Poor Atari: Failures to the very end.
Written: Jan 10 '05 (Updated Jan 11 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Retro charm, some really great games, and is cheap.
Cons: Bad design, a polygonal nightmare, and too many really bad games.
The Bottom Line: Another lackluster Atari system with loads of crap, but a few good reasons to buy it. Need I say more?
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| dogeymon's Full Review: Atari Jaguar |
The Jaguar was released in limited markets for Christmas of 1993 and has enjoyed only a limited success since. Hitting the market at roughly the same time as the 3DO, it quickly became the second choice of gamers eager to jump up to the next level, having been starving in the 16-bit era for years. The lower price point made it an attractive buy for those not willing to plunk down $700 for the first 3DO's. The original price-point of under $300 combined with Atari's name recognition was just enough to secure a solid niche in the market, but then and even a few years after, the Jaguar never really caught on with the American public.
The Jaguar even tried to prepare for the competition with Sega Saturn and Playstation by releasing in 1995 the add-on CD peripheral, lazily entitled "Jaguar CD". Atari's next-gen gaming machine had stepped up to a more versatile format, promising bigger, more in-depth games. But sadly, that add-on never brought much of anything that gave people a reason to buy it and had even a shorter life-span then the core system itself.
ARE IT'S GRAPHICS ANY GOOD?:
The Jaguar CPU is a very insufficient MC68000, completely tantamount to the Motorolla processor in Sega Genesis. It has two custom-built 64-bit RISC processors and a high speed Blitter GFX chip with hardware support for Z-buffering and Gouraud shading. It has 16 Mbits of RAM memory built in, and a really beautiful True Color palette of 16.7 million colors. Most games for Jaguar, you'll find, are at the very least, very colorful and beautiful to gaze at, which sometimes is the charm about the pathetic little Jaguar. Try to imagine a game system with games that are almost as bad as 2600 games, but with gorgeous photo-realistic backgrounds and really 64-bitish movement.
To appreciate Jaguar, you have to realize that it was basically in competition with 16-bit systems, but is without the storage capabilities, the CPU, or graphics to ever compete with any 32-bit system of the day.
WHAT WENT WRONG WITH IT THEN?:
The reason the Jaguar was hardly popular back then and especially today was due to several problems, most importantly the lack of good software. This was in large part due to the absense of third-party support. There were also problems with the bulky controller and limited storage space of a cartridge-based game system. The controller feels like one of those big radio control pads you see the users play with on Battle Bots. It's comfortable somewhat, but rather huge. The button layout is exactly like the Sega Genesis pad: three buttons (A,B, and C) and with a start button. Well, actually the buttons are "pause" and "option". But the controller also has a numeric keypad just like the phonepad on your touchtone phone (0-9, #, and *). This lead players onto expecting Jaguar to possibly expand to online gameplay or phone-calling in some format. But usually, packed in with most Jaguar games, there's a little slip of plastic that you place over the keypad which labels each key as something to do with the game. No system's done something like this since Intellivision. I've always hated things like this! What happens when these things rip or rust? Built to last? Don't think so.
The Jaguar didn't support any special accessories either. But they did release a 6-button arcade pad, a multi-tap adapter, since the Jaguar only has two controller ports, and an extremely hard to find racing controller.
SO I CAN'T COMPARE THIS SYSTEM TO NINTENDO 64?: HECK NO!!
Don't believe the hyped ads from your old comic books and video game magazines. Yes, it was a 64-bit system, but that wasn't the problem. Technically speaking, the problem was not in the 64bit graphics processor, but rather in the 16bit CPU which powered the system. The system suffered the same problem that Super Nintendo did: really big graphics, but without the proper power to utilize it.
However, the Jaguar DID perform quite a miracle with the phenomenal title "Tempest 2000". If there's one title with graphics that you truly CAN compare to the N64, this one is IT! I will probably have to consider Tempest a true reason to buy a Jaguar, since it's the first and only game I played before I decided to go ahead and buy one myself.
YA KNOW, I'M FINDING THAT ATARI SYSTEMS OFTEN HAVE SMALL GROUPS AND DEDICATED FANS THAT STILL MAKE GAMES FOR THE OLD CLUNKERS. IS THE JAGUAR AMONGST THOSE LUCKY OLD COGGERS?: Well, the Jaguar DOES still have games being made for it, but I wouldn't call it lucky. All the very best games for Jaguar have already been made and are worth tracking down, few of which are Tempest 2000, Rayman, Defender 2000, and Trevor McFur.
There are also websites that still sell the games brand new and accessories as well (www.goatari.com) but for outrageous, high-way prices. Go there and you'll see what I mean. Best place to go is EBAY. Always has been. The Jaguar is relatively cheap today. Even at outlet stores and vintage gaming stores today, it's usually $14-25 for one. I was lucky enough to pay $14 myself. WITH TEMPEST 2000. If your lucky enough to also get yourself a Jaguar CD, definitely go for it. Jaguar CD completes the system.
WAIT, WAIT, WAIT. DIDN'T YOU SAY ABOVE THAT JAGUAR CD DIDN'T MAKE ANY GAME WORTH BUYING IT FOR?: No.
YES YOU DID! YOU SAID JAGUAR CD WASN'T WORTH BUYING: No, I didn't.
WHAT THE FLIPPIN...!? ALRIGHT SCROLL UP REAL QUICK: Ok.
SEE THE SECOND PARAGRAPH OF THE REVIEW?: Oh, yes I said it didn't bring "MUCH" of anything. But that doesn't mean it didn't have ANY reason to buy it. I probably should have mentioned this. Ya see, Jaguar released a game called "Cybermorph" which, at heart, was a really good game (and I should mention now that it's worth getting anyways) which was similar to Starfox and simplistic and a pure joy to play, but the graphics were so pathetic and the control was very tricky that it made Jaguar a laughing stock. On the Jaguar CD, however, they made the sequel called "Battle Morph" and that game really makes good use of the storage space and better graphics of Jaguar CD. Incredible game, I hear from everyone. I've seen pics and video of it and if they aren't deceiving me, I really want to get my hands on a Jaguar CD just for that game alone!
OK, SORRY ABOUT THE ARGUMENT: Don't worry about it.
Well, anyways, what I just want to say about the Jaguar in a nutshell is....no wait, I'll save that for the "The Bottom Line" section. Basically, I'm just gonna say that the Atari Jaguar was pathetic with graphics that didn't compete with 32-bit machines and a good crop of games that were really pathetic. But given the fact that it's now obsolete, not expensive to get ahold of, and DOES have domain over a handful of exclusive titles that are nothing short of incredible and great additions to any Atari fan's game library (and I think any gamer in general, Atari fan or not), the Atari Jaguar is worth getting. Because really, a video game system is only worth getting if the game's are good. Am I right? It all depends if you love Atari. Because this system was their final plea for your approval. A real treat for old Atari 2600 fans who want something with a graphical update of their favorite titles, and it's camp. No doubt. But retro gamers aside, this system will most likely bore anyone to death. I guess it's kind of a toss up. The question is, what kinda gamer ARE you?
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
dogeymon
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Location: San Mateo, CA (USA)
Reviews written: 111
Trusted by: 10 members
About Me:
Choose your words with care, and I won't get riled!
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