Lynx
Menu Screen	A closer approach to the Amiga version than the title screen was! A decent effort that looks good.	Closer decision this time, but the Lynx just gets it with more detail and animation. Running points total 0-2 Lynx
In-Game Graphics	The in-game graphics certainly are colourful and scroll smoothly on the Game Gear, but they just lack the refined detail on the backgrounds.	The Lynx shows its true colours here by reproducing the Amiga classic VERY closely indeed, lovely graphics that easily win this point. Running points total 0-3 Lynx
Animations	Again the Game Gear sets the bar pretty high, with nice animated features and Lemmings that resemble the originals pretty well.	This also has nice animation throughout, but just pipping the point with better animated Lemmings and other neat touches. Running points total 0-4 Lynx
Music
	There's some half decent tunes pumping out the small speaker of the Game Gear, while not perfect, they are all still toe tappingly recognisable.	Using the Lynx's superior sound chips, the music on the Lynx is better in every way and sounds really close the original even through the small speakers. Running points total 0-5 Lynx
SFX
	The effects are nothing to write home about, with basic beeps and tones on the Game Gear, but at least it keeps in the infamous 'oh no and 'lets go' sampled speech!	Some of the effects are a tone out, but with more effects than the GG version and better sampled speech, there's no option but to award another point here... Running points total 0-6 Lynx
Controls
	Fast movement of the cursor and fairly decent D-Pad make controlling the Lemmings fairly straight forward after a few goes. Running points total 1-6 Lynx	Again cursor movement is decent but the D-Pad on the Lynx (esp Lynx II) lets the control down a little, and isn't as good as the Game Gear one.
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1994) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: Cheesy Intro! Uppers: Still mains playability!	Max Lemmings: 40 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1993) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: Hard to get hold of! Uppers: THE best version!

Lemmie's Final Thought!

Well not quite the exciting final we were all hoping for! The Lynx trounces the Game Gear version into touch and stamps on it for good measure! While the final point goes the Lynx for having more Lemmings on screen 40 against the 20 on the Game Gear.

It's just the neat little touches on the lynx version that really makes it shine apart from the Game Gear one, for example on the detail screen telling you how many lemmings to save, when you press to start the level the preview landscape picture zooms to fill the screen screen and you play on that! Showing off the sprite scaling of the Lynx to full effect, and to my knowledge this is the only version of Lemmings to do this. Another nice touch is when you are selecting abilitys hovering over each one makes the Lemmings do a little animation, the developers did a great conversion here, the Lynx also was one of the first versions to incorperate the fast forward function, meaning no more waiting for the last couple of Lemmings to reach the exit!

Whilst the Master System version was king of the 8-Bits, it's younger sibling the Game Gear port was slightly scaled down and simply couldnt compete with the powerful Atari Lynx.

Result : Sega Game Gear 1-7 Atari Lynx

Handheld Final Winner - Atari Lynx - unofficially the best handheld version of Lemmings!

Handheld Semi Final 1 - Game Gear VS Gameboy Color

2011-02-12T13:51:00.000Z

Handheld Semi Final 1 - Game Gear VS Gameboy Color

Contenders ----------->	Sega Game Gear	Nintendo Gameboy Color
Graphics
Title screen	Using the same intro as the Master System, but cut down to fit the smaller screen better, and I still think its a bit too childish for my liking! Running points total: 1-0 Game Gear	No Intro or title screen available on the Gameboy Color version, instead when you load the game it goes straight to the menu screen. First blood to the Game Gear.
Menu Screen	Again basically the MS version cut down, nice bright colouful logo and icons....again closer to the original so another point here. Running points total: 2-0 Game Gear	Going for something slightly different in the GBC port, the menu screen is colourful and clear, though with only two options, 'option' allows you to listen to the abysmal music, how thoughtful!
In-Game Graphics	Again more colourful than the GBC version, using more vibrant colours and better contrast gives this a lot better look than the GBC version, scrolling as well is alot smoother meaning more accurate controls. Running points total: 3-0 Game Gear	While the graphics are detailed, they do look 'washed out' in comparison, with the backgrounds using 2-3 colours for the whole of some stages, its all very bland. The worst part is the scrolling, its just soooo slow and jerky, unforgivable on a machine made 6-7 later than the GB and that version puts this to shame!
Animations	The Lemmings run fairly smooth on this version only missing a frame or two from the original that you don't really notice that much, other animation includes pretty good fire, lava etc Running points total: 4-0 Game Gear	Ohh dear....what can I say?! To go with the slow and jerky scrolling you have really badly animated Lemmings with what seems like 2 frames of animation each! It really is quite awful to witness and you can easily see DMA had nothing to do with this port whatsoever.
Music
	Again good marks here, whilst lacking a perfect renditon due to a lacking sound chip in the GG, all the tunes are still recognisable and bring the spirit of Lemmings nicely to the small screen. Running points total: 5-0 Game Gear	Please!! hurry let me finish playing this version it brings tears to my eyes! Firstly the music isn't whatsover anything to do with the original....the developers had decided to write their own tunes that aren't worthy on Nokia 3210, boring, depressing, and just plain rubbish.
SFX
	This point was a bit closer to call with both machines incapable of beeping out a decent sound effect out of its mini speakers, with only basic effects, bit disapointing but at least this version has the sampled 'oh no' ,and 'lets go' Running points total: 6-0 Game Gear	As what I said in the Game Gear column, the sound effects are few and far between, but again even less effort has been made on this version, the odd beep and burp here and there, probably 'borrowed' from a long forgotten early '80's game. No sampled speech here...surprised!?
Controls
	Nice easy to use controls, cursor is pretty fast and doesn't take long to get used to. The icons during gameplay are off screen and you have to move the cursor to the bottom of the screen then select the ability. Running points total: 7-0 Game Gear	What with the jerky and slow everything you probably have worked out the controls were never going to save this version.....cursor movement is slower, and it just hinders the game even more, the abilitys are all on screen at once, holding B lets you select a ability pressing the left and right on the D-Pad.
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1994) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: Price Uppers: Graphics/Sound	Max Lemmings: 14 Levels: 170 Price Machine was when game released: £79 (2000) RRP of game: £24.99 Downers: Everything! Uppers: Level Count

Lemmie's Final Thought!

Probably the nearest thing to a bye into the final for the Game Gear version! Another point for the Game Gear version for more on-screen Lemmings.....the Gameboy Color version is simply abysmal, slow, jerky, awful music its just been ripped apart in the worst way possible, the only thing going for it are the amount of levels and slightly cheaper price, but even then I have to sum it up as being truely one of the worst ports ever of Lemmings!

Result: Game Gear 8-2 Gameboy Color

Handheld Semi-Final 1 Winner - Sega Game Gear

Handheld Semi Final 2 - Lynx VS Gameboy

2011-02-12T13:32:00.001Z

Handheld Semi Final 2 - Lynx VS Gameboy

Contenders ----------->	Atari Lynx	Nintendo Gameboy
Graphics
Title screen	Wow! the Lynx version has the lot, from the spot on title screen, to the full intro with scaling logo, it's trully impressive and shows the power of the Lynx. Running points total: 1-0 Lynx	No Intro or title screen available on the Gameboy version due to lack of memory, instead when you load the game it goes straight to the menu screen.
Menu Screen	Again very nice, one of the most accurate title screens, from the animated scroll bar to the bright colours and detailed icon's. Running points total: 2-0 Lynx	The Gameboy version tries it's best within 4 shades of grey! The header is sharp and detailed while the icons are all readable.
In-Game Graphics	The Lynx version has superb graphics that are again very close to the originals, with detailed colourful backgrounds that scrolls smoothly, it's like having the original in your pocket, top stuff! Running points total: 3-0 Lynx	The graphics are never gonna beat the Lynx version, though surprisingly like the Spectrum version they are detailed and clear enough not to take away from the game itself too much.
Animations	The exits, water etc all have animation, while the Lemming sprites themselves are excellently done keeping all the originals detail and speed. Running points total: 4-0 Lynx	Not quite on par here, again due to the limited ram, the animations have been cut to a minimum but are functional and are at least smooth.
Music
	Very good indeed, the music is very close to the Amiga's tunes, using the Lynx's 4 channels of sound to pump out very close renditions. Running points total: 5-0 Lynx	Surprisingly half decent renditions from the original, I was pretty impressed by the GB's ability to retain such close tunes, which is more than can be said of its older brothers version! (GBC)
SFX
	As with the music, the sound effects are all very good, though not all effects are accurate with the odd beep sounding out of place, but the splats and sampled speech are all here, top stuff. Running points total: 6-0 Lynx	Again pretty poor sound effects all round here, just very basic beeps, and a feeling sorry for itself buzz when a Lemming died! I think most of the memory was saved for the music during the game!
Controls
	While the Lynx doesn't have the best D-Pad in the world, the controls aren't too bad overall. 'A' being the action button and 'B' bringing up the Lemming select screen which also pauses the action, the cursor moves around at a decent speed and it's all still very playable.	I remember playing this version all those years ago and completing all the levels, so as you would expect I have no problems with these controls, with a better D-Pad the GB versions takes a rare point. Running points total: 6-1 Lynx
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 40 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1993) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: Lynx D-Pad Uppers: Graphics/Sound	Max Lemmings: 14 Levels: 100 Price Machine was when game released: £69 (1993) RRP of game: £24.99 Downers: Hard to see sometimes. Uppers: Music

Lemmie's Final Thought!

Both versions are good with what hardware they had available, though those who have read the above will no doubt know which way the decision has gone, for starters the Lynx version has the better graphics, sound and animation, which always helps, but might not be the deciding factor if the controls totally ruin the game, thankfully both versions are playable enough even on small screens, the Lynx gets another point for having more Lemmings on screen 40 compared to only 14 on the Gameboy, and another for more levels, whilst the Gameboy gets a consolation point for being cheaper.

Result: Lynx 8-2 Gameboy

Another easy win here in the Semi's, but with harder competition in the final to come!

Handheld Semi-Final 2 Winner - Atari Lynx

8-Bit Final

2009-05-10T18:54:00.000+01:00

Here it is, the final of the 8-bit comparisons to find the best version of the lower end of the machine world, a couple of shock knock out's leave's us with Sega's baby the Master System console and Alan 'you're fired!' Sugar's Amstrad CPC computer, who will win, who should win? find out below, and tell us what your favourite version was! Oh the same comment's aren't repeated from the previous rounds, more of a point's scoring session in the finals.

8-Bit Final - Sega Master System Vs Amstrad CPC

Contenders ----------->	Sega Master System	Amstrad CPC
Graphics
Title screen	It's very cartoony and the music is pretty annoying so the point goes to the CPC version.	Keeping more to the original title screen but no intro, still closer to the original. 0-1
Menu screen	Keeping to the original, no sound options though, but still the better menu screen. 1-1	The CPC version just has a text menu screen so it's an easy point scored for the MS version
In-Game Graphics	The MS bkgds are more detailed, colourful and scroll more smoothly than the CPC. 2-1	Smaller screen size, though graphically still good, the MS version beats it.
Animations	Very nice animations, and sprites are spot on to the originals in shape and colour. 3-1	There are a few problems, note dodgy walk and fall animations, so again a win for the MS.
Music
	Forgetting the dodgy title tune!, the MS tunes are great, really pushing the sound chip. 4-1	Closer call this one, although they are good with close versions of the originals, the MS just pips it.
SFX
	Has the sampled 'oh no!' and 'lets go' that the CPC doesn't, the other SFX are about on par. 5-1	On par with the MS version with the normal beeps etc, but no sampled speech loses the point.
Controls
	Very easy to control, cursor movement is fast and scrolling too, the MS version had it all. 6-1	Again nothing bad, but against a faster cursor, scroll and easier controls it didn't stand a chance!
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1992) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: More Expensive/Title Music! Uppers: Everything!	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 100 Price Machine was when game released: £Dis (1992) RRP of game: £15.99 Tape / £15.99 Disk Downers: Animations/Load Times/Menu Uppers: Cheaper/Title Screen

Lemmie's Final Thought!

Both versions have a maximum 20 Lemmings on screen so no points gained for either there, the Master System pips the CPC by having 20 more levels, and the game on cartridge of course loads alot quicker than tape of disk but on the other hand is half the price, so 8-2, a resounding victory for the Sega Master System, but this doesn't mean the CPC version was bad, far from it, It's just the MS done everything better, showing that there was plenty of life in the old dog in 1992!

8-Bit Final Winner - Sega Master System! - Unofficially the best 8-Bit version of Lemmings!

8-Bit Semi Final 2 - Spectrum Vs CPC Vs C64

2009-05-10T11:04:00.001+01:00

This second Semi-Final of the 8-bit's going up against each other on our comparisons to see what version is the best, here's the final three contenders;

8 Bit - Semi Final 2 - Spectrum Vs Amstrad CPC Vs C64

Contenders ----------->	Sinclair Spectrum	Amstrad CPC	Commodore 64
Graphics
Title screen	The Speccy version doesn't contain either a intro or title screen, instead you are taken straight to the menu screen after loading.	Nice use of the CPC hardware for the title screen, though not quite as good as the C64 screen, also front mountains are wrong colour!	This is the closest of the 8-bit versions to the original, with a full range of colours used. The C64 also amazingly includes the intro!
Menu screen	The Spectrum also has no menu screen at all! Instead straight from the title screen you start to load up level 1 from the fun levels.	The CPC version has no proper menu screen opting for a rather boring option screen of text only, at least the keys could be defined!	Again the closest to the Amiga original here, but that wasn't hard as the competition didn't even put out a comparison main screen!
In-Game Graphics	Considering the limitations of the hardware the backgrounds are pretty detailed, and it's easy to tell which level is which from the originals.	Selection bar and backgrounds are alot more colourful than the other two, also screen size has been cut a little but nowhere as drastic as the C64 version.	Screen size has been cut down both sides to keep the speed up, it's very annoying as you need to see further than the screen allows on some levels.
Animations	This is where the biggest shock came, amazingly the animation is very close to the original, fast and smooth and the BEST of any of the three here!	Animations on the CPC are decent enough, the odd mishaped looking Lemming and funny walk but nothing terrible, still better better than the C64.	The C64 version the Lemmings look like they are skipping a beat and missing quite a few frames of animation, certainly the worst of this bunch.
Music
	Well not much to write here as due to lack of memory there is no in-game music, (Edit: 128K version gets 1 tune!) but at least there is a decent rendition tune on the menu screen.	Unlike the Speccy version the CPC version has music in-game, also surprisingly it's also very good with close versions of the originals.	The C64 version also has music in-game, and as you would expect from the SID chip inside the C64, they are very good, probably just winning out.
SFX
	Again we should just be grateful they crammed the game onto a Spectrum! But excuses aside, the SFX is pretty non-existent, the odd beep here & there.	Nothing amazing about the SFX, few beeps, splats and other twangs, but they do the job well enough, though there is no sampled speech on here.	Again the C64 has an advantage in any audio department thanks to the SID chip, the SFX in this version are good, but not great, again no sampled speech.
Controls
	Control is via either keyboard or joystick with keys still need to select abilities, cursor movement is fairly fast and not at all a hinderance.	Control again is either via keyboard or combo of joystick/keyboard, the cursor is about the same speed as the Speccy version so no problems.	Same again, but it comes down to which cursor and scrolling is fast and smooth enough to target the Lemmings, and the C64 version is the fastest of the three.
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 60 Price Machine was when game released: £Discontinued (1991) RRP of game: £12.99 Downers: Only 60 Levels Uppers: Great animations.	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 100 Price Machine was when game released: £Discontinued (1992) RRP of game: £15.99 T / £15.99 D Downers: Some of the animations. Uppers: Good graphics and sound.	Max Lemmings: 100 Levels: 100 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1993) RRP of game: £12.99 T / £15.99 D Downers: Small screen size/Colours Uppers: Great music and SFX.

Lemmie's Final Thought!

When you take all the facts into consideration, price, hardware, music, graphics, controls etc, It's the Amstrad CPC version that I feel is best version of the three above, while the Spectrum is great considering the lack of power under it's hood, it lacks any music in-game and of course lacks any colour compared to the other two versions, the C64 version plays similar to the other two, and has the best music and SFX, but looks washed out, has a smaller visible screen which hurts gameplay alot, while the CPC feels and looks the best of the three, it might not have the smooth animations of the Speccy version, but overall it wins out to win this semi-final!

8-Bit Semi Final 2 Winner - Amstrad CPC!

8-Bit Semi Final 1 - NES Vs Master System Vs Sam Coupe

2009-05-05T22:34:00.001+01:00

This week we have the 8-bit's going up against each other on our comparisons to see what version is the best, the 8-bits are split into two semi-finals, first up;

8 Bit - Semi Final 1 - NES Vs Master System Vs Sam Coupe

Contenders ----------->	NES	Master System	Sam Coupe
Graphics
Title screen	The NES version plainly didn't want to stick to the original Intro and had a Lemming chipping out their name in stone then loosing balance and falling!	Trying to give the game a wider audience in the console market, the MS title screen is more aimed at kids, even the weird little Lemmie looks bemused!	This is the closest to the original title screen out of the three here, shame FRED Publishing had to slap their logo on here instead of the menu screen!
Menu Screen	The NES version has a nice crisp main logo and bright colourful logos for the options, impressive for the NES and the best 8-bit console version.	Going for different look, nice and clean, it works ok, though the Master System version doesnt give you the option to choose audio options.	Again the closest to the Amiga original, nice big bold icons and Lemmings banner, which make the Sam Coupe version the best of the three here.
In-Game Graphics	Considering the limitations of the NES hardware the in-game graphics are colourful, though the selection bar has had to be cut down and the text is basic.	Bottom bar is alot better than the NES version keeping its full colour, the font is also closer to the original, while the backgrounds are sharp and colourful.	Screen has been cut down both sides to keep the speed up, the in-game backgrounds are the best of this bunch, scrolling is slow and juddery though.
Animations	While the graphics are decent the animations have suffered, with smaller than average Lemmings that waddle along more like penguins!	Animations are alot better than the cut down NES version, though not quite up there with the Sam Coupe version, but not far off, it hold it's own nicely.	Animations are top notch, with most if not all the originals are included here, though the odd frame or two look missing but still very impressive.
Music
	Faithful tunes from the original, though the NES chip tunes do kind of hurt your ears after a while with their 'screechy' output, not bad, but not good!	There is a cheesey little number when you complete a level, but quickly forgetting that, the MS tunes are great, easily the best out of these three.	Oh dear, what can only be described as the Sam Coupe's downfall...what little original tunes there are are very tinny, while the new tunes are just plain bad.
SFX
	Very poor in the SFX department, only a couple of beep make up all the effects in the game. Hard to think which is worse this or the Sam Coupe version!	Compared to the other two versions this didn't have alot to do to win this section! Has the sampled 'oh no!' and 'lets go' that the other two versions don't have.	Very disappointing on the sfx front, no sampled speech, and the only noise of such is on the builder Lemming's last 3 bricks! Probably the worst version for SFX!
Controls
	Easy to control as you would expect from a console game, cursor is slower and harder to aim than the Master System version though.	This version is quicker and smoother to control the cursor than the NES one, meaning more accurate and easier Lem controls.	Control is via keyboard, it's ok, but against a joypad keys aren't as fast, the cursor could have done with being a little faster as well.
Overall
Other Details:	Max Lemmings: 14 Levels: 100 Price Machine was when game released: £79 (1993) RRP of game: £39.99 Downers: 20 missing levels. Uppers: Good graphics.	Max Lemmings: 20 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £99 (1992) RRP of game: £29.99 Downers: Cheesy Intro! Uppers: Great gfx and controls.	Max Lemmings: 50 Levels: 120 Price Machine was when game released: £199 (1993) RRP of game: £19.99 Downers: Naff music and sfx. Uppers: Top gfx and animation.

Lemmie's Final Thought!

When you take all the facts into consideration, price, hardware, music, graphics, controls etc, I believe the Sega Master System version is the best version of the three above, where as the Sam Coupe has the best graphics and more on-screen Lemmings, it's the sound and music along with dodgy scrolling that lets it down badly, the NES version is similar to the MS version, but gets pipped by better sound and graphics, while the MS version also has the full compliment of 120 levels from the original.

8-Bit Semi Final 1 Winner - Sega Master System!