What do you like about the Atari Jaguar?

[Flojomojo]

I was just thinking, if you really wanted one, it wouldn't matter what anyone else thought. If you had to ask, you probably didn't really need one anyway.

 

It's fun and unique and you should try it if you haven't already done so, but ownership doesn't seem necessary in the age of YouTube and unlimited images online.

[LianneJaguar64]

Hoverstrike... really? No, seriously let's here all about this one.

Hover Strike is one of my favourite games? I don't understand why people don't talk about it more... Play it mostly on cart because I don't have a CD Memory Track yet but they both seem to be virtually the same, but the CD one loads and has FMV... That's about it

[AtariORdead]

I like the backstory and the brilliant crazy behind the scene stories. far more entertaining than the machine itself.

 

I also really like that the boxes for the games are the same size as Snes/N64 so I can use the same box protectors.

 

I like that it has some totally batshit crazy fans that White men can't jump is an 8/10 game.

[Kal]

I had a Jaguar in my 20s back in the day. At Uni, I was the guy who everyone wanted to game with. Tempest and AvP were booted up most nights. I went on to get the Jag CD and loved Battlemorph and Highlander. Then fast forward ten years and I had my first kid on the way. We needed space and I had a lot of stuff. I sold My Jag, Jag CD, Virtual Boy, PC Engine GT, PC Engine Duo, Gameboy Pocket and god knows what else with all the games for round about £250. I have regretted it ever since. The thing I regret the most is the Jag CD. I had no idea that only me and 19999 other people bought them back then! Since then- in the 14 years since, I've started to build my collection up again to the point when I bought a Jag again last year. It was £70 and is in great condition. I re-bought Tempest and Missile Command new in box for £30 each. I thought great! Playing Tempest again reminded me of why this console is so special. I'm a Jeff Minter groupie so I also picked up defender 2000 for £45 which again seemed a great price compared to what I've seen around. The Jag was pretty much the last time a genius like Minter could let loose- until Polybius on the PS4 this year.

Then I discovered this place.

Then I learned about the homebrew games.

WHAT?

This stuff is off the charts. In the last three weeks I've bought Rebooteroids, Commando, Badlands and the magnificent Jeff Minter Classics. I have also picked up Battlezone 2000 for £70 from Telegames which isn't bad compared to the crazy prices in the states. In addition to this I got Pitfall and Flashback delivered to the UK from Lukie games for less than £40 each. I'm now obsessed with the homebrew titles- I want them ALL! I love looking at them but what really surprised me was how well something like Badlands plays today. Me and a mate had a blast going through my collection the other night.

The way I look at it is- yes the homebrew games are expensive but look at the love and dedication that goes into these. Plus, their after market value is insane.

So after all that-hell yeah get a Jag man but you may not have the nostalgia I have.

Now I have to save up £500 for a bloody CD unit I sold 10 times less than that 14 years ago!

Edited January 27, 2018 by Kal

[+save2600]

Battlezone 2000? Did you just sneak that in your wall of text, to see if anybody really read all of it?

[+madman]

Battlezone 2000? Did you just sneak that in your wall of text, to see if anybody really read all of it?

Pretty sure he meant Breakout 2000.

[K-Rod 13]

I read that "Battlezone 2000" part as well, the Lynx version is actually pretty cool IMO. I've had my Jaguar for several years and been collecting for it here and there when a good deal or opportunity pops up. It's one of those consoles that I wish to have complete for some reason or another, I'm thinking some may say it's the "oddball" (in a good way) system that no one wanted back then since the N64 was out there and who didn't want one of those? There is no other system like the Jaguar with it's odd shape, it's unusual-looking controllers, games that may or may not have "64 bit graphics" (but that's a matter of opinion) and of course, the Jaguar CD attachment. With all it's "unusual" features, maybe that's why the Jaguar is one of my favorite systems to collect for and play, and with games like "Tempest 2000," "Alien vs. Predator," "Super Burnout," and "Zero 5" to name a few, I don't think it's that bad of a system. Mind you it's not the greatest either but as Kal mentioned, with more homebrews coming out, it will keep me (and my interests) collecting for a while and hopefully some can try out the Jaguar or re-visit it for a bit. (For the right price of course!)

[Eltigro]

Well, one thing is the notoriety. It's kinda funny that when I mention having one, I get one of two responses: 1. "What's that?" 2. "Hey, man, he's got a Jaguar."

[Kal]

Pretty sure he meant Breakout 2000.

Indeed I did ?

[ginoscope]

I have had a Jaguar for a few months now and I have been trying to figure out what it is about the system that I like. One thing that comes to mind is at the time it was new I was all into the Japanese systems so this feels very different. Prior to getting a NES I spent a considerable amount of time playing games on the Commodore 64. I guess in that way the Jaguar reminds me of PC of that era that I never got to experience. I been really happy with my purchase and I also like the community it seems like a very small close group.

 

Standout games for me are doom and Cybermorph. I went into Cybermorph with such low expectations I was honestly surprised that is was not bad at all.

[Cobra Kai]

I have had a Jaguar for a few months now and I have been trying to figure out what it is about the system that I like. One thing that comes to mind is at the time it was new I was all into the Japanese systems so this feels very different. Prior to getting a NES I spent a considerable amount of time playing games on the Commodore 64. I guess in that way the Jaguar reminds me of PC of that era that I never got to experience. I been really happy with my purchase and I also like the community it seems like a very small close group.

 

Standout games for me are doom and Cybermorph. I went into Cybermorph with such low expectations I was honestly surprised that is was not bad at all.

I thought Cybermorph was awesome when I got the Jag on launch day. Not so much now though. It was definitely a different experience for those of us that didn't have a PC. I mean I have to assume that computers had some 3d fly-around games similar to Cybermorph.

[Stage_1_Boss]

Yeah, the Jaguar somehow ties in with things I liked about PC / DOS gaming at the time, or at least my nostalgia for it.

[sd32]

I just like that it is 64-bit, man.

[Stage_1_Boss]

I dunno, with all that JagPowa it's gotta be 65-bits, at least. They were just underselling it to be safe.

[famicommander]

One thing I have noticed is that the Jaguar has fantastic RGB output. Better than my Super Nintendo, Genesis, Saturn, Dreamcast, Omega CMVS, modded NES, Master System, PC Engine, or TG16 (both with the DB Electronics external board).

 

The only system I have with better quality RGB output than the Jaguar is the Neo Geo CD.

[ginoscope]

One thing I have noticed is that the Jaguar has fantastic RGB output. Better than my Super Nintendo, Genesis, Saturn, Dreamcast, Omega CMVS, modded NES, Master System, PC Engine, or TG16 (both with the DB Electronics external board).

 

The only system I have with better quality RGB output than the Jaguar is the Neo Geo CD.

 

I agree the RGB out of the Jaguar is very clear. The text in games especially in menus is really sharp.

[Cobra Kai]

The S-video isn't too shabby either. The Jaguar S-video performs better than any other s-video out through my upscaler. For instance, with SNES, I get some haloing with whites (usually text), that isn't present with the Jaguar.

[PFG 9000]

I just like it because I grew up with it. I saved up money from my summer job and bought it - the first console I ever owned. Many of the games looked amazing for their time, and while they haven't aged well, I still see them the way I did in 1994.

[BassGuitari]

I think the thing I like most about the Jaguar is how exotic and advanced it seemed back in the '90s, along with the likes of the 3DO. Stuff like the Jaguar seemed like the vanguard of the future of videogames, and I suppose in some ways, it was.

 

Unfortunately(?), where I grew up, nobody frickin' had one. That kind of helped cultivate a mystique about the system for me (likewise for 3DO, PCFX, CD32, and other stuff we saw in magazines that may as well not have existed). When I think of the Jaguar, I think of that, and how it was such an exciting time for videogames--how, beyond the confines of our Nintendos and Segas, the future was happening.

 

I wasn't until years later that I discovered I much prefer the Jaguar as that abstract, nostalgic idea rather than as an actual game system.

 

But all things being equal, it does have a few good games, which is more than can be said for a lot of similarly obscure consoles. And there's certainly a uniqueness about the Jaguar and its library that I've always found compelling, even if there's not a whole lot of substance to it (IMO).

[+LS650]

I like the fact that it is the ugly duckling no one loved. Even in its prime it had a lot of haters and doubters, over petty shit like "I don't like the keypad", "it looks like a toilet seat", "shouldn't it look four times better than a 16-bit machine", etc.

To me, the hate makes it just that much more interesting. Who doesn't enjoy a good underdog story?

Edited February 7, 2018 by ls650

[ColecoGamer]

I owned an Atari Jaguar about 12 years ago. My favorite games were Alien vs Predator, Missile Command 3D and Ultra Vortex. What fascinated me about the Jaguar was its untapped potential as a console (it wasnt available long enough for developers to exploit its hardware).

 

I still regret selling my collection, especially after discovering the hombrew scene here. Finding the Atari ST port thread(s) really excited me, especially when I saw the number of quality games ported to the system (i.e. Commando, Gauntlet, etc.). Then I discovered Reboot and their Atari Jaguar releases; Piko Interactive and their games Custodian and Switchblade; and many other releases for sale in the AtariAge store.

 

I would love to purchase another Jaguar, but the prices have risen tenfold on eBay (even on bare units with one controller and all hook ups).

 

But thats okay; Im a patient person who is willing to wait for the right deal to come his way.

 

Edited for spelling.

Edited February 8, 2018 by ColecoGamer

[+LS650]

I think it's shameful that a few unscrupulous resellers on eBay have deliberately driven up the price of the Jaguar to ridiculous levels.

 

Sure, the Jag isn't the most common console and some carts are genuinely rare, but when some asshat has a 'Buy It Now' of £149 for an empty Jag CD box, something is really warped....

[pacman000]

Hey! An empty box could be harder to get than a non-empty box.

[82-T/A]

Man... I want Battlezone 2000....

[Stage_1_Boss]

I think it's shameful that a few unscrupulous resellers on eBay have deliberately driven up the price of the Jaguar to ridiculous levels.

 

While there's a big difference between what items are listed for and what they're selling at, I gotta say that just the gaming interest in general for modern and retro seems to have risen and caused more people to look back and want to own a quirky system like the Jaguar.

The fact that there's now three retro gaming conventions that draw a crowd each year speaks for that in my area at least.