Burn Up The Skies! – Jetstrike

Retro gaming is a scene that just won’t quit — and it’s going stronger than ever. It is so strong, in fact, that prices for vintage collectibles are soaring through the roof.

One of the overlooked gems from back in the day is Jetstrike — a game that still flies under the radar for many. It’s a title that remains somewhat obscure, but try finding a copy today, and you’ll quickly discover just how rare (and expensive) it’s become.

Luckily, I picked up these games when they were new. I loved them back then, though in hindsight, I could’ve probably spent my money a bit more wisely since I didn’t really spend much time playing them until several years later.

The Original That Started It All…

Jetstrike was, in many ways, a revolutionary game. But for a long time, it was ignored — often written off as just another side-scrolling flying game in the same vein as Wings of Fury and similar titles.

The original Amiga 500 version saw a decent level of success, yet oddly, it still didn’t seem to gain much traction among players. Undeterred, Shadow Software and Rasputin pushed forward and developed a sequel/follow-up for the Amiga 1200, which was later released for the Amiga CD32 as well.

The OCS /ECS version was packed with features:

• The very uncommon (back then) Hard drive install.
• 40 Different weapon systems
• 40+ Aircraft to fly
• Helicopters and planes
• 100+ campaign missions
• Two-player local multiplayer
• Flawless 50hz multidirectional scrolling

The Sequel, Which Is Not Really A Sequel…

Jetstrike AGA managed to improve on just about every feature from the original version — and while I enjoy all three releases, this one has always been my favorite.

The controls in the Jetstrike games can feel tough and even frustrating at first. But once you get the hang of them, the experience becomes incredibly rewarding and genuinely fun.

The graphics might seem off-putting at a glance — they’re not exactly eye-catching in the traditional sense. But once you grasp the sheer scale and depth of the game, the visuals start to grow on you. It’s one of those titles where the gameplay and ambition quickly outshine the initial impression.

The AGA version is packed with features. Here are some of them:

• 24bit graphics
• New “simple” control system options
• 200+ Campaign missions
• Eight-player local multiplayer
• 60+ different aircrafts
• 60+ weapon systems
• Nukes
• Added a humorous touch to the story.

The Same Game But Different…

The CD32 version of Jetstrike didn’t bring a whole lot of new content to the table — aside from a CDDA soundtrack and a new intro sequence.

Unfortunately, the game also came with some rather lengthy loading times. However, if you were lucky enough to have an SX-1 or a similar expansion with fast RAM, things improved significantly.

That said, the CD-ROM speed was still a bottleneck. I’m not entirely sure whether the CD32 used a 1x or 2x drive, but either way, it felt slow.

Tracking down a boxed CD32 version today is quite the challenge. Most of the big box editions were discontinued due to high production costs, and to make matters worse, Rasputin — the publisher — was facing serious financial trouble.

Back in 2001, I had the chance to meet one of the developers behind the series. That’s when I first learned about the issues they had with Rasputin and why we, sadly, would never see another Jetstrike game on the Amiga.

All Three Boxes In One Shot…

Rasputin had been promising funding since the early days of Jetstrike ECS, all the way back in 1991/1992. But despite the promises, the money never materialized. When discussions began around a sequel and an AGA version, Rasputin once again claimed they’d provide funding — and even back pay for the years prior. Sadly, that never happened either. Very little, if any, money was ever paid out.

At the time, the gaming scene was already struggling, and pursuing legal action simply wasn’t worth the effort. The harsh reality was that many developers were facing similar issues, with little hope for proper compensation.

Rasputin had around a dozen Amiga titles under their belt, but at least two of those never saw the light of day because they weren’t completed. The games that were released were ported across most Amiga platforms, and often quite well — though it’s interesting to note that many, if not all of them were actually developed using AMOS.

It’s a shame to see how respected developers and publishers ended up in such situations. It really highlights just how rough the industry was during that era.

Despite it all, I still hold out hope for a proper sequel to the Jetstrike series. Perhaps even more so, I’d love to see the release of their unpublished flight sim, which was abandoned back in 1995. (You can still find demo footage and videos on Aminet if you’re curious.)

Thanks for reading!

Edit 2025: A pretty good interview with the developer can be found here.