AtariX

The Xbox 2 or Xbox Next is already in developement. The Xbox is the number two console in the US, Europe, Australia and Asia(not including Japan). It is estimated that the Xbox will take over the number two spot worldwide, sometime this year. Over 2 million copies of Halo have been sold and by the end of 2003, when you include the PC and MAC sales of the game, it should hit the 3 million mark. I think that qualifies Halo as a mega-hit. Splinter Cell, Project Gotham Racing and Dead or Alive 3 have also sold over a million copies. Microsoft just announced that they have 450,000 Xbox Live subscribers. Microsoft also recently bought Rare from Nintendo. The rumor is that they are about to buy Bioware. Microsoft wouldn't be spending all this money if they were going to get out of the console race anytime soon. Let's not forget that Microsoft has a very profitable PC gaming division. My whole point, Microsoft is here to stay in the video game buisness. Weather they acheive Atari 2600, NES, Gameboy or PS1 type dominance or not, is yet to be seen.

Ze_ro, I agree that Golden Sun is one big snooze fest. GS is very linear and has very little interaction. No mater what you answer in conversations in GS, the outcome is always the same. It has a very cookie cutter coming of age type story and the cutesie love interest that never goes anywhere, that has been used to death in numerous Japanese RPG's. Like other people have said, try some other Japanese RPG's that are really good. Sega has some great RPG's if you own a Genny, Saturn or Dreamcast. The Shinning Force series, Phantasy Star series, Phantasy Star Online, Shenmue series, etc. Most of the western style RPG talent is on PC's, not on consoles. That seems to be changing if you own an Xbox though. The Xbox has some good western style RPG's already out and more in the future. Morrowind and Balder's Gate: Dark Alliance are both good. Then you have Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic(Bioware), Sea Dogs II(Bethesda), Dugeons and Dragons Heroes, Sudeki and Fable in the near future. Microsoft is also rumored to be buying the PC RPG masters, Bioware. Then there are the rumored RPG's in the works for the Xbox either based in the Battletech, Shadowrun, Crimson Skies or D&D universes. The info is kinda sketchy at this point, but either Fasa Studio, Bioware, or Rare is working on one or more of the above titles and they might either be a regular RPG or a MMORPG.

Maybe if you didn't come off as such a Nintendo fanboy trying to flame the Jag, then maybe... If you were a true shooter fan, couldn't you like BOTH Starfox and Cybermorph? Why must you be a fanboy and say that one sucks and one is great? To me, they are both great shooters. Cybermorph took 3D shooters to a whole new level, never seen before in a 16-bit console shooter. Diehard Gamefan said it best in their reviews of Cybermorph. "CM has 50 worlds to experience and each level takes intense study to beat. Just imagine a smoother, more detailed Starfox in a real world environment, that's all yours to explore, and you've got Cybermorph..." 98% "I'm a big Starfox fan and this game takes that idea and perspective to an entirely new level...." 98%

Did you get the Atari Anniversary Edition for the GBA yet?

I don't remember Pole Position III. I remember seeing it as Jaguar F1 Challenge, Checkered Flag II, Redline Racing and then finally, Checkered Flag.

LOL That pretty much describes my first experience playing CF, except I tried a few laps. Every turn, BAM! I bought the game in late 95' for $19.95 or something like that, so I didn’t get burned like T-Bird. $69.95, Ouch! Since I had my cool Jag CD to play with and some other good Jag games, CF went on the shelf for a long time. It wasn’t till the late 90's that a topic like this came up in the old Jaguar usenet newsgroup boards that made me pick up CF again. Someone posted a detailed description of how to control the car in CF and I followed that advice and dialed into the controls. Then I could go whole laps and sometimes even a whole race without crashing. I even finished first for a whole season and finished the game. Just like Gunstar said, once you master the controls and start to win races, you realize how horrible the AI for the other cars is in CF. Someone mentioned Checkered Flag 2. There was no sequel to the Jag version in the works. That is what they were calling the Jag version of CF at one time, since it was originally a Lynx game. Anyone remember those cool hi-res pics of CF in magazine previews with the cool looking palm trees and the skyscrapers in the background? That’s the CF I want to play.

That millartime site is a cool video game fanpage. No Jag though. Dave Halverson(editor-in-chief) was initially pumped about the Jag and always gave the system a fair shake in reviews. The system at launch(along with the 3DO), Cybermorph and Tempest 2000 all made the cover of Gamefan(I have them all). Cybermorph was Game of the Month and had a big seven page review and received scores of 99%, 96%, 98% and 98%. This is how they ended the review of Cybermorph, “Atari is back, come pet the cat!”LOL Dave Halverson also mentioned Defender 2000 in a positive way, in a preview of Midway's new Defender in Play magazine. Back on topic. GI usually isn’t that hard in their retro reviews. Club Drive received a 3.25 in a back issue and in that same issue, one of the crapiest 2-D fighters ever, Shaq Fu, received a 1.5. GI even gave some press to Songbird in the retro section once. I guess GI is just trying to be “cool and funny" like EGM and jump on the Jag bashing bandwagon.

It's the gameplay that counts and Virtua Racing has that over the Jag version of Checkered Flag in spades. The Saturn version of Virtua Racing is the one to get, better than the arcade.

Here is a more complete list: January Hardware Sales PS2: 448,000 (-84% over December sales) XBOX: 164,000 (-84%) GCN: 81,000 (-87%) GBA: 266,000 (-88%) Cumulative Installed Base PS2: 16,318,000 XBOX: 4,765,000 GCN: 3,664,000 GBA: 12,159,000 Software Tie Ratio PS2: 6.20 XBOX: 4.87 GCN: 4.82 GBA: 2.78 January Software Sales Rank Title Publisher 1 PS2 THE SIMS Electronic Arts 2 PS2 GRAND THEFT AUTO:VICE Take-Two Interactive 3 PS2 THE GETAWAY Sony 4 PS2 DEVIL MAY CRY 2 Capcom 5 PS2 SOCOM:U.S. NAVY SEALS Sony 6 PS2 DRAGON BALL Z:BUDOKAI Infogrames 7 PS2 MADDEN NFL 2003 Electronic Arts 8 PS2 ATV OFF ROAD FURY 2 Sony 9 XBX DOA: BEACH VOLLEYBALL Tecmo 10 PS2 MORTAL KOMBAT: DEADLY Midway 11 XBX T.CLANCY'S SPLINTER CELL Ubi Soft 12 PS2 T.CLANCYS GHOST RECON Ubi Soft 13 XBX T.CLANCYS GHOST RECON Ubi Soft 14 PS2 LORD OF RINGS: TWO TOWERS Electronic Arts 15 XBX LORD OF RINGS: TWO TOWERS Electronic Arts 16 PS2 KINGDOM HEARTS Electronic Arts 17 XBX PANZER DRAGOON ORTA Sega 18 XBX HALO Microsoft 19 PS2 NBA LIVE 2003 Electronic Arts 20 GBA YU-GI-OH! ETERNAL Konami 21 PS2 WWE: SHUT YOUR MOUTH THQ 22 PS2 BOND 007: NIGHTFIRE Electronic Arts 23 PS2 TIGER WOODS PGA 2003 Electronic Arts 24 GCN LORD OF RINGS: TOWERS Electronic Arts 25 GBA ZELDA: LINK TO PAST Nintendo

I'm with ubersaurus, compared to Halo, Timespliters 2 is just an average game. Graphics, music/SFX, storyline, physics, multiplayer, gameplay, control and enemy AI, they are all better in Halo. IMO, Unreal Championship and Ghost Recon are also better FP Shooters than Timesplitters 2. The only game that the Xbox locks up on and where you get dirty disc errors is Morrowind. That is the fault of the game, not the Xbox. Morrowind is still very playable though and a great RPG.

I don't really understand the point of your post? Most of the games on your list are great games. What kind of games do you like or are you just trying to bash the Xbox? I don't like most Nintendo style games such as Mario, Zelda and their cart racing games, so that is why I didn't own an N64 and do not own a GC. Some people love Nintendo style games though and that is cool. The SNES had some great 3rd Party games though, so I had and loved my SNES. What is the point of your post? Are you just trying to get us to convince you that the reviewers are correct and most of the games on your list are good? What?

The Spanish arcade company you are thinking of is Gaelco. Gaelco made Surf Planet and Radikal Bikers for Atari Games back in the late 90's. I enjoyed those two games, but all I've heard is bad things about Smashing Drive.

Is this a playable demo or a movie?

I had a $20 gift card from BB. Picked up the Xbox version Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance for $29.95, so it only cost me $10. BG:DA is a really good game. Kinda like a Gauntlet type game, but with a better story and way more RPG elements. This is a good pick up for RPG starved Xbox and Gamecube owners and can probably be found for really cheap on the PS2. I used to hate buying used games at BB, because they never had the box or instructions. BB seems to have got their act together, all their used games now have the box and instructions. They even sell a limited selection of new games.

That wasn't the original plan for the game. The game was going to be originaly released in stores, when the Lynx and Atari were still alive. My guess is that it probably would have cost around $49.95 though, which is on the high end for Lynx games. You are correct in your post though, but that was after the Lynx was dead at retail and Telegames released Raiden and Fat Bobby. Telegames set that price, because that is the amount of money they would need to charge per cart if they were only going to sell a couple hundred. After the Jag and Lynx releases didn't sell too well, I think that Telegames decided that it wouldn't be worth it to finish Guardians.

The Xbox is number two in the US, Europe and Australia. The GC is second in Japan. The GC really tanked this holiday season in Europe and Australia. The Xbox has about a million console lead in the US. The Xbox has outsold the GC almost every single month since the two systems launched in the US. In December, Microsoft sold about 1,000,000 Xbox's and Nintendo sold around 600,000 GC's in the US. Third party sales on the GC are also horrible. Sega just announced the they have cancelled all Sega Sports games for the GC. The rumor is, that this is the last year for EA Sports on the GC also. "In addition, third-party publishers continue to fare much better on Xbox. Life-to-date, these partners have sold 56 percent more units on Xbox than they have for GameCube. "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell," from Ubi Soft, is not only the No. 1 Xbox title and No. 4 title overall in the U.S. market, it is now the second-highest selling Xbox title ever in the United States. "Splinter Cell" outsold GameCube's "Metroid" by 19 percent in the first two months of sales." Link(also mentions US and Europe sales: http://www.xboxhero.com/news/news035.htm European sales: http://gamespot.com/gamespot/stories/news/...2909251,00.html UK sales: http://www.xboxgamers.com/newspro/fullnews...041879552,43808, [/url]

LOL at the VCR comment. I would have to say that the Tempest 2k2 and 2k3 remakes are the best. Missile Command 3D is also a solid title. I really like the Centipede remake by Hasbro, it was a fun shoot-em-up. The Dreamcast version is the best, the control is tighter and it is less buggy, when compared to the PC version. For some newer games, Panzer Dragoon Orta and Rygar are great games. The new Ninja Gaiden also looks to be a AAA title.

Some of my fav Atari/Atari Games arcade games over the years. Centipede Millipede Pole Position(Namco) Xevious(Namco) Major Havoc Star Wars Tempest Paperboy Hard Drivin' Race Drivin' Tournament Cyberball(My buddy and I had many a nail bitter sessions, playing agianst other two man teams at the local arcade, back in the day. The competition was intense and the times were fun. Some of the best times I ever had playing video games.) Hydra San Fansisco Rush San Fansisco Rush 2049(won one of those cool Atari Games SF Rush 2049 coins playing this game )

The absolute worst Atari arcade game has to be Cops! It was a FMV peice of crap game based on the TV show. It was released in like 94' or 95' by Atari Games. Totally craptacular! You would drive from one crime scene to the next and have a shootout, all in FMV. It sounds OK, but the gameplay was just terrible.

Midway West hasn't made an arcade game in years. What was the last one, San Fransisco Rush: Alcatraz, San Fransisco Rush: 2049 or Gauntlet: Dark Legacy? Those games are around three years old now and were the last games under the Atari Games label. I guess their last game overall would be Gauntlet: Dark Legacy for the PS2, Xbox and GC. Does anyone know if they had any games in developement? BTW, if there are any Dreamcast owners out there. San Fransisco Rush: 2049 was a really fun game and you could probably pick it up for $10 these days. The home version had way more extra's than the arcade version. The only cappy thing though, is the hidden coins you pick up in the game have the Midway logo on them, instead of the "fuji". That left a bad taste in my mouth.

I would have to agree with T-Bird here. For a Minter type game, I think the Xbox would be the best choice. I'm no hardware guru(just a hardcore gamer), but I always hear that the Xbox is the most advanced when it comes to lighting, particle effects and bump mapping. In Halo, take a Covenant laser gun and shot it at a wall and watch the sparks fly. Tell me that doesn't make you think of T2k or T3k. I always think of how cool a Minter 3D shooter game would be on the Xbox when I see the great sense of speed, bump mapping, blurred motion, explosions and particle effects in games such as Gunvalkyrie, the fire in Crazy Taxi 3, Quantum Redshift and Panzer Dragoon Orta. Just like T-Bird said, Unity will have a snowball chance in hell of selling well in Japan. The only territory where the GC is selling well. The GC just had an OK holiday season in America and a horrible holiday season in Europe and Australia, the three places where Lionhead Studios and Minter can get the most press and has the most fans.

The graphics and music may be slightly better in T3k, but T2k is an overall better game. T2k is just a more fun and an overall more complete and polished game. The webs seem "deeper" in T2k and the warp between levels gives you a greater sense of moving forward through space, instead of just a splash of colors on screen. I also enjoy the bonus levels and the power-up system in T2k better than T3k. A password save and lack of memory card support also hurts T3k.

I gave into the evil of the cheat code and finished beastly mode. On my own though, from start to finish, my highest is level 33, with a score of 560,000 and something. I did get a score of 590, 000 and something once, but only to level 31. Tempest 3000 on the other hand, I haven't put that much time into that game and my highest level is 23.

I just looked in my Atari Lynx folder, an old Atari 8-bit computer 3-ring binder :-). I have those maps, I downloaded them years ago in the early to mid 90's. I got them from an Atari Lynx web page though. It was the best Lynx page ever. I can't remember the name of the site, but I remember it was by the guy who made Lode Runner for the Lynx. If I remember correctly, his house burned down with all his computers and the site ceased to exist. Anyone remember? Anyways, if it wasn't for those maps, I would have never finished Electrocop.

The Atari ST version of Winter Games is even better than the C64 one. The Atari 7800 version of Winter games is way better than the 2600 version. The graphics are almost as good as the C64 version but there is less color. The 7800 version has the opening cerimonies and you can pick your name and your country you represent. The 7800 version gets hit in the music department of course when compared to the computer versions. There is no national anthem music for each country and some of the music and sound effects are not in the events and the music that is there, is ok at best. The 7800 version also doesn't have the trick ski jump, the short and long ice skating programs and the closing cerimonies are missing. Overall though, for the 7800, it is a good game, especially agianst other people.