Summary
In a world where the only difference between one platform’s game and another is whether X makes the character jump or punch, the hardware wars of the 1990s seem pretty exciting. The legacy of theSNES,Game Boy, andGenesisspeak for themselves. The 3DO and CD-I, while ultimately flops, were ambitious and forward-thinking with their online access and multimedia capabilities.
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Then there’s theAtari Jaguar. It was 64-bit as the “Do the math” commercials claimed, but its internal structure was so tricky that developers couldn’t capitalize on it. So, many of the games were either old ports or fell behind the supposedly weaker 32-bit PlayStation in graphics. That’s putting aside the janky CD add-on and chunky controller. But despite its reputation,Atari’s last console still had some great games on it.
8Flashback: The Quest For Identity
Flashbackhit the Jaguar a year before its sequel,Fade to Black, hit the PS1. However,Fade to Blacksuffered from dodgy graphics and rough controls. The originalFlashbackplays as smoothly on the Jaguar as it animates. Inspired by the originalPrince of PersiaandOut of This World, the game follows Conrad B. Hart as he attempts to stop shapeshifting aliens from destroying Earth with some swift thinking and swifter gunshots.
Conrad can protect himself with a temporary shield and fire back with his infinite ammo handgun. But likeother cinematic platformers, he can die from high-enough fall damage, so players have to be careful about their jumps.Flashbackwas released on multiple machines, with the Jaguar port being a good version of the Amiga original. This is a wonder in itself as it was ported by Tiertex, who made the “unofficialStreet Fighter 2”Human Killing Machineand other less-than-great microcomputer games.
7NBA Jam: Tournament Edition
Likewise,NBA Jamhas appeared on multiple platforms from the Game Gear to the Sega CD. However, the updatedNBA Jam: Tournament Editionappeared on the Jaguar…and the SNES, Genesis, 32X, Game Boy, Sega Saturn, and the PS1, where it served as a launch title for Sony’s console in North America. None of which had theMortal Kombatcharacters from early versions of the arcade original, unfortunately.
But it still has all the wild fun of the original game, from the high jumps to the slam dunks,the overenthusiastic announcer (“HE’S ON FIRE!”), and the gameplay that takes a fast and loose approach to basketball. While it lacks Sub-Zero and Scorpion, the Jaguar port still has Al Gore and the Clintons, alongside its own unique character: then-Atari Software Development VP Leonard Tramiel.
6Iron Soldier
Ports are fine, but people could get those games for other systems.Iron Soldierwas a Jaguar-only experience that brought mecha action to the console. Made by Atari Corp themselves, the game is a mech shooter where players have to bring the Iron Fist Corporation down by beating 16 missions. They range from protecting targets from enemy fire and stealing new tech from bases to all-out blasting on the battlefield.
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It all takes place in first-person view via the titular mech’s cockpit. The game is designed around its tank controls while throwing in some nimbler moves like strafing fire and quick looks. It also used the controller’s numeric pad well by assigning different weapons to the numbers. While it wasn’t exactly a looker even back then, the gameplay was fast, fluid, and fun. It even got a sequel,Iron Soldier 2, that was released just before the Jaguar’s support was shut down.
5Rayman
Whether he’s taking center stage inRayman 2: The Great Escape, andRayman Legends, or hanging out with the Rabbids inMario+Rabbids: Sparks of Hope,Raymanhas become one of France’s biggest contributions to gaming, alongside (arguably)inventing survival horrorwithAlone in the Dark. To think his journey all began with a pretty but difficult 2D platformer on the Atari Jaguar.
Most people playedRaymanvia its PS1 or Sega Saturn ports back in the day, but they were both based on the original Jaguar game. There aren’t many significant differences between them either. A few level changes here, and some graphical and audio alterations there. However, the Jaguar version took Rayman’s power-ups away on hit instead of on death. So, if gamers want an even more challenging version of a hard game, JaguarRaymanhas them sorted.
4Wolfenstein 3D
Id Software’s classic shootersWolfenstein 3DandDoomhave been ported to nearly everything in existence, so it’s no surprise they both ended up on the Jaguar. Both play just as fluidly as they do on the PC, but JaguarDoomended up losing a few things in the porting process, like the music. On the other hand, JaguarWolfensteinended up gaining a few improvements to bring it up to date with its infernal counterpart.
While it has fewer textures and sprites than the PC original, it has higher resolution graphics and a silky smooth frame rate. The game also got two new weapons, the Flamethrower and Rocket Launcher, to kill Nazis with. Players could extend their health with treasure, but they and other items got switched around to provide some challenge. With it also being uncensored, Jaguar owners had a strong port ofWolfenstein 3Don their hands.
3BattleSphere
Atari is a famous name in gaming, but that’s all that’s left of the original company. It passed through multiple hands before becoming the alias for the French company Infogrames. Before they bought Atari in 2001, old owners Hasbro Interactive made the Jaguar an open platform for curious developers in 1998. This came in handy for 4Play as, while they started work onBattleSphereback in 1994, it wouldn’t get released until 2000, well after the Jaguar’s death.
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It’s a first-person space combat sim made as a 3D update to the classic gameStar Raiders. It offers seven playable aliens with three types of spaceships each, and a wide variety of modes to test them out in. It even got an updatedGoldedition in 2002 and could support 16-32 players with a LAN connection (and enough cartridges and consoles). If anyone still had a Jaguar at the time,BattleSpherewas the best reason to fire it back up.
2Alien Vs Predator
Even before the two disappointing movies,Alien Vs Predatorcould’ve referred to anything, be they comics, novels,or video games. There was a cult classic arcade brawler by Capcom, a less popular sidescroller on the SNES by Jorudan, and the Jaguar FPS by Rebellion Developments. The latter was released in 1994 to critical acclaim, with many calling it the best game available on the console.
Players can pick one of three playable options: one of the Aliens who’ve overrun the Golgotha base camp, the Colonial Marines sent in to exterminate them, or the Predators looking for a good hunt. Each option plays differently from the other, providing different skills players have to use tactically to get ahead of the others. If finding original Jaguar hardware (or emulators) proves tricky, Shane Ruiz remade the game in Unreal Engine 4 for PC in 2019.
1Tempest 2000
For most players,Alien Vs Predatorwould’ve been the only reason to get an Atari Jaguar. However, there’s a reason why many people call the console the“Tempest 2000machine”. It was made by Jeff Minter and Llamasoft as a remake of the 1980s arcade game. Like that game, players zip across different lanes to blast any enemy that comes their way with their turbo-fire shots and the occasional smart bomb to earn points.
Tempest 2000adds new weapons, a jump to dodge incoming fire, an AI Droid buddy, and Warp Bonus Tokens. If players collect three of them, they’ll get a bonus stage that’ll send them five levels ahead if they beat it. As simple as the game sounds, it had addictive gameplay and inspired many more psychedelic shooters to come. Many of them were made by Llamasoft too, likePolybiusandSpace Giraffe.
