Captain Spyro Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 This is mainly a topic of curiosity for me that I just couldn't help but post. I have been looking through the "Jaguar vs. 3DO?" topic with much interest, especially seeing that the general consensus of the members here is that both systems are quite equal. With that in mind, how does the Commodore Amiga CD32 look when stacked against the good ole Atari Jaguar? Note, keep in mind that I am not looking for which system is better than the other. Really, that's subjective as my favorite system happens to be the Sega Genesis. All I am looking for is a valid comparison so that I can get a better picture of the CD32's capabilities. I would prefer this to not degenerate into a bash thread, but that can't be helped sometimes. Again, all I am looking for is valid comparisons on the advantages and disadvantages of each system, etc. I would also like to ask would you recommed the Amiga CD32? There is a couple of EBay and I've been considering catching one, but I know next to nothing about the system, or the games for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorf Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 (edited) This is mainly a topic of curiosity for me that I just couldn't help but post. I have been looking through the "Jaguar vs. 3DO?" topic with much interest, especially seeing that the general consensus of the members here is that both systems are quite equal. With that in mind, how does the Commodore Amiga CD32 look when stacked against the good ole Atari Jaguar? Note, keep in mind that I am not looking for which system is better than the other. Really, that's subjective as my favorite system happens to be the Sega Genesis. All I am looking for is a valid comparison so that I can get a better picture of the CD32's capabilities. I would prefer this to not degenerate into a bash thread, but that can't be helped sometimes. Again, all I am looking for is valid comparisons on the advantages and disadvantages of each system, etc. I would also like to ask would you recommed the Amiga CD32? There is a couple of EBay and I've been considering catching one, but I know next to nothing about the system, or the games for it. I know nothing of the machine other than the specs I've read. I can't tell you how it stacks up as a game player but it's not going to out do the 3DO, 32x or the Jaguar in terms of graphics. Even with the Jaguar using the 68k. Its like a beefed up 2D console from what it looks like. I'll see if I can find some other info. At any rate...if you think you will like the system and its game...go for it. Edited July 19, 2007 by Gorf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishsandwich Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 I would love to know this as well. I understand the CD32 is basically an Amiga 1200 computer with a CD drive. The Amiga 1200 will run a very nice version of QUAKE with enough memory but I don't think it's possible on the CD32 due to the limited RAM. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. I don't think the CD32 was ever really pushed to any degree, either. Add it to the stack with the Jag and 32x. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmOneGarand Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 I would love to know this as well. I understand the CD32 is basically an Amiga 1200 computer with a CD drive. The Amiga 1200 will run a very nice version of QUAKE with enough memory but I don't think it's possible on the CD32 due to the limited RAM. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. I don't think the CD32 was ever really pushed to any degree, either. Add it to the stack with the Jag and 32x. Yeah, the quake port is impossible to run on the CD32 for that reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesusc Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 (edited) Ive owned one a few times over the years. It usually only takes me a day or two after I buy them again to figure out why I keep selling them. First off, the controller feels very cheap and chinsy. Until I picked up a Hyperscan controller, I didn't think it would be possible to make one as bad as the CD32. The hardware itself seemed to be pretty hardy. I never had any problems with hardware failure. Games to check out imo are Beneath a Steel Sky, Chaos Engine (aka Soldiers of Fortune on Genesis/Snes), D/Generation, Flink (also released on Sega CD), Last Ninja 3, Pirates Gold (Genesis), Project X, Simon the Sorcerer, Skeleton Crew (Genesis), and Total Carnage (SNES). I'm not a fan of first person shooters, but there were a few available, like Gloom and Alien Breed 3D. General concensus is that they are pretty framey. My biggest gripe is that it doesn't have any real killer apps. Everything is either already available on other hardware, or not good enough to justify a system purchase. With the exception of audio, most of the games aren't any more enhanced over their genesis/snes counterparts. Edited July 19, 2007 by jesusc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Sprite Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 Remember all the posts about the Jag being programmed using the 68k? Repeat, minus 3d textures. Like so... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesusc Posted July 19, 2007 Share Posted July 19, 2007 yeah. Many CD32 users complained that most developers followed the Sega CD model of taking an existing game (in the CD32 case, an old Amiga game), adding some redbook audio and reselling the game without adding anything that would really take advantage of the extra hardware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorf Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 It's not a bad system for what it is but its not a machine I would ever include along with the next gens. Just about every one of those games looks like a crisper Segs Genesis. the 3D stuff looks no better than ST and Amiga 3D 16-256 colors max and very few polies to make up the scene. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feralstorm Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 The CD-32 is a nice inexpensive option to get into Amiga games, as most of the better games were 'shovelwared' to the system, or part of legally dubious collection discs, and the CD-32 itself is compact, powerful enough for games, and can be bought fairly cheap compared to desktop Amiga systems. It's also easy to add a mouse, keyboard, and expansion to turn it into an A1200 equivalent, but THAT'll probably cost way more than the CD32 did. The biggest downside is it's almost a requirement to use a TV/monitor that can accept PAL scanrates, since the majority of CD-32 games come out of Europe, and many switch the system to PAL automatically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Spyro Posted July 20, 2007 Author Share Posted July 20, 2007 I will sayone thing, I've learned ore about the CD32 on this Atari Jaguar-centered board than I have on Wikipedia or any other place. I'm mighty impressed. I appreciate all the comments and any other comments are welcomed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 (edited) Remember all the posts about the Jag being programmed using the 68k? Repeat, minus 3d textures. Like so... Yeah, it looks like a cross between a SNES or Genesis and a NEOGEO. But it DOES look like an interesting system, I'll have to look into it more. I think I might like collecting for it. For 2D games there are a couple to compare directly to the Jaguar, Cannon Fodder and Power Drive ("RALLY" on the Jaguar). Power Drive Rally is clearly superior to Power Drive on the CD32, though Cannon Fodder looks closer, but doesn't seem to have the color depth of the Jaguar version. But there are a lot of FPS and polygon games on the system, that regardless of comparisons, still look interesting. I had no idea there were as many games for the CD32 as there are! Edited July 20, 2007 by Gunstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Spyro Posted July 20, 2007 Author Share Posted July 20, 2007 Remember all the posts about the Jag being programmed using the 68k? Repeat, minus 3d textures. Like so... Yeah, it looks like a cross between a SNES or Genesis and a NEOGEO. But it DOES look like an interesting system, I'll have to look into it more. I think I might like collecting for it. For 2D games there are a couple to compare directly to the Jaguar, Cannon Fodder and Power Drive ("RALLY" on the Jaguar). Power Drive Rally is clearly superior to Power Drive on the CD32, though Cannon Fodder looks closer, but doesn't seem to have the color depth of the Jaguar version. But there are a lot of FPS and polygon games on the system, that regardless of comparisons, still look interesting. I had no idea there were as many games for the CD32 as there are! I also believe Brutal Sports Football is on both the Jaguar and CD32. I found BSF to be highly enjoyable... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Sprite Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JagChris Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 That system looks fairly interesting. Wouldn't mind owning one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorf Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 You've got to be kidding me right? Tell me you are not comparing that with a Jaguar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregory DG Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 You've got to be kidding me right? Tell me you are not comparing that with a Jaguar. Heh, for a split second (back in the day) I thought the CD32 would actually sell better than the Jaguar because it had a bigger library. Turns out the CD32 was a bigger bomb than the Jaguar. And that's saying something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feralstorm Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 The CD-32 bombed in the US, but I was surprised to learn it was a decent (moderate) success in the UK for a time, apparently the top-selling format in the fledgling CD game market then, according to Retro Gamer magazine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorf Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 You've got to be kidding me right? Tell me you are not comparing that with a Jaguar. Heh, for a split second (back in the day) I thought the CD32 would actually sell better than the Jaguar because it had a bigger library. Turns out the CD32 was a bigger bomb than the Jaguar. And that's saying something. Its a really nice machine that came out at a really bad time and the fact that is does 3D at all is rather amazing. However its no Jaguar. It does have a blitter though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari_Owl Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 The Amiga 1200 will run a very nice version of QUAKE with enough memory but I don't think it's possible on the CD32 due to the limited RAM. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. This is a very misleading way of expressing it. The STOCK A1200 will not run Quake at anythng like a playable speed (we're talking MUCH slower than Supercross3D), you really need an accelerator or new CPU so no the CD32 could not do a passable Quake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorf Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 The fact that we are even discussing a Jaguar vs CD32 is beyond laughable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 Yeah, most of those games I have on my Atari Mega STE which is 16-bit, and when I run the hacked versions of those games in 16Mhz mode instead of the original 8Mhz, they run even faster than those games shown in that movie, like Elite and Lotus 2 or 3 or whatever it's showing there. I'm not impressed with it bieng a 32-bit machine compared to my 16-bit Mega STE, but I do still want to get the CD32 regardless...certainly no comparison to the Jaguar, or 3DO, or even the 32X. As a matter of fact, it looks no better than a SNES in that movie. But the pics of the FPS games in the first link make me interested, and the whole uniqueness of the system has my attention. Mainly becuase I think it'd be cool to play all those games I play on my Mega STE on a big TV with a modern controller instead of the old Atari Cx-40 stick or ST mouse, and those cool FPS games I don't have on my Mega STE. But I DO have Zero5 on the Mega STE which is an STE/Falcon game, and it looks and moves much better and faster than Elite does...so I'm still not impressed with the CD32's 32-bitness...but I am impressed with it's library of classic games, some new ones, and being able to play them on a tV on a rare and unique system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DracIsBack Posted July 22, 2007 Share Posted July 22, 2007 My memory is failing me, but wasn't there some kind of a predecessor to the CD32? Was it called CDTV or something like that? Was more pitched as a "multimedia" set top than a game console, if I remember right. But same idea - a CD drive, a remote and an Amiga under the hood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregory DG Posted July 22, 2007 Share Posted July 22, 2007 My memory is failing me, but wasn't there some kind of a predecessor to the CD32? Was it called CDTV or something like that? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev. Rob Posted July 22, 2007 Share Posted July 22, 2007 You've got to be kidding me right? Tell me you are not comparing that with a Jaguar. Heh, for a split second (back in the day) I thought the CD32 would actually sell better than the Jaguar because it had a bigger library. Turns out the CD32 was a bigger bomb than the Jaguar. And that's saying something. It was really a European console, where it did very well until Playstation and Saturn were released. It never saw mass marleting in the US. It's a shame, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sd32 Posted July 23, 2007 Share Posted July 23, 2007 To USA players who own a PAL CD32 (being one myself), what method do you use to play your CD32?. I bought one of those multisystem tvs, that work for PAL and NTSC, but aparently they are only compatible with latin american PAL signals, and i get a black and white image. So i bought one of those converters they sell on EBay, but the video quality was so bad, that i prefer to play it on B/W. I know you can force the system to ntsc setting with the amiga mouse, but that only works for ntsc compatible games. Any recomendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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