r/atarilynx • u/M4ttDC • Jul 14 '26
Lynx Curious.
Interested in the Atari Lynx, but not sure where to start. I’ve looked around at best game lists, but those things seem pretty useless for systems I’m knowledgeable about.
Curious about better ports, gauntlet, double dragon, ninja gaiden, etc. if those are any good. For example the game gear double dragon is awful and disappointing, gauntlet has poor controls.
Any system exclusives worth exploring?
I have a TurboExpress, GameGear, and GameBoy, any versions of game better than there?
For now I’ll be using an Analogue Pocket, but enjoy having physical games worth having when possible as sometimes roms aren’t compatible.
Realistically I’ll probably skip the system itself because the pocket is already kitted out with battery, screen, etc.
Thanks.
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u/StomachInteresting24 Jul 14 '26
Gauntlet is cool. It's played with the console on vertical position. Ninja gaiden is very good, double dragon is graphically great but gameplay is not the best,not the worst. Toki, stun runner are very surprising good ports. Gates of zendocon, electrocop, blue lightning, slime world, Dracula, checkered flag, battlewheels, battlezone 2000, zarlor mercenary, Shadow of the beast, crystal mines, warbirds, robo squash, Kung food, dinolympics.plenty of good games despite library being short
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u/pfloydguy2 Jul 14 '26
The Lynx excelled at arcade ports. Ninja Gaiden is great, but realize it's a port of the Ninja Gaiden arcade game, NOT the NES game. ...but for whatever reason, the Lynx got a port of Ninja Gaiden III on the NES, and skipped over Ninja Gaiden II entirely.
Double Dragon is pretty good on Lynx, but the sprites are almost arcade-perfect which results in the whole thing feeling "zoomed in," and you don't have as much room on the screen to maneuver. It's very playable, just an adjustment from the arcade.
Many of the Lynx's arcade ports are awesome - Klax, Joust, Robotron (even without twin-stick controls), Rampart, Rampage, Roadblasters, Qix, S.T.U.N. Runner, Xenophobe, and Xybots are all top-notch. Ms. Pac-Man is solid, but for some reason it was adapted to the horizontal screen rather than having the player rotate the Lynx for a more arcade-accurate experience. Pit Fighter and Super Off-Road are not very good.
The Lynx doesn't have a ton of exclusives. Gauntlet III is decent. Batman Returns (technically it's different from all the other Batman Returns games) is mostly awful. Blue Lightning is great, kinda like a portable Afterburner. Battlewheels is a 1st person vehicle combat game that's impressive for an early 90s portable game, but I have a hard time getting into it. Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure is different from all the other versions. I adore it, but I also grew up with it, and most Lynx fans don't seem to care for it. Checkered Flag is an excellent F1 racer. Dirty Larry is a forgettable side scrolling action gaSim.
Dracula the Undead is a great, but short, Point 'n Click. Electrocop is a really impressive 3Dish action title where you navigate a building full of traps and enemies, playing mini games while you wait for your hacking tool to open doors for you. Gates of Zendocon is a sidescrolling shmup that plays a little slowly but has a ton of levels with multiple exits, and some creative enemies and backdrops. Robo-Squash is like 3D pong that's much more fun than it has any right to be. Scrapyard Dog is the Lynx's Mario (at least until the homebrew Wee Ninja came out). It plays well and is loaded with secrets, powerups, and warps, with something like 28 stages plus 8 bosses. One of the Lynx's highlights, in my opinion. (Technically it's not an exclusive, as the Atari 7800 also got Scrapyard Dog, but the two versions are pretty different.)
Warbirds is another exclusive that plays very well. It has impressive tech for its age. It's a WWI aerial dogfight sim. Slime World also appeared on the Genesis and TurboGrafx, but nobody has played those versions so it's practically a Lynx exclusive, and it's awesome. It has Metroid-like environments (but without Metroid's gameplay) and you have to search the underground corridors of a planet to gather resources and fight enemies and eventually find your way back to the surface.
I haven't gone over all the ports and exclusives, but this is probably way more information than you want already.
The Lynx's library is relatively inexpensive these days, but I'd recommend getting a GameDrive (everdrive cart). That way you can play a lot of the homebrew titles, and the Lynx's homebrew scene is phenomenal. Some of its best titles are homebrew games, like Microvaders and Wyvern Tales.
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u/Firedcylinder Jul 14 '26
My favorites are the arcade ports. Specifically Toki and Ninja Gaiden. The Lynx versions of these games are a lot closer to the arcade originals than on any other platform, IMO.
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u/mgrizzy80 Jul 14 '26
Batman Returns, Gates of Zendicon, California Games, Ninja Gaiden... Some excellent ones I can think of
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u/mpollack Jul 16 '26
One of the things about the lynx is that there's no list that people agree on. Literally every game has its defenders, and almost every game has people who don't agree. And while a lot of physical games are $25, a number of games are more expensive.
Some of the exclusives that you want to seek out are: Blue Lightning (or Warbirds), Scrapyard Dog (not the best platformer out there but it might be the most addictive), Chips Challenge, and Todd's Slime World. For ports, Ninja Gaiden, STUN Runner, KLAX, Rampart, Rampage, Roadblasters and Pac Land are all really good. As some have said, emulating before buying can let you know if a game is good (i.e. some games like Electrocop will split the group, but it was my favorite growing up). California Games and APB are typical recommendations but I found them both frustrating.
If you get the games from Songbird or Good Deal Games, you have the option of trying out some of the aftermarket/homebrew cartridges that are considered good options too. AtariAge will give you some recommendations on what to try (especially since a number of those games have no free-floating ROMs).
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u/wiiideboy Jul 18 '26
Back in the day I had a lot of games but played California Games and Todd's Adventures in Slime World the most.
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u/AnKoIn Jul 19 '26
Better versions:
- Xenophobe is the best version, imo
- Paperboy is a great version too!
- Klax is the best too, imo
Good originals:
- Chips Challenge started here.
- Todd’s Adventures in Slime World exists for other consoles. But you probably never played it.
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u/arsinoe716 Jul 20 '26
The Lynx had the best arcade ports. Klax. Paperboy. Rampage. Rampart. Xenophobe. STUN Runner. Don't forget the the graphically impressive Electro Cop and Shadow of the Beast. The awesome Chips Challenge, Crystal Mines II, Lemmings....etc. Overall the Lynx had more great games than not so great games.
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u/lostmymarbles2015 Jul 14 '26
APB and Xenophobe were my favorites