The Jaguar Journal January 1996 The Litter Box --------------- by Jeffrey Norwood Hello everyone. Happy New Year! It's 1996, and so far, there hasn't been a better year! Of course, last year was a very good year for Jaguar owners, with lots of improvement in both quality and the quantity of software released for the system. In this month's Jaguar Journal, the results of the 1995 Year-End Awards will be printed. Within a few weeks, there will be a conference online to present the award winners their respective awards. The Jaguar Journal itself had a spectacular year in 1995. We moved from CatScan BB and Prodigy to CompuServe and the 'Net. We went from an unheard of source of information to a respected source on info, on the same level as Atari Explorer Online and STReport. We came to the Atari Gaming Forum and brightened it up with conferences. And most of all, we found out who the true Atari fans were - the readers of The Jaguar Journal (well, maybe that's a far-fetched statement, but hey!). Why *WE*? First, it's more than just myself. There's my dad, who bought the computer; my friends who actually encouraged me to continue doing this; the employees at EB that give me reasons to yell at them because of their disrespect towards the Jaguar ; but most of all, *WE* includes *YOU*. Without you, there would be no Jaguar Journal. Without you, there may not be an Atari Jaguar! Without you, Sam T. would be lost (isn't he already?). So, thanks to all for a great year. In the January issue of CompuServe Magazine, an article entitled "Jaguar Journal Roars Game Machine's Beat" by Greg Gilliom, and picture of myself (playing AvP) that goes along with it. Finally, on December 31, 1995, appox. 1 hour before the new year, The Jaguar Journal Web Site was launched. There is going to be a lot more work put into it as time goes on, so stay tuned. Here is the address if you'd like to see it on the World Wide Web: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Jeffrey_Norwood I would also like to thank those who help me get reviews of titles in the pages of The Jaguar Journal. Many review on a part-time basis, and I do appreciate it. Thanks. Thanks also goes out to our two advertisers, Gameware Express and Demand Systems, Inc., who will continue to advertise through July (maybe longer). Portions of each Jaguar Journal will be viewable on The Jaguar Journal Web Page. Starting on January 14, portions of The Jaguar Journal Holiday Shopping Guide (December issue of The Jaguar Journal) will be posted, so keep an eye out! Happy New Year everyone! CompuServe Magazine Covers The Jaguar Journal! Recently, a little fame and fortune came the way of Jeffrey Norwood, a kid journalist with a bright future. He was featured in CompuServe Magazine, in an article by Gregor Gilliom. The world- wide magazine (subscription rate of 1.8 million people) covers the happenings on the online service of the same name. Here is the entire article, as it appeared in CompuServe Magazine. CompuServe Magazine January 1996 Page 9 by Gregor Gilliom JAGUAR JOURNAL Prowls the Game Machine's Beat Sixteen-year-old Jeff Norwood hopes to be a journalist someday, so he's cutting his teeth in, of all places, the Atari Gaming Forum area (GO ATARIGAMING). There, he's become the Ted Turner of video-game coverage, heading up publishing projects that include a monthly virtual magazine and frequent conferences with players and industry insiders alike. His JAGUAR JOURNAL -- named for the company's latest game system -- is packed with well-written articles, reviews, and opinions (the compressed text documents have been downloaded hundreds of times), and his 90-minute conferences have drawn members from around the world. "At the last one there were New Englanders, Californians, Canadians, and Europeans," says Jeff. The corporate reps (who have included Atari's director of customer service and several producers of third-party games), Jeff adds, couldn't wait for the next one." For the future, Jeff's planning a JAGUAR JOURNAL World Wide Web sit (when his dad gets a new computer, he says) and wants to get involved with local writing workshops. To download JAGUAR JOURNAL, visit the Atari Gaming Forum area and search the "Atari News/Reviews" library using the keywords JAGUAR JOURNAL. --Gregor Gilliom IT'S COMING! ("I can't wait for the next one!") THE DAY WE WAIT FOR ("What really is the best?") IT'S WORTH DYING FOR! ("Simply unbelievable!") THEY ARE IN THIS ISSUE - BUT NOW, WE GIVE THEM TO THEIR OWNERS. The Jaguar Journal presents The FIRST-EVER Year-End Awards Online Conference In the Atari Gaming Forum Friday, January 19, 1995 Don't Miss Out! 1996 Game Schedule ---------------------- In 1996, Atari plans on publishing 20 titles for the 64-bit Jaguar. The official list is yet to be available; however, here are some of the titles that, from The Jaguar Journal's point-of-view, will be released in 1996. (in no particular order) Iron Soldier II Defender 2000 Baldies NBA Jam: TE Zoop Phase Zero Robinson's Requiem Mortal Kombat III Batman Forever Frank Thomas Baseball X O Man Some of them are third party titles, which are not included in Atari's 20 game plan, because they do not publish 3rd party games. The following was a message posted in the Atari Gaming Forum on CompuServe. At the end, there will be some comments from myself on what this person had to say. My take on the Jaguar... by Joseph E. Moran With all of the discussion regarding the fate of the Jaguar going on, I feel this is a good time to do a post-mortem (or a pre- mortem) of the Jaguar, and analyze the true reasons why it's not going to be the success it very easily could have been. (If anybody cares.) I should warn everybody up front-it's REALLY long. For starters, I'd just like to say that I have been a devout, enthusiastic, Jaguar supporter since the very beginning. In fact, I bought my unit Thanksgiving weekend, 1993. I wouldn't be surprised if I had one of the first dozen units that were shipped to stores. I say this because I want to establish that I'm not an Atari-basher, but rather a Jaguar enthusiast who has made a number of objective observations (many of them quite painful) over the last 27 months. I've been visiting this forum almost the entire time, mostly lurking, and have become familiar with the personalities and the arguments that reside here. The Jaguar is a powerful machine, even when compared to the Saturn and PlayStation. Anyone who reads and understands the technical specs can see that. But, as we all know, a powerful system is only a tiny fraction of what is required to have a successful platform. I could go on almost endlessly about the things Atari has done wrong with regard to the Jaguar. But, to be fair, they didn't do everything wrong. Some things were just out of their control. I give them a great deal of credit for having the courage to get back into the market with a new machine, at the height of the Sega/Nintendo domination of the industry. In my opinion, given Atari's reputation, it was not an insignificant achievement to get the Jaguar into major retailers like Electronics Boutique, Babbage's, Toys R Us, and now Wal-Mart. But, getting the machine in the store is only the first step. What you do after that point determines how successful the system will be. In most regards, Atari's marketing support has been absolutely abysmal. I don't know whether it was lack of funds, lack of smarts, or both, but whatever the reason, the Jaguar never got the support it deserved, and that is why we are all here awash in rumor and innuendo about the Jag's, and perhaps even Atari's demise. From the very beginning, the quality and quantity of games was sorely lacking. There were too few games in the beginning, and even when they picked up the pace, too many of the games were just OK. There are dozens of good games for the Jaguar. Problem is, they could have just as easily been done on the Genesis or Super Nintendo (I refer to games like Theme park, Cannon Fodder, Syndicate, and others.) These are good games, but they're not great. They don't make your jaw drop, make you rub your eyes, and say, WOW! That is precisely what the Jaguar has always needed (and what the Playstation and Saturn, and even SNES to a certain extent, with Donkey Kong Country, have delivered). Every game need not be a showstopper, but some of them must be, and few of them really were. Even games that are universally regarded as the best the Jaguar has to offer to date (Tempest 2000, Iron Soldier, Super Burnout, etc. etc.) can't really compete graphically with most games from Sony and Sega. I know that graphics aren't the only thing to look for in a game, and that gameplay is also important, but let's not kid ourselves-graphics are the most important factor in determining whether most people buy a game, and great graphics really can stimulate word of mouth about a system. Think about it. Ever seen a group of guys saying, "Wow, Bill. Wasn't the gameplay on just amazing?!?" No, of course you don't. Gameplay doesn't sell games. Graphics sell games. (I have eighteen games for the Jaguar, and the only ones I would show to impress my friends would be Ultra Vortek, Rayman, and perhaps Hover Strike CD, though the latters frame rate is pretty bad.) Also, there were several games released for the Jaguar, quite frankly, that should never have been allowed to see the light of day. I refer primarily to Club Drive. With all due respect to the programmers, that game would have been a disgrace on the Atari 7800, and the fact that it was released on the Jaguar only reinforced the notion that what few games the Jag had sucked big time. Other games weren't quite as heinous, but there were just too many mediocre titles for a supposedly advanced, 64-bit system to have. Not every game is going to be a winner (PlayStation and Saturn have there fair share of dogs too) but the percentage of so-so software on the Jag is now, and always has been, too high. I now move to a discussion of the Jaguar CD. This oft- delayed peripheral came out way, way, too late to be of much use. I remember seeing it at CES in January, 1995, and supposedly it was completed several months before that. Why then, was it released in September of 1995, almost a full year after it was done. We were told that it was to allow time for developers to complete a barrage of CD-ROM software and that the CD-ROM drive would be accompanied by a dozen titles from day one (I believe 12 was the figure quoted). So then why were there only two games available 30 days after the CD came out, and why are there now only six CD titles available (aside from the pack-ins, of course) months later? Advertising. Absolutely a must. Atari's advertising has been a mixed bag. They usually did a good job advertising in the game mags (though their ads have practically disappeared over the last few months, adding yet more credence to the "bye-bye Jaguar" rumors), but the television ads could have been a lot better. For starters, there should have been more of them. If I had a nickel for every time I saw a Jaguar ad, I'd have a quarter. In fact, had I not downloaded the QuickTime movies of the ads here in this forum, I would never have seen some of them at all. (I've never seen the infomercial either, and I've been surfing cable for over a month now, at all hours of the day and night.) When I did see ads, they weren't really very compelling, (I'm speaking of the teacher ad from a while back, and the new "light bulb" ad. The AvP ad was great, though.) and certainly weren't as clever as the ads from Atari's competitors. While I realize Atari doesn't have the deep pockets of a Sony, Sega, or Nintendo, there is a saying-"Where there's a will, there's a way". You don't *have* to have a zillion dollars to have a good ad. It helps, but its not an absolute requirement. Atari could have done a lot better in targeting their ads as well. I don't have any scientific data to back this up, but I would venture that a significant percentage of Jaguar owners aren't the stereotypical eighth-grade geek, but rather, mature adults in their early-to-late twenties (like many of us here), who know Atari from the days of the 2600, 5200, and 8-bit computers in the late seventies and early eighties. This would be a valid demographic for Atari to persue, and in my opinion, they have not done so, certainly not as vigorously as they could have. If they had, I would have seen a *lot* more ads. So here we are, in January of 1996, waiting for the other shoe to drop. While I discount all rumor until proven as fact, in the back of my mind, I know (as any rational, sane, and objective person would) that the outlook is indeed bleak. Even if only half of the rumored game development cancellations have actually occurred (AvP2, IS2, FFL, etc.) the Jaguar is going to have more trouble than ever appearing as a credible platform in the cutthroat video game war of 1996. Jag2? Voice modem? VR Headset? All gone. The existence of a Voice Modem and VR headset would be great ways to differentiate the Jaguar from it's peers. But alas, Atari cannot, or will not, make them happen. I have a lot invested in Atari. An Atari 2600 has my first video game, in 1980. A 800 was my first computer, in 1981. I traded up through the Atari line throughout the eighties, from XL, to XE, to ST. I have a 7800, a Lynx, and I almost bought an XE game system. I'm a stockholder. But even I, as loyal, and enthusiastic an Atarian as there is on this planet, have to admit that the end is near, and that at the moment, the Jaguar seems destined to soon join its departed brethren in the Sunnyvale cemetery. To be sure, not all the blame can be laid at Atari's doorstep. Sometimes you just get bad breaks, which Atari certainly had it's share of. It's not easy to go up against entrenched companies with almost limitless funds, like Sega, Nintendo, and Sony most certainly are. Also, the legions of brain-dead salespeople who chased away Jaguar sales didn't help matters. And, to be fair, Atari is not the only casualty in this war. The 3DO, by most accounts, is a failure, and that company has all but gotten out of the hardware business, and has sold their future technology away to finance other ventures. (How the M2 will do remains to be seen). I sincerely hope that some miracle can occur, that Atari get their sh*t together, and yet make the Jaguar a respectable, competitive, and viable platform. But frankly, I just don't see it happening. And we really need to be honest to ourselves. As much as we all appreciate Don Thomas' presence in this forum over the last two years, answering our questions and giving us information about new releases, etc., if he knows, at this moment, that the Jaguar is in fact going to be dropped in two months, he's not about to tell us. All Atari has promised for the future is that they *plan* to release 20 games in 1996. Not that they *will* release 20 games, that they *plan* to. As I recall, they *planned* to have fifty games out two years ago. Frankly, if that doesn't scream that the end is near, I don't know what does. 20 games in twelve months is not going to sustain the Jaguar and increase the installed base, and if 20 games (if that many) is all there are going to be, Atari may as well just call it quits now, concentrate on software for the PC and other platforms, and quit stringing us along. It's been a long, disappointing ride, and I almost wish it were finally over. Almost. Finally, the most ironic part of all of this is that it occurred on the Jaguar, a platform with the most loyal and enthusiastic owners of any consumer electronics product; perhaps any product, period. The existence of this forum is a testament to the passion of all of us, Atari fanatics that care enough about a system and a company to come here day after day, reading about and discussing the system. I seriously doubt that any other company, video game or otherwise, has a more ardent constituency. Who else has so many home pages, BBSes, publications, forums, user groups? To others, the Playstation, or Saturn, or Genesis, or whatever, is just a system. They could have just as easily bought a different one had the winds been blowing differently that day. But to me, and I'm sure, to many of you, the Jaguar is a system with a proud heritage, from a company that we grew up with, that we followed, that we patronized for over a decade, and that we had faith in, to make the Jaguar what it could have, and should have, been. I submit that we have been let down. It may sound corny, but I bought the Jaguar because it was an Atari. For over 10 years, I had no video game system, and I didn't care. No Nintendo, no Genesis, and I didn't care. My last machine before the Jag was a 7800 (unless you count the Lynx). I wistfully longed for the days of the 2600, when you couldn't go two feet without finding games for it, when Atari was a two-billion dollar company, when everyone new who Atari was and what they did. It could have been that way again, had it been done right. It's too bad, really. Despite all of this, I have a Jaguar and almost twenty games. I do enjoy playing it, and will continue to purchase software for it (Primal Rage and BattleMorph are on my list). I just wish by now that we were all using a strong, well-supported, mainstream system with a large installed base, rather than a underutilized, ill-reputed, struggling, niche machine. Well, that's all I have to say. Feel free to respond, flame, or whatever. I have to say that writing this has been a cathartic experience, and an interesting way to spend 90 minutes. In fact, I have come less than two hundred characters short of the 10,000 character limit for messages. Sorry for the long-windiness. I welcome any and all comments. REVIEWS =================================================== Game Title: Atari Karts Publisher: Atari Corporation Developer: Miracle Designs Format: Cartridge System: Atari Jaguar 64 # Players: One and Two Player Options Review By: Larry Tipton Atari Karts, a new racing game from the folks at Atari is, in a word, WILD! The game features a weird cast of kart drivers, a crow, skeleton, sea creature, bear, space alien, and several others forms of "life." Make no mistake about it, this is a REAL arcade racing game. Each kart racer has its own special strength and weakness -- What this really means is that each kart has different handling characteristics. There are a total of 10 worlds, each world having several different tracks. There are dirt, asphalt, sand, cobblestone, snow and other types of tracks. One really cool feature of this game is the ability to play the tracks flat or with slight hills. The hill option makes a great game even better. Some of the tracks are fast, others require precision control do to the constant twists and turns. Atari Karts includes four levels of play. Beginner, Warrior, Miracle and Jaguar Aces. Initially, Beginner is the only level you have access too. Each level has 3 circuits. A circuit is composed of 6 tracks. In order to advance to the next level you must place first overall in each of the three circuits in that level. The names of the circuits are Borregas, Carlton and Tempest. You can race them in any order. Once you have successfully placed first in each of the circuits you get to race on a track from an all new world called the Miracle Race. This new world will be featured in the next level. This is equivalent to and end boss. You race against one CPU controlled player. If you beat the end boss character, that character is added to the available kart personalities at your disposal. There are 4 boss characters: Haratari - Beginner Level Pum King - Warrior Level Fire Bug - Miracle Level Miracle Man - Jaguar Aces Level Each have progressively better racing specifications. In order to advance you must earn race points. Only the top four seeds earn points. If you place less than 4th, you must race again. You also lose a car. You begin with 3. This game is a great one player game. The two player option makes this a must buy. Go head to head against a friend. But it's not just the two of you. You have to compete against the rest of the Atari Kart racers. The framerate is lightning fast in two player mode too! Atari Kart's graphics are outstanding. There are at least 3 levels of background scrolling. The frame rate is FAST. The tracks are detailed. Dirt looks like dirt, asphalt looks like asphalt. The Karts scale in and out nicely, they are also animated quite well. The music is very good. It fits nicely with the game. The sound effects are also good. It's too bad that you can't hear the engine sounds of the CPU controlled cars. The game control is outstanding. I highly recommend the Pro-Controller for this game. The left/right buttons are used to make sharp turns. I played the game with the regular controller too. It too is very responsive. What's an arcade style race game these days without bonuses and hazards? Well, Atari Karts has 'em! Bonuses include: Rabbit - Long speed burst Speed Arrow - Slingshot burst of speed Wheel - No friction Steer - No skids Heart - Extra car Ramp - Jump over terrain that may slow you down Hazards: Turtle - Slow down Red Arrows - Reverses you pad controls (I hate this one!) Green - Reverses your opponent's controls (two player only) There are other hazards like trees, snowmen, snowmobiles, barrels, oil slicks, water, craters, ice, moguls, gongs, life guard towers, and other obstacles scattered across the tracks. The game starts off pretty easy, especially for a video racing game veteran like me. The Warrior level is a bit more challenging. I'm currently playing the Miracle level. This one is a lot tougher. The CPU Kart drivers are more aggressive. There are also more obstacles. The autosave feature built into the game is a nice touch. There are no passwords to remember. OK, Game Rating on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest obtainable score: Game Graphics 9 Control 9 Sound F/X 8 Music 8 Fun Factor 10 Replay Value 9 Overall Score 90 =================================================== Review by: David "Snap!" Schmudde Title: Battlemorph Publisher: Atari Developer: ATD (Attention to Detail ) Format: CD Retail Price: $59.99 Supports: ProController Memory Track REVIEW: Battlemorph may go down in history as the best sequel in Jaguar history. Its prequel, Cybermorph, had mixed reviews throughout video game magazines and was one of those games the player either loved or hated, and that brings to my first point; almost every complaint about Cybermorph has been fixed in Battlemorph. For example: the top 6 complaints I heard from people were: 1) no in game music, 2) Skylar is annoying, 3) bad scaling, 4) no background, 5) dark gloomy graphics and 6) its just collect the pods. ALL those "problems" have corrected (I personally loved Cybermorph and had very few complaints). Skylar only talks when nessary (although now she seems to call everything about 10+ seconds late), there are nice bitmaped backgrounds, smooth beautiful scaling and there is much ingame music. Plus there are different mission types with detonators (blow up the planet), data pods (pods) and new weapon searches (gain new weapons). But enough about Cybermorph vs. Battlemorph, I'll focus on the topic of this article, Battlemorph as a game, and what a game it is. The first thing you see when you pop in this CD is (after the Jaguar logo) is a nice title screen with some really cool guitar strings. After that you see the amazing SGI intro with a Sean Connery sound alike explaining the story behind the War Griffon (all the T- Griffons from Cybermorph were destroyed by the Pernitians). After the intro it shows some credits and then the whole thing loops (back through the intro etc...). At anytime the player can skip this by pressing a button. When the button is pressed it takes you to the player select screen. THE MEMORY TRACK IS HIGHLY SUGGESTED. This game isn't impossible without it, but its hard enough already. Anyways, this is where the person makes his player (and saves it with if they have a memory track). The input and player select screen is very similar to Blue Lightning (also developed by ATD), but like every other aspect of Battlemorph it is more sophisticated than Blue Lightning. If there is a game already saved on the Memory Track then it will show a picture at the right of the weapons that the player has earned. Which brings me to the next point. The weapons are earned after certain missions, which is more like Iron Soldier then the original Cybermorph. So when a new game is started the only weapons the War Griffon has are the "built in" twin shots, decoys, and cruise missiles. Later the War Griffon can be equipped with mines, mortars and the incinerator. Decoys seem pretty useless at first, but later they can be used to pick up items (though force fields) and attract homing missiles and kamikazes. Mortars still continue to be my favorite weapon because they way the programmers let you know how far your aiming. By having the cross hair scale out to the distance you are going to shoot it (the longer the button is held down the further the shot). Very smart. Anyways, back to the game. The player selects the 4 weapons (plus the built in twin shot) they want to use for the mission BEFORE they land, unlike Cybermorph where the T-Griffon collects weapons as it goes along. The missions are selected from about 5 planets and a main "general" planet which can be played only after all the other planets have been beaten. Once all the planets have been conquered then the Sutherland (your starship) moves onto another cluster of planets. But it must start somewhere so this is where the player selects his planet and weapons. After that there is a nice SGI landing (and there's also a docking) sequence with voice (which can be skipped at any time). Now the action begins. Once the War Griffon lands Skylar says "good luck" and you're on your way. The first thing newcomers will notice is the fly anywhere environment, and let me tell you if you've never played Cybermorph, this is really nice. The button config will also delete vetrens because the basic button config of the War Griffon is very similar to the basic button config of the T-Griffon, and the control is dead on. The game itself is amazing. The graphics are reminiscent of Cybermorph but with more realistic colors, very nice backdrops, and more texture mapping. Almost all the buildings are texture mapped and a lot of the enimes too. EVERYTHING looks better. Thats not all, as many of the readers of the Jaguar Journal already know, you can also go underwater and underground! First the underwater effect. It is very nice, with everything wavy, but not too wavy to annoy the player. The effect is very believable and nice looking. In regular water the War Griffon slows down, but there is also red (harmful), yellow (allows the War Griffon to swim though it at regular speed) and light blue (healing) water. Underwater the player can shoot bridge struts so above water the bridge will fall and the enemies will drive off to their death (you can destroy the bridge from above water too). The underground effect is also nice, although its really just going though tunnels, but still nice. The tunnels are entirely texture mapped and forces you to go "into the cockpit" which is just a first person view. There the player will encounter doors, chomping doors and some enemies. Some other new things include keys or "access codes" for opening certain colored doors and domes, enhanced scan (better radar), batteries for turning on and off power stations (which turns on and off force fields and fans), magazines for increased max ammo count and speed up rings that speed you up when their flown though. One of the most useful new items is the map mode. By pressing option the player can look at a map of the world (at a nice 3/4 view). From there the player may move around an arrow and point to any object on the map. This really helps when you're having trouble finding something because the white arrow on the radar will point toward the feature you marked on the map. This limits the frustration factor found by some people in Cybermorph. Wrap up --------------- The graphics prove that a game doesn't have to be totally texture mapped to still be very impressive. I also believe that the graphics give the game character and shows creativity. The music is wonderful sci-fi and changes when the War Griffon goes underground and underwater. The underwater music is very "under the sea" and I personally don't like it much, but if you like that kind of music then its great. The control is very nice and the replay value is great too, with 3 different difficulty levels. The game is also very fun, which is probably the most important aspect. This game is a major improvement over Cybermorph with more puzzle, action and playability, so even if you hated Cybermorph this game should still be enjoyable. All this adds up to be THE best game for the Jaguar CD and one of the best games for the Jaguar. Just think of Battlemorph as the best of Cybermorph + the best of Doom + the best of Iron Soldier. On a final note here is my suggestion: if you don't have a Jaguar CD, now is a great time to buy one (with Battlemorph) and if you do have a Jaguar CD give yourself a late present and GET THIS GAME! Ratings: Graphics - 10 Music/Sound F/X - 9.5 Play Control - 10 Fun Factor - 10 Replay Value - 10 Overall - 99 =================================================== Game Title: Missile Command 3D Publisher: Atari Corporation Developer: Virtuality Entertainment, Ltd. Format: Cartridge System: Atari Jaguar 64, Pro-Controller Compatible Review By: Larry Tipton Missile Command 3D is yet another blast from the past, brought back to life for play on the Jaguar 64. Fans of the original will not be disappointed. Not only do you get the original arcade classic, but you get two brand new versions, each with there own unique play characteristics. Original Missile Command offers all the excitement of the original arcade hit and then some. You can play this version on a "Virtual Lynx", "Virtual Arcade Cabinet", or plain screen. One weird but cool feature in Original MC is that you can manipulate the game screen. You can zoom in or out. You can also tilt the screen forward, back, left and right. Zoom out far enough and you can see the entire arcade cabinet or Lynx! Missile Command 3D, formally known as Missile Command Plus, offers a 3D look to missiles, turbo missiles, fireball missiles and super missiles. You also get smartbombs and cascades. Smartbombs will blow up all enemies currently on the screen. Cascades will blow up a group of enemies. Enemies include missiles, bombers, asteroids, kamikazes and robots. Scoring is similar to that of the arcade original. Virtual Missile Command (VMC) is a completely different kind of game, but at the same time feels like and old friend. The gameplay elements are similar. Unlike the other two versions of this game, with VMC you can only fire missiles from the station you occupy. You can jump from station to station quite easily though. Everything rotates in real-time. It can get a little dizzying at first. Again with this version, you can look up, down, left and right. However, this time there is NO radar to help you see. Also, you don't have to lead you shots. You get laser cannons ala Star Wars this time around. As you destroy enemies you receive powerups that will upgrade your laser cannons, cities as well as smartbombs and missiles that you can launch and explode on command! The Undersea stage really feels like you are under water, complete with bubbles and the waters surface in view up above. VMC is composed of 3 Stages (according to the manual) , each having 3 sublevels with end bosses. Thus far, I have not made it passed the 2nd Stage. Thankfully, the difficulty is quite high. The Undersea Colony and Cloud City stages look quite nice. Enemies include missiles, enemy crafts, mini and main bosses. There are six different types of enemy missiles: Normal, MIRVs (These move in a straight line but can split into several missiles), SWIRVs (These guys can move out of harms way), Bombs (These fall straight down), Rovers (only fired by bosses) and a secret unknown type. Powerups include laser ammo, smart bomb, repair gun, missile ammo, repair city, and laser upgrade. VMC has 3 difficulty settings Easy, Normal and Hard. You cannot advance to the later stages if you play the game on easy mode. Overall, I really like this game. The are a few things that could have been done to make the game even better. The enemy missiles look more like spikes to me. They should have been texture mapped. As it is they are simple 5 sided elongated pyramid looking things. The enemy missiles in the 3D and Virtual versions don't leave long exhaust trails like they do in the original version. If fact, there is no trail at all in the Underwater stage. The top scores screen has a high scores for Missile Command Plus!? I guess there was a name change for the Missile Command 3D version at the last minute. The control is pretty good, but rough on the thumb. The game would be even better using a joystick, mouse or TRACKBALL! The mini and end bosses look superb, especially the Eel, Dragon and UFO (Its HUGE....Say is this the ship from Cosmic Ark?) OK, Game Rating on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest obtainable score: Game Graphics 8 (MC Classic=7, MC 3D=8, Virtual MC=9) Control 8 Sound F/X 8 Music 7 Fun Factor 9 Replay Value 10 Overall Score 8.5 =================================================== Fever Pitch Soccer Review by: Alistair Bodin I love Soccer games and was honored to be asked to review Fever Pitch Soccer on the Jaguar for the Jaguar Journal. The game is a conversion of the highly successful US Gold game that was number one in the UK charts. The Jaguar version is an excellent conversion with many improvements, better graphics, more colors, better sound and faster game play. The players have names and numbers and this adds to the atmosphere when playing the game. This is no game of animated cones all the same and indistinguishable, the players have character, are distinguishable in looks and have special skills. There is `Barger' the fat one who when he gets the ball will flatten nearly all the players as he makes his way to the goal. There's `The Cheat' the bald one whose special is that full length dive with no one near as he tries to con the ref, a great move when it works especially in the penalty area! `The Marker' is great as he tightly sits on the oppositions star players. `Passer' the slender longhaired one is excellent as he strokes the ball up the pitch to the star forwards. Then there is `Tricky' the tanned one with spiky hair who mesmerizes defenses with his ball skills. `Blaster' the strong dark haired one has a ferocious shoot and get the angle right the keeper has no chance as the burning ball bursts into the net. Last but not least is my favorite `Bender' who unleashes a shot that curves like a banana into the net GGGOOOOAAAAALLLLLLL!!!! If you want a serious realistic boring game of soccer FPS is not for you, on the other hand if you like fast paced action with plenty of goals then FPS is the game for you. Hey I've played over 50 games with my mate and we have yet to have a boring 0-0 draw. There is no set up to speak choose the teams choose the pitch and off we go. If you have the ball you control that player and if you don't you try with the nearest player to get it back. The computer chooses the player for you to control and controls the other 20 players as well (if they are all still on the pitch). I must point out that occasionally the computer switches your defender at the wrong time, most annoying if you are just about to tackle and the wrong player makes the tackle. But great fun if it happens to the opponent so it evens up at the end. Come on Brazil. Passer passes to Tricky who hops round a few opposing players lays the ball square to Bender who shoots and the ball bends into the top corner and the keeper has no chance Brazil lead 6-3, the crowd think it is all over! The final whistle goes and Brazil have beaten England 6-3 in the World Final and I was Brazil. For two player action this is my favorite Jaguar game as it is just great fun to play. Peter my 9 year son had the game and I left him alone with it and in minutes he was playing and beating the computer then worse still he beats me! He has the annoying habit of diving and conning the ref to give him a penalty which inevitably he scores from. Hey this lad has potential once he was even 6-1 down and managed to score 5 goals in just under 2 minutes to snatch a draw. There is a choice of either tournament mode or exhibition mode. In Exhibition mode you choose the teams and the better ones have more star players and the worse ones no star player at all. You can either play two player or against the computer and the game is great fun. For a real challenge there is tournament mode, you choose your team and they start with no star players and as you win games you get the opportunity to have star players so you can strengthen your team and hopefully go all the way and win the world final and then beat the All Stars team! The great thing with this game is it is easy to set up choose the teams, the pitch, the time and whether replays, Cameos are on or off and then the Agro mode on or off. When this mode is on the ref seems to ignore all but the most blatant fouls and he even misses those sometimes. I would say a bit like real soccer eh? Turn it off and the ref is less tolerant and will flash the yellow cards and occasionally the red card for those nasty fouls. No long protracted set up here a few clicks and off we go. It plays great but how does it look I here you ask, you didn't ask, well I'll tell you anyway. The graphics are improved over the original versions and so they should be, but to be honest they are not as good as say Rayman, but then have you seen any pretty soccer players recently, thought not. The players are distinguishable from each others and look very real and are brightly colored and the pitches are really neat. The game has the standard sound effects that add to the game, the oohhhhs and ahhhs as shots go close. The groans and thumps as players are fouled and splatted to the ground. The refs whistle is occasionally heard as he plays the game. The crowd are chanting the fog horns blaring as Brazil attack down the left, Berbetto has the ball and bang that banana shot goes flying into the net. GGOOOALLL comes blaring out and the crowd wildly cheer for the goal. Hey the sounds are not perfect but they add to the game and are certainly better than the original version. Controlling the players is a piece of the proverbial cake. A for short pass, B for a shot or long pass and C for that special move. Star players have a bit of after touch so once the ball is passed or shot use the direction pad to add a little swerve or lob! Hey and the Star players can cross the ball (B&C together) and do a crafty back heel (A&B together) Nice simple controls that just let you get on with having great fun playing the game. Hey I am running out of space at the end of this review and apparently the good folks at the Jaguar Journal want some scores for the categories. OK here we go. Scotland 3, England 2 is my favorite score :-) Graphics 8.5/10 Music/Sound Effects 7/10 Play Control 9/10 occasionally the computer swaps players at the wrong time! Fun Factor 9.9/10 hey no body is perfect! Replay value 9/10 I forgot to mention you can replay all the goals and any of the action at any time. I have to give an overall rating so being a logical chap I add the 5 categories and multiply by 2, now where is my calculator, uhmm that makes the Overall score 86.8. =================================================== ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TIPS OF THE TRADE ULTRA VORTEK * Cheats (at options screen): * Annihilations (during "Annihilation Time"): Uppercut opponent (press & hold Punch). Works with any character only on the "Stoned Poseidon", "Hell's Kitchen", or "Temple of the Vortek" stages. * Hidden Moves: * Buzzsaw * Hi Buzzsaw : T, T, Punch * Pain Machine : Charge Aw, T, Kick * Low Bolo : T, T, Jab * Gut Spear Uppercut: Charge Aw, T, Punch * Airgrab & Slam : (in air), D + Punch * Ricochet Blades : (in air but not T), D + Jab * Gut Grinder : (in close), Aw + Punch * Annihilations: * Core Breach : (not close), D, T, Punch * Bolo Beheading : T, T, T, Jab * Dreadloc * Fire Breath : T, Aw, Punch * Speed Slice : Charge Aw, T, Punch * Come to Daddy : T, T, Punch * Spin Staff : D, T, Jab * Angle Spear Dive : (in air), D, D, Punch * Back Off, Man! : T, Punch * Annihilations: * Jamaican Shish Kebab: (not close), T, T, T, Jab * Clean Slice : (not close), Aw, T, Jab * Grok * BoulderMorph : Charge Aw, D + Jab * GroundPounder : Charge Aw, release, Jab * Boulder Bounce : Jump T, D + Jab * The Tenderizer : (in close), Aw + Punch * Annihilations: * Rocky Uppercut : (in close), charge (& hold) D, Jab. * Avalanche Crush: Jump over opponent, D + Kick. * Lucius * Lightning Blast : D, T, Punch * Hawk Attack Low : Jump, D, Jab * Hawk Attack High : U, D + Punch * Hawk Teleport : Jump, Jab * ElectroTherapy : (in close), T, Aw, Punch * Spinning Back Kick : Aw, Kick * Ground Spark Wave : T, T, Kick * Air Lightning Blast : U, T + Punch * Annihilations: * Electric Death : (in close), T, T, Aw, Punch * Hawk Decapitation: U, Aw, Aw, Punch * Mercury * Spinning Blade Sweep: D, D, Kick + Jab * Big Gooey Pounder : (in close), Aw, T, Punch * Sawblade : Charge Aw, T, Kick * Porcupine Spike : D, D, Kick + Punch * Annihilations: * Rock'em Sock'em : (not close), T, T, Punch * Ground Beef : D, T, Jab * Skullcrusher * Brain Fryin' Microwave: T, T, Punch * Creeping Ground Blast : T, T, Jab * Choke & Thump : Charge Aw, T, Punch * Grim Dive of Death : Charge D, U * Charged Particle Blast: Aw, T, Jab * Stride & Slide : T, Kick * Knife Head Butt : (in close), Aw, T, Punch * Annihilations: * Fatal Grip : (not close), T, T, Aw, Jab * Head, Well Done : Charge Aw, T, Jab * Volcana * Flame Blast : D, T, Punch * Fireport Behind : D, Aw * Fireport Uppercut: Charge D, U * Fire Breath : (in close), Aw, Punch * Flying Firedive : Charge Aw, T, Jab * Fireroll : (in air), T, Jab * Aerial Firebomb : (in air but not T), D + Punch * Firewall : Charge Aw, release, Kick * Annihilations: * Shake 'n Bake : D, T, Jab * Blowtorch : (in close), T, T, Aw, Punch * Easter Eggs: * Hidden Backgrounds (during background select screen): * Subway Passage: * * Hidden Palace : # * Hidden Characters: * Carbon: Must be on Hard or Killer level, one-player mode, "Earthquake Zone" stage, win a double perfect, perform Annihilation near "NO fighting--this area only". Carbon will be on "Subway Passage" stage. * Enable speed selector option (at title screen): 1+5+9 ("fight" confirms) (can select "normal" or "turbo" speed) * Enable voice modem (at title screen): 9,1,1 (emergency on phone pad) VIRTUAL LIGHT MACHINE (VLM) * Easter Eggs: * Freeze Swirlies: Go to effect 9-1 (or any other hold-down-B- button effect). Hold down B to make the swirlies appear. Release B & quickly press 1-1 (or any other non-B-button effect) before the swirlies disappear. Return to effect 9-1 (or any other B- button effect). Now the swirlies are in the state/size they were in when you left effect 9-1. Move the joypad around & notice the swirlies will stay without pressing B. They will stay frozen in the other B-button effects. To cancel the freeze, press B. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Defender 2000. It's on the Web. Missile Command 3D. It's on the Web.+ NBA Jam: Tournament Edition. It's on the Web. It's all on the Web! + + http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Jeffrey_Norwood + + Come visit it soon! + + The Jaguar Journal Web Site. Rated AWESOME. Now playing using a + World Wide Web browser near you! + +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Ted Hoff Profile ---------------- Theodore M. Hoff President, Atari USA As President, Atari USA, Ted Hoff oversees all marketing, sales, development, and corporate strategy for Atari Corporation in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Under his direction, Atari has broadened its efforts and formed a new division called Atari Interactive, which develops "multi-platform" interactive entertainment software for consumers. Prior to joining Atari Corporation, Mr. Hoff was Senior Vice President and General Manager of Fox Interactive, a division of Twentieth Century Fox. During his tenure, Hoff launched Fox's interactive entertainment division, establishing the company's mission, structure, five-year strategic and financial plans, and led the launch of multiple titles based on their film and television properties. From 1990 to 1994, Mr. Hoff held the key position of Senior Vice President of Time Warner Interactive, Inc. (TWI), the home entertainment software publishing subsidiary of Time Warner, Inc. At TWI Hoff directed sales and marketing and established annual and long-range strategies and financial objectives. Hoff hired and directed senior staff, including directors of marketing, sales, licensing and acquisition, and third party publisher affiliates. Under Hoff's direction, Time Warner Interactive launched 15 to 20 new titles per year including arcade, theatrical, and sports licenses. Mr. Hoff's previous experience also includes senior management positions at United Brands Co. and Phillip Morris, where Hoff launched new products and directed retail sales, marketing, and operations at both corporations. Atari has been in the video game business for over twenty years. Today, Atari markets Jaguar, the only American made, advanced 64-Bit entertainment system. Atari Corporation is located in Sunnyvale, CA. CONTACT: Tom Tanno or Stacy Libby Shandwick USA (800)444-6663 or (310)479-4997 F A C T S H E E T ATARI INTERACTIVE'S PREMIERE LINE-UP OF CD-ROM SOFTWARE TITLES FIRST QUARTER, 1996 ATARI INTERACTIVE: Atari Interactive, the newly created entertainment software division of Atari Corporation, will develop and market multi-platform interactive software for consumers. Atari Interactive will create titles for a variety of platforms and consoles such as Atari's Jaguar system, PC, Mac, the Internet and websites. The new games will be available to preview through the Atari web site on the Internet (address: http://www.atari.com). Four CD-ROM titles under the Atari Interactive name will be available in the First Quarter. These premiere software titles are: TEMPEST 2000: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ First developed by Atari in 1981 as an arcade game, Tempest became an American video game classic. As the first software title marketed by Atari Interactive, the CD version of Tempest 2000 offers three games in one--an enhanced version of the highly successful arcade game Tempest, plus the newly created Tempest Plus and Tempest Duel. The CD version of Tempest 2000 features elaborate and enhanced 3-D graphics and animation, as well as a CD-quality techno-rave soundtrack. Just like the classic version, players on Tempest 2000 dodge Flippers, Fuseball, Spikers and Pulsars. In the enhanced PC version, players must also avoid AI Droids, hostile Demon heads, Mirrors and Warp Bonus Tokens--all while venturing through 100 uncharted galaxies. Tempest 2000 can be played by one person, or two players can Tempest Duel it out in "PC-to-PC" competition. Price point: $ 29.95 HIGHLANDER: ~~~~~~~~~~~ Popularized by the movie, television show and animated series, Highlander is an action- adventure CD-ROM title that allows players to become one of the world's last immortals, whose destiny is to save the world. Highlander's main character, Quentin MacLeod, is on a mission to free his world from the grips of the mighty and evil Kortan. Highlander features numerous games and puzzles to help Quentin fulfill his quest. Atari Interactive has applied state-of-the-art technology to create enhanced, life-like movement for Highlander's 3-D characters. Price point: $ 39.95 BALDIES: ~~~~~~~~ The software title, Baldies, gives "wannabe monarchs" a chance to rule the world--a world populated by workers, builders, soldiers and scientists who are, of course, bald. As creators of the Baldies universe, players combine their strategies with the Baldies' skills both to build an empire and protect it from the enemy. Ingenious inventions and creative contraptions also assist players in eliminating the enemy. Offering 100 levels--including bonus levels and secret features- -across five different worlds, Baldies is never the same game twice! This title also has network capability which allows up to four players to enjoy the game at once. Price point: $34.95 FLIPOUT! ~~~~~~~~ FlipOut! offers far-out computerized puzzle games with an alien twist. Players tour the bizarre Cheese Planet where they encounter multiple games in 14 different areas, from Mt. Rushmore to Sphorkle Diner. The game's four difficulty levels--ranging from Normal to Psychotic--provide challenges for players of all skills. Novice or advanced, the FlipOut! player must maneuver through this wacky planet's increasingly difficult puzzles without getting tripped up by mischievous aliens. Price point: $ 29.95 # # # # CONTACT: Tom Tanno or Stacy Libby Shandwick USA (800)444-6663 or (310)479-4997 ATARI REVEALS MAJOR NEW DIVISION WITH FORMATION OF "ATARI INTERACTIVE" New Division Dedicated to Offering "Multi-Platform" Entertainment LAS VEGAS, NEVADA, (CES) -- Atari Corporation, founder of America's video game industry, has broadened its business with the formation of Atari Interactive, a new division dedicated to the development and distribution of "multi-platform" interactive entertainment. Ted Hoff, President, Atari USA, formally announced the company's new division this week. "With the formation of Atari Interactive, we are creating a new division to address the world-wide PC market," Hoff stated, adding, "Atari Interactive will allow consumers to receive our entertainment products on a variety of formats, from existing platforms and consoles such as our own Jaguar system, to PC, Mac, the Internet and websites." Over the past twenty-five years, Atari's creativity and vision have led to the development of exciting and successful games such as Tempest, Missile Command and Crystal Castles. Now, the company will continue its tradition of innovation, combined with its concern for meeting consumer needs, by developing entertaining, multi-platform software. Atari Interactive software will feature Atari's classic arcade-style games updated to play on a number of gaming environments. Interactive software enthusiasts will be able to enjoy enhanced Atari classics such as Tempest 2000, Missile Command 3D and Return to Crystal Castles. In addition, they can experience the robust, rich environments of Atari Interactive's new games, like the Interactive Rocky Horror Show and Virtual War. Atari Interactive's games will be available to preview through the Atari web site on the Internet (address: http://www.atari.com). Four CD-ROM titles under the Atari Interactive name will be available in the First Quarter. These premier entertainment software titles are: Tempest 2000: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An American video game classic first developed by Atari in 1981 as an arcade game. The CD title features elaborate and enhanced 3-D graphics and animation, as well as a CD-quality techno-rave soundtrack. Highlander: ~~~~~~~~~~~ A new action-adventure CD-ROM title that allows players to become Quentin MacLeod, the last immortal, known as "The Highlander." As Quentin MacLeod, players encounter challenging and complex puzzles in their quest to defeat the evil Kortan. Baldies: ~~~~~~~~ As rulers of a fictitious world populated by builders, workers, soldiers and scientists (who are bald, of course!), players must determine how best to employ their resources to safeguard their world while at the same time eliminate the enemy. Baldies has network capability, which allows up to four players to enjoy the game at once, delivering four times the fun! FlipOut!: ~~~~~~~~~ Players maneuver their way through fourteen different areas of The Cheese Planet while trying to solve increasingly difficult puzzles (levels range from Normal to Psychotic!). Whether they are in Mt. Rushmore or the Sphorkle Diner, players need to keep an eye out for mischievous aliens who'll trip them up just for the fun of it. The introduction of these games is only the beginning for Atari Interactive. Additional titles currently under development will be available throughout 1996. In discussing Atari Interactive's games, Hoff explained, "The introductory titles by Atari Interactive are designed to appeal to long-time fans of classic arcade games who want a different, or perhaps new medium in which to play those games, as well as novice players eager to test-drive this entertainment form on their PC. By offering game enthusiasts more access options to superior products, we have enhanced their opportunity for convenient, exciting and challenging entertainment." # # # # By Jim Carlton Dow Jones Staff Reporter SUNNYVALE, Calif. -DJ- Atari Corp. (ATC), moving to diversify beyond a floundering video-game system called Jaguar, is starting a new business to deploy games for personal computers. In launching the business under a new division called Atari Interactive, which is to be announced tomorrow, the video-game pioneer said it will draw heavily on its library of 1980s-vintage video games such as Asteroids and Pac Man. Atari said it will update those games with three-dimensional graphics and stereo sound to run on the latest generation of high-powered PCs. Atari launched the U.S.'s video game industry in about 1980, but lost the market to competitors such as Nintendo Co. and Sega Enterprises Ltd. ''We have a 25-year library of video game titles and we want to put some of those games on the PC,'' Ted Hoff, president of Atari's North American operations, told Dow Jones. The PC foray comes as Atari's advanced Jaguar player struggles against competing players by Nintendo, Sega, Sony Corp. (SNE) and 3DO Co. (THDO). Hobbled by a dearth of support from independent software developers, only about 200,000 of the Jaguars have been sold world-wide since the machine was launched in 1993. By contrast, analysts estimate Sony sold about 500,000 of its new PlayStation machines since their launch in the U.S. last September. A recent report by Gerard Klauer Mattison & Co., a market research firm in New York, concludes that ''Jaguar's prospects for success are quite bleak.'' Hoff said Atari continues to stand by Jaguar and added the player should benefit by a recent price cut to $99 from $149, as well as an expanded number of games to about 50 from four at the machine's launch. By the end of the first quarter, Hoff said about 16 more Jaguar games will be out. Atari's real prospect for growth, Hoff added, is in producing games for PCs which now reside in more than 10 million U.S. homes. Of the first four PC games being released during the current quarter, Hoff said one is a remake of the old Atari game Tempest. The other three, Highlander, Baldies and FlipOut!, are new titles. A total of 17 PC games will be shipped this year, Hoff said. Atari plans PC games soon based on other of its old games, including Missile Command and Crystal Castles. Updated versions of Asteroids, Pac Man and Centipede will be available next year. (END) DOW JONES NEWS 01-02-96 3:56 PM Copyright 1996 Dow Jones & Co., Inc. All rights reserved. The Jaguar Journal Web-Site Directory ---------------------------------------- The Jaguar Journal Web Site http://ourworld.compuserve.com/hompages/Jeffrey Norwood Atari Corporation Web Site http://www.atari.com Extreme http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/_extreme Atari Interactive Shocks Jaguar Owners; What's Next? by Jeffrey Norwood Atari has been in the video gaming business for almost twenty-five years. Of course, they have also marketed their own computers, such as the ST. Unfortunately, witht he exception of the Atari 2600, the hardware Atari markets just doesn't sell! The Atari Jaguar has about 200,000 units out wolrd-wide, while the Sony Playstation, out on the market now for five months, has sold an estimated 500,000 units (acutal numbers are around 300,000) in the U.S. alone. Look at the ratio -- 200,000/25 months compared to 300,000/5 months. That means Atari averaged out to sales of 8,000 Jaguars a month, while Sony has an average of 60,000 a month. Sega is also doing well, and Nintendo's Super NES is selling an average of 6- 7,000 units a month -- more than 4 years after it's release! But what does this mean for Atari Jaguar owners? Atair is investing their company into "multi-platform" market. In the first half of the year, Atari will market four new titles for the PC to 10,000,000 people. In the second half, Atari will broaden even more into Macs, Sony, and Sega platforms, and just bring the ports over TO the Jaguar. Great for Atari; but it plain SUCKS for us. Ted Hoff indicates 16 new titles will be released in the first quarter this year for the Jaguar, including four or five third parties. But that means there is nine titles left for the rest of the Jaguar's 1996 year, and just as simple, the rest of the Jaguar's life! This is too bad, but we will have to live with it. Do we switch into another platform ourselves? I don't have the money too, and I love my Jaguar. But how can we support a system that doesn't support us? Only time will tell, and The Jaguar Journal will remain until the Atari Jaguar's life can be titled "dead". Coming in the February edition of The Jaguar Journal: ** The 1995 Year End Awards results. The ballot is enclosed in the ZIP'd file. ** The transcript of the telephone interview with Ted Hoff. Send your questions to my e-mail address (74447,531) and they will be asked. ** Reviews of the new titles and games that were not available to us for review this month. Thanks for reading.