47 replies to this topic

[thanatos]

I discovered it through various gaming mags. While in college in '94, there was a video store that would rent out systems, and I rented it for a weekend with Tempest 2000. Rented it several times over the next 2 years or so, and I was always happy to find I still had the top score on the cart. Rented other games with it, but we always ended up just going back to Tempest 2000. I don't remember how much it cost for the weekend, probably $15 or so, but it was definitely cheaper than buying one, at least at college income levels.

In '98 I bought a sealed boxed system for $35 at one of those big computer liquidation sales. (They used to be really cool, went to one this year and wow, they have changed to complete crap!)
Been using that same system since then.

[Cynn]

I was also in the camp of kids that saw the Jaguar as an exotic console. I remember going into the local KB Toys during the liquidation and being absolutely floored to see new Jags in a pyramid to the ceiling for $35.00 each. My past experience with the Jaguar was renting it once from the local video store and playing AvP obsessively over the weekend. (Years later I would buy all of the store's rental carts on it's closing)

I was there with my girlfriend and money was tight so I was trying every way on Earth to convince myself to leave. I did finally get out to the car and sat there for about five minutes before I marched right in and got myself into the 64 club. It felt like opening a time capsule. Later that night we played Zool together and had a really great time with it.

I guess you can say my Jag memories are great ones.

[Prom King]

Always knew about it, but never picked one up.
Last week I was driving home, and saw a yard sale... So I stopped to look and saw a huge pile of trash, in the pile of trash was a MINT jaguar box with about 5 game boxes with manuals, reg cards etc... I quickly took it, and asked the house owner if they still had the system... which they did not. After that, I had to have one

[ovalbugmann]

That's cool that you saved the system box, manuals and game boxes and other paper stuff.

[madhatter667]

I remember seeing Jags in the store back in the day, and I think I even saw a commercial or two. I thought, "Hmmm... wait, that thing is 64bits?! Awesome!" But, I was much younger then. Having cut my teeth on the 2600, and a little on the A8s i wanted it because it was Atari, newer tech at the time, and higher graphics resolution than other stuff at the time.

[Super Karnov]

Read about her in a magazine called DieHard GameFan sometime in 1992~1993, purchased one when they came out from a wholesale supplier the day they came out.

[Needles Kane]

Super Karnov, on Thu Jun 3, 2010 2:14 PM, said:

Read about her in a magazine called DieHard GameFan sometime in 1992~1993, purchased one when they came out from a wholesale supplier the day they came out.

You bought from wholesale suppliers when you were five years old?

[madmax2069]

I Learned about the system on the TV, and in game magazines.

But took me a while to buy one (for $20 new) have like 4 - 5 games for it (Doom, club drive, syndicate and a few others that i forget.

The darn thing wont power on anymore, put it in storage in the house (still worked then) and took it out a few months later and it wont power on.

[The_Laird]

madmax2069, on Fri Jun 4, 2010 3:01 AM, said:

I Learned about the system on the TV, and in game magazines.

But took me a while to buy one (for $20 new) have like 4 - 5 games for it (Doom, club drive, syndicate and a few others that i forget.

The darn thing wont power on anymore, put it in storage in the house (still worked then) and took it out a few months later and it wont power on.

Sounds like either a faulty PSU or even worse you have blown out the power chip using the wrong PSU.

[carmel_andrews]

I saw the first jaguar in a shop display (didn't look like a computer/games shop) in kensington church street (west london) back in 1993 it was running the cybermorph game....didn't buy one till some time later

[madmax2069]

The_Laird, on Fri Jun 4, 2010 5:02 AM, said:

madmax2069, on Fri Jun 4, 2010 3:01 AM, said:

I Learned about the system on the TV, and in game magazines.

But took me a while to buy one (for $20 new) have like 4 - 5 games for it (Doom, club drive, syndicate and a few others that i forget.

The darn thing wont power on anymore, put it in storage in the house (still worked then) and took it out a few months later and it wont power on.

Sounds like either a faulty PSU or even worse you have blown out the power chip using the wrong PSU.

Never did use another PSU on it, only used its original PSU (hard to mistake it for another since its marked Jaguar on it).

i tested it to see if it was working and it did output what it was suppose to, so its not the PSU.

it was working fine when i put it into a box and into the closet (had to make room).

[swlovinist]

There are three distinct memories all in the same year that take me back to the first experiences with the Jaguar

1. Reading in an EGM about the Jaguar and drooling over the screenshots. (mid 90s)


2. A rental store/place you could play console games per hour had one you could play. I paid $3 per hour to play Aliens versus Predator. Good times

3. About 1995-1996 a Kay Bee Toys clearance of Jaguar Systems and games. I bought the system and two games Alien versus Predator and Tempest with an extra controller.

[thund3r]

My memories are a bit mixed, but i remember the first time i saw the jaguar on display was at Tandys (in the UK) where they stocked Lynx's for a while, I didnt really have any urge to buy either because i was so young and already owned a gamegear. A few years later i was walking around the neighbouring town and remember a huge poundshop where you could buy all sorts of odds and ends, and high up on the top shelf near the counter was a TV showing Checkered Flag. Now i was blown away back then by the use of proper 3D polygons but not so blown away by the price - £199(possibly more?) plus 5 games. Now i know one of those games was checkered flag back i forget the rest that were bundled with them due to the fact that the console was so expensive and i doubt my my parents would buy it for me.

Years later at college i met a friend who was a big games horder, he played practically everthing that game out but still had alot of older consoles and games gathering dust. One day i was browsing on the internet and game accross the MSN group for Jagfest 2003 (now down) and quite litterely went the following weekend. My friend gave me his jag plus a handful of games and I attended at the ripe age of 19, however now in my mid twenties and avoid of any jaguar hardware (due to being a poor student) i now find myself collecting once more.

[superjudge3]

I had heard of the Jaguar as a kid back when it was new in 1994 through game magazines and friends. The first time I saw one in real life was in 1995 at a Hastings store in Texas. The system kiosk was set up with "Val 'd Isere Skiing and Snowboarding". I remember I thought it was neat to see another non-traditional system but I wasn't blown away by it. Over time the Jaguar became the a legend among my circle of friends. We knew it had AvP and other cool looking games and we talked about it because of ads and magazines but we never owned one. It wasn't until 2005 that I bought one off of eBay and now I have 18 games, including all the good ones. It is one of my favorite systems and I wish it would have at least sold a million or two units so we could have had more games. But oh well!

[AtariLeaf]

Didn't hear much about it up here in Canada. Can't really say I knew it existed until I started coming here to Atariage in 2002. There are two things working against it for me - its rare enough that the prices are too high for me to justify because of the second reason which is that I don't find any of the games very interesting.

[xg4bx]

pooping my pants over screenshots of alien vs predator in diehard gamefan.

had a jag and trevor mcfur under the xmas tree the year of launch.

[lisalover1]

I lived in a sheltered gaming childhood, in a Nintendo-only neighborhood when even a Sega console was considered exotic and odd. Thus, I never heard about most of these systems like the Jaguar until much later. Several months back, around last October or so, I had hit a period in which I was very curious about the advent of 3D games, and the transitional period into them. The jaguar was the first console that came to mind. It took a while to find one for under $100, but it was worth it. The first thing that struck me about the Jaguar was the controller. Everyone says it's an abomination of a device, but I found it to be quite comfortable and appealing. Then again, I am rather outspoken about my support of the Dreamcast controller. But nevermind about that. The first game I played was Iron Soldier, and it played far better than I expected. The framerate was quite good, and the graphics were modest, yet still indicative of the Jaguar's power. I only have gotten a few games since then, and am still looking for a reasonably-priced CD addon, as well as a few key games for the Jag. Nevertheless, I like what I see.

[danny_galaga]

I never heard of it back in the day, but then I don't think it was sold in Australia. I remember the Lynx being sold here, but I guess by the time they would have been thinking of selling the Jag here, Atari were in dire straights. Anyway, I didn't know anything about it other than the odd remark about it's controller. Then I had two revelations. One in the form of the travelling exhibition 'Game On' from the UK. I played Tempest 2000 there. And also a great write up about the console in Retro Gamer magazine. Somehow the idea of owning one grew on me, even though I thought I'd never get one due to price. Of course, once the germ of an idea grows in your head...

I ended up buying a new one from B & C

(good service from those guys by the way)

[DeLorean]

My dad brought it home one day, and that was pretty much the end of it. I never put that thing down. The games were simple, but completely addictive. I really miss my Jaguar, now that I'm thinking about it.

[Segataritensoftii]

In a sale flyer in 1997. At the time, I knew about Alien vs. Predator and Tempest 2000.

[pantherrob82]

I knew of the Jaguar as a kid, but didn't want to fork over the money. I bought one off of eBay 6 years ago. I sold it 2 years ago. I thought it was one of the worst systems ever. I had 8 games and I thought they all sucked. The graphics barely seemed up to par with the Genesis. Obviously you guys are into it, but I never got it.

[The_Laird]

pantherrob82, on Sat Jul 3, 2010 1:44 AM, said:

I knew of the Jaguar as a kid, but didn't want to fork over the money. I bought one off of eBay 6 years ago. I sold it 2 years ago. I thought it was one of the worst systems ever. I had 8 games and I thought they all sucked. The graphics barely seemed up to par with the Genesis. Obviously you guys are into it, but I never got it.

You must have had like 8 of the 16-bit ports then because even the pack in game Cybermorph blows away anything on the Genesis

Edited by The_Laird, Sat Jul 3, 2010 5:25 AM.

[pantherrob82]

The_Laird, on Sat Jul 3, 2010 5:25 AM, said:

pantherrob82, on Sat Jul 3, 2010 1:44 AM, said:

I knew of the Jaguar as a kid, but didn't want to fork over the money. I bought one off of eBay 6 years ago. I sold it 2 years ago. I thought it was one of the worst systems ever. I had 8 games and I thought they all sucked. The graphics barely seemed up to par with the Genesis. Obviously you guys are into it, but I never got it.

You must have had like 8 of the 16-bit ports then because even the pack in game Cybermorph blows away anything on the Genesis

You know, it's possible. As an Atari fan I was very disappointed. I don't mind that I sold it though, if it's anything like the Sega Saturn, all of the good games were very expensive now.