A Look At Projekt: Lila Remastered
Visually, the game falls short of what the CD32 is capable of. The backgrounds lack detail, there’s no parallax scrolling, and with only one enemy on-screen at a time, even great artwork wouldn’t have saved it from feeling a bit empty and lifeless.
It’s crazy to think it’s been nearly three years since I first got Projekt: Lila. There were a few reasons I never got around to reviewing it, but the main one was the over-hyped IndieGO! The console that came with it. I really wanted to like the IndieGO!, but I just couldn’t get into it — it was too cumbersome and time-consuming to set up, and honestly, I never really enjoyed using it.
Projekt: Lila was one of the few games released to promote the IndieGO! brand, and I love that they tried to push it like they did. But a machine billed as the ultimate Amiga CD32 emulation system had me expecting it to run all my CDTV and CD32 games out of the box — no hassle. Sadly, that wasn’t the case, and I ended up parking the console for months before I finally returned to it.
The IndieGO! works much better today, thanks to numerous fixes and software updates, but sadly, I lost interest in it long ago. The bright side, however, is that I managed to get my hands on some physical editions of the IndieGO! games. Projekt: Lila is the first one I’ll be writing about, with more to come eventually.
Many moons have since passed, Projekt: Lila has been sitting inside the IndieGO! For years, I finally pulled it out again now and started to test the game on my Amiga CD32 instead of on the IndieGO! And I instantly felt guilty for not doing a review earlier.
Projekt: Lila is an action platformer by the team that brought you the Tales of Gorluth series -AmiWorx Software and they are a very active Amiga developer who uses the Backbone engine/toolkit to craft their games.
ARES released two versions of Projekt: Lila for some reason. I ended up with both, though I can’t quite remember why — most likely because Pascal Papara, the guy behind ARES/IndieGO!, decided to send me both for testing. He’s a genuinely talented and friendly guy with a huge, welcoming energy around him.
The game comes in two different boxes: one is a simple CD single jewel case, possibly an OEM bundle version for the IndieGO!, while the other (the Remaster version?) comes in a DVD-sized case with a manual included.
One thing I can definitely praise about both releases is that they feature proper pressed CDs, not just CD-Rs with a sticker slapped on — well done!
This is the manual included in the DVD-sized case. It’s in full colour, at least, though it feels more like a promotional flyer than a proper manual. According to the item, 500 copies of the Remastered version were produced — I ended up with copy number 114.
The difference between the two versions is finally revealed in the manual. The Remastered version is the only one that actually auto-boots on the Amiga CD32. It also includes a level selection screen — similar to the one in the Gorluth CD32 title — which almost feels like a built-in cheat option for console owners.
The gameplay mechanics in Projekt: Lila are a bit on the weak side. One of the main drawbacks is how repetitive it becomes, mostly due to the simplistic jumping mechanics and the single-weapon system. There’s no way to upgrade or swap weapons, which makes the combat feel rather limited over time.
To complete a level, you’re supposed to eliminate all enemies and collect something they drop called “Ebrains” to unlock the next stage. Oddly enough, I’ve cleared several levels without taking out every enemy, which makes me wonder if I stumbled across a bug or if the level objectives are just a bit inconsistent.
The music, on the other hand, is surprisingly good in some levels. That said, a few tracks do wear thin after looping for too long. Still, there are quite a few tunes included — and even some unused bonus tracks on the CD.
Visually, the game falls short of what the CD32 is capable of. The backgrounds lack detail, there’s no parallax scrolling, and with only one enemy on-screen at a time, even great artwork wouldn’t have saved it from feeling a bit empty and lifeless.
Projekt: Lila feels more like a polished Public Domain (P.D.) game to me. While it’s definitely better than many similar attempts over the years, it still falls short simply because it’s not that fun to play. That makes it hard for me to recommend it — at least from a gameplay perspective.
However, it’s worth noting that the developer behind it has been very active, showing real progress with every release so far. Their upcoming Tales of Gorluth III already looks far better than I first expected, and that alone is reason enough to keep supporting them. Support Amiga developers — let the Amiga shine again!
Oh, and one more thing…
I found an online shop that still sells Projekt: Lila. There might be others, too, if you’re interested in grabbing a copy. Just make sure you don’t overpay — in my opinion, it shouldn’t cost more than around 10 Euros.
👉 Buy Projekt: Lila (Amiga CD32 incl. Remastered CD-ROM)
Still undecided? Check out the video below and see for yourself!
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I was soo disappointed I tried it about 3 times and I have never touched it again..so this was like throwing money out the window…sorry mr. frenchman.. I have to be honest.. 🙁 🙁
Yeah, you ain’t the only one. That said, did you try the Remastered too or?
So sad to hear that. It looks like a missed opportunity