Atari Jaguar
Jaguar is a home video game console developed by Atari Corporation and released in North America in November 1993. It has a Motorola 68000 CPU and two custom 32-bit coprocessors named Tom and Jerry. Atari marketed it as the world's first 64-bit game system, drawing controversy as some argued that this configuration did not meet the definition of a 64-bit system, but it is a mix of 16, 32, and 64-bit technology. The Jaguar launched with Cybermorph as the pack-in game. A total of 63 licensed games were released for the system prior to its discontinuation in 1996.
Development started in the early 1990s by Flare Technology, which focused on the system after cancellation of the Panther console. The Jaguar became a more important system for Atari after discontinuing Atari ST computers in favor of video games. However, game development was complicated by the complex multi-chip architecture, hardware bugs, and poor programming tools. Underwhelming sales further eroded third-party support.
The Jaguar launched as part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, but like other early fifth generation consoles, it struggled to capture major market share from the dominant last generation consoles, the Genesis and Super NES. Atari attempted to extend the system's lifespan by releasing the Jaguar CD add-on, and emphasizing the Jaguar's price, which was more than less than that of its fifth generation competitors, among them the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation, which both launched in 1995. However, the Jaguar failed to find its niche. Atari internally abandoned the system by the end of that year, liquidating its inventory by 1996. The commercial failure of the Jaguar prompted Atari to leave the console market and restructure itself as a third-party developer. After Hasbro Interactive acquired all of Atari Corporation's properties, it released the Jaguar patents into the public domain in 1999 and declared it an open platform. Since its discontinuation, the Jaguar has gained a cult following, with new games being released for the system by a large homebrew community.
History
Development
Atari Corporation's previous home video game console, the Atari 7800, was released in 1986. It was considered an "also-ran" and far behind rival Nintendo. Around 1989, development began on a new console leveraging technology from Atari ST computers. It was originally named the Super XE, following the XE Game System, and eventually became the Panther using either 16 or 32-bit architecture. Development also began on a more advanced system, codenamed Jaguar.Both the Jaguar and Panther were developed by the members of Flare Technology, a company formed by Martin Brennan and John Mathieson. The team had claimed that they could not only make a console superior to the Genesis or the Super NES, but they could also be cost-effective. Atari was impressed by Flare's work on the Konix Multisystem, and persuaded them to close Flare and form a new company called Flare II, to be funded by Atari.
Work on the Jaguar design progressed faster than expected, so Atari canceled the Panther project in 1991 to focus on the more promising Jaguar. Rumors were already circulating of a 1992 launch and its 32-bit or even 64-bit architecture. By this time, the Atari ST had long been surpassed in popularity by the Amiga, and Atari and Commodore became victims of Wintel, which became the dominant computer platform. Atari's support for its legacy 8-bit products was canceled to fully focus on developing the Jaguar, and ST computers were canceled during the Jaguar's release in 1993.
The Jaguar was unveiled in August 1993 at the Chicago Consumer Electronics Show, and was later showcased during CES 1994 and 1995.
Launch
The Jaguar was launched on November 23, 1993, at, under a manufacturing deal with IBM. The system was initially available only in the test markets of New York City and San Francisco, with the slogan "Get bit by Jaguar", claiming superiority over competing 16-bit and 32-bit systems. During this test launch, Atari sold all units hoping it would rally support for the system. A nationwide release followed six months later, in early 1994. The Jaguar struggled to attain a substantial user base. Atari reported shipping 17,000 units as part of the test market in 1993. By the end of 1994, it reported that it had sold approximately 100,000 units.Computer Gaming World wrote in January 1994 that the Jaguar was "a great machine in search of a developer/customer base", as Atari had to "overcome the stigma of its name ". Atari had "ventured late into third-party software support" for the Jaguar, but competing console 3DO's "18 month public relations blitz" resulted in "an avalanche of software support". The small size and poor quality of the Jaguar's game library became the most commonly cited reason for tepid adoption, because early releases like Trevor McFur in the Crescent Galaxy, Raiden, and Evolution: Dino Dudes also received poor reviews, the latter two for failing to take full advantage of the Jaguar's hardware. Jaguar eventually earned praise with games such as Tempest 2000, Doom, and Wolfenstein 3D. The most successful game during the Jaguar's first year was Alien vs. Predator. However, these occasional successes were seen as insufficient while the Jaguar's competitors were receiving a continual stream of critically acclaimed software; GamePro concluded its rave review of Alien vs. Predator by remarking "If Atari can turn out a dozen more games like AvP, Jaguar owners could truly rest easy and enjoy their purchase." Next Generation commented that "thus far, Atari has spectacularly failed to deliver on the software side, leaving many to question the actual quality and capability of the hardware. With only one or two exceptions – Tempest 2000 is cited most frequently – there have just been no truly great games for the Jaguar up to now." It further noted that though Atari is well known by older gamers, the company had much less overall brand recognition than Sega, Sony, Nintendo, or even The 3DO Company. However, they argued that with its low price point, the Jaguar might still compete if Atari could improve the software situation.
In Japan, Mumin Corporation distributed the console rather than Atari Japan. Starting in December 1994, Mumin sold the Jaguar at 25 Toys "R" Us locations bundled with Alien vs Predator. Sales were poor against the Sega Saturn and PlayStation.
Bit count controversy
Atari tried to downplay competing consoles by proclaiming the Jaguar was the only "64-bit" system; in its marketing in the American market the company used the tagline "Do the math!", in reference to the 64 number. This claim is questioned by some, because the Motorola 68000 CPU and the Tom and Jerry coprocessors execute 32-bit instruction sets. Atari's reasoning that the 32-bit Tom and Jerry chips work in tandem to add up to a 64-bit system was ridiculed in a mini-editorial by Electronic Gaming Monthly, which commented that "If Sega did the math for the Sega Saturn the way Atari did the math for their 64-bit Jaguar system, the Sega Saturn would be a 112-bit monster of a machine." Next Generation, in a mostly negative review of the Jaguar, maintained that it is a true 64-bit system, because the data path from the DRAM to the CPU and Tom and Jerry chips is 64 bits wide. Today, some argue that the Jaguar is a true 64-bit system, due to the data path from the DRAM to the Tom and Jerry chips being 64 bits wide, and the Object and Blitter processors contained inside the Tom chip being 64-bit RISC architecture.Arrival of Saturn and PlayStation
In early 1995, Atari announced that it had dropped the price of the Jaguar to, to be more competitive. Atari ran infomercials with enthusiastic salesmen touting the game system for most of 1995, but did not sell the remaining stock. The major shortcoming of presenting the Jaguar as the low-cost next-generation system was that the Jaguar did not measure up to the other next-generation systems in other respects, and consumers who were simply looking for an inexpensive video game console favored the Super NES and Genesis, since in addition to having a massive selection of games, they were priced at less than $100.In a 1995 interview with Next Generation, CEO Sam Tramiel declared the Jaguar at least as powerful than the newly launched Saturn, and slightly weaker than the upcoming PlayStation. Next Generation received a deluge of letters in response to Tramiel's comments, particularly his threat to bring Sony to court for price dumping if the PlayStation entered the U.S. market at a retail price below $300. Many readers found this threat hollow and hypocritical, since Tramiel noted in the same interview that Atari was selling the Jaguar at a loss. The editor responded that price dumping does not have to do with a product being priced below cost, but its being priced much lower in one country than anotherwhich, as Tramiel said, is illegal. Tramiel and Next Generation agreed that the PlayStation's Japanese price converts to approximately $500. His remark, that the small number of third party Jaguar games was good for Atari's profitability, angered Jaguar owners already frustrated at the small library.
Atari's 1995 annual report noted: In addition, Atari had severely limited financial resources, and so could not create the level of marketing which has historically backed successful gaming consoles.
Decline
Figures from the NPD Group showed that at the end of year 1995, the Jaguar had statistically a share of zero percent of the "sold through" units in the 32-bit market, which was also lower than the one percent held by its struggling rival 3DO.By November 1995, mass layoffs and insider statements were fueling journalistic speculation that Atari had ceased both development and manufacturing for the Jaguar and was simply trying to sell off existing stock before exiting the video game industry. Although Atari continued to deny these theories going into 1996, core Jaguar developers such as High Voltage Software and Beyond Games stated that they were no longer receiving communications from Atari regarding future Jaguar projects.
In its 10-K405 SEC Filing, filed April 12, 1996, Atari informed stockholders that its revenues had declined by more than half, from $38.7 million in 1994 to $14.6 million in 1995, then gave them the news on the truly dire nature of the Jaguar:
The filing confirmed that Atari had abandoned the Jaguar in November 1995 and in the subsequent months was concerned chiefly with liquidating its inventory of Jaguar products. On April 8, 1996, Atari Corporation agreed to merge with JTS, Inc. in a reverse takeover, thus forming JTS Corporation. The merger was finalized on July 30.
After the merger, the bulk of Jaguar inventory remained unsold and was finally moved out to Tiger Software, a private liquidator, on December 23, 1996. On March 13, 1998, JTS sold the Atari name and properties to Hasbro Interactive. Telegames continued to publish games for the Jaguar after it was discontinued, and for a time was the only company to do so.
After Hasbro Interactive acquired all of Atari Corporation's properties, on May 14, 1999, Hasbro Interactive announced that it had released all Jaguar patents to the public domain, declaring it an open platform, and enabling extensive homebrew development without licensing or fees. Following the announcement, Songbird Productions joined Telegames in releasing unfinished Jaguar games alongside new games to satisfy the cult following. Hasbro Interactive, along with all the Atari properties, was sold to Infogrames on January 29, 2001.
In the United Kingdom in 2001, Telegames and retailer Game made a deal to bring the Jaguar to Game's retail outlets. It was initially sold for £29.99 new and software ranged between £9.99 for more common games such as Doom and Ruiner Pinball and £39.99 for rarer releases such as Defender 2000 and Checkered Flag. The machine had a presence in the stores until 2007, when remaining consoles were sold off for £9.99 and games were sold for as low as 97p.
In 2022, the compilation Atari 50 was released with a collection of Jaguar games, as one of the first instances of Jaguar software being officially re-released by Atari. Due to the unique design of the original Jaguar controller, the games feature reworked control layouts to allow them to work with modern hardware.