It’s History!…. Again – Amiga Magazines

It’s not often I write about magazines anymore, and after checking the blog, I realized I’ve only covered the topic three times in total. I’ll admit, my passion for magazines has faded over the years—mostly because there’s just nothing left that I actively subscribe to. The one exception is Amiga Future, which I’ve written about twice already. A few years back, I also rescued a decent stash of old mags, hoping to preserve some of that history.

Once again, Facebook groups came to the rescue. People declutter their homes and suddenly post things like, “This is going to the dumpster soon—message me if you’re interested.” It’s a bit of a race, and most of the time, I miss out—someone always seems to get there before me.

But occasionally, I get lucky. My latest find? A small batch of magazines from the late ’80s and early ’90s. It’s not a massive haul, but every issue is from that same golden era across multiple formats. And while it may not be an amazing collection to some, I genuinely cherish it—probably more than most would.

First up in the pile is Dator Magazin, a Swedish publication that started out modestly with a newspaper-style format before gradually evolving into a standard magazine. Over the years, it went through four major design overhauls—the one pictured above represents the second iteration in its visual transformation.

The haul included a total of 10 issues of Dator Magazin: one from the first generation, five from the second, one from the third, and two from the magazine’s final design phase.

Interestingly, the magazine was later revived for a fifth generation—but I haven’t come across any of those yet. To be honest, I haven’t really gone looking either, as that era focused exclusively on PC content, which doesn’t quite interest me the same way.

The condition of these 10 magazines is just what you’d expect from publications that are 25–30 years old. The best part, though, is that they’re all complete—no missing pages or cutouts.

What’s surprising is how well DatorMagazin has stood the test of time in terms of design and layout. They continually refreshed and updated their look, keeping pace with the times.

What’s this then? Commodore Computing International! At first glance, I honestly thought it was Commodore User. I do remember this magazine series, but I must admit I somehow had it mixed up with Commodore User. I suppose that’s what happens when you’ve been away from the Commodore 64 scene for a bit too long.

I’ve got to appreciate how they managed to sneak in Amiga content whenever they had the chance. I especially enjoyed reading their Rocket Ranger review—and interestingly, this isn’t the first time a Cinemaware title pops up in the same article.

Another highlight for me was Soldier of Light. Sure, I agree that both the C64 and Amiga ports could have been better, but I still had fun with them—probably thanks to the music more than anything else.

IC RUN was a Danish C64 and Amiga magazine, and in the lot I picked up there were four issues. One of them is missing its front cover, and it feels like a few pages might be gone as well. I haven’t dug into the full history of the magazine yet, but from what I can tell, it seems to have originally been called RUN before eventually becoming IC RUN. To make things even more interesting, it was also published in several languages.

The magazine had a bit of everything—demoscene coverage, game reviews, plenty of programming articles, and best of all, some excellent tutorials on demoscene effects. Not just dry walls of text either, but genuinely engaging content.

I also came across their King of Chicago review—what a reminder of how great it was to be a gamer in the late ’80s. And yes, I’ll say it again: the C64 version of Buggy Boy was miles better than the Amiga port.

One thing that stood out, though: not a single page in color. I can only assume that came in later issues.

There was also 1 issue of something called Commodore Magazine in the lot. Never seen this one before, an English magazine with a more professional look, well at least on the cover.

Reading old magazines is like time travel for me, and this magazine is no different, so many cool things in this mag here, and I have to say it is the first of the lot that had me really impressed so far. 

Hang on… yes you are correct, the date stamp of the magazine is indeed 1987! now look at this article again, what the hell? 

This is huge, this is internet dating before it even happened…..

Another rarity in the lot was the (very) short-lived Norwegian NORSK DATA MAGASIN, 2 issues of it and both are dated November 1990 although year 1 and year 2… uh, yes i have no idea yet, will have to double check this once i get the time.

NDM was a fairly standard computer magazine—packed with reviews of the latest games, a few “how-to” guides, and perhaps the most important section of all: the swap/buy/sell pages tucked in the back. Looking at those names today is like opening a time capsule, with so many familiar faces from copy parties and the scene back then.

Now I feel like I have to track down every single issue. Adding some of those old contacts on Facebook is a blast—“Hey, remember me from 1990? We swapped games for years!” 😄

Computer Action, 7 issues of the magazine was in the lot that i got and i must admit that these also feels new to me, I can’t remember seeing them in the local newsagents back in the day.

Computer Action was a Danish magazine covering the C64, Amiga, and more. It had a very familiar look and design, and unlike many others at the time, it featured plenty of color pages.

I’m guessing these magazines were only available in Norway through postal orders—or maybe it’s just another detail that’s slipped my mind over the years (yes, I’m definitely getting older…).

Next up is the most well-known Danish magazine in Norway…

16 issues of the well-known Danish Amiga Computer Commodore Magasin were also in the loot. The mag was renamed to “Det Nye Computer” a while later, and it was one of my favourite Amiga mags for many years.

Hugo adverts, demoscene articles, and those peculiar review scores all became something of a trademark for the magazine. I remember getting really frustrated with their reviews more than once, yet for some reason, I still went out and bought nearly every issue the moment it hit the shelves.

I really miss my old collection—especially now that I’ve managed to get my hands on these again.

Here’s another oddity: SOFT TODAY. It looks like it may have been some sort of insert, either in a regular newspaper or perhaps in a magazine like IC RUN.

This lot included five issues of SOFT TODAY, along with a sixth item titled GAME COMMODORE MAGAZIN. I’m totally clueless about this one—it looks very old, smells very old, and feels completely outdated.

Sure, I might not love the design, but OH MY GOD—these six magazines completely transported me back in time. Nearly every game reviewed here was part of my C64 or Amiga collection back in the day.

Star Paws, Afterburner, Thunderblade, Powerdrift, Moonwalker, Super Wonderboy, Stunt Car Racer… what an incredible era it was for home computers.

Say what you will, for us retro lovers, even the “crap” can feel like gold. This magazine may not have been perfect, but it will always be cherished and carefully preserved in my collection.

One issue of the most well-known Amiga magazine, CU Amiga, was also part of the lot.

I already picked up quite a few CU issues last time, but this one was missing—so now my CU Amiga collection for 1990–1992 is almost complete.

CU Amiga had a lovely design, and while there were other magazines from the same era that might have been “better,” I still have to say it was an absolute pleasure to read. The reviews were solid, and the magazine was packed with exclusive pictures—so many pictures, in fact.

The Arcades section was always a standout. Whenever I saw a game featured there, I’d head to the local arcade to see if they’d be getting the machine soon, share pictures with the staff, and just soak it all in. Truly wonderful times!

Amiga Computing, one of the more “serious” focused magazines for the Amiga.

Always loved this mag and maybe one of them I found to be the most consistent over the years, no idea why, but it just felt “special” and a bit more grown-up compared to the others like CU, AF etc.

Amiga Computing always featured unique articles you wouldn’t find anywhere else. And no, it wasn’t just interviews—it focused on real-world applications of the Amiga, showing how it was used for actual work.

For some reason, these articles really fascinated me. It was fun to read about museums, space stations, the movie industry, and other places where Amigas were put to work.

I have to admit, I’ve learned a lot from Amiga Computing over the years, and I still refer back to it even today.

Amiga Format was probably the longest-running Amiga magazine, and I received four issues in this lot. It’s a fantastic magazine, and it’s easy to see why it was so popular back in the day.

AF often stood side by side with CU Amiga in the newsagents, though in the eyes of many readers, it probably deserved the front spot. I always picked up both, but then again, back then I bought nearly every computer magazine that came out each month.

Wonderful adverts in AF, lots of huge screenshots, and maybe best of all were all the previews of upcoming (and sometimes never coming) games.

I’d like to give a big thanks to Jan Fredrik Leversund for giving me this amazing lot—much appreciated, man!

So, what’s next for me? Well, this article is almost a month old now, and since then I’ve scanned every magazine at 600 DPI and uploaded them all to the internet. They’ll eventually appear on Amiga Magazine Rack, but that won’t be the only place—I’ve also discovered a new project that I’ll be supporting (more details on that soon).

Reading old magazines might not be for everyone, but for me, it’s like a proper time machine. If you have any magazines you’d like to part with and want them to go to a safe home, let me know.

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