There really wasn't any sensible reason to own a Jaguar when the Genesis and SNES were still in their prime with plenty of good games out and many more on the horizon. I just watched the following video and the Jaguar really seems like a big bust:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX9cCegEsDA
The Jaguar is definitely my favorite console that looks like a toilet.
It can't be too worthless, we must average a thread like this every 3 or 4 months. Not bad for a system that had so little impact 20 years ago.
Tempest 2000 and Super Burnout keep the dust off mine.
I had one back in the day and sold it. Now that I'm buying videogames again I contemplate on getting another one but to be brutally honest I don't see myself doing it.
The controller is awful, and there are not many games I'm really interested in. All the homebrews coming out look like they could have been done on a SNES or Genesis.
If there is a single game that catches my attention it's Battlemorph. I really like the idea of total freedom and lots of secrets. Plus it has less of that annoying green bitch.
But is it worth reacquiring a system + CD drive for? That's the question...
Last edited by courtesi1; 03-23-2014 at 08:44 AM.
There really isn't any reason to get a Jaguar anymore. Back in the days, it had great versions of games like Raiden, NBA Jam, and Doom... but all those can be had just as well on other systems. Meanwhile, the marquee Jaguar titles like Tempest 2000, Iron Soldier and Rayman ended up getting ported to PSX and Saturn anyways... so no real point in those.Originally Posted by courtesi1
In the end, all you're really left with are some mediocre odd-duck games like Attack of the Mutant Penguins, Club Drive, and Trevor McFur. If you're a jaded collector looking for something, anything new and interesting, then sure (Hey, I own a CD-i for exactly this reason, so I ain't gonna judge). But if you're looking for a new world of fun games, then look elsewhere. The JagCD is an even worse choice.
Alien vs. Predator is one that most people talk about when they talk about the Jaguar, but the game has aged very poorly. It was awesome back in 1995, but these days you just notice all the design problems.
Personally, I love the controller. It's one of the most comfortable controllers I've used. To each his own, I suppose.The controller is awful
Sure, they could be, but the author didn't choose to make SNES or Genesis versions. I don't really get how the Jaguar has managed to cultivate such a loyal homebrew scene (or how the SNES has totally failed to do so), but there it is.All the homebrews coming out look like they could have been done on a SNES or Genesis.
Are you suggesting the homebrew games are a good reason to own a Jaguar though?
I'm pretty sure they just stripped down the number of voice samples. She'll appear just as often, but say the same thing over and over. At least with the 2MB version, you get some variety in your adulation.In the 1MB of Cybermorph is the green woman completely removed?
Seriously though, learn to fly. Do NOT fly at full speed... it's not that kind of game.
Mostly, they were just too lazy to learn the system. Instead of making a new game that plays to the Jaguar's strengths, they just ported existing Genesis/SNES/Atari ST games hoping for a quick payoff. In most cases, the Jaguar at least had better colour.
In the end, I suppose they made the right choice. Unfortunately, any money/time they invested into serious Jaguar development wouldn't have proven very profitable. Games like Skyhammer and Battlesphere really show what the Jaguar was capable of when programmed by a skilled team, but they were far too late to save the system.
Well, Vid Grid, Myst, Dragon's Lair, Space Ace couldn't have been done on cartridge. Highlander used a lot of video cutscenes (though it could have been done without them), same with Baldies. Primal Rage could have been done on cart, though they'd likely have had to remove a lot of animation to do it. Putting Blue Lightning on CD was completely pointless.I'm wondering also if the CD add-on was even necessary, if the games were even that big that they'd need to be in disc format.
I will say though, the CD music in Battlemorph is excellent.
Don't bother. Get the PSX versions instead, unless you find a great deal on them. Worms on Jaguar is crazy expensive, and has no added content. Raiden Project on PSX includes Raiden II. Missile Command is the only one you can't get anywhere else, but it's an amazingly short game.
--Zero
Neither Iron Soldier game is on the Playstation or Saturn. Playstation got a sequel titled Iron Soldier III ported from the Nuon, but not either Jaguar release.
From my collection of games bought to play, I count several that I'd consider very good that were exclusive. Nothing I'd consider a system seller, but thanks to excellent versions of several releases that did appear elsewhere, I think the console itself is a worthy addition.
The CD attachment is much more questionable. Between their age and their escalating price in recent years, I'd have a difficult time justifying ever recommending that to someone new to the system (Particularly if someone doesn't get Cybermorph since the sequel is widely considered the top release for the CD add-on).
Last edited by Leo_A; 03-28-2014 at 03:57 AM.
Pretty much have to agree with Ze ro about Jaguar not being worth buying nowadays. From the video that I watched that showed all the games that were released, I was only interested in the games he mentioned which got better versions released for other systems like the PS1 and Saturn.
Iron Soldier III on PSX is basically the same game with better graphics and more features. You're not missing out on anything by skipping the original.
--Zero
Well, you have to understand that for somebody who was around in late 1993, and you heard about the Jaguar, this new 64-bit beast, it would be very hard not to be excited about it. Of course, you'd have no idea that the Jaguar isn't really a 64-bit beast at all, and that 90 percent of the software would come from UK development studios that nobody has ever heard of. You didn't know that games would trickle out ever so slowly. You didn't know that huge games like Aliens vs. Predator would continually get delayed.
All of that is "hindsight is 20/20" type stuff.
Still, don't underestimate the power of a game like Cybermorph in November 1993. I was thoroughly blown away by that game when I first got my hands on it. Tons of people will talk shit about Cybermorph nowadays, but I think the vast majority of people that talk shit didn't play that game in 1993 or 1994. People that did, know how amazing that game really was at that particular time. I think a lot of the smack talking about Cybermorph, is that people were expecting it to be like Starfox, and that it would be this space shooter where you're battling aliens on hostile worlds.
Truth is, the game is more of a puzzle game than anything else. It's not trying to be a Starfox game at all. But that was the general expectation. Starfox, but on steroids. When people finally tried the game, and quickly realized that it wasn't Starfox on crack, they immediately cried foul and said the game sucked. It's too bad they didn't judge the game for what it really was. One of the first ever, open world type games, where your ship could basically go anywhere on the surface of these uniquely designed planets.
There are like 50 different levels of that game, to hunt down all the pods that are scattered on the various planets, and it's just basically a puzzle game in the grand scheme of things, but a very good puzzle game, that was pretty groundbreaking at the time.
Yeah, looks like Atari really screwed over gamers back then. I have to admit that the advertising and marketing was great. I mean, who doesn't think a Jaguar is cool and that they advertised the system as being some kind of powerful beast? The only problem is that controller because it looks super ugly and the best developers weren't on board so the system didn't get used to its full potential. Still, the Genesis and SNES were still great consoles but gamers wanted more too soon and got screwed over with things like SEGA CD, Jaguar, 3DO and 32X.
Last edited by GhostDog; 03-23-2014 at 09:26 PM.
In the 1MB of Cybermorph is the green woman completely removed?
I'll always have a soft spot for the system. It was the first obscure console I got when I first started collecting in 1998. I have the boxed console and a boxed CD for it too. It doesn't have a lot of games but there are a few that really count.
If they made a movie out of your top five worst sins, what would it be rated?
Check out my list of trades on GameTZ Link
I would get one to play Zool 2 or Rayman. Zoop's a fun game also. I also like the early FPS's. Still, most games look like they easily coulda been done on the 16 bit consoles. I'm wondering if this is simply bc developers didn't know how to use the tech to its full potential? This happens with consoles, and this was 1993 when it came out, and games like Mario 64 was still 3 years away, which really showed what u can do with 64 bits.
I'm wondering also if the CD add-on was even necessary, if the games were even that big that they'd need to be in disc format.
A Jaguar developer can probably be more specific but from what I could tell from reading their forums is that there were/are a lot of undocumented hardware bugs in the Jag which probably caused them to shy away from using the RISC processors more. Also, I think if you develop a CD game you get less RAM for some reason. It's a difficult console to code for if you want the end product to look 64-bit.
Reproductions????
Ok that's nice that some of you detest the Jaguar. I can actually agree for some part as far as the graphics on certain games. They are in fact pretty terrible, but there's something about this console that just won't die.
Anyways I have a few questions that I'm sure someone on this site can answer. As we know there are a handful of games for the Jaguar that are pretty damn rare. And I've been keeping up with a couple of companies that have reproduced about 10 or 20 copies of these rare games. Well the original games go for anywhere between $1-$200 or more and the reproductions are just a little under that. My question is, are the reproductions worth almost as much as the originals? Does this significantly change the cost and rarity of these games. Yes I know a game is a game but is there really a big difference between the originals and the reproductions?????
What specific games are you talking about? Are you talking about homebrews that got a second run or reproductions of games released at retail? If it's the latter, the reproductions are worth significantly less than the original.
True, here's what Miyamoto said about SNES programming, they just weren't up to it
I have a jaguar with 3 games.
Cybermorph
Chekered Flag
And a soccer game I cant recall right now.
To be honest I got it for free as a non working console. I replaced the rf unit and bam. But I only played Cybemorph that once for like 5 minutes. I do want to hook it back up and start getting games for it. But having a large collection that grows about 8 games a month, keeps me from having intrest in shelved games. I work 7 days a week no days off and saldy the only games I am playing are either new or handheld. The games I really want to get for the Jaguar are
Tempest
Missile Command
Raiden
And Worms.
I will have to agree with most reviews about the controller though. Its more annoying and uncomfortable than all the controllers I have. Other than my secret hate for the standard N64 controller.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote