Amiga Banger Kaboomania Now Available On Multiple Platforms…
I first heard about Kaboomania a while back, and since I’ve always had a soft spot for Dynablaster‑style games, I had to try it on my Amiga CD32. What I didn’t expect was that it would eventually turn into a full‑blown modern release. One moment I’m playing it on classic hardware, and the next I’m suddenly seeing it pop up on PlayStation 5 as well.
A small Amiga curiosity turning into a cross‑platform title — didn’t see that coming.
A Tiny Clip…
I’ve added a few small clips — they look a bit choppy, but don’t worry. The actual gameplay is smooth, so there’s no need to fear low frame rates or anything like that.
KABOOMANIA is basically exactly what you’d expect from a Dynablaster / Bomberman‑style game: up to four players, drop bombs, blow up enemies (or each other), laugh, shout, and repeat. It’s available on a ridiculous number of platforms, including a 32‑color OCS version for the Amiga 500, a 128‑color AGA version, and modern releases on PlayStation, PC, Xbox, and more.
The music is a fun surprise — composed by the almighty Chris Huelsbeck, which instantly gives the game a bit of extra charm.
Content‑wise, the game is absolutely packed. It features 1,000 levels (yes, really), in all sorts of sizes, spread across five themed worlds. In true genre tradition, there’s also a wide selection of weapons hidden behind destructible blocks, ready to surprise both you and your friends — and occasionally blow you up when you least expect it.
A classic formula, executed with enthusiasm, and available pretty much everywhere.
Another Tiny Clip…
Did I have fun playing Kaboomania? Well… on PlayStation 5, not really. The graphics just look too pixelated on a huge modern screen, and that clean, razor‑sharp presentation actually becomes a bit annoying. It loses the charm.
But on the Amiga, running on my 1084S CRT? Completely different story. It looks fantastic — rich colors, beautiful scanlines, and the music somehow sounds better too. The whole experience just clicks in a way the PS5 version doesn’t. Sometimes the old hardware really is the best match for this kind of game.
A Special Style, For A Not So Special Game…
I like the flashy colors and the core mechanics, but I’m not finding myself returning to either the PS5 version or the Amiga version in single-player mode. It’s simply a much better game in multiplayer than it is in single-player. After about 50+ levels, I just ended up putting the controller down — sad but true.
Kaboomania shines when you’re blowing up friends, laughing, and causing chaos together. Alone, the charm fades faster than expected.
In-game graphics look great on CRT, but way too pixelated on OLED / LCD/ LED…
I honestly don’t have much to complain about when it comes to the Amiga version. The only real disappointment is that the CD32 release is basically just the AGA floppy version copy‑pasted over. Normally that’s fine — plenty of CD32 games did exactly that — but with so much effort clearly poured into all these conversions, it’s hard not to wonder why they didn’t go the extra mile for the CD32 edition as well.
A little added polish, a proper CD‑enhanced presentation, or even just some small extras would’ve made it feel like a true CD32 release instead of a straight AGA transplant.
Summary:
A huge yet tiny game — endless replayability if you’ve got friends around, or if you simply enjoy grinding your way through hundreds of levels. Some of the later ones took me close to ten minutes each, and that was only around level 50. It’s not a bad game at all, but don’t expect anything superb. What you can expect is superb fun with friends, and that part it absolutely nails.
Singleplayer? Decent.
Multiplayer? A blast.