Welcome to Episode 5 of the 13th season of the Retroist Podcast. In this episode, I talk about the last true hurrah for Atari, the Atari Jaguar. This console might just be a blip on the console radar, but its history and release were important.
I begin the show by talking about my fandom for Atari. It was difficult for me to let go of that brand and move onto other consoles. Then right when I was moving on, Atari decides to release a new console. It was an exciting and inevitably disappointing time to be an Atari fan.
I move into the history of the Jaguar by talking about Console Generations. This idea of grouping Consoles by tech is quite common, but I figured I would discuss it just in case people were not familiar with the concept.
Then I move onto the history of the Console itself. From the taking over of Atari by Jack Tramiel, to the hiring of Flare to build the Panther and the Jaguar, all the way through to the consoles ultimate liquidation.
The Atari Jaguar still lives on because the design and specs were moved into Open Source in the late Nineties, so it has its fans. Unfortunately, so few systems were made that acquiring a working one is a costly proposition. Still it is great that a community exists that is still making games and supporting the system.
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Production Notes
This is episode 248 of the Retroist Podcast.
Music on the show is, as always, by Peachy.
The fifth episode of Season 13, but the 6th I recorded.
Right around 30 minutes now. I made a few cuts that I think slowed the episode down, some were opinions that I am going to visit As Patron Bonus Tracks.
The Jaguar is one of the few Atari Consoles that I never owned, but I was lucky enough to have friends that have owned them over the years. I wonder if any of them held onto them?
For more info about the Nintendo Virtual Boy, you might enjoy my episode about Famous Nintendo Missteps.
The controller of the Jaguar is kind of ludicrous. It feels large, especially in small hands. It also has more buttons than you will need on most occasions.
The Jaguar Advertising has a great 90s vibe. Extreme style languae and imagery. It’s great.
I wonder if Atari had succeeded what they might have named their next console? Would they have kept the cat thing going? Atari Lion? Atari Cheetah? I would have liked for them to recycled Panther.
I have had a hard time pronouncing Jack Tramiel’s name in the past. I hope I got it right this time around.
I keep looking at listings for Jaguars online. I am hoping that will fade as I get further away from this episode.
Some of the music you hear in the show is by me. Although most of it is by Peachy.
I tried to keep the Technical Over simple. I took away some details that I thought most people wouldn’t really absorb.
I had a little tangent about Jeff Minter. I almost cut it out, but with editing, I decided to leave it in. I am a fan.
Jaguar Emulation is still not great, but it does exist.
Thanks for listening to the show and I hope you have a great weekend.
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