:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: Volume 3, Issue 2 JAGUAR EXPLORER ONLINE November 20, 1999 :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: :: :: JAGUAR ............. News, Reviews, & Solutions ............. JAGUAR :: :: EXPLORER ........... For the Online Jaguar .......... EXPLORER :: :: ONLINE ................ Community ............... ONLINE :: :: :: :: Published and Copyright (c) 1999 by White Space Publishers :: :: All Rights Reserved :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: Publisher Emeritus Plus .................... Michael Lindsay :: :: Publisher Emeritus .............................. Travis Guy :: :: Editor/Publisher ............................ Clay Halliwell :: :: Lynx Editor .................................... Carl Forhan :: :: JEO Mailing List Maintainer .................. Joachim Vance :: :: Genie Uploader .............................. Clay Halliwell :: :: CompuServe Uploader ......................... Richard Turner :: :: America Online Uploader ....................... Lonnie Smith :: :: FidoNet Uploader ................................ Troy Cheek :: :: :: :: Contributors: :: :: (voluntary and otherwise) :: :: """"""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: Carl Forhan, Doug Engel, Jeff Minter, Lee Krueger :: :: Kevin Manne, Mark Santora, Micah Rowe :: :: :: :: Telecommunicated to you via: :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: GEnie: ST/JAGUAR RT Library 15 :: :: AOL: VIDEO GAMES FORUM Hints, Tips and Tricks II Library :: :: CompuServe: ATARIGAMING and VIDGAME Forums :: :: FidoNet: ATARI_ST and VID_GAME Echoes :: :: :: :: World Wide Web: http://www.atarihq.com/jeo/ :: :: :: :: E-Mail Request address: JEO-request@maximized.com :: :: :: :: To subscribe to JEO, send e-mail to the request address, :: :: with the following line (no subject): :: :: :: :: subscribe JEO :: :: :: :: Your request will be automatically processed and your e-mail :: :: address will be subscribed to the list. To unsubscribe from :: :: the JEO list, send the following: :: :: :: :: unsubscribe JEO :: :: :: :: to the same request address, making sure you send it from :: :: the same address you subscribed from. :: :: :: :: Subscription problems requiring human assistance can be sent :: :: to JEO-help@maximized.com. Thanks to Maximized Software for :: :: hosting the JEO list. :: :: :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Table of Contents * From the Editor .......................................... I've Been Bad. * JEO Trivia Challenge VI: The Questions ............... Strain Your Brain. * Jaguar Tackboard .................. Newsletters, Message Boards, Mailing Lists, FAQs, Codes, Development List, Mail Order Directory. * CyberChatter .......................................... Overheard Online. * BattleSphere News ..................................... 4Play Marches On. * Protector Update ...................................... It's Almost Here. * Llatest from Llamaland ........................................ Yak yaks. * State of the Lynx .............................. The Little Cat Purrs On. * Jaguar Holiday Shopping Guide ............................ Buy, Buy, Buy! * JagFest '99: The Aftermath .................... Living La Vida Minnesota. * CGE '99: A Classic Games Enthusiast's View ............. Classic Nirvana. * CGE '99: The Video ................................... Slings and Arrows. * JEO Trivia Challenge VI: The Answers .............................. D'Oh! * Shutdown ............................ Around the world and up your block. --==--==--==--==-- || From the Editor || By: Clay Halliwell \__// clay.h@att.net ------------------------------------------------------------------ Bad news first-- it's been five months since the last JEO, for a grand total of two issues in 1999. I've been a bad editor, so let the rotten- fruit-tossing commence... Ready? Go! Okay, I deserved that. What can I say? With the exception of JagFest, 1999 has been a dead, dead year for the Jaguar. Until now. BattleSphere encryption is just around the corner (for real this time!), FOUR new titles - Skyhammer, Protector, Hyper Force, and Soccer Kid - are coming from Songbird Productions, J.U.G.S. ("Jaguar Unmodified Game Server") is slowly creeping out of the shadows, and work continues on The Assassin and Gorf 2000. The Lynx side has been even busier, with the recent releases of SFX, Ponx, Lexis, Hyperdrome, and Sokomania. Cyber Virus and Crystal Mines 2: Lost Caverns are on the way as well. If you happen by the newsstand this month, look for the November DieHard GameFan. They have a two-page spread reviewing Skyhammer and Protector, and it's pleasantly favorable. I may find myself picking up a GameBoy Color sometime in the coming year. As much as I'm obligated to revile the GameBoy for steamrolling the Lynx, I have to admit that it's turned into quite the classic-gaming platform. Beside Nintendo's own "classics" cards, recent and upcoming releases include KLAX, Yars' Revenge, Shamus, Marble Madness, Toobin', Pong, and Towers II(!). Say what you will about Hasbro buying Atari just to get their licenses and trademarks, I think they've done more with the Atari name than the Tramiels ever would or could have. Atari Arcade Hits #1 has been out for a little while now and a #2 is in the works. PONG just came out too. I've played the demo, and they've done an amazing job of updating the Pong concept with modern ideas and spiffy all-polygonal graphics. At $19.99, it should be a big hit with the Wal-Mart crowd. Aside from the classic updates, it appears Hasbro is positioning "Atari" as the brand name for all future Hasbro Interactive games. We may yet see the Atari name become respectable once again. (On a down note, I've seen the screenshots of the new Missile Command 3D, and it looks more like the "3D" variation of Jag MC3D than the "Virtual" version. Oh well.) BattleSphere is still months away, but you're dying to reduce alien baddies to flaming space wreckage. What do you do? Well, if you have a reasonably beefy PC, go download the FreeSpace 2 demo . This is absolutely the best space combat simulator I've ever played. Imagine jumping into the cockpit of a Starfury in the middle of one of Babylon 5's signature epic space battles. Imagine watching kilometers-long capital ships shredding each other with titanic energy beams. Imagine explosions so huge they send your tiny fighter spinning. Imagine going online and playing deathmatch or co-op with a dozen friends. This game is COOL. (if you're playing online and see a pilot named "ZylonBane", that's me) Does anyone still remember the Mac game BattleGirl I mentioned a while back? Well, the PC version is finally out, and it's fully as kick-ass as the original. Grab the demo at . It starts out slow, but that's just to lull you into a false sense of security... Eclipse is close to finishing Iron Soldier 3 for the Playstation. I've seen the screenshots , and it's impressive. It's still clearly Iron Soldier, but with higher-rez textures and lots of pretty transparent smoke/fog and dynamic lighting effects (and rolling terrain, and two-player split screen, and who knows what else). I wonder if Bleem! (the PC Playstation emulator) can handle it... From the Righteous Indignation Department: A recent edition of Trivial Pursuit (I forget which one... Millenium Edition I think), lists the Nintendo 64 as the first 64-bit game system. Trivial Pursuit is published by Hasbro! One of the new titles coming from Hasbro is Nerf ArenaBlast. Long-time Jag aficionados will remember an announced Jag titled called Nerf Max Force. I asked Jayson Hill at Hasbro Interactive if there was any connection between the two, and he had this to say: "None at all. All new game." Well, that settles that! Included in the ZIPped version of this issue is a screenshot of VLM-2 on the Nuon, a pic of the JEO table from JagFest (taken by Kevin Manne (the picture, not the table)), and a proposed print advertisement that was leaked to us by a super-duper-secret source at Hasbro. Finally, a couple of links to leave you laughing: The Most Rad Church of Atari: The John Deere 2600: --==--==--==--==-- || JEO Trivia Challenge VI: The Questions || By: Clay Halliwell \__// clay.h@att.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- This issue's trivia challenge will really test your long-term memory banks. How many of these do you know? What were the original titles of these games?? 1. Skyhammer 2. BattleSphere 3. Hover Strike 4. Missile Command 3D 5. Checkered Flag 6. Power Drive Rally 7. Ultra Vortek 8. AirCars 9. Evolution: Dino Dudes 10. I-War 11. World Tour Racing BONUS QUESTIONS: 12. Doom (during its PC development days) 13. Phase Zero (unreleased) 14. Black Ice\White Noise (unreleased) 15. Tetrisphere (an N64 release, which started life on the Jaguar) --==--==--==--==-- || Jaguar Tackboard || Confirmed information about Atari's Jaguar \__// Compiled from online and official sources ----------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar Message Boards =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Anyone with web browsing capability can join in on the discussions on several web-based Jaguar message boards out there on the net. Note that, due to the rapid message turnover and instant-update nature of these boards, they have a tendency to burn through topics in a matter of days instead of weeks (or hours instead of days). Just point your browser to: Jaguar Interactive II (hosted by Atari Gaming Headquarters) Atari Times Boardroom (hosted by The Atari Times) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar Chat =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Anyone with web browsing capability who wants to chat in real-time with their fellow Jaguar enthusiasts, but has no access to IRC, should take advantage of this Jag chat page: JFPN's Jaguar Chat =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Atari Mailing List =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Subscribe to the AtariNews: On the Prowl OneList service. Be sure to visit and get on this list to stay up-to-date on all the latest Atari-related announcements. The list covers news items relevant to Atari fans, from unearthed 2600 prototypes to new Jaguar games to Hasbro updates of timeless classics for modern systems. Subscribe to the "atari" list at OneList. Join more than 500 Atari fans today! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar FAQ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Robert Jung maintains the Jaguar FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) file, a continually updated list of Jaguar specs and facts. The Jaguar FAQ is posted to rec.games.video.atari on Usenet around the first of every month, and can also be found at . =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar Cheats and Codes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Clay "No Handle" Halliwell maintains the Atari Jaguar Game Cheats and Codes FAQ. It's available by e-mail request or from Atari Gaming Headquarters . Lonnie "The Mage" Smith maintains the Concise Compendium of Frequently Asked Codes, Moves, and Cheats (FACMAC). It's available via FTP from , or from . =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JEO Development List =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The following list of game titles has been confirmed to the best of JEO's ability as of publication. Entries in the "S"tatus column reflect any "u"pdates, "n"ew titles, or "?"uestionable listings since the last JEO list. Entries in the "M"edia column reflect whether the title is "C"D-ROM or "J"aguar Server/BJL (blank entries indicate cartridge software). "NEW" indicates titles released since the last issue of JEO. ETA dates are dates that have been provided by the developer or publisher. //// Titles in Development or Limbo S M Title ETA Developer Publisher " " """"" """ """"""""" """"""""" C Age of Darkness 2000 OMC Games OMC Games C Assassin, The 2000 OMC Games OMC Games u BattleSphere 2000 4Play 4Play J Bong+ 1999 ? Just Claws Software ? Deathwatch ? Data Design J Gorf 2000 ? Krunch Korporation u Hyper Force 3/00 Visual Impact Songbird J Jagmania (PacMania clone) ? Matthias Domin J Jagmarble (Marble Madness clone) ? Matthias Domin J JagTris (Tetris clone) ? Bastian Schick J *NEXT* ? Force Design J Painter ? Sinister u Protector 12/99 Bethesda/Songbird Songbird u Skyhammer 5/00 Rebellion Songbird u Soccer Kid 2/00 Krisalis Songbird ? C Soulstar ? Core Design Ltd. ? Space War 2000 ? Atari n Total Carnage ? Handmade Software //// Current Software Releases M Title Rated Developer Publisher " """"" """"" """"""""" """"""""" AirCars 5 MidNite ICD Alien vs. Predator 9 Rebellion Atari Atari Karts 6 Miracle Design Atari Attack of the Mutant Penguins 6 Sunrise Games Ltd. Atari C Baldies 6 Creative Edge Atari C Battlemorph 10 Attention to Detail Atari C Blue Lightning 6 Attention to Detail Atari C BrainDead 13 5 ReadySoft ReadySoft Breakout 2000 7 MP Games Telegames Brutal Sports Football 6 Millennium/Teque Telegames Bubsy 5 Imagitec Design Atari Cannon Fodder 8 Virgin Interactive C-West Checkered Flag 4 Rebellion Atari Club Drive 5 Atari Atari Crescent Galaxy 3 Atari Atari Cybermorph 7 Attention to Detail Atari Defender 2000 8 Llamasoft Atari Doom 8 id Software Atari Double Dragon V 4 Williams Enter. Williams C Dragon's Lair 5 ReadySoft ReadySoft Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story 6 Virgin Interactive Atari Evolution: Dino Dudes 6 Imagitec Design Atari Fever Pitch Soccer 6 U.S. Gold Atari Fight For Life 6 Atari Atari Flashback 7 Tiertex Ltd. U.S. Gold Flip Out! 6 Gorilla Systems Atari C Highlander I 8 Lore Design Ltd. Atari Hover Strike 5 Atari Atari C Hover Strike: Unconquered Lands 7 Atari Atari Iron Soldier 9 Eclipse Atari C Iron Soldier 2 CD 10 Eclipse Telegames Iron Soldier 2 10 Eclipse Telegames I-War 4 Imagitec Design Atari Kasumi Ninja 5 Hand Made Software Atari Missile Command 3D 8 Virtuality Atari C Myst 9 Atari Atari C Myst Demo 5 Atari Atari NBA Jam: Tournament Edition 9 High Voltage Atari Pinball Fantasies 6 Spider Soft C-West Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure 8 Imagitec Design Atari Power Drive Rally 7 Rage Software TWI C Primal Rage 7 Probe TWI Raiden 6 Imagitec Design Atari Rayman 10 UBI Soft UBI Soft Ruiner 6 High Voltage Atari Sensible Soccer 6 Williams Brothers Telegames C Space Ace 3 ReadySoft ReadySoft Super Burnout 7 Shen Atari Supercross 3D 5 Tiertex Ltd. Atari Syndicate 7 Bullfrog Ocean System Test Cartridge 6 Atari Atari Tempest 2000 10 Llamasoft Atari Theme Park 6 Bullfrog Ocean Towers II 7 JV Enterprises Telegames Troy Aikman NFL Football 6 Telegames Williams Ultra Vortek 8 Beyond Games Atari Val d'Isere Skiing & Snowboarding 7 Virtual Studio Atari C Vid Grid 6 High Voltage Atari C VLM 9 Llamasoft Atari White Men Can't Jump 6 High Voltage Atari Wolfenstein 3D 7 id Software Atari C World Tour Racing 6 Teque London Ltd. Telegames Worms 9 Team 17 Telegames Zero 5 7 Caspian Software Telegames Zool 2 7 Gremlin Graphics Atari Zoop 6 Viacom Atari Total Carts 52 Total CDs 15 (counting VLM) Total Combined 67 Pts Stars JEO Ratings """ """"" """"""""""" 10 ***** THE ULTIMATE - Flawless, beautiful, deviously addictive. 9 ****+ EXCELLENT - Something to throw in the face of N64-heads. 8 **** SMEGGIN' GREAT - Something to kick on the shoes of N64-heads. 7 ***+ DARN GOOD - Plays as good as it looks. 6 *** DECENT - Plays better than it looks (or vice versa). 5 **+ TIME KILLER - If there's nothing else to do, you play this. 4 ** INEPT - The programmer's first Jag game? 3 *+ INCOMPETENT - The programmer's first game ever? 2 * UNPUBLISHABLE - Heaven help us! 1 + INCONCEIVABLE BAD - ...but someone conceived it. Too bad. 0 - EXECRABLE - This is an April Fool's joke, right? //// Current Hardware/Firmware Releases Item Manufacturer """"" """""""""""" Jaguar 64 Atari Jaguar 64 CD-ROM Drive Atari 3-button PowerPad Atari 6-button ProController Atari Team Tap Atari Jag-Link Atari Memory Track Atari Jaguar System Test Cartridge Atari Composite Cable Atari S-Video Cable Atari Stereo Audio Interface (proto) Atari VoiceModem (proto) Atari/Phylon Controller Extension Cable Best Electronics CatBox ICD/Black Cat Design Boomerang controller Matt (Poland) Lap Cat/Lap Cat Pro joystick Ben Aein Jaguar Extreme Joystick Dark Knight Games (modded Gravis Blackhawk) Jaguar Server devkit Roine Stenberg (Istari Software) Behind Jaggy Lines devkit Bastian Schick //// The Short Term Schedule Here's the Jaguar software schedule for the next few months. Please bear in mind that these dates represent everyone's best assumptions. December: Protector February: Soccer Kid March: Hyper Force May: Skyhammer =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JEO Mail Order Directory 1.4 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The following list of vendors carrying Jaguar software/hardware has been confirmed to the best of JEO's ability. Please e-mail JEO for additions/ corrections. //// B&C ComputerVisions Mail 1725 De La Cruz Blvd #7 Santa Clara, CA 95050-3011 Voice 408-986-9960 (Tue-Fri, 10am-6pm) Fax 408-986-9968 Email Web //// Best Electronics Mail 2021 The Alameda, Suite 290 San Jose, CA 95126-1127 Voice 408-243-6950 Email Web //// Buy-Rite Video Games Voice 919-850-9473 Fax 919-872-7561 Email Web //// Demand Systems Voice 805-482-7900 Orders 800-593-0059 Fax 805-484-3745 805-987-1998 Email Web //// Dentec Computer Products Mail 465 Milner Ave #3 Scarborough, Ontario M1B 2K4 Canada Voice 416-292-2996 Fax 416-292-4075 416-292-248 Email Web //// GameMasters Mail 14393 E. 14th Street, Suite 208 San Leandro, CA 94577 Voice 510-483-4263 Email Web //// Game Pedler Voice 801-273-0787 (ask for Internet Sales) Fax 801-273-1357 Email Web //// Games To Go Mail 7632 Lyndale Avenue So. Richfield, MN 55423 Voice 612-798-5879 Fax 612-869-5925 Email (orders) (info) Web //// Hardysoft Mail 24 Lawnside Drive Lawrenceville, NJ 08648 Orders 609-883-1083 Fax 609-538-8674 Email Web //// Multimedia 1.0 Mail 18 Saint Mark's Place New York City, NY 10003 Voice 212-539-1039 Fax 212-539-1645 Email Web //// O'Shea, Ltd. Mail 330 West 47th Street #203 Kansas City, MO 64112 Voice 816-531-1177 Fax 816-531-6569 Email Web //// Telegames Mail P.O. Box 901 Lancaster, Texas 75146 Voice 972-228-0690 Orders 972-224-7200 Fax 972-228-0693 Email Web //// United Game Source Mail 232 East Eau Gallie Blvd Indian Harbour Beach, FL 32937 Orders 800-564-1458 Fax 407-777-3940 Email Web //// Video Game Advantage Mail 6861 Anthony Lane Parma Heights, OH 44130 Orders 216-843-8815 (24-hr answering machine) Email Web //// Video Game Liquidators Mail 4058 Tujunga Ave, #B Studio City, CA 91604 Orders 818-505-1666 (9am-5pm PST) 888-944-4263 (toll free) Fax 818-505-1686 Email Web //// The Video Games Source Mail Salzbruecker Str. 36 21335 Lueneburg - Germany Orders +(49) 4131-406278 Fax +(49) 4131-406278 Email Web =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Announcements and Press Releases =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Index 01 Jun 99 - Songbird Productions Announces Upcoming Atari Releases 27 Jun 99 - Songbird Productions to Attend CGE, Announces New Lynx Games 17 Aug 99 - Lexis Ships for the Atari Lynx 23 Aug 99 - Cyberpunks Entertainment Press Release 30 Aug 99 - Songbird Announces Skyhammer for the Atari Jaguar 28 Oct 99 - Atari's PONG Brings the Fun Home Again 02 Nov 99 - Songbird Productions Release Schedule Updated //// SONGBIRD PRODUCTIONS ANNOUNCES UPCOMING ATARI RELEASES June 1, 1999 For immediate release: ROCHESTER, MN -- Songbird Productions is pleased to announce renewed support for Atari gaming consoles in the form of new releases for the Jaguar and Lynx. Topping off the list is Ponx for the Atari Lynx. Ponx brings the ball-and- paddle classic that started it all to the Lynx. But this isn't your ordinary game. Ponx features a number of options, such as multiple balls, a Lynx controlled opponent with selectable AI, and more. Plus, in a throwback to classic handheld gaming, play against a friend on the same Lynx unit (no ComLynx cable or second Ponx cartridge necessary!). The target release date for Ponx is June 18, 1999, and the retail price is $39.95. If you are interested in ordering Ponx, please visit the Songbird Productions web page at http://songbird.atari.org. Dealer inquiries welcome. Songbird Productions continues to make significant progress on Protector, a fast-paced 2D bi-directional shooter for the Jaguar. Anticipated release date is later in 1999. In addition, Songbird Productions has licensed a number of unreleased games from former Jaguar developers. The games licensed are: Soccer Kid from Krisalis Software Ltd., Hyper Force from Visual Impact, and Skyhammer from Rebellion. "Jaguar and Lynx fans have remained highly supportive of Atari game consoles," said Carl Forhan, owner of Songbird Productions. "I can't tell you how excited I am to have licensed these games from their respective companies and know that I will get them into gamers' hands in the coming months. This is a great opportunity for Songbird Productions to help sustain the Jaguar and Lynx into the next millennium." At press time, no release dates had been set for any of the Jaguar products. All inquiries on these products should be directed to Songbird Productions only. To keep up to date with the latest news at Songbird Productions, be sure to visit the company web site at http://songbird.atari.org, or send an email to songbird@atari.org. Copyright 1999 Songbird Productions. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in its entirety. //// SONGBIRD PRODUCTIONS TO ATTEND CGE, ANNOUNCES NEW LYNX GAMES June 27, 1999 For immediate release: ROCHESTER, MN -- Songbird Productions recently committed to attending Classic Gaming Expo (CGE), which will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada, on August 14-15. CGE is the premiere event in 1999 for fans of classic gaming systems such as Atari, Intellivision, Vectrex, and more. "John and Keita have put a lot of effort into making this year's event bigger than World of Atari was last year", commented Carl Forhan, owner of Songbird Productions. "I'm thrilled that Songbird will be a part of CGE, and I plan on having a variety of merchandise for sale for many Atari systems." Additionally, Songbird Productions hopes to keep the momentum growing for the orphaned Atari systems Lynx and Jaguar. To that end, two new Lynx products will be launched at CGE. The first is Lexis, an interesting twist on the "falling blocks" concept familiar to gamers everywhere. In this game, you don't have to clear a row of bricks -- you have to form words out of falling letters. This fun and challenging game includes a dictionary of 20,000+ words, some of which are special cheat words recognized by the game. Several play modes are also included. The second Lynx product is "Crystal Mines II: Lost Caverns". Songbird Productions and Serious Cybernetics have teamed up with original Crystal Mines I and II developer Ken Beckett to take advantage of a hidden feature in the existing Lynx Crystal Mines II cartridge -- it supports downloads of new levels into Lynx RAM via the ComLynx port. The product will include Win95 software on a CD-R and a special Lynx-to-PC serial cable which also doubles as a developer cable for those who may own a BLL or SIMIS cartridge for the Lynx. CGE promoter John Hardie recently expressed his enthusiasm with regards to the news, saying, "We're delighted that Songbird Productions, the premiere Lynx and Jaguar developer, has chosen CGE '99 as the venue in which to debut and display their new products." Songbird Productions also anticipates being able to demo unreleased Jaguar games at CGE, including Protector and Skyhammer. At press time, it was uncertain if these games will be available for purchase in time for CGE. Songbird owner Carl Forhan recognizes that he's not alone in his endeavor to support Atari platforms. "Several sponsors have helped make it possible for Songbird to attend CGE '99. Ken Beckett and Multimedia 1.0 each deserve a big thank you for their generous sponsorship of Songbird Productions." To keep up to date with the latest news at Songbird Productions, be sure to visit the company web site at http://songbird.atari.org, or send an email to songbird@atari.org. Copyright 1999 Songbird Productions. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in its entirety. //// LEXIS SHIPS FOR THE ATARI LYNX August 17, 1999 ROCHESTER, MN -- Songbird Productions is pleased to announce the general availability of Lexis for the Atari Lynx. Lexis is an exciting new twist on the "falling blocks" classic concept familiar to most gamers. Spell words backwards and forwards to clear the screen. This game features a 20,000 word dictionary and recognition of 3-11 letter words. Several play modes are also included. Developed by Shadowsoft, Inc., who contributed such games as Joust and Robotron for the Lynx, Lexis is an instant classic and a great addition to the Lynx library. Lexis debuted at Classic Gaming Expo(tm) just a few days ago, and was well received by Lynx fans from all over the world. The retail price for Lexis is $39.95. Shipping charges will be added. The Songbird web site, located at http://songbird.atari.org, is temporarily unavailable due to a server error. In the meantime, please refer to the backup pages located at: http://homepage2.rconnect.com/forhan/songbird for ordering information. Use forhan@millcomm.com for email if songbird@atari.org does not work. Copyright 1999 Songbird Productions. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in its entirety. //// CYBERPUNKS ENTERTAINMENT PRESS RELEASE August 23, 1999 http://www.cyberpunks.uni.cc/ (see bottom for more on how to best access our homepage) Last week saw us debut two new products at the Classic Gaming Expo. Today, Cyberpunks Entertainment is proud to announce the release of Stella At 20: Volume 2 and Stella Gets a New Brain v. 2.0 to the general public. Stella at 20, background: Over the course of August 1997, interviews were shot for a video documentary entitled Stella at 20: An Atari 2600 Retrospective. The founders of Atari, the original engineers, the famous programmers, and some lesser known programmers were gathered together to look back on the system that launched the home videogame industry. Volume 2 focuses on the individual programmers, their background, and in-depth discussions of the games they created, covering all eras of the system. This volume debuted at the Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas on August 15th. At close to 90 minutes in length, this volume is now available via mail order. VOLUME TWO - "The Game Designers" or "One Person, One Game" Featuring: Al Miller - Surround, Basketball, Starmaster David Crane - Canyon Bomber, Dragster, Pitfall, Pitfall II Larry Kaplan - Air-Sea battle, Kaboom Carol Shaw - Polo, River Raid Larry Wagner - Video Chess Bob Smith - Riddle of the Sphinx, Dragonfire Dennis Koble - Comments about Easter Eggs Tod Frye - Pac-Man, Save Mary Rick Maurer - Space Invaders Rob Fulop - Night Driver, Missile Command, Demon Attack Steve DeFrisco - Secret Quest, Motorodeo, Klax Preview page: http://www.cyberpunks.uni.cc/stellaat20_2.html (The VOLUME ONE box art is complete and the footage is currently still being edited. It should be ready for release within the next 8 weeks. We will be putting up a preview page soon. VOLUME ONE is the story of the design of the 2600, followed by a discussion of the videogame boom, the death of Atari, and what might have been had different decisions been made. It also will include a session where the programmers discuss the differences between the industry of then vs. today, easing into a summary on what the 2600 really means in the larger scheme of the history of videogames.) Stella Gets a New Brain Here it is, the re-release of the Starpath Supercharger catalog! The CD celebrated in Wired magazine in '97 and currently selling for hundreds of dollars is back, and this time there is enough to go around! Play the audio files into your Supercharger, either from a CD-Player or use WPLAYBIN or Makewav and generate your own audio files on the PC for loading into the Supercharger. Check out the updated Tools section to write new 2600 games with just about any PC and your supercharger. Plus, view all the new scans, many of which accumulated for Stella at 20. The full preview page: http://www.cyberpunks.uni.cc/stellagetsbrain2.html PRICING: The pricing scheme may seem a little complicated, but we tried to come up with the best discounts and incentives for those who buy both the CD and the tape, or those who buy in large volume. The system is as follows: All Cyberpunks products start out at an individual $30 base price and are modified via the tables below: Volume Pricing (volume orders of individual items): 1 = $30 10 = $25 50 = $20 (email first) 100 = $10 (email first) Shipping cost starts out at a base of $1.50 plus $1.50 for each unit ordered up to the total of 10 units (of each type). From 11 to 20 units, the base is $3.00 and one dollar for each unit. Orders above 20 units, please Email for precise shipping costs and ordering information. Actual total pricing on high volume orders is negotiable. Shipping Cost Chart: 1-10 total units $1.50 + 1.50/unit 11-20 total units $3.00 + $1.00/unit Special BUNDLE discount!: As an incentive to purchasing both items, whenever you buy the CD and the video in one order, you will receive a $10 discount on your order. This applies to each and every pair of CDs and Tapes you order up to the maximum order of 10cds/10tapes. Volume orders above 10 are not eligible, as volume pricing discounts already save you money. So, if you order 3 tapes and 2 CDs, you pair up the CDs and tapes and apply a $10 discount to each pair, hence a $20 discount. 5 tapes and 2 CDs is a $20 discount. Typical orders: 1 CD + 1 tape = $4.50 shipping = $64.50 - ($10.00 bundle discount!) = $54.50 total ($59.00 California residents) 1 CD or 1 tape = $3.00 shipping = $33.00 total ($35.72 California Residents) To simplify things, we have a fully interactive order form. Just pick the number of units you like, and the scripting will do the rest. Then just print and send your order in to us. This may only function properly under Internet Explorer 4.0 or greater because it uses VBScript and Dynamic HTML. If you experience difficulties, you can click a link use a blank form and follow the above rules. Any difficulties, please email cybpunks@earthlink.net. The order form can be found here: http://www.cyberpunks.uni.cc/order.html ------------------------------------------------------------ HOW TO GET TO OUR HOMEPAGE: http://www.cyberpunks.uni.cc This is our new official URL, which is a redirection (i.e. an alias) to our actual site on Geocities. We had been using: http://cyberpunks.atari.org/ As our redirect, but the system is down indefinitely (unfortunately, bad timing). If you ever have any trouble accessing our homepage, please use the full URL: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/1698/cyberpunks/ --GLENN SAUNDERS --PRODUCER - CYBERPUNKS ENTERTAINMENT //// SONGBIRD ANNOUNCES SKYHAMMER FOR THE ATARI JAGUAR August 30, 1999 For immediate release: ROCHESTER, MN -- Songbird Productions is pleased to announce that Skyhammer will be published for the Atari Jaguar platform in time for Christmas. Skyhammer is the phenomenal full 3D action shooter for the Atari Jaguar. The game was developed by renowned Jaguar and PC developer Rebellion several years ago, but shelved around the time the Jaguar ceased to be a mainstream platform. Skyhammer combines the fast-action gameplay of a first-person shooter with a nonlinear element which allows the player to freely roam an immense, 3D city in search of enemies, equipment, mission objectives, and more. Not only that, but two play modes are included in the game: Mission and Battle. In the Mission play mode, the player is given direct objectives to meet, through which the player is awarded credits for the purpose of rearming and upgrading their Skyhammer attack craft. In the Battle play mode, the player must defend the city from wave after wave of invaders while carefully managing limited resources. The primary obstacle to new Jaguar games for the last year or more has been encryption. Every Jaguar game must be encrypted in order to function properly on the system, and the encryption ends up being different for each game. Songbird Productions has teamed up with Jaguar hobbyist Scott Walters, who has devised a method of bypassing encryption, to publish new games for the Jaguar. Scott is understandably excited about his invention, and the opportunity to work with Songbird Productions on the upcoming releases. Carl Forhan, owner of Songbird Productions, is enthusiastic about supporting Atari platforms. He commented, "Skyhammer is a great game, and I know Jaguar fans will be thrilled to finally be able to purchase this game. Now is the time for Jaguar and Lynx fans to mobilize. Songbird Productions has numerous new Lynx and Jaguar games either already available or coming in the next six months. Songbird needs your help getting the word out on email lists, web pages, game magazines, Atari user groups, and more. "This is a critical time, because Songbird needs to see that there is value in publishing new games for these Atari platforms both now and in the future. I want the fans to enjoy these 'lost games', all of which are fully licensed from the original developers." Skyhammer is expected to be released December 6, 1999. Other games will follow in the coming months. To keep up to date with the latest news at Songbird Productions, be sure to visit the company web site at http://songbird.uni.cc, or send an email to forhan@millcomm.com. Copyright 1999 Songbird Productions. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in its entirety. Skyhammer is copyright and trademark Rebellion. All rights reserved. //// ATARI'S PONG BRINGS THE FUN HOME AGAIN PONG, Q*BERT AND MISSILE COMMAND ARE BACK IN A BIG, NEW 3D WAY! BEVERLY, Mass. (October 28, 1999) - The 1974 holiday season was a high- scoring time in history as Atari's arcade hit Pong came home and ignited the home interactive entertainment industry. Just in time for the 1999 holiday season, Atari's doing it again with a new 3D Pong for the PC and Sony PlayStation. In new Pong, players go head-to-head, table-tennis-style, lobbing the ball back and forth in pursuit of high score. Sharp reflexes are key, because this time Pong packs the playing field with mischievous penguins, jagged terrain and many more challenges over 20 new levels. Pong is available in stores now at a suggested retail price of $19.95 (PC) and $29.95 (PSX). Hasbro Interactive's first game for the Atari line, Frogger, hopped straight to the top of the charts selling more than 2.5 million copies on PC and Sony Playstation since its debut. This summer, Centipede slithered onto the scene wowing action- and arcade-lovers alike with classic gameplay and added `90s features. In response to the success of these front-running titles, Hasbro Interactive will release a sequel to Frogger in 2000. Other blasts from the past dressed up for the future include cool new versions of classics Missile Command and Q*bert for the PC and Sony PlayStation. In Q*bert, the premise of this puzzle game may be familiar but the playing fields are a whole new frontier. Players navigate cube mazes, turning all squares the same color before Q*bert's zany enemies - Ugg, Wrong-Way and Coily the Snake - foil the plans. Only this time, Q*bert's truly a hip hopper on a mission to blast through fantastic space worlds to save his home! %*&^%!! Q*bert will bounce onto retail store shelves in November at suggested retail price of $29.95 (PC and PSX). 1980's "must-have" Missile Command has come full-circle, literally, as players must protect six cities from incoming missile attacks - blasting them from every angle! This ultimate twist on the classic Atari space-war game is sure to delight a new generation of players. The new Missile Command will fly onto retail store shelves in November at a suggested retail price of $29.95 (PC) and $39.95 (PSX). Also joining the Atari lineup this fall will be the first Atari title for the Sega Dreamcast, Centipede. Exploiting the power of this new gaming console to the fullest, Centipede for the Sega Dreamcast will feature superior graphics and special effects as well as incorporating new adventure elements. Hasbro Interactive is also introducing new game concepts that capture the essence of Atari's fast action-play. There's the character-driven puzzle game Glover for Sony PlayStation and futuristic sports action game Nerf ArenaBlast PC. For more information on Hasbro Interactive's Atari games, visit www.atari.com. Hasbro Interactive, Inc. is a global interactive entertainment industry leader, innovating new ways to play and developing, publishing and distributing the highest quality interactive games, toys and lifestyle products for a full range of genres and platforms. Its premier brands include Hasbro Interactive Children's and Family Entertainment, Atari, MicroProse, Avalon Hill, Hasbro Sports and Europress. Among the many award- winning titles published by Hasbro Interactive are: Frogger, Monopoly, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, Tonka Construction, Tonka Workshop, Risk, Roller Coaster Tycoon, MechWarrior 3 and Falcon 4.0. A subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS), Hasbro Interactive has offices in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada and Germany and internal development studios in the U.S. and U.K. For further information, visit Hasbro Interactive's Web site at http://www.hasbro-interactive.com. Frogger is a registered trademark of Konami Co., Ltd. 1981 KONAMI. All rights reserved. Q*bert is a registered trademark of Sony Pictures Consumer Products. All rights reserved. Tetris is a registered trademark of Elorg and has been licensed to The Tetris Company. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc Centipede, Pong, Missile Command, Tempest, Breakout and Asteroids are trademarks of Atari Interactive, Inc., a Hasbro affiliate Q*bert was developed for Hasbro Interactive by Artech Studios Pong was developed for Hasbro Interactive by Supersonic Centipede for PC and Sega Dreamcast was developed for Hasbro Interactive by Leaping Lizard Software. Sony Playstation version by Real Sports Games Missile Command was developed for Hasbro Interactive by Meyer/Glass Interactive The Next Tetris was developed for Hasbro Interactive by Blue Planet Software (C) 1999 Hasbro Interactive, Inc. Jayson Hill Hasbro Interactive (978) 921-3882 jhill@hasbro.com Molly Fitzpatrick Agnew Carter/MS&L (617) 437-7722 mfp@acm-pr.com //// SONGBIRD PRODUCTIONS RELEASE SCHEDULE UPDATED November 02, 1999 UPDATE: Release schedule has been updated. Order your copy of Protector today! Now you can pre-order or order with a credit card! See the FAQ below for details. Songbird Productions is excited to announce a pre-order program for the upcoming Jaguar releases, including a special offer for those who pre-order most or all of the new games by November 1st! The following games will be published by Songbird Productions in the 1999 and 2000 timeframe: Title Date Pre-Order Deposit Retail Price (Nov 2nd) Protector 12/20/99 none $74.95 Soccer Kid 02/07/00 $25 by 12/31/99 $74.95 Hyper Force 03/20/00 $25 by 02/01/00 $74.95 Skyhammer 05/08/00 $25 by 03/01/00 $79.95 Information on all the above games can be found on the Songbird web site at http://songbird.atari.org. Release dates subject to change without prior notice. All games will have the look and feel of a regular Jaguar product, including a professionally printed full-color box and label, and a professionally printed B&W manual. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *** PRE-ORDER SPECIAL *** By November 1st: In order to ensure the correct number of cartridges are built, Songbird needs your pre-orders now. You can pre-order a game by sending Songbird Productions a $25 deposit towards each game you would like to purchase. If you desire multiple copies of each upcoming game, you need to pre-order each copy at this time to ensure availability. However, the pre-order specials only apply when ordering 3 or 4 different games, not multiples of the same game. Pre-order 3 of the above games, and receive a $10 Songbird coupon which may be applied against any one eligible item from the Songbird catalog. Pre- order all 4 games, and receive two $10 Songbird coupons _and_ a free Jaguar lapel pin. Your pre-orders must be postmarked by November 1st, 1999, to qualify for these special offers. This is a nonrefundable deposit towards the purchase of one or more of the above games. You must complete your order (in other words, pay your remaining balance with shipping, etc.) within 3 months of the publication date of each game. Plus, pre-ordering guarantees you the lowest possible price on these products. Everyone who pre-ordered by Nov 1st guaranteed their games at $69.95 plus shipping each. After November 1st: You can still pre-order games with a $25 deposit per game after November 1st, but you will not be eligible for the pre-order pricing or other discounts. A pre-order FAQ is included below to answer any questions you may have. The most recent version of this FAQ may be found at http://songbird.atari.org. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *** HOW TO PRE-ORDER *** Please print out the regular Songbird order form at http://songbird.atari.org, and fill in the required information. Note that there is no tax or shipping on the pre-orders, although there will be as applicable when you complete the order for each game in the future. Mark each game as "PRE-ORDER" on the form, and include $25 per game you wish to pre-order. In the event you cannot print out the order form, send a typed or neatly printed note to Songbird Productions and clearly indicate which games you are pre-ordering. Mail all correspondence to: Songbird Productions 1774 10th Ave SE Rochester, MN 55904 USA ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *** PRE-ORDER FAQ *** Q1. What can I use for payment of my pre-orders? A1. You have three options for payment: [] Personal/Business Check - Must be drawn on a USA bank. For customers living in the USA only. [] Money Order - Must be in US Dollars, if not drawn on a USA bank then include a $5 surcharge to cover bank fees. Available to all customers. [] Credit Card - Pre-order the Jaguar games through Multimedia 1.0! Here's how it works: 1. Check the Songbird catalog and see which items are marked with a '*' denoting credit card support. 2. Call in your order to Multimedia 1.0 at 1-800-413-5823 from 12pm- 6pm EST Mon-Fri, or fax your order to 212-529-3117 at any time. Please ask to speak with Shana for voice orders or put "ATTN: Shana" on your fax. 3. Clearly identify your order right away as a "Songbird Productions" order. 4. Provide your order, customer information, and credit card number to the Multimedia 1.0 sales representative. 5. Your order will be forwarded to Songbird Productions for approval and handling. Alternatively, you may email your complete order, customer information, and credit card number to songbird@atari.org, and Songbird will forward your order to Multimedia 1.0 for processing. Note that the charge on your credit card bill will be marked as having originated from Multimedia 1.0. This is correct, and a result of the service Multimedia 1.0 is willing to extend to Songbird Productions. For pre-orders on the upcoming Jaguar games, note that you will be charged $25 per game pre-ordered. Songbird will maintain a record of all such orders, but each customer will need to personally authorize the payment of the balance of each game as it gets close to the ship date. Songbird hopes to have secure online credit card processing available within the next few weeks, but that is not possible at this time. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q2. I live outside the USA. Is there a way I can order close to home? A2. Songbird is negotiating with several foreign video game dealers to ensure Songbird products will be available elsewhere, especially Europe. However, Songbird does accept international orders (see Q1 above), and you must pre-order the games to qualify for the special pre-order offer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q3. What if I change my mind? Can I get a refund on my pre-order, or apply the money to a different purchase from Songbird? A3. No. The purpose of the pre-order program is to reward customers by providing them with several benefits including the $10 Songbird coupons, and to allow Songbird to accurately acquire all the parts, printed material, etc. necessary to release the upcoming games. Therefore, each customer needs to send exactly $25 per game they wish to pre-order. This is a nonrefundable deposit per game, and cannot be shifted to other Songbird merchandise at a later time. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q4. What items are eligible for the $10 Songbird coupons if I pre-order 3 or more games? A4. All items listed in the Songbird catalog and regularly priced $14.95 or above are eligible, except for the following: Lynx Serial Cable Crystal Mines II: Buried Treasure Skyhammer Soccer Kid Hyper Force Protector Additionally, Songbird "featured items" advertised in the newsgroup or on the AtariNews mailing list will also be eligible. Featured items are not normally listed in the Songbird catalog. Only one coupon may be applied per item. Other items may be deemed ineligible without prior notice. Send an email query to songbird@atari.org if you have questions about a specific product, or check this FAQ at http://songbird.atari.org for the latest information. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q5. When will I receive my $10 Songbird coupon(s)? How long do I have to use them? A5. You will receive your coupons with the first game you have pre-ordered. For example, if you pre-order all 4 games, your two $10 Songbird coupons will arrive when Protector ships. The coupons will be valid for at least three months from the time your first pre-ordered game ships. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q6. Why even bother pre-ordering? Can't I just get the game whenever I want? A6. Not likely. Pre-ordering a game is the _only_ way to ensure a copy will be reserved for you. Songbird will be producing _very_ close to the pre- order levels. It's therefore imperative that customers pre-order now _every_ upcoming Jaguar game they plan on purchasing. Here is a summary of benefits for pre-ordering by Nov 1st: [] Guarantees your personal copy of each game. [] Guarantees pre-order pricing of only $69.95 plus shipping each. [] Game will ship 1-2 weeks before other orders. [] One or two $10 Songbird coupons, if you pre-order 3 or 4 games, respectively. [] A free Jaguar lapel pin if you pre-order all 4 games. Here is a summary of benefits for pre-ordering after Nov 1st: [] Guarantees your personal copy of each game. [] Game will ship 1-2 weeks before other orders. The pre-order period typically expires at least one month prior to the release of each game. This allows Songbird sufficient time to build the appropriate number of cartridges to meet the pre-order demand. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q7. Can I pay the entire balance for [insert game here] right now? A7. Customers wishing to order Protector may pay in full starting November 1st. You can still pre-order Soccer Kid, Hyper Force, and Skyhammer after November 1st for a down-payment of $25 each, but you will not be eligible for the pre-order pricing or specials. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q8. Why are all the games priced at $XX.XX? Isn't that rather high? A8. Songbird is attempting to bring new products out to a very small niche market. It is imperative that games are priced appropriately to cover the high costs of printing and manufacturing associated with the publication of a new game, particularly if actual sales do not match projected sales. Finally, the level of compensation received by Songbird will help determine the viability of licensing or developing new products for Atari platforms in the future. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q9. How can I stay informed on the release dates, payment schedules, new Songbird products, etc.? A9. Please join the AtariNews mailing list, featuring Songbird updates and the AtariNews: On the Prowl periodic newsletter. Send a blank email to: atari-subscribe@onelist.com to join the list. Also, regularly check the Songbird Productions home page at http://songbird.atari.org for the latest news and version of this FAQ. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q10. What packaging are you using for the new games? A10. All games will have professionally printed boxes, labels, and manuals. The manuals are B&W, the labels and boxes are in full color. Jaguar fans should be very pleased with the presentation of the final product. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q11. Why is the price increasing on November 2nd? A11. Due to an increase in component cost and the overall uncertainty of producing and selling a large quantity of cartridges, Songbird is raising the retail price on all upcoming Jaguar games after the initial pre-order period expires (Nov 1st). This is all the more reason to place your pre- order now and get these new games at the best possible price. Please note that any customer who pre-orders the games and postmarks his pre-order by November 1st is guaranteed to receive all pre-ordered games at the special discounted pricing. Any pre-orders or orders received that are postmarked after November 1st will be at the full retail price. Songbird appreciates the faithful fans who pre-order new games. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Q12. What about [insert question here]? A12. Please email Songbird Productions at songbird@atari.org with any questions or feedback about upcoming products or the pre-order program. Please be patient, as Songbird is currently experiencing a high volume of traffic due to the upcoming Jaguar and Lynx products. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// New Cheats and Codes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Vid Grid Level Skip Thanks to Hugo Huurdeman for this one. At the main screen, press on a video box to see the information about it. At the information screen, hold 478 and press . If you keep holding 478 at the main screen, you skip the levels ; you don't have to solve all the videos. //// Power Drive Rally My most sincere to apologies to Jason Mazure for inadvertently sitting on these cheats for almost a year. I still haven't managed to independently verify them though... if anyone out there can successfully pull these off, please let me know! WARP SPEED While playing the early easy races, hit the brakes frequently to damage brakes. You can lose and rerun these races over to add more damage since they are easy to win and you still have enough money to qualify. Keep damaging your brakes until the damage gets around 89-93%. Save your game with the damaged brakes. Restart the saved game. Now when the race starts, when you hit your brake button you will fly at about 800MPH. Try using reverse gear to slow down. BURNING RUBBER Save your game with at least 92% damage to tires. Restart from the saved game. Now your tires are smoking all the time and leave black skid marks wherever you go. HIGH JUMP Save your game with at least 92% damage to the tires and the suspension. Restart from the saved game. You will be able to jump out of the screen when you hit a ramp or log on the track. This will only give you an advantage on about three tracks. You cannot jump over houses or trees. You still have to stay in the confines of the normal race track. --==--==--==--==-- || CyberChatter || Random topics about the Jaguar \__// Compiled from online public discussion areas ----------------------------------------------------------------- //// Index of Topics Encryption Chatter BattleSphere Chatter Jaguar in the News Unreleased Stuff Where Did YOU Learn to Toddle? JI2 History JagDoom vs PC Doom: Levels PC AVP Evil Tramiel Rumor Curt's Cool Atari Trivia =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Encryption Chatter =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: The Hasbro "release" Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/07/12 Forum: alt.atari-jaguar.discussion It's an odd twist of events, Hasbro was shipped a CD encryption bench unit and a cartridge encryption bench unit. B&C ComputerVisions also has one each and a second of each that unfortunately the security guard which was temperamental (somedays he was a nice guy, others days he went nuts) who wanted a work bench pushed the units on the floor. Now, none of them had the encryption CD or cart. Last I had heard, and this was 97' Leonard Tramiel "had" them, but supposedly turned them over to Hasbro. This is hear-say, so there is no way for certain to know if in fact they do know if they actually have the items and if so if they know what they are. It's like, they announce, "You're free, run!!!" except your legs are shackled and they don't have or want to give you the key, annoying. Now Telegames was able to encryption Zero5, World Tour Racing and IS2, so the question is, do "They" perhaps have a set of keys or did they utilize the workbenches at the Atari warehouse before it was completely gutted. Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: The Hasbro "release" Author: Dan McNamee Date: 1999/07/13 Forum: alt.atari-jaguar.discussion It didn't take any special hardware to encrypt Jag carts. It just took some software and the encryption key. CDs were more involved, but all it took was a CD setup (with development boot ROMs in the Jag and an Alpine board) and some different software and a different encryption key, and a lot of time. Carts took a few minutes to encrypt and about 10 to make EPROMs for. CDs took about a day to encrypt and make an encrypted CD and verify that the encryption was good. Dan =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: buying a CatBox from ICD Author: Carl and Alyssa Forhan Date: 1999/07/17 Forum: alt.atari-jaguar.discussion Kyle Jones wrote: >1. Hasbro has the key but won't give it to 4Play or anybody else. >2. Hasbro has lost the key. >3. Some guy friendly to 4-Play has the key, but won't give it > to 4-Play without a nod from Hasbro. >4. The whole thing is a hoax and 4-Play laughs themselves into a > beery stupor at our gullibility each and every night. First off, while I do have some "inside info", I know enough to say I don't know the whole story. My best answer would be 'option 3a'. Someone does have the key, but is waiting for a nod from all parties legally involved. Hasbro has "released" the Jaguar, saying "Do what you want, just don't bother us or infringe on our logos/trademarks." The other party involved is RSA, since Atari licensed the encryption from them. To my knowledge, no one but myself is even trying to pursue legal consent from RSA. Carl Forhan Songbird Productions =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Encryption Debate (Crossposted) Author: Glenn Bruner Date: 1999/09/16 Forum: rec.games.video.atari SmkMirrors wrote: > I have a question about the current round of Jaguar/Lynx > development. Some time ago there was a posting detailing how > Hasbro was going to allow (for lack of a better word/proper > terminology) Jaguar games to be encrypted at will or give out > the encryption technology. (Has the happened yet?) That is a real good question. I can speculate on what I think could be the problem, which is they probably can't find the program and key and are not making any effort to find it. Yes, they did announce that the Jaguar is a open platform. But that is about all they have done. Obviously, 4Play hasn't received any encryption software to encrypt BattleSphere since they are doing a brute force program hack to come up with the proper encryption code so they can finally publish the game. According to Thunderbird's Garage Web Page, they have 8 Jaguars running self-modifying code trying to come up with the correct encryption code to generate the $03D0DEAD checksum value. They expect anywhere from 60 to 120 days to complete the task. I remember 4Play saying one time that they were trying to get in writing something from Hasbro saying that they will not seek prosecution. But I guess Hasbro never responded. > Did that deal cover the Lynx as well? Is the Lynx currently > encryption free or not? Fortunately, the Lynx does not use any encryption system. So I can't see them having a legal ground to stop anyone from making Lynx games or why they would waste time and money in doing that. Cheers, Glenn Bruner brunergs@pcisys.net =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Encryption Debate (Crossposted) Author: Songbird Date: 1999/09/17 Forum: rec.games.video.atari Glenn Bruner (brunergs@pcisys.net wrote: : Fortunately, the Lynx does not use any encryption system. So : I can't see them having a legal ground to stop anyone from making : Lynx games or why they would waste time and money in doing that. Of _course_ the Lynx has encryption. But thanks to Bastian's hard work several years ago, the encryption can be bypassed by anyone with a small amount of work. The word I got from a Hasbro rep was that even though the Jaguar PR didn't mention the Lynx, Hasbro doesn't care about new Lynx games being published, either. Carl Forhan Songbird Productions http://songbird.atari.org =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// BattleSphere Chatter =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jaguar Interactive II Re: Lot's O' questions... Posted by Thunderbird (pool-209-138-0-124.nwrk.grid.net) on September 08, 1999 at 18:13:29: In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Lot's O' questions... posted by Jagfan on September 08, 1999 at 17:20:22: >Thank you T-Bird. I only got to play in the networked mode at JagFest, >and the control similarities I was talking about were with the >acceleration. You have to press two buttons and your speed is shown >on a bar, that's all. I really didn't have that much time to try out >all the different ships, heck I don't even remember what ships I did >choose, but during game play I could never figure out what direction I >was going (just have to get used to it) and how to move to things on the >radar. when it comes out I will get used to the controls. Some friendly advice: GET A PROCONTROLLER!!!! BattleSphere makes wonderful use of the extra buttons. You can configure them to accelerate and decelerate. The shoulder buttons make great "roll" buttons too. Most of the functions are also available on the keypad, so you can play with a standard controller just as well if you get used to the pad layout. It becomes second nature after a while. Another fun BattleSphere tip for the pilot who wants SPEED! You can use your warp drive to accelerate to almost jump-speed and abort the warp... you'll be going EXTREMELY fast, and can strafe enemies like they're standing still. (This also works when warping INTO a sector in AAtE mode... as you pop out of warp you decelerate.) It's a load of fun outrunning missiles or better yet... you shoot your lasers and they appear to 'hang' in front of you because you're going nearly the same speed as them. Thunderbird 4Play =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jaguar Interactive II Re: Cart Production Posted by Thunderbird (pool-209-138-170-58-nwrk.grid.net) on November 11, 1999 at 11:21:41: In Reply to: Re: Cart Production posted by Mickster on November 11, 1999 at 10:51:33: >The thing to keep in mind that due to the contraction of the Jaguar >market, there aren't going to be any more than a few hundred carts >sold of any new release. I'd love to be proven wrong on this point. I don't think anyone is going to argue that thousands of carts will be sold. Heck, Atari had trouble selling that many of the carts when the Jag was new! >The realities of economies of scale means that some compromises are >going to be made; There will be NO compromises in BattleSphere. PERIOD. The Jaguar fans and the people who supported us this far deserve nothing but the best. It is my belief that the fans will appreciate the quality and will make sure we have no surplus carts by buying multiple copies for Networking. >if the cart totally mimicked a past Atari Jaguar release down to the >stock and printing process used on the box and label, the cost would >be so high that one or both of two things would happen. Either sales >would be very low and/or margin would be small or eliminated. In the >case of BattleSphere, this results in less money for kids with diabetes >(a very good cause). BattleSphere will offer superior quality to any previous Jaguar release. PERIOD. >So, most likely, compromises are going to be made. Scott, Steph, and >Doug will measure the impact of the various compromises and make some >hard decisions. Given changing markets for materials and the fact that >the game isn't ready for manufacturing, some of these decisions cannot >even be made yet; nor a product price chosen. We've had quite a long time to consider all our options. We know there shall be NO compromises in BattleSphere. Thunderbird 4Play =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar in the News =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Cool Jaguar news Author: Songbird Date: 1999/09/13 Forum: alt.atari-jaguar.discussion Got some great news for you Jaguar, fans... After CGE, I loaned out two flash ROM carts of Skyhammer and Protector to a prominent print magazine -- GameFan. The senior editor there is a big Jaguar fan and still plays games like T2K on a regular basis. Anyway, Skyhammer and Protector are going to be reviewed _in print_ as part of a two-page Jaguar article in their 'graveyard' section which puts the spotlight on old favorites for obsolete systems. This is a _great_ opportunity to get the word out on the new games, especially since Skyhammer will be out later this year. Look for the article to appear in the November issue of GameFan. Carl Forhan Songbird Productions http://songbird.atari.org =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Think the Jaguar never gets print coverage? Author: Carl Forhan Date: 1999/07/01 Forum: alt.atari-jaguar.discussion Think again: http://homepage2.rconnect.com/forhan/songbird/mcvreb.jpg Sincerely, Carl Forhan Songbird Productions http://songbird.atari.org =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Unreleased Stuff =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: VR exists! Posted by BattleSphere Bob (209-239-194-121.oak.jps.net) on May 13, 1999 at 11:24:54: In Reply to: VR exists! posted by Carl on May 13, 1999 at 08:26:22: >>OK, believe what you want to believe. I certainly hope you are >> right. There are none out there, so you've got a long wait. >> >>They were probably Virtuality display units faked as JagVR until >>all development was done. Well, since I actually used one behind closed doors at E3 '95 and it was even plugged into a Jag, it was quite real. Now the full-scale game demo they were running outside the booth? Yeah, that was fake. It was running on an Amiga. But it did earn you a real JagVR t-shirt if you waited in line long enough. My contacts say the one JagVR helmet was destroyed in 1996. Scott =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Bomberman for Jaguar Posted by ug (ppp-pm04-dy-33.cd1.dialup.oakland.edu) on November 07, 1999 at 16:54:06: In Reply to: Bomberman for Jaguar <9036.html> posted by Sal Manfredonia on November 06, 1999 at 22:17:56: >>Carl, >>What about the version of Bomberman for the Jaguar that is supposed >>to be finished? Who was the developer of that? I'm not Carl, but I hope you don't mind me answering your question. :) The name of the group that worked on Jaguar Bomberman was Genetic Fantasia. They are the people who did Yars' Revenge for Game Boy. The GB version of Yars' Revenge was originally a "freeware" ROM image to be played on emulators (I use the term "freeware" loosely, as the game concept of Yars' Revenge is copyrighted by Atari). As many of you know, this project eventually evolved into a commercial Game Boy Color game that was published by Telegames (and properly licensed from Atari). Here's a paragraph from the documentation that came with the original GB Yars' Revenge "freeware" game: -------------------- Genetic Fantasia was founded in 1995 by Jeff Burke, Bob Baffy and Mike Mika. It was created to develop software for the Atari Jaguar. It's potential claim to fame would have been Bomberman Legends, an Eight Player multi-link version of the Hudson Soft hit series. Though development was nearly finished, it was stopped when Atari could not negotiate the license. No attempt to modify the game to every legal avenue was made to release the title because Atari hit the bottom by this time. Other projects in the works are now being refitted for the PC and Playstation. Current staff is five people, spread over every facet of development. -------------------- By the way, the document was dated 12/13/96, and I'm sure a lot has changed since then. I don't know if Genetic Fantasia is still in existence; I can say that their old Web site at http://www.geneticfantasia.com didn't work when I tried it a few minutes ago. To my knowledge, Mike Mika (the programmer of Yars' Revenge) works for Digital Eclipse now, and has done several GB/GBC games for them. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Atari Jaguar unreleased games Author: Sal Manfredonia Date: 1999/11/10 Forum: rec.games.video.atari wrote in message news:80d01m$mpl$1@nnrp1.deja.com... > Hi there, > > I was going through my revised list of (yet) unreleased Atari > Jaguar software and was wondering if any of you could be so kind > and comment on any of these entries: > -Phase Zero by ??? (must have been at least partially completed, > this is NOT Zero 5) Phase Zero (original name Hover Hunter) was being developed by Hyper Image, and if it were completed it would have been published by Atari. There is at least one prototype out there somewhere which is playable, so it must have been pretty far in development. Hyper Image abandoned it to do Saturn and PlayStation work, but I don't think they've actually produced any completed games for either of those systems. > -Varuna's Forces by ??? (was this at least partially completed? I > saw a 'prototype' CD of this on Ebay not too long ago - assuming it > was for real) The developer was a company called Accent Media, and they were also working on 3DO and Saturn versions (possibly PlayStation too). The Jaguar version probably would have been published by Atari. None of the versions were ever released. > -Dragon's Lair II Time Warp by ??? (CD?) This would have been published (and developed?) by ReadySoft. > -Brett Hull Hockey by Accolade (CD? this was completed) Was it? The cartridge version was pretty much complete, and a prototype was recently sold to Kevin Manne of Jagu-Dome fame. I don't know how far along the CD version was. Atari licensed it from Accolade, who published the Genesis and SNES versions. However, the Jaguar version would most likely have been published by Atari. The Jaguar version was developed by Ringler Studios. I think Ringler Studios was the same group of people that did Hockey for Lynx and Mario Lemieux Hockey for Genesis. > -Barkley Basketball Shut Up And Jam! by Accolade Like Brett Hull Hockey, this was licensed by Atari from Accolade who did the Genesis and SNES games. Ringler Studios also was the developer for the Jaguar version of this game > -Hardball 3 by Accolade Licensed by Atari from Accolade. I don't know who was working on this, or even if development actually got anywhere. Atari would have been the publisher. > -Creature Shock by Argonaut Software Argonaut was the developer. It probably would have been published by Atari. Virgin published the game on IBM PC/compatibles and 3DO (possibly other computer platforms), and Data East published a Saturn version (supposedly a PlayStation version too, but I've never seen it). > -Demolition Man by Atari? (CD?) Virgin was developing this game, but never finished it. It was ported from the game Virgin released for 3DO, which in turn was based on the movie. > -Battlezone 2000 by Atari This underwent a name change (probably because it strayed too much from the play style of the original Battlezone) and was released as Hover Strike. > -Rage Rally by ??? (did this become Power Drive Rally?) Yes, this became Power Drive Rally. Rage is the name of the company that developed the game, and the publisher was Time Warner Interactive. > -Dactyl Joust by ??? This was supposed to be a new, updated version of the old Williams arcade game Joust. High Voltage Software was the developer, and if finished it would have been published by Atari. By the way, there was supposed to be an update of Joust in the works for Nintendo 64, but that game has also mysteriously disappeared. > -Jack Nicklaus Cyber Golf by ??? (CD?) This was in development by Hand Made Software, and would have been published by Atari if completed. This was also licensed from Accolade. > -Robinson's Requiem by Silmaris (CD?) I have seen versions for IBM PC/compatibles and 3DO in stores, both published in the US by ReadySoft. I think Atari was supposed to publish the Jaguar version, but as we all know the game was never released. I think there might have been versions of this game for Amiga, Amiga CD32, Atari ST, and Macintosh as well. > -Space War 2000 by ??? This would have been developed and published by Atari. The original title was supposed to be Star Raiders 2000, but I guess it may have strayed too far from Star Raiders. Rumor has it that it was pretty far along in development, when they suddenly abandoned it after seeing 4Play's work on BattleSphere. > -Starbattle by Foreplay (this became Battlesphere?, was complete and > GOLD at the World Of Atari show 98 but haven't heard anything since > then) Yes, this did become BattleSphere, and the company (developer and publisher) is 4Play. Doug Engel is working on defeating the encryption code. Go to his Web site at http://home.sprynet.com/~thunderbird/ and check the BattleSphere update page. Be sure to read the 9/13/99 update as well as the most recent one. > -Soccer Kid by Ocean Of America (will now be a Songbird Productions > release) Developed by Krisalis. > -Hyper Force by ??? (will now be a Songbird Productions release) Developed by Visual Impact. It was originally going to be published by C- West. I heard Telegames and Atari were also approached, but both turned down the rights to publish this game under their names. > -Protector by ??? (will now be a Songbird Productions release) It was originally being developed by Bethesda Softworks, but it was unfinished. Songbird Productions has done the work to finish this game, and it should be out next month. It's the first new Jaguar game in over a year and a half! I think Carl Forhan said that this game is actually an updated version of the old Protector computer games of the early 1980's. > -Sky Hammer by ??? (will now be a Songbird Productions release) Skyhammer was developed by Rebellion (who did the Jaguar games Alien vs. Predator and Checkered Flag), and it was originally going to be published by Atari. > -Total Carnage by ??? (seems to be mostly finished) I heard this was developed by Hand Made Software. Did they also do the SNES version? I don't know who was supposed to publish this game; I didn't even know there was a Jaguar version in development until recently! > -Virtual VCS by Hand Made Software/Midway (seems to be mostly finished) I don't remember who the developer was, but I don't think HMS or Midway had anything to do with it. -- Sal Manfredonia (hysteria@gti.net) "Know your role and shut your mouth!" -- The Rock =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Where Did YOU Learn to Toddle? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jaguar Interactive II I had a baby! And it is Jaguar related. Posted by ETHunter (proxy-357.public.rwc.webtv.net) on November 07, 1999 at 14:34:28: Well I guess it actually was my wife who had the baby but I am the proud daddy of a 10 lb. 2oz. girl. We named her Megan but had absolutely no idea what should be the middle name. All the names that are in my or my wife's family are just horrid. So I decided it should be Megan Skylar... doing my part to keep the Jag alive. :-) Micah Rowe ETHunter Productions =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JI2 History =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jaguar Interactive II Re: Jaguar Interactive II History Posted by Kevin (pm3-a-btv-c-p40.pcom.net) on November 07, 1999 at 19:12:36: In Reply to: Jaguar Interactive II History posted by Scott on November 07, 1999 at 15:02:53: >Ok, what is the history of JI II? When did it start, why did it >start, who was around when it started etc. >Scott It started over a year ago (I think) when MagicalFox was no longer able to host the site. Even before that, though, it was a part of Sven's Unofficial Atari Jaguar page where it all started out. AGH was kind enough to pick up the board and host it for all of us, so we wouldn't miss a minute of JF4L/Mark/DXPimp/Breakout2000/1LuvTyrone's insane rantings. -Kevin Of course, this is all IIRC. The details tend to blur with age... =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JagDoom vs PC Doom: Levels =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Subject: Re: Where can I find a walkthrough for Jag Doom? Date: 1999/05/07 Author: Ledmeister Jonathan writes > Hey, > I broke [JagDoom] out again a few days ago & > absolutely can not no matter what I do find all the > secrets. 66% is about as close as I get. > Is there a web site anywhere that would have a > file telling me what to do to find everything? > I've searched around for a couple of days now & > only find FAQ's that don't mention secrets or are for > for the computer version & all the Jag cheat codes > but I really need a Jag walkthrough. > Any help appreciated, A walkthrough tailored just to the specific maps in JagDoom may not exist. But, many of the maps in JagDoom are similar to the same maps in Doom games on other systems. A secrets list for PC Doom will reveal most of the secrets on the same maps in JagDoom. Unfortunately, most of the JagDoom maps have been cut up and edited down from the PC originals; but, with rare exceptions, there are almost no new secrets added to any map. Below is a chart that'll tell you which maps in PC Doom have equivalents in JagDoom (the chart's best viewed in a monospaced font.) If you want a specific walkthrough or hint on any particular level, write to me, or check out my walkthroughs for PC and Jag Doom games here: http://members.aol.com/ledmeister/doomhelp.htm PC Doom/PC Ultimate Doom and Jaguar Doom map level comparison: PC DOOM/PC ULTIMATE DOOM MAPS | JAGUAR DOOM MAPS ------------------------------|-------------------------- MAP : MAP NAME(S) | MAP : MAP NAME -----:------------------------|-----:-------------------- E1M1 : HANGAR | 1 : HANGAR E1M2 : NUCLEAR PLANT | 2 : PLANT E1M3 : TOXIN REFINERY | 3 : TOXIN REFINERY E1M4 : COMMAND CONTROL | 4 : COMMAND CONTROL E1M5 : PHOBOS LAB | 5 : PHOBOS LAB E1M6 : CENTRAL PROCESSING | 6 : CENTRAL PROCESSING E1M7 : COMPUTER STATION | 7 : COMPUTER STATION E1M8 : PHOBOS ANOMALY | 8 : PHOBOS ANOMALY E1M9 : MILITARY BASE | 24 : MILITARY BASE -----:------------------------|-----:-------------------- E2M1 : DEIMOS ANOMALY | 9 : DEIMOS ANOMALY E2M2 : CONTAINMENT AREA | 10 : CONTAINMENT AREA E2M3 : REFINERY | 11 : REFINERY E2M4 : DEIMOS LAB | 12 : DEIMOS LAB E2M5 : COMMAND CENTER | 13 : COMMAND CENTER E2M6 : HALLS OF THE DAMNED | 14 : HALLS OF THE DAMNED E2M7 : SPAWNING VATS | 15 : SPAWNING VATS E2M8 : TOWER OF BABEL | : E2M9 : FORTRESS OF MYSTERY | 23 : DIS -----:------------------------|-----:-------------------- E3M1 : HELL KEEP | : E3M2 : SLOUGH OF DESPAIR | : E3M3 : PANDEMONIUM | 18 : PANDEMONIUM E3M4 : HOUSE OF PAIN | 19 : HOUSE OF PAIN E3M5 : UNHOLY CATHEDRAL | 20 : UNHOLY CATHEDRAL E3M6 : MT EREBUS | 21 : MT EREBUS E3M7 : GATE TO LIMBO/LIMBO | 22 : LIMBO E3M8 : DIS | : E3M9 : WARRENS | : -----:------------------------|-----:-------------------- : | 16 : TOWER OF BABEL : | 17 : HELL KEEP --------------------------------------------------------- Notes: Map equivalency is based on general map layouts, not map names. The PC Doom/PC Ultimate Doom map in Episode 3 Mission 7 is referred to as "GATE TO LIMBO" in the tally screens, and "LIMBO" in the Automap. The Jaguar "DIS" map is equivalent to the PC "FORTRESS OF MYSTERY" map; No Jaguar equivalent exists for the PC "DIS" map. The Jaguar "TOWER OF BABEL" map does not match the PC "TOWER OF BABEL" map (it does, however, match the "TOWER OF BABEL" map in the 3DO version, and the "HELL GATE" map in the PSX and Saturn versions). The Jaguar "HELL KEEP" map does not match the PC "HELL KEEP" map (it does, however, match the PSX, Saturn and 3DO "HELL KEEP" maps). --led Support site for console and PC Doom games http://members.aol.com/ledmeister/index.html =-=-=-=-=-= //// PC AVP =-=-=-=-=-= Re: Alien vs Predator on Windows Author: Gregory George Date: 1999/06/12 Forum: rec.games.video.atari Hoekstra wrote: > Anyone played both versions willing to comment here? I love the Jaguar version because of the tense atmosphere. The PC version is basically what AvP 2 would have been if it were on the Jag. Graphics: The PC version is *SUPER FAST*, and I'm running it on a PII-300 with Voodoo I card! Speed was probably the biggest complaint about Jaguar AvP. The graphics are much more realistic in the PC version. The walls are at varying angles. You can go outside into a rainstorm (just like in ALIENS). You get to see the ship the aliens come from, complete with the dude from the chair. You see holes burned through the floors. You can shoot off limbs and watch acid fly all over the place. And wounded aliens don't just rollover and die. They crawl towards you and will not give up until they are completely dead. It's just incredible! Music & Sound FX: The music is perfectly suited and remains true to the original. I mean, you get a whole music CD with 15 tracks that match the movies perfectly! Great for playing in the dark! The sounds are also fantastic. They're perfect for this game. More alien screeching, growling, and even "swiping". The weapons also carry perfect signature sound effects. I love the smart gun! Weapons: The pulse rifle finally kicks some major hiney! Remember that pump action grenade launcher from the films? Well, it's BACK! I wouldn't go anywhere in this game without my trusty pulse rifle. The smart gun will TRACK your enemies like it always should have done. You can lay mines, shoot grenades... There's even a mini-gun for true alien-soup. One of the coolest things is when you get your hands on the flame thrower! If you shoot it and miss an alien, it stands there in a trance for a few moments. Then, BAM!, it pounces on you! And when you hit it with the flame, it runs around on fire before exploding in a shower of acid and fiery bits. It's totally cool... I'm not as excited about the predator's weapons. He's got all the pre-reqs: Shoulder-mounted Plasma gun, spears, his arm mounted knifes, and, of course, the disc. The problem with the disc is that you have to retrieve it. I guess that's more realistic, but it can be a pain. But guess what friends? The thermal imager is FINALLY USEFUL! I didn't think it was all that great in Jaguar AvP. The alien has its tail and claws for attacks. I was hoping for more jaw- action, but THAT comes when you feed. And feeding really makes you feel like an alien. Intensity: This game has more than it's share of scary moments. Aliens do a lot of screeching, so you can sometimes tell they're coming. But not all the time! Playing the "Skirmish" mode on the "Stranded" level just OOZES intensity! In this mode, it's just you versus an endless amount of aliens. They run, they jump, they crawl... They're everywhere!! I really feel like I'm *IN* this game rather than just playing it. "Take that you motherf***ing alien!!! You want some more of this????" Playing as the Alien is wild.... Especially when you see your jaw inch out at cowering, crying, and screaming humans in anticipation of a meal... Multiplayer: I haven't played multiplayer yet, but there are SO MANY possibilities!! Overall: I have to give AvP for the PC the same high rating I gave the Jaguar version. I cannot think of a single problem with this game. It's totally perfect! The only way to make this game better is to hook it up to a virtual reality helmet. Rebellion truly knows their Aliens and Predators! I'm not taking anything away from Jaguar AvP. I think it's a great game and was the Jag's "killer-app" for me. It's one of the best on the Jaguar and will always be one of my favorite games. BUT, it's also 4 years old. PC AvP is just more of a good thing. It's one game truly worth getting a 3D-accelerator card for! --GG P.S. Replace SPAM@SHIELD to email me! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ||| Visit The Atari Times(US) Website! ||| http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Arcade/8341 / | \ ATARI Visit The Atari Times(US) Message Board! FOREVER! http://venus.beseen.com/boardroom/c/17653/Date ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Visit Songbird productions for NEW Jaguar games Hyper Force, Soccer Kid, Skyhammer, and Protector! http://songbird.atari.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Evil Tramiel Rumor =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Author: Chris Cracknell Date: 1999/08/26 Forum: rec.games.video.classic I think my favorite Evil Jack rumour is that just after the merger of Atari and JTS, Nolan Bushnell approached Jack with the intent to purchase back Atari and turn it into a real videogame company again. Jack refused to sell saying, "I don't care if I'm known as 'the man who killed Atari', I just don't want anyone else to be known as 'the man who saved Atari'." Considering that he then went and sold Atari to Hasbro (who have no interest in saving Atari and merely wish to pick the meat off its bones) for less than he could have gotten if he had auctioned it off on eBay makes this rumour, if true, even more evil a deed. CRACKERS (Die Jack, die from hell!!!!!!!!!!) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Curt's Cool Atari Trivia =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Why did Hasbro bother II Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/10/31 Forum: comp.sys.atari.8bit Hi Pete, Looks like we need to talk off-line a bit, send me a private email. As for your question regarding the 680x0 bus compatible version, its hard to say for sure, however I will contact a very good friend who did the original Atari 3600 prototypes and the earlier 7800's, if my guess is right, that new version of the Marie was intended for the Atari 9000, originally the Atari 7800 was going to be that number designation and in fact there should be some mock up stuff floating around that bears its name. However the number was changed to 7800 (5200 graphics + 2600 compatibility is what the marketing notes say). The Atari 9000 was to be a high end game system. I don't believe (but could be wrong, again I'll have to check) that a MARIE with 680x0 bus extensions was targeted for a computer scenario, Atari had 3 68000 based projects which all had chipsets already slated for them: GAZA: "Rainbow" chipset. SIERRA: "Silver & Gold" chipset (the AMY sound chip came from that) and MICKEY: "Amiga chipset" Originally I was told Mickey was for Mickey Mouse, however Mickey was the name of one of the project engineers' wife. So I would guess that any further enhanced MARIE chipsets were for a new high-end game system slated for 1985, but that in itself is confusing since according to the Atari-Amiga agreements, Atari would sell the Atari version of "Lorraine" for 1 year as a game only console and then sell a keyboard add-on and also sell a full-blown computer, so perhaps 2 game consoles were in the works. I'll speak with Gary (7800 engineer) he'll most likely have the answers to that. Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Why did Hasbro bother 3 Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/10/31 Forum: comp.sys.atari.8bit Actually Rich, I'm in total agreement, why do we need a 700Mhz Pentium III??? Why, 'cause it's cool and I have another $1,000 to throw around and waste? (Not really, I'd rather spend it on Atari). Its the lousy OS's like Win NT and Win 2000 that are just plain and simple "BLOATWARE", they are good in their own rights as to the features they bring, but then you look at Linux 6.1 running on a Pentium 75 and it runs great! I don't need 250MB's just for my OS and another 250MB for MS Office. This whole thing with having to have a 9gb hard drive, 128mb of memory and a 500 MHz + Pentium III is simply stupid!!! You look at a Falcon030 with CAB and perhaps with Jinnee as a replacement desktop (TOS is just a little too rough for my taste and Jinnee spiffs it up nicely) and you have a system that looks and works just as well with a fraction of the power, speed, memory and drive space. The whole industry is just blindly running down a path like a snowball down a hill and the needs and the demands of the OS and Apps' is driving the need for bigger, better, badder hardware which is just not as needed. Unless you consider scientific software and/or heavy duty games which need all that power which a $199 Dreamcast can more than provide. One thing to note, back in the 1980s everyone made fun of the Atari SIO port saying how stupid it was, interesting how the USB port is basically the same concept on a faster scale (just a little note to add on: One of the designers and patent holders of the USB port is also the architect for the Atari SIO port, Joe Decuir). Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Where Atari went wrong (was: why did Hasbro bother) Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/10/23 Forum: comp.sys.atari.8bit Preston, I've had the opportunity to speak with many of the engineers at Atari in regards to the PC's and I've asked the same questions, why was there no improvements after the 400/800 Line?!?!?!? Actually, several upgrades were in the works, the most significant was the "Memory Expander". A set of new OS and memory boards for 256K of continuous, usable memory. Several were built and I know of one Atari engineer who still has it and it still works. Management shot it down, in fact the engineers complained that they wanted it done and management came back and said "Any more talk of that project and you will be fired." They wanted simple closed boxes that as one Atari Home Computer manager was quoted, "We'll sell'em like popcorn" There came the 1200XL. Actually the XL line of computers were designed in the WCI NY Atari lab in Manhattan under Steve Mayer, the lead engineer who I've met with and talk with on many occasions explained, "We sent Sunnyvale proto's with the parallel bus", they kept making the cases with no slot for the PBI, in the end... it was dropped and wouldn't resurface until the 600/800XL line, we also had an 8 slot expansion bay, that too was dropped and resurfaced later as a cut-down version and with only 5 slots!" Atari was also working on a rather unique computer system that would be a stack of small "pizza box" modules. One was the CPU, the second and I/O box with serial/parallel, another would be dual disk drives and so on. This project was not so much killed, but taken with the HCD president who started a company called "Mindset" and interestingly enough, his whole team were former Atari HCD engineers and their computer was almost identical in design to the same proposed Atari system except theirs was an 80186 based system. Atari started its own semiconductor plant and had commissioned a 16bit processor based on MC68000 design, but 6502 backward compatible, the design was sold to the consulting company... the 65816 was born. Finally, just as the Tramiels were walking in the door, two (actually three) 68000 based projects were in the works, one was called GAZA which was a dual 68000 multiprocessing system running CP/M 68K and a chipset called "Rainbow", this system was presented to management as a high-end video processor system, management initially like the idea and was going for it. Another system was called Sierra and used the "Silver & Gold" chipset, the audio chip will be familiar to some of you, it was called AMY and during a demonstration it imitated an opera singer, first male, then female. The Tramiels, having fired the entire ASRL staff (Advanced Sunnyvale Research Lab) had no idea how to make AMY work, they tried for nearly two years, but could never do it, wasted technology!!! The final 68000 project, Mickey, the Atari version of the Lorraine computer, all ready to accept the Amiga chipset which was due on June 30, 1984, just a few days before the Tramiels were to walk in and take over. The Tramiels had approached Amiga in April of 1984 and showed a lot interest in the chipset.... but not the company or its engineers. When Amiga got wind that the Tramiels were buying Atari, they quickly looked elsewhere for a buyer... Commodore. Commodore bought Amiga, paid Atari the $500,000 loan for the design of the Amiga Chipset (yes, Atari funded the Amiga chipset back in Sept 1983 so yes, the Amiga's are actually Atari's) and the rest is history. So you see, right from the start, Atari HCD engineers WANTED better versions of the computers, but management kept putting them down and wouldn't allow the more creative, positive and useful projects to emerge as real products, but instead went with a lot of other products which management felt were more appropriate for a "Home" computer as opposed to a "Hobbyist" computer. Whew.... my fingers hurt from all this typing. You wanna read more, stop by the Atari Historical Society, this is all information directly from the members of the website who are former and current Atari employees. http://www.atari-history.com Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Explanation of the Atari Z800 Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/08/18 Forum: comp.sys.atari.8bit Hi everyone, I recently posted that there are now several Atari internal documents up on the Atari Historical Society website for the Antic, GTIA, Pokey and SIO bus since Hasbro's Atari Interactive division has given me the rights to release this data for public domain use. One file in particular is stirring up a lot of questions and I'm receiving quite a bit of email regarding it. Its the Serial I/O Interface Users Handbook file. There are several references to an SIO bus version for the Atari Z800 computer system. The Z800 was the reference code for Atari's next replacement computer for the Atari 400/800 line (referenced in the document as A400 A800) this was the original spec for the Atari "Sweet-16" project which eventual was watered down and hacked up into what became the Atari 1200XL. So I just want everyone to know that no, there is NOT another mysterious prototype Atari computer floating out there with a souped up SIO bus called the Atari Z800, its simply a reference to what was supposed to be the Atari 1000 and 1000X computers which would have had standard DB-15 connectors (2 of them) for SIO communication, a Parallel Bus Interface and many other features which were all removed from the Atari 1200XL in its final form. For those who want to read these documents, the direct link is: http://www.atari-history.com/articles.html Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Atari Arcade Hits Volume 1 rocks!!!! Author: Curt Vendel Date: 1999/08/06 Forum: rec.games.video.atari I think its the cool little accuracies in the games that really makes it an enjoyable experience, for instance play Breakout. Now watch the ball as it hits the blocks and descends back down to your paddle, you'll notice it changes colors. On the original Breakout coin-op they didn't have color yet, so what Atari did was to pull an "Odyssey trick" whereby they placed a sheet of transparent colored rows over the top portion of the playfield and this simulated color, so its great how much attention to detail as been put into the whole package. Digital Eclipse rocks!!! Curt =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Re: Space War the 1st Arcade, Seen in What 70's Movie? Author: Jack Spencer JR. Date: 1999/05/20 Forum: rec.games.video.classic > Lee Seitz wrote: > > > In article <926907553mnewsX_velcro_X@netunlimited.net>, > > velcro_spy wrote: > > > > > > I have a vague memory of Space War, the first stand up arcade > > > game (by Nolan Bushnell right?) appearing in the Charlton > > > Heston flick Soylent Green. > > > > Right game, wrong name. It was called Computer Space, and it did > > indeed appear in _Soylent Green_. > > > > -- > > Lee K. Seitz * lkseitz@hiwaay.net * ~http://home.hiwaay.net/~lkseitz/ > > Visit the Classic Video Games Nexus for all your classic link needs! > > http://start.at/cvgnexus > Curt Vendel wrote in message news:374420EB.F59E35F5@worldnet.att.net > It was also the only WHITE Computer Space ever, most Computer Space's > were Candy Apple Red, Metallic Blue and also Metallic Green. The rarer > ones were the Bright Yellow Computer Space cabinets. > > Curt Actually, I heard they painted it to match the set. --==--==--==--==-- || BattleSphere News || By: Doug Engel \__// thunderbird@sprynet.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// BattleSphere Update =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= [from Doug Engel's Thunderbird's Garage home page ] //// 13 Sept 1999 The clock is ticking! 4Play is proud to announce that it will only be a matter of weeks until we will have utterly defeated the encryption code for BattleSphere. We are using a proprietary method which will allow us to encrypt the binary without using any hardware bypassing techniques. After carefully considering the options, a software scheme seemed like the right thing to do. While hardware bypassing is currently an alternative, it adds significant cost to the manufacturing. Hardware bypass would require an entirely new circuit board be designed and fabricated. All existing circuit board stockpiles are rendered worthless by hardware bypass techniques. Since the market is small for Jaguar games and we don't have the economy of scale to offset production costs, designing new boards adds a large cost to the price of a cartridge. However, we are working very carefully to reduce these unnecessary costs while delivering the polished, professional product the Jaguar community deserves. Price has been a primary concern to many of you, so we determined that a little more work to insure a reasonable price is worth the effort. Hence, we invented this ingenious method for software encryption. Our clever software scheme employs a "brute force" method of cracking encryption by utilizing a bank of 8 specially modified Jaguar consoles with a custom patched version of the standard boot ROM and a few modifications to the BattleSphere executable itself, which runs in a hardware hacked EPROM cartridge. The exact details of our technology will be revealed in the future, as we do not wish to give an advantage to our competition in the cartridge manufacturing market. Suffice it to say that this bank of Jaguars is constantly booting a self-modifying binary and checking if the Jaguar Boot ROM has failed or passed the software encryption. Once the binary boots, the encryption is successful! Our calculations indicate that it should take a maximum of 125 days for this process to try ALL the possible encryption combinations, but the odds are evenly distributed around 1/2 that amount of time. Keep your fingers crossed! //// 16 Oct 1999 APC Rulez! Arriving home from work today I was greeted by the wonderful sight of winking and blinking clocks and VCRs. 12:00 12:00 12:00 etc... Lucky for us, the Encryption Process has gone unimpeded, thanks to the wonderful folks at American Power Conversion, and the incredible Back-UPS 400! Apparently, the power failed for some unknown reason today, and came back on some time later, but thanks to the Uninterruptable Power Supply, the encryption breaker Jaguars did not shutdown. So, I didn't have to restart the process from yesterday's logged point. The clock is STILL ticking, and you all don't get an extra day to save your pennies for the release of BattleSphere! Until Next Time!!! --==--==--==--==-- || Protector Update || By: Kevin Manne \__// kevinmanne@wycol.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- [from Kevin Manne's Protector Playtester page ] //// 19 Oct 1999 It's been a while since I've put together an update on Protector but believe me, this game is shaping up nicely. Just today I got the latest revision of Protector from Carl and from the moment I started playing everything just "felt" right. The gameplay has been tweaked to near- perfection, I'd say...it's right about at the point where you can still get stuck and get wasted a bunch, but it's not overly frustrating to the point where you get discouraged from playing. The biggest change in gameplay is the increased frequency of powerups and credits when you defeat enemies. This may seem like a simple thing, but without this, the game didn't just scream "Play ME" like it does now. Now, I believe this game truly has the strength to stand on its own as a great game for the Jag, becoming one of those games you just love to throw in and blast through a few levels at a time, much like T2K and D2K. I've been playing this game for nearly a year now, and since now I'm getting the urge to play it a TON really goes to show the replayability this title has. Never before today did Protector "feel" like a complete game. With the balanced gameplay, landscapes and music that change every 5 levels (note the screenshots for a new landscape) and all the rest of the work Carl put into this title, it really does shine now. Just wait till this game gets into your hands in early 2000! --==--==--==--==-- || Llatest from Llamaland || By: Jeff "Yak" Minter \__// net.yak@yak.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- [All of the following postings are taken from Jeff Minter's web page, Yak's Zoo . Check it out, and see what else Jeff has yakked up lately. NOTE: Due to the gobsmackingly huge bulk of the Llamaland updates since last issue (18 pages worth! seems I missed a couple last issue), I've snipped out pretty much everything non- Nuon/T3K/VLM. For the full text and lots of pics, see Jeff's site. --Ed.] //// 22 April 1999 No, I am not dead, and I do indeed intend to do some more work on the site, especially since someone nice at Macromedia (thanks Purple!) has dropped a load of really cool net tools on me, excellent :-). I have to like any software package that allows me to draw in Peruvian Jumper Mode :-). I will be exploring these tools, and putting up things I do with them and probably ranting on about how cool they are, as and when I have time to play with them. Until then, just a quick update and I shall be doing some more at the weekend. Work in both T3K and VLM is proceeding very well. T3K is now unspeakably trippy, and I am adding more enemies and their behaviours, and integrating a lot of VLM stuff in there too... I will also split up the Gnus page a bit since it has got way too big and unwieldy. I'll be mungeing the site in general over the next few weeks. Had a good weekend last weekend when the lads came up - as you can see from the following picture everyone was completely enthralled by my mate Andy's guitar playing :-). [pic of Yak's mates slouching on the couch --Ed.] More llater... //// 24 April 1999 Back as promised, adding a few new bits and pieces to the site. Much must change, as and when I get time out from my VM-oriented duties. It is great fun updating things, especially now I have these top new tools from Macromedia. Most of the new stuff you have seen on the site so far was created using a program called Fireworks 2, which is basically a very cool bitmap and vector drawing package with a load of Web-oriented extensions - as well as creating the pics the program will generate HTML and JavaScript code to get everything working on your webpage. Very cool indeed. < big section on how cool Fireworks 2 is snipped > Thanks to everyone who has seen the new version of the front end already and sent me feedback - I am glad you like it so far! - and to those who noticed that it was the anniversary of my incept date and sent me greetings :-). Hehe... I am now an even older git than I was before :-). Oh well, you're only as old as the ungulate you feel :-). < section on Yak's cool new stereo system and subwoofer snipped > < section on Red Dwarf (and the BBC's scheduling cockups) snipped > I have been continuing to bash away on T3K and VLM, and they are coming along nicely - I actually integrated the VLM code into the Tempest code, partly because it is handy to have everything in one place when I am working on it and also for the purpose of demonstration (only the one bit of code to load up to show off both things at E3). The other reason to do that is that quite a lot of VLM is going to leak over into T3K - the background generators in T3K are actually live VLM effects, which is cool. The framework for VLM is quite similar to the Jaggi version, in that there are a bunch of preset effects, and once you have selected one, the audio does things to it and you can join in, various params being attached to the joystick. The effects are way nicer than the Jag ones though, the storage of presets is done a lot better too so I can fit loads more of the buggers in there, and you can choose to have smooth transitions between presets, which looks kinda cool. T3K-side I have been working on extra enemies and behaviours, as well as adding background effects and stuff like that. There is now a class of little bugger that can contain lots of other little bastards, enabling a slew of Tanker-class enemies to be created. And there are Spinners, which cause the entire Web to start rotating - trying to play on some of the Web shapes while they are spinning around is quite twisted, so you will probably be inclined to nail Spinners promptly before you lose your lunch :-). I need to work on the powerup sequence - I have some ideas for cool new bullet-classes and extra control modes that you can earn; I have also to put in an attract-mode for E3, and some of the code for that will be usable to create a Smart Droid powerup. I need to put in extra lives, too! As it is I get to around level 20 and then die, usually. Extra lives are definitely needed :-). < section on how nice it is to live in Wales snipped > Many thanks too to those of you who sent me messages of condolence about the passing of Alastair - much appreciated. I do miss the old bugger. Flossie has got used to being on her own now, although sometimes she gets a bit needy and comes bleating up to me for a hug and a skritch - she does need to have other beasties around and I would not mind a few more, either :-). I'll have to do some research and get some more fencing done and clear out a couple of the stables... Mmmm, more beasties. Yum yum. Slurp. :-) < section on Vindy snipped. happy birthday Vindy! > Gameswize, mostly recently I have been playing T3K of course, with the odd session of F-Zero X on the Ninty thrown in for good measure; and when the lads were over the other weekend one of them got to playing on Space Station Silicon Valley, which made me realize how cool and weird that game is and how I must get back into it because I haven't finished it yet, and I want to be a little camel on the desert levels. I have also been trying out an upcoming PC game called Guardian II that is coming out shortly. It is basically a very Defender-y design, only in nice Voodoo yummy 3D. There are no little Humanoids - the Landers instead attack these tower-shaped installations that you have to defend - but equivalents of all the old Defender cast of enemies are all in there - Baiters, Bombers, Swarmers and all. Of course there are more than just the basic Defender enemies - the stargate out of... er... Stargate is in there and very effective in finding attacking Landers; and there are shedloads of powerups and cool things to pick up. The graphics are very pretty and heavy on the glowy particle explosions, always a good sign I reckon :-). There is a cool-looking warp sequence where you have to battle loads of free-flying enemies and go down a trippy tunnel. The game controls nicely from the keyboard (the only mode I have tried so far), especially since they added autofire :-). And there is loads of glowy particle stuff and bits flying around when you shoot things. And giant magic mushrooms on one of the levels. Cool. Musicwize, I have been listening to loads of things on account of my new stereo :-). I will resurrect the music page of my site as I work through the updates, and get back in the habit of noting what's in the Monolith at the moment. That new Orbital sounds excellent now that I have some decent bass happening though, I must admit :-). Well, I am off to have a play around in Fireworks. More stuff may therefore appear on the site :-). Expect more frequent updates and some major changes... //// 13 May 1999 < section on the pre-E3 grind snipped > So, what of those projects? Well, T3K now has a much better frame rate than it did (optimized my screen-buffering), and an attract mode (which not only looks cool but is also very useful for testing a game - the demo plays random levels continuously, so if you have just built some new levels you can test the robustness of your code by just leaving the demo-mode to slave away, playing them all night, and hope that you do not come down the next morning to find a frozen screen). I have been further tweaking the gameplay, adding some extra particle stuff due to the better framerate, and generally doing the kind of spit-and-polish that a game needs before going to a show. The game is by no means complete - only the first 32 Webs are available and there are nowhere near the amount of enemies and powerups there will be when I am finished, and there are no bonus rounds or hi-score tables or anything) but you can, at least, play a proper game and get an actual score. All the really major parts of coding T3K are done now; what remains is basically just carrying on adding cool things - adding enemies and behaviours, fiddling around making extra cool backdrops for levels, making up bonus rounds and powerups and suchlike; I know I have the speed and core routines in place to be able to do everything I want to. It is quite a nice stage to be at. You know you've done what's needed to make a cool game, and now you can spend time adding all the nice touches and doing the balancing of the gameplay that will make it a great game. (Again, I hope :-)). More coding fun for Yak :-). One of the things I have occasionally missed around here is my old Jaggi CD-ROM, and the accompanying VLM - I have no Jag kit at all here at the moment; I know there is some at my mum's place and some at VM out in the US, but surprisingly enough, I actually have none at home right now. Most of all I missed the VLM. And, although I have been working on the framework of the new VLM for Nuon, I have been unable, until very recently, to use a CD player to drive it, which made it, although very pretty, not quite the excellent toy that a VLM should be. Well, in the run-up to the show, I got the necessary drivers an' thangs that I needed from VM to finally be able to formally introduce my VLM framework to the CD player (and therefore to my entire CD collection); I spent a few days hooking up my FX to the music, and suddenly, as if by magic... I am now the happy owner of a real, live, working VLM-2 :-). It is now definitely my favourite toy. If you liked JagVLM (or any of my old lightsynth stuff), you are gonna really like this... the effects are way more responsive than on the Jaggi, and everything is just so smoooth and llovely :-)... some of the effects that come out of the new VLM are so trippy and smooth and analogue-looking, that no-pixels aesthetic, that even I find it hard to believe. One of the settings looks a lot like those photos you sometimes see of the gas clouds surrounding a supernova - well, imagine that kind of thing, but the supernova in question happens to be repeatedly exploding conveniently right in time to the stomping bass from the Prodigy album you happen to be listening to... llovely :-). The neat thing is that the coding for VLM is at about the same stage as that for T3K - that is, all the core stuff is in place and working, and I can now have fun refining the effects I already have, and dreaming up new ones. Cool. Yet more coding fun for Yak. I sometimes think I must have the coolest job in the world :-). (Apart from possibly being a llama- gynecologist). < bit about Yak's mum visiting snipped > < huge chunk about Yak's spiffy new Sony camcorder snipped > < mini-review of Robotron 64 (he liked it, but it's too easy) snipped > Speaking of Ninty, interesting to read today how they are planning to bring out a system at the arse end of 2000 and maybe even use the chipset in, er, DVD players. Now I wonder where they got that idea? Hehe... Most of my gaming time recently has of course been spent on T3K :-). Well, I am going to upload now - possibly more updates later, over the weekend. Mind you, it is Grand Prix weekend, so we will wait and see :-). Maybe I had better have a bath, too. I am starting to smell like an ox :-). Mind you, maybe the amorous wildebeest would like that :-). [pic of Nuon VLM2 output (included in this issue's ZIP) --Ed.] //// 23 May 1999 The Force is with me! < massive missive on Yak's trip to New York to see Phantom Menace snipped > Then there was the bartender up the World Trade Center who, when I bought a round of drinks, went out of his way to emphatically tell me that "service was not included". Now, I am aware of American tipping etiquette, and would have done the usual thing, but since he was rude enough to ram the necessity of tipping down my throat in such a manner, I am afraid that he only managed to talk himself out of a tip. Worst of all though was this Italian restaurant we went into to snarf a bite after the film was finished. Settling up at the end, we left what we thought was a perfectly adequate tip, but the waiter actually returned our little folder thingy they bring you the bill in, with our tip still inside, and said "service is not included"... as if to say, "Your tip is not enough, give me more!" The rude bastard! Don't get me wrong, I understand why tipping occurs, that waiters and such do not get that well paid and need to earn more from tips. But they should also remember that tipping is voluntary, and is supposed to be a reward for good service, and not for unnecessary rudeness. I will always do it where appropriate, but if people are going to be rude about it, then they can smegging well whistle for a tip, I reckon. The only tip they will get from me is "Never throw your granny off a bus". I don't approve of cow-tipping, though. Or ox-tipping :-). Well, I'm off - I have to take Vindy down to the pub; she hasn't been for a few nights recently! And I have missed the excellent taste of a nice pint of Spitfire too... The monkey in the corner, slowly drifting out of range..... //// 03 Oct 1999 Naked Sheep, Horny Goats, Fast Cars and Videogames Well, I'm in the middle of a debugging cycle so I think I'll do some web update stuff. I am nailing down a crash bug that has haunted me for awhile; I've narrowed it down to the setup for the vector generator and to find out where it is involves a cycle of enabling certain bits of code then just letting it run for awhile... so while I'm letting it run I can type some text, can't I? So here I am. So the other Saturday I was lounging about in the Cow Barn (actually Elaine from down the pub was here, she had come over to examine the new microgoaties, and I subverted her into being a naive user for T3K (which is now well into the realm of really being a proper videogame and worthy of being unleashed on naive users)... but I get ahead of myself, as I usually do, on this occasion in multiple threads too, so I will pop the stack a coupla times)... < section on Yak's trip to the races snipped > (Whoops - it crashed again - so obviously the bug is happening before math table setup then)... < the tale of Flossie's shearing snipped > (Crashed again... before even starting execution... so the problem is occurring when the overlay is paged in)... (Hmmm... something to do with the overlay size then? Mmmm).... (Some time later) - it was nothing to do with the overlay size. It was a buffering error in a completely different part of the code. I have since pulled its legs off and squashed the juices out of it and added loads more to Tempest :-). < the tale of Yak's acquisition of two pygmy goats snipped > Work on Tempest is going exceedingly well - in fact I expect soon to have all the enemies in there, the powerup chain is complete and everything works, there is nice trippy stuff in the level transitions, 96 levels are currently defined; I have done some major work on the explosions and they look lovely, all geometric and glowing; plays nicely, too - I have spent many a happy evening in a darkened room at my play-testing :-). Once all the baddies are in for the main game then it will just take a month or two of adding bonus rounds, extra groovy graphics FX and necessary peripheral stuff like hi-score tables and such and I'll be done :-). I think you'll like it :-). < bit on the reorganization of the Cow Barn snipped > Now I am not new to video projectors; I used to have one, years ago. It was a huge great bloody thing that some of you who might be reading this who used to go to computer shows in the 80s might remember, I'd be there with my projector doing Colourspace or Trip-a-Tron shows. And it was a big bastard. Took two blokes to carry (some of you may even have helped me set it up or take it down at a show, you know the score). Came in a flight case the size of a coffin. Weighed as much as 135.7 overweight cats. Took an hour to set up (you had to turn it on, let it warm up, and then set to with this amazing array of around 40 twiddlers; carefully converge, align, focus and generally wank about with each of the 3 guns... I once did that 30 feet up a ladder with my arm 2 inches from a 37KV powersupply at a gig, it is not the kind of thing you forget in a hurry). That projector was big, fucking big. Weighed more than a couple of Flossies, and she's a big girl :-). Did the job, so long as you reduced the ambient photons enough to get a good picture. Had enough voltage running around inside to electrocute the entire population of Philadelphia, was a bit scary, and eventually was blown up by my cat taking a nap over the ventilation slots while I was watching East Enders one evening. It was obese, frightening, but I loved it because, despite all its user- unfriendliness, it was the only thing which did what I wanted: amplify graphics. My, how things have changed... Check the picture above; see that thing on the left side of my monitor, with a little green LED on it? That's it; my Seleco, the object of my adulation, the cause of an old stone wall being able to display Tempest 3000 in broad daylight :-). It's the size of a shoe box. It cost about one- third of the price of my big old monster that I used to use all those years ago. Set-up? You plug it in, you switch it on, you twiddle one thing until the picture is the right size, you twiddle another until it is in focus, and that's it. A Mac user could do it. [joke!]. The wimpiest geek could hold it easily with one hand. And it is about 5x as bright as my old beast (the pic above was taken in broad daylight, without the blinds closed or anything, onto an old stone wall, no special projection surface or anything). Until I get a proper screen, at the moment I am just projecting onto a white, dubiously-stained sheet that someone lent me, and believe me, turn off the lights at night and play Tempest on it and you just go into that mode of "I can't believe this is happening, that this technology is real, because what I am seeing is too unbelievably lovely to be true" :-). With a proper projection surface instead of a sheet this thing is going to be so amazingly lovely that I am not sure I have the neurons to handle it :-). The colours are bright, vibrant, and when the lights are out and the stereo is cranked so far you can feel the bass and you get to one of those levels with the feedback layer still left in during gameplay and you shoot a spiker and that green, spherical explosion gets caught in the feedback- flare and it's just the most beautiful thing you've ever seen... and this image is magnified up to 8 foot by 6 and you walk up to the screen and you still can't see the pixels... ahhh, how far we have come, in such a short time, this technology is so amazing... I love my Nuon, I love my Seleco, but the one through the other is just mind-altering stuff of the highest order. I mean class-A, no chemicals involved (except maybe the Brothers, on the stereo)... Haven't felt technolove like this for a long while. Inspirational, it is. Wait'll you see how that manifests in T3K :-). And, of course, the projector is the perfect companion to my new stereo and DVD player :-). And being so tiny, it'll be easy for me to take it off down the pub for some of the games from the rugby World Cup - for a small rural pub, we will have the best screen in the area for match-days :-). < Yak's leisure activities with his mates snipped > Of course I've been playing games too... my absolute favourite at the moment I am afraid you cannot buy yet, because it's T3K on Nuon :-). The aesthetic and the gameplay are definitely starting to mesh now and it is definitely the most fun, especially with the lights out, appropriate choons and, of course, the projector (lovely, lovely projector :-). On lesser systems, I've had a deal of fun with Driver, the PlayStation car-chase game. I like that one because as well as the main, mission-based game (it plays kinda like a cross between Grand Theft Auto and Destruction Derby) there are lots of other little sub-games and diversions you can play. Sometimes it's just fun to set out in the free driving mode, drive dangerously and aggressively to piss off the cops, and then see how long you can keep going outrunning the law (and how many cop cars you can wreck along the way). Then, once you finally end up trashing your car, you can watch the action in the fun Replay Mode. You get to drive around various large cityscapes (including San Francisco, for those fully authentic 70s- stylee big-air chases) which are populated by more than their fair share of cops and Sunday drivers (whose innocent, bumbling, law-abiding cars you can smash up just for the fun of it). A great laugh. < more videogames Yak's been playing lately snipped > Oh, and I went to Romania to watch the eclipse... but this update is already way too long, and that's a whole nother story that'll have to wait till next time. Look out for my Travels around Romania with a Small Plush Goat update :-). And I changed the pic of me on the yak page, because some of you told me it was ugly and scary. Well I can't help genetics :-). But I've used my projector and my Nuon to make a new pic that places me more in the abstract. Where I belong :-). Until next time - keep warm, hug something furry :-). And always carry a Superzapper :-). --==--==--==--==-- || State of the Lynx || By: Carl Forhan \__// forhan@millcomm.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- //// Preface October 27, 1999 Handheld gaming has never been so popular. The game.com is a has-been at this point (did anyone ever actually see Frogger or Centipede in a store?), the NGPC is struggling to find its niche in the American gaming culture, and the GameBoy Color is still soundly beating every handheld in existence. But don't give up on the Lynx quite yet, Atari fans. There are still a couple of prowls left in this little kitty. //// Web Lynx This issue's virtual spotlight shines on the Lynxworld homepage. Markus Wuehl is the author of Sokomania and Puzzler 2000 (latter is unreleased). JEO applauds Markus for his support of the Lynx; only a few hobby developers have made it far enough to actually see a game published on this cherished platform. Visit Lynxworld at: http://surf.to/lynxworld //// Game Updates A lot has happened since the last State of the Lynx. Songbird has published not one, not two, but THREE new products for the Lynx: SFX, Ponx, and Lexis. Details on http://songbird.atari.org. Ponx in particular has been praised by many fans as a fun, attractive, challenging game. Want to see some independent reviews of Ponx and Lexis? Check out http://pocket.ign.com. Special thanks to Craig Harris of IGN for his willingness to review these games. Markus Wuehl has published Sokomania on the Lynx. Sokomania is a great Sokoban clone on the Lynx. Basically, you have to push (not pull) boxes around a warehouse maze to fill a particular room. Push the boxes in the wrong order, and you're stuck. The game features a MOD player for music and 100 levels. Do you read the (French-only) POCKET Magazine? This great little mag has already featured some Lynx and Jaguar press recently. Look for reviews of Ponx and Lexis in the next issue (Nov. '99 timeframe). Telegames finally published Hyperdrome at CGE '99 (Songbird Productions published Lexis at this same event). This is a nifty 4-player Ballblazer clone. The game does not have a box or jewel case, but it does have a full- color label and decent instructions (both courtesy of Songbird to Telegames). Songbird Productions is even _busier_ with the Lynx. An expansion pack to Crystal Mines 2 is coming for your Win9x PC, where you can create and download your own levels to your existing CM2 cartridge! Expect this product in late 1999. Hey guys! Whatever happened to Othello, TNT Terry, Bleaker, and those other long-ago announced Lynx games? JEO wants to know. =) As always, visit The Lynx Domain for your launching point to all Lynx- related web sites: http://lynxdomain.atari.org. //// Ye Olde Rumor Mill Would you like to see an Elite clone on the Lynx? A number of Atari fans would, judging by the discussion going on in alt.games.lynx recently. Stop by this newsgroup and see how you can contribute to this or other grass- roots Lynx projects. Some people have mentioned they'd really like a new action-based game for the Lynx in addition to all the new puzzle games that have been coming out. Songbird appreciates that, and has been pursuing other projects for a year 2000 release. What would you say if, oh, I don't know, a great 3D mission- based 1st-person game based on the BattleWheels 3D engine was published by Songbird? The name of the game: * * CYBERVIRUS * * Write songbird@atari.org if you're interested! The preliminary interest will determine if pursuing this product is worthwhile or not. Signing off, Carl Forhan forhan@millcomm.com --==--==--==--==-- || Jaguar Holiday Shopping Guide || By: Clay Halliwell \__// clay.h@att.net ----------------------------------------------------- The holidays are upon us! What better time to celebrate this season of warmth, family, and togetherness than to blow hundreds of your hard-earned dollars on presents for yourself which you'll play with locked away from your loved ones in an oblivious asocial fugue state. Umm, perhaps that's putting things TOO bluntly. In any case, here's a big pile of stuff to buy for your favorite Jaguar fan (I've thrown in some non-Jag stuff at the end, for the classic gamers among us). //// Video Game Liquidators Home Page: These guys are generally regarded as having the best prices on Jaguar and Lynx hardware and software. If you're looking to buy something common, look here first. //// Songbird Productions Home Page: Aside from the new upcoming games, Songbird (aka Carl Forhan) also sells a selection of common Jaguar and Lynx items. Some of them you can get cheaper elsewhere (see above), but if you're going to buy something anyway, support Carl's herculean efforts by buying from him! [] Protector ($75) - A great Defender variant by Bethesda Softworks. [] Soccer Kid, Skyhammer, Hyper Force - These games won't be available until after Christmas, but you can still preorder ($25 each). [] Hyperdrome ($40) - The Lynx's take on Ballblazer, by Atari. A flawed game, but hey, it's new! [] Lexis ($40) - This Lynx game by Shadowsoft crosses Scrabble with Tetris. Polished and professional, but reportedly quite difficult. [] Ponx ($40) - By Carl Forhan, pretty much Pong for the Lynx. No ComLynx, but supports head-to-head play on one Lynx. [] SFX ($40) - Also by Carl Forhan. Lets you play around directly with the Lynx's sound registers. Fun stuff! [] Sokomania ($40) - A Lynx Soko-Ban clone by Markus Wuehl. Soko-Ban is a classic puzzle game that involves pushing boxes around a warehouse. //// Tony Price's Jaguar Overlays Home Page: Tony makes very nice, color overlays for those Jaguar games which desperately need them. He also makes replacement overlays, in case you lose your originals. All overlays are $3 each. [] AirCars [] Atari Karts [] Dust Cover [] Iron Soldier 2 [] Syndicate [] Tempest 2000 [] Towers II [] Theme Park [] Virtual Missile Command [] World Tour Racing [] Worms [] Zero 5 //// Telegames Home Page: Telegames sells a pretty wide variety of Jaguar and Lynx stuff, but their prices are on the exorbitant side. There are a few games you can only get from Telegames though: [] Breakout 2000 ($50) - A tolerable update to Breakout. [] Iron Soldier 2 cart ($70) - Cartridge version of the must- have JagCD game. Telegames is out of stock at this time, but claim on their website that a new run will be ready by December. Personally I'm not holding my breath. [] Towers II ($60) - The Jag's only RPG, and a darn decent one. [] Worms ($70) - One of the best multiplayer games for the Jag (or any system for that matter). Currently out of stock. Same story as for IS2 cart. [] Zero 5 ($50) - The frantic outer space blast-a-thon. //// Best Electronics Home Page: Best Electronics has been around for decades, and is THE place to go for every Atari replacement part you could imagine. They have a decent selection of Jaguar and Lynx titles, but the real reason to shop here is the assortment rare and weird items. Note that this is just a sampling of their wares. [] Jaguar System Test Cartridge ($70) - For the Jag collector who has to have everything. [] Tempest 2000 audio CD ($5) - Listen to T2K's tunes on the go. [] Atari Jaguar Developer Console ($99) - w/interface cable to Jag Alpine II developer interface card already installed. [] Atari Jaguar Developer Manual ($75) - 547 pages! Sections covered: Getting Started, Technical Overview, Jaguar Software Reference Manual Tom & Jerry, Technical Reference, Hardware Bugs & Warnings, Jaguar CD-ROM, Jaguar Voice Modem, Jaguar Workshop, Jaguar Sample Programs, Libraries, Cinepak for Jaguar, QSound for Jaguar, Madmac Macro Assembler, ALN Linker, DB-The Atari Debugger and Appendices. [] Alpine II Developer Card ($495) - Has onboard clock with battery backup, power LED, 16 Megs of onboard RAM, Interface connector to Developer Jaguar console and a DB25 female connector to transfer program code. Used to debug and program new Jaguar cartridges and CDs. [] Jaguar Launch CD ($30) - Audio and visual CD that was given out to Atari's large buyers (chain stores) of the Jaguar system; used to display the capabilities of the Jaguar. [] Atari Jaguar Clock ($30) - An Atari original equipment Jaguar green blank PCB with clock mechanism (with wall mounting bracket) already installed. [] Lynx Blue Lightning Demo Cart ($20) - Used by chain stores to demonstrate the Lynx. Runs a continuous demo of Blue Lightning. Special gold label. //// B&C ComputerVisions Home Page: Like Best Electronics, B&C has a selection of common stuff, but also like Best, they have their share of rare, unique items. Here are a few of the highlights. [] Jaguar Official Gamer's Guide ($17) - Hints, cheats, maps, and walkthroughs for most of the early Jaguar games. [] Alien vs Predator poster ($10) - The classic movie-style poster for Jag AvP. [] Iron Soldier poster ($10) - The somewhat less classic Iron Soldier movie-style poster. [] "Atari Player On Board" sign ($10) - Like the old (and hopefully forgotten) "Baby On Board" signs. [] "I (heart) Atari" bumper sticker ($10) - Tell the world! [] Stereo Adapter ($15) - Prototype. [] Jaguar Developer Manual ($75) - Same as the Best one. [] "Cat Eyes" CD ($15) - No data or audio... just a blank CD that looks cool plopped in the JagCD. //// The Battlemorph Soundtrack Home Page: [] Morph ($6) - This is the closest we're going to get to an "official" BattleMorph soundtrack. Composed by ATD's Will Davis; contains 15 tracks in both Redbook and MP3 format. //// The Myst Soundtrack Home Page: [] Myst Soundtrack ($10) - All the tunes and more from the CD-ROM game Myst (not specific to the Jag, but what the heck). //// Pac-Man Fever Home Page: [] Pac-Man Fever ($16) - Nothing at all to do with the Jaguar, but come on! It's Pac-Man Fever, finally on CD! ///// BOLT T-Shirts Home Page: The Bureau of Low Technology guys make high-quality t-shirts bearing the images of some of the great videogaming icons. Printed on Lee 100% cotton heavyweight shirts. All shirts are $20 each. [] TRON [] Space Invaders (2600 version) [] Breakout (sold out) [] Pong (sold out) [] Berzerk Robot [] Atari 2600 Joystick //// Game Over: Press Start To Continue [] Game Over ($16) - The original Game Over was published in 1993. This new 1999 edition is available from (among other places) amazon.com . Details the insidious inner workings of Nintendo's takeover of the home videogame market. //// CGE '99 Video Home Page: [] CGE '99 Video ($30) - Mark Santora's official video of the 1999 Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas. See all the details elsewhere in this issue. --==--==--==--==-- || JagFest '99: The Aftermath || By: Carl Forhan, Clay Halliwell, Kevin Manne, and Micah Rowe \__// forhan@millcomm.com, clay.h@att.net, kevinmanne@wycol.com, ethunter@webtv.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- There follows all the reports from JagFest '99 that I was able to lay my hands on. For all these and more (including lots of pictures), browse to: =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Official JagFest '99 Report =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= by Carl Forhan June 19, 1999 ROCHESTER, MN -- I'm pleased to say that JagFest '99, held in Rochester, MN, was a wonderful success. I'm proud and very happy to have been those host for this year's 'fest, as I was able to supply a lot of things Jaguar and Lynx fans were looking for. On the Lynx front, Ponx was a hit with several attendees (and thanks for those purchases! ;-) ), and I know every Lynx fan there had a blast doing ComLynx Checkered Flag (5 people), Raiden (2 people), and other games like Slime World, Cal. Games, and Xenophobe. We demoed some cool recent and upcoming games like SIMIS, Sokomania, and Hyperdrome (not sure if anyone actually fired up the latter). On the much anticipated Jaguar front... many tournaments were held, and people definitely "showed their stuff" on games like Breakout 2000, Tempest 2000, and Zero 5 (all I can say is, "Wow, Clay"). NBA Jam rocked the house more than once, and other games like Ultra Vortek and Doom saw play time as well. We hoped to do a functional Voice Modem demo, but time slipped away from us. Maybe next year, guys. :-) Lots of other rare hardware was on display - - Jag Stereo adapter, Alpine boards, weird controllers, a Lynx dev kit, and more. Scott unfortunately could not get the latest Assassin demo to work. Native didn't work out, either. Protector was I think a surprise hit. People expected a straight Defender clone, but really enjoyed the new enemies and powerups and overall gameplay. BattleSphere was of course immensely popular, and the networking was very solid. Hats off to 4Play on this marvelous game that we all look forward to owning one day. Skyhammer was the "special announcement" game presented by Songbird Productions at about 5-6pm during the event. All the Jaguar fans I spoke with were excited to see how well the game played, the solid frame rate, and the attractive graphics. Not to mention the intricate gameplay centering around a series of nonlinear missions. A second play mode is included in this game, called "Battle" mode, where you have to fight off wave after wave of enemies (maybe they should have named this mode "Gauntlet" ;-) ). Very fun game, and enjoyed by all. The most disappointing aspect of the event, as one might imagine, was what I'll call mediocre attendance. About 10 of the people on my online "attendees" list were no-shows, including Terance Williams, whom we were all hoping could provide an update on Gorf 2000. Fred, Randy, Jason S., Robin, and more also didn't show up (or at least I didn't get to meet them if they did...) Sorry you guys couldn't make it, it would have been great to meet you. Raven Video Games did not make it down from the Twin Cities due to a co-worker calling in sick that day. Having said all that, I am happy to announce that attendance was probably better than even JagFest attendees realize. I sold 45 tickets to the event (adult and child combined), and another 25 people that were friends, family, and fellow church-goers also showed up (at no cost to them) to either help out at the ticket table, see my crazy video game hobby in action, etc. :-) That brings our grand total to 70 PEOPLE for JagFest '99! I know with a little more work and regional promotion, we could make it an even bigger event next year. Thanks to everyone who helped make it a success, and especially to the folks who traveled the furthest -- Kevin and Katie, Clay and Michelle, Brian and his father, and everyone else! Songbird Productions was pleased to be the official host of JagFest '99. Be sure to visit the JagFest '99 web site for the latest information: http://jagfest.atari.org To keep up to date with the latest news at Songbird Productions, be sure to visit the company web site at http://songbird.atari.org, or send an email to songbird@atari.org. Copyright 1999 Songbird Productions. All rights reserved. This article may be reprinted in its entirety. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JEO at JagFest =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= by Clay Halliwell Third times' the charm. This year I resolved that, come hell or high water, I'd drag myself to JagFest no matter what. Okay, so Rochester is over a thousand miles from my home in Abilene, TX. It gave me and my roommate a perfect opportunity to pitstop in Branson, MO (home of Silver Dollar City) on the way up and then back. So, when we arrived at JagFest, we'd been on the road for three days. If anyone thought I looked a little punchy and detached, well... that's why! Anyway, I brought a whole trunkload of stuff, including but not limited to: PC Tempest 2000 (just the software in its pretty box, no PC to run it on), an Atari Portfolio, a heavily modified Lap Cat Pro Jaguar controller, 7800, 7800 KLAX proto, Lynx, Atari Super Pong unit, Atari Touch Me handheld, a VFD (Vacuum Fluorescent Display) Defender handheld (not Atari, but neat anyway), every back issue of 2600 Connection and The Atari Times, my Best Electronics catalog (everyone should have one!), Iron Soldier 2 Cart, several Jag-related video tapes (AEO at E3 and the like), and a Jaguar System Test Cartridge. Oh yeah, and a Jag and lots of carts/CDs too, of course. So after setting everything up at my table, it was a fun day of stumbling around in a sleep-deprived haze. I finally got to put faces on the names I've gotten to know over the years. The highlights of the Fest are covered pretty well by the other reports in this section... the best moment was definitely the unveiling of Skyhammer, complete with the obligatory red screens of death. A Doom network was set up, but nobody seemed much interested in it. A shame, since I was really looking forward to force-feeding some rockets to my fellow Festees. It's just as well, since halfway into the Fest the Doom network was transformed into a BattleSphere network. Later, in spite of my condition, I managed to plow about halfway through Zero 5 in a single game. That was cool. Won myself yet another copy of the Atari Jaguar Official Gamer's Guide. I think the lowlight of the day was my video interview by Carl. So, quick summary (gotta finish up this JEO!): JagFest '99 was a blast, it was great meeting people, seeing some new games, and just hanging out in a pleasantly Atari-charged atmosphere. See y'all at JagFest 2K! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Kevin's Officially Unofficial JagFest '99 Report =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= by Kevin Manne Three years and still running strong, the JagFest has become quite an impressive little showing from the Jaguar community. The fact that we have continued enthusiasm for this little videogame system called the Jaguar (thanks, in part, to new games that continue to emerge) is cause enough to celebrate and JagFest continues to be that venue. Providing a chance for fellow Jaguar enthusiasts to meet face to face, play some Jaguar, Lynx and classic Atari games, along with getting the chance to play new, unreleased games is what the Fest is all about. And this year was no exception. With Carl Forhan's Songbird Productions taking hold of this year's event, things were bound to be interesting...and indeed they were. Carl did an excellent job of bringing together sponsors, bringing lots of games for sale, showing new and unreleased games (BattleSphere, Protector, Skyhammer, etc), organizing tournaments, and doing all those other JagFest-host kinds of things. Hats off to Carl for being an excellent host! The day began at about 8:00 am, with everyone getting their stuff set up for display/play. I was impressed with the number of unique items that were on display. From 7800 Klax to an official Lynx development kit, everyone brought out the best of the rare and unusual for everyone to see and generally drool over. Everybody kinda had free play and got to know each other until mid-morning when Carl suggested I drop my Flash ROM loaded with Protector into the large TV in the corner. So I did and started playing and instantly there were many people standing around watching the first of three unreleased Jag games to be shown that day. I think many people were taken by surprise as they were expecting just another Defender spin-off. But the excellent gameplay and smooth visuals really impressed. There was more than one occasion when I heard someone say "This is how Defender 2000 should have been" or "I like it better than D2K". Enough said. The tournaments began and while everyone did fairly well, there were definitely a few people that dominated. Clay wiped the floor with all competitors (including me) at Zero 5. I went first and Clay came up second. I went away for awhile and came back and said "Man, is Clay STILL playing!?" ...he really ripped it up. Micah Rowe (AKA ETHunter) kicked butt at the Tempest 2000 and Breakout 2000 tourneys, and Carl's brothers ripped up at some of the Lynx tourneys like Raiden. I still say it was rigged ;-). All during the event Carl had a TV/VCR playing various Jaguar-Related videotapes. We saw some good footage of HyperForce (one of the upcoming games from Songbird) on one of the tapes, along with interviews of various Jag developers like 4Play at E3 '95. A while later into the day, Carl asked if I had brought my videos and I had, so I threw in the Jag Demo tape I got from Wes a while back. Everyone kinda digged that tape, so when it was done, I decided it might be fun to see what would happen if I put in a copy of the dreaded "The Cave" Jaguar Infomercial. So I put it in and everyone sorta laughed and said "this is pathetic" but surprisingly, I think this tape drew the biggest crowd all day. I was in such disbelief that I had to snap a picture (and a few others did as well) to capture the moment the most people had actually simultaneously seen that infomercial. It was great. Deathmatch Doom was going on most of the day, and people were having a ton of fun with it. But, I didn't hear anyone complain when Carl took out the two copies of Doom and set up a 2 Player Network of the infamous BattleSphere. Those who were seeing it for the first time pretty much stared in awe, while those of us who had seen it before confirmed "yes, this game still rocks". I know we've been saying it for years now, but next year it would rock to have an 8 player Sphere network! C'mon 4Play! Then it happened....Carl got everyone's attention for a special announcement. Letting it speak for itself, Carl booted up the Jag with a mysterious Flash ROM in it. And then, there it was... ...the dreaded Red Screen! Carl tried again and yet another Red Jag screen. We were all so impressed that we started hooting, hollering and clapping. Carl took a bow in acceptance of our gratitude. Thankfully the third or fourth time the game booted up to a "Rebellion" screen and we all knew what was coming. Then the Skyhammer title screen hit and we were all just kinda staring at the screen saying "cool" and "wow". The game looks and plays amazing. I put a good hour (or so) of play into the game and I'd say it definitely pushes the Jag graphically (while keeping a smooth framerate), has excellent control, deep gameplay and smooth audio. This game screams Rebellion Quality, and I'd say it definitely impresses. Toward the end of the day everyone was getting tired and was kind of just walking around and playing games here and there. Carl did mini-interviews with some of the guests (me included) to be included in the upcoming JagFest video. Prizes were awarded to the best contestants in the tournaments, and even to some of the not-so-good :-). Carl was VERY generous with his inventory of games to the winners, giving away Lynx, 7800, 2600 and Jaguar titles to all of the first, second and even a third place winner(s)! I'm still enjoying my copy of Toki I won for getting third place in Co-op Lynx Raiden. Heh. Speaking of Lynx...Songbird Production's Ponx, a Pong clone for the Lynx was released right there at the Fest. I got a copy and it is very cool both single and two player. Pong is a perfect game for the little Atari Handheld, and Carl did an excellent conversion with lots of little extras to boost playability and re-playability. The game comes in an impressive- looking CD jewel case and includes and instruction booklet, very much like the newer Telegames releases like Raiden, Fat Bobby and Bubble Trouble. And so the Third Annual JagFest came to a successful conclusion, with everyone packing their things and heading back home or to their hotel rooms to collapse after 12+ hours of intense Jaguar gaming. Once again I'd like to thank Carl for doing one heck of a job on this year's event, and say a quick "hi" to many of the people I got to meet or reunite with including Scott Walters, Micah Rowe, Dan Loosen, Dan Iacovelli, Clay Halliwell, Carl Forhan (of course) and his brothers Pat and Jake. It was great meeting you all (and everyone else I forgot too!). Talk of JagFest 2K has already begun and here's hoping I can make it to Texas or wherever it ends up being held. See you next year! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// JagFest '99 Through My Eyes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= by Micah Rowe The following is my detailed story trying to get to, and ultimately attending, JagFest '99. So I finally made it to June 18, 1999. It was time for JagFest! I woke up at 4:30 in the morning so I could pack the car and hopefully get a good start on the trip of about 80 miles. Everything would have went smoothly if only my brother would have not forgotten his TV at his home. We were planning on leaving my house at 6:00am so I told him to be on time at my house. Not only does he show up 25 minutes late but, like I said, brings Jag but no TV! I'm in disbelief because he lives 15 miles from me and 6:30am is rush hour here in Mpls. I was so mad we had to go back to his home first I don't think we talked 'til we were 10 miles from Rochester. It ended up not mattering but I finally arrived at the location around 8:30. So I finally get to the right Holiday Inn (I went into the first Holiday Inn I saw on Broadway thinking there could only be one Holiday Inn on Broadway, but upon entering thought something wasn't right when it was WAY too ritzy, but went ahead anyway and asked the front desk "Where is JagFest being held at?" They had no idea what I was talking about so I excused myself and drove down Broadway a little further to find the right place.) I entered through the front doors and immediately saw a large room with TV's and Atari banners. HONEY, I'M HOME! I entered the room and was immediately greeted by Carl Forhan. It was very cool to put a face to the name and founder of Songbird Productions. I and my just forgiven brother began to unpack the car and put my TV and Jags on the table right next to Kevin Manne's table. I had never met Kevin but have seen many pictures of him from previous JagFests so when he approached to say Hi I immediately said "Kevin!" like I knew him for many years. Very weird. Before too long it was 10:00 and the Fest had officially begun. After maybe a half an hour I was thinking that I should link up Doom for a little fun but was unsure if it would be appropriate when I saw some young children already in attendance. I went ahead anyway with the deathmatch setup and came to the realization that these "young children" were very good at Doom. Almost too good. In fact I was reluctant to deathmatch with them for fear of being humiliated. So I played it safe and watched others play their games. One of these young children turned out to be Scott Walters' 7 year old son. It really began to get fun when I began to meet other attendees that I've seen posting at JI. It was very cool meeting Kevin, thought Dan Loosen was very cool and his friend from Milwaukee, Max (can't spell your last name) was very friendly. It was a pleasure to meet Dan Iacovelli from AVC and put an order in for the FREE JagFest newsletter! Clay Halliwell amazed me by pouring in over 420,000 points in Zero-5, easily winning that competition. I try to be modest but I was very lucky and did have success with the Tempest 2000 and Breakout 2000 competition. Carl finally let us see and play Protector and I was very impressed despite totally sucking at it. I need a good month with a game before I get the hang of it. Not to my surprise, my success with BattleSphere didn't go much better. I would end up flying in the completely wrong direction I was supposed to go and even ended up firing upon (and destroying) my own star base or something like that simply because I had no idea what to do. Give me a manual and the game for 2 months and I'll be the most dangerous BattleSphere pilot you've ever seen. At least I want to believe that! To top it off, Carl gathered us all around the big TV to show us a little surprise which ended up being the very cool Skyhammer. It ran fast, smooth, great soundtrack, non-linear gameplay, everything you could like in a game. By the time the Fest was nearing its end, I started to get very tired and had trouble sitting and playing games endlessly. So I'd play for 15 minutes then walk around aimlessly and boy was that ever fun! :-) I almost forgot that Carl forced me to be interviewed and I reluctantly agreed to make a fool of myself. I really do hate cameras as I never seem to look good in them. Upon further review I think I need to diet or something. What a mess!!! So the night came to a close and I sadly packed my belongings and packed my car for the trip home. I just may have had the best day I could remember except when my kids were born and the day I was tricked into marriage. The whole way home all I could talk about to my brother is BattleSphere this and Protector that and Skyhammer too! What a day it was. In fact, I had so much fun, I'm going to try to travel any distance to get to the next one. Sorry for the way too long story. --==--==--==--==-- || CGE '99: A Classic Games Enthusiast's View || By: Lee Krueger \__// resqsoft@earthlink.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- I attended the Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas over the last weekend. I went as an enthusiast with no agenda other than hoping to have an enjoyable time. I arrived Thursday night, arriving from Seattle on an internet airfare special that I booked in advance. I think it cost me $52 each way (excluding airport taxes and such). I stayed, like most, at the Plaza Hotel, sharing a room with a classic gaming friend (Rob Brown), and my costs were $89 for the room from Thursday night thru Sunday night. When you add the $27 I spent for the admission ticket to the show, I think I invested a total of $220 (excluding food and entertainment) to attend the CGE show. Below is summary of what I got for my money. On Friday I woke up late (well, late for me, as I usually get up at 5:00 a.m. every morning to go to work). I did notice the Plaza Hotel seemed a little dated and was obviously an older establishment in Vegas. However, the accommodations were much better than I had just experienced a couple of days before. I had just arrived back from an expedition in Northern British Columbia where I spent every night in a tent swatting away mosquitoes and horse flies for more than a week. On our way out to breakfast Rob and I met up with the organizers (Sean, John, et al) in the elevator. We followed them to the exhibit hall where we were immediately recruited by Kieta as volunteers to help unload the trucks and setup. We gladly accepted the task as we were not planning on doing much else that day except maybe sight-see. As both Rob and myself are from a much cooler and wetter climate in Seattle we didn't care to see the smoke-infested casinos and shows in 90+ degree heat. In any event, we got to see the displays and meet many folks who would be rather busy over the weekend during the show. Additionally, I was able to meet Ken (his last name eludes me) who was with B&C Computers. Like me, Ken is an aerospace engineer from the McDonnell Douglas division in Long Beach. He had worked on many airplanes throughout his career before retiring a few years ago. As I work for Boeing (which recently bought out McD), it was fascinating to hear and swap some of our stories and experiences at a professional level, something I rarely get to do outside of my work environment. In any event, after everything was basically set up, we were able look over the place, play a few video arcade games and chat with more enthusiasts, including a one-on-one chat with Don Thomas in regards to the last days of Atari and the Jaguar. It was NEAT. On Saturday, Rob and I arrived early to register and get in line for the show. The nice part about this was the fact that since this was idle time, I was able to meet and chat with many folks that I have emailed, traded with and seen around on the newsgroups. It was very nice to put faces to the names of the folks whom I have come to know as my virtual gaming friends on the net. Unlike World of Atari, which I attended last, there seemed to be less urgency or a rush for everyone to get in the door when the doors opened. I think this situation was helped by the fact that many show exclusive items were not for sale right away, such as Eric Bacher's games (Pesco and Merlin's Walls). Maybe it was me, but it seemed much more relaxed. I made it a point to quickly go around to everyone's booth before the first presentation to scan and purchase any items that I may have wanted before they were gone. I was a little taken aback that Hasbro's booth, whom I expected to have a large presence at the show, was not that impressive. On the contrary however, as I came in the door, I was immediately impressed with the booth that the Blue Sky Rangers put up. It was very impressive and distinct. Kudos to those folks. I didn't really get a chance to complete my rounds before the first keynote presentation, however, I knew I'd be back. There was a collectors swap meet in which one lucky collector (a friend of mine from Redmond) was able to pick up a Video Life cart for FIVE BUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was able to solidify a trade deal with that good chap Marco Kerstens and I filled a couple of holes in my collection, including Fathom for the Intellivision. All-in-all however, I did not like the room or the setup for the swap meet. I wish there could have been more tables for people to display their wares. It was tough moving about without accidentally stepping on someone's stuff. I really enjoyed the keynote presentations that I was able to see. They were varied and frequent. In fact, they were so frequent that I was unable to attend all of them, so I was forced to choose which ones were most important to me. I was able to attend and see the following, either in part or in completeness: Vectrex Guys (group speech) Atari 2600 Programmers/Designers (group speech) Blue Sky Rangers (group speech) Imagic Guys (group speech) Activision Guys (group speech) Ralph Baer John Harris I found all these very interesting and informative. My only complaint about the presentations was not with the content, but rather with the room in which they were held. The room was only large enough to seat about 120 people. As a result, some of the keynote presentations were a little crowded. Seating for up to 50 more would have been more comfortable for everyone. At the closing of the show on Sunday, the CGE staff began tossing hundreds of games onto the show floor for $0.50 each. Most were common games, however, there were some pretty decent ones and I was able to get a few shrinkwrapped titles for my personal collection. The whole thing looked like a feeding frenzy of pirhanas and sharks. My hand got stepped on several times. At one point I almost broke my ankle as someone stepped on it. On another high point, I did get to meet a couple of folks from Electronic Playground (a TV magazine of sorts dedicated to videogames in Vancouver B.C.). Hopefully, they will work something out to send a broadcast to the States, or at the very least, to Seattle. Of the booths that I visited, the ones that most impressed me during the show were as follows (no particular order): Blue Sky Rangers They had the best presentation of all the dealers. Very professional setup along with games and demos of unreleased prototypes, my favorite of which was the Sea Duel game for the 2600. Also shown were Rocky & Bullwinkle (2600), Masters Of The Universe (Colecovision), Yogi's Frustration and a couple of others. They also previewed the upcoming compilation Intellivision Lives for the Playstation which appeared to play much better than the Activision Classics. Best of all, they gave out neat prizes, T-shirts and hats. B&C Computers They had some cool Jag and Lynx stuff which I couldn't resist buying. I really enjoyed talking to Bruce when he had time. Songbird Productions Carl Forhan had demos of Skyhammer and Protector up and running for the Jaguar. Protector looks pretty cool (when can we get that damn encryption code released!). I also picked up his creations for the Lynx and played Cyber Virus, the unreleased game Lynx title from Beyond Games. CyberPunks I talked briefly with these guys and picked up the Stella at 20 video. I am still not sure what their intentions are in regards to the 2600, however, the Stella at 20 video is very well done, save for the soundtrack (very cool logo though). I sorely missed seeing Russ Perry Jr. as I was hoping to meet him there. Nyko Hey, I really like Dan Kramer. Dan works for them as a consultant on the PSX trackball. Dan was the creator of the Atari 5200 trackball (a real piece of work). I forgot to get one of his T-shirts though. Hasbro Saw previews of Missile Command, Q*bert and Pong. The booth wasn't impressive, but if you previewed their games you got a free Atari Classic compilation disk for your PC (no Mac version unfortunately). Telegames The best part of this was the fact that you could buy without the typical S&H fees. However, they charged upwards of $300 for both, the TG Express and the TG Duo. Too expensive for my tastes. They also had 2 new Lynx games for sale, Hyperdrome and Sokomania. In addition they had Yars' Revenge for $19.95 for the GameBoy Color. Very good translation. I played this on the plane home. Once Upon Atari Yars truly, Howard Scott Warshaw.... need I say more. Yeah, I bought his video and he signed my carts. Digital Press/Rolenta Press Got to meet Joe Santuli finally. I also got to meet and chat with Leonard Herman as well. Although I am a subscriber to the Digital Press and I have a copy of Leonard's book, it was still cool to hang with these two gentlemen. I think Leonard had his book for an incredibly low price of $12. Oh yeah.... they also had a sign-up sheet for folks to get information on the next edition of Worship The Woodgrain. Hits: Eric Bacher's version of 2600 Pac-Man. It kicks butt!!!!!!! Too bad he won't release it :-( Getting to meet and talk with the programmers in a one-on-one situation. Getting David Rolf's signature on my Beamrider cart. Getting David Crane's signature on my Pitfall carts. The Unreleased Protos from Blue Sky Rangers. Talking with Dave Polaro at the airport on the way home. Meeting and chatting with Ralph Baer. Misses: Not enough attendees. Not enough vendors. I hate to say it... no Nolan. No Curt Vendel. No Jerry Jessop. Things I missed on my visit: The Mustang Ranch's 2-for-1 going out of business sale :-) A good night's sleep. When I tally it all up... I had a great time for my money. Your mileage may vary of course. --==--==--==--==-- || CGE '99: The Video || By: Mark Santora \__// santora@earthlink.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- [The following details the strange tale of Mark Santora's Official Computer Gaming Expo 1999 Video. For all these updates and more, drop by Mark Santora's website at --Ed.] In August of 1998, an expo was held in Las Vegas, entitled World of Atari. This two-day show covered all aspects of the company that was Atari Corp, good times and bad. It was designed as a way for people to meet each other and revel in all things Atari. But there was so much more at the show that was not Atari by namesake, but came from that era-- the first generation of videogames. And it was decided to continue with the Expo in the future but to change its name to reflect all systems. Thus we have the birth of The Classic Gaming Expo! So, what's my part in this little shin-dig? Last year I shot and produced a two hour documentary covering the show. It was shot on Hi-8mm video, edited online, and professionally duplicated. The producers of the show were so pleased with the results, they asked me to produce a video for CGE '99. And things will be a little different this year. [] The video will be shot on Mini DV Video for quality [] It will be edited online [] New original music [] More interviews [] CG sequences rendered out in Lightwave [] Higher quality audio [] Included with each tape will be a Table of Contents [] Color Labels [] More direct feeds of games including: o BattleSphere (Jaguar) o Skyhammer (Jaguar) o Phase Zero (Jaguar) o Soccer Kid (Jaguar) o Hyper Force (Jaguar) o Ponx (Lynx) o Merlin's Walls (2600) o Pesco (2600) o and many more! [] Anticipated running time: 2 Hours! Finally, I will be present at the show ACCEPTING ORDERS. You can tap me on the shoulder and ask for an order form and hand me your completed one. I'll be the guy in the black shirt with the CGE VIDEO logo slapped across it. Wow! you say. Can it be true? Of course it's true! I've had more time to prepare and expect to ship the final tape in early September, 1999. Now the stuff of it. What's it gonna cost? As with last year's tape, I was able to include shipping costs in the price of the video to all United States addresses. I am continuing that policy. PRICING AND POLICIES: United States Orders: [] Each tape will run $30 U$D and include two-day Priority Shipping in the United States ONLY. [] All Orders will be accepted via CHECK or MONEY ORDER. I'd love to take Credit Cards, but it's just too cost prohibitive. [] I will keep a mailing list updating all those who order how the tape is coming and when it will enter duplication and shipping. [] Tapes will be shipped on a order priority basis. In other words, if you order now, your tape will ship before the guy who orders in two weeks. [] I WILL NOT ACCEPT CASH. DO NOT SEND IT!!! International Orders: [] International orders will be individually priced from $27 US dollars plus shipping. [] All Orders will be accepted via CHECK or MONEY ORDER. I'd love to take Credit Cards, but it's just too cost prohibitive. [] PAL Tapes are the standard in Europe. If you are ordering from another area, make sure you know your video standard and I will find out about getting you a copy. [] I will keep a mailing list updating all those who order how the tape is coming and when it will enter duplication and shipping. [] Tapes will be shipped on a order priority basis. In other words, if you order now, your tape will ship before the guy who orders in two weeks. [] I WILL NOT ACCEPT CASH. DO NOT SEND IT!!! //// 16 Aug 99 Well, I'm back from CGE and I've got a lot of footage to sort through, so this will be brief. A last-minute problem occurred and I was unable to acquire the Mini Digital Video Camera that I had planned to shoot the material with. Instead I ended up using a professional Hi-8 L-1 Camera. It has some pseudo-digital circuitry in it, but it is a much better camera than the one used to shoot World of Atari last year. Speaking of which, I have decided to offer the 1998 World of Atari Video again. Several people asked me about purchasing it as well, so here's the deal. Both the World of Atari and the CGE Video for $50. That's $5 off and shipping is still included. Email me if you're interested. As for the show, there was a lot to see. You can read my report covering it at Next Generation Online. That's right, I also write. Eventually I will have the time to put up a few samples on my site of other writing. but enough of that now, I've got some logging to do. Mark Santora Terminator Line Entertainment http://home.earthlink.net/~santora/cgevideo.html //// 27 Aug 99 Silly me. I forgot to upload the page update after I got back from the show last week! DOH! Anyway, here's an update for everyone out there. All 14+ hours of the footage is logged and I have a nice plan already set up for piecing the tape together next week. I expect that I'll have some sort of rough cut by next Friday. That's the plan at least. What else? Oh yes, we have original music in the works from Stephanie Wukovitz of 4Play fame. We also have more direct feeds as well as a surprise or two that I'm gonna keep under my hat right now. More later. //// 9 Sept 99 CGE Video Report I wanted to get this out last night, but I was just too wiped. Ready everyone? This one's a doozy! So early last week I broke down and picked up a CDRW. I had been using a SparQ to back up all my footage for the World of Atari Video and well, they don't make those anymore. So, with all my carts filled, I went to Fry's and picked a Creative Labs CDRW 6x4x24. And it was cheap. Under $240. I was going to purchase the HP 8110, but this one was faster, so it must be better, right? So I take it home and drop it in my system. Everything seems fine. I've got just short of an hour done and back up all the files onto CDs so I can wipe the drive and do the second half of the video. Here's where it gets fun. So I go to erase - FAT32 error. Huh? The drive is defragmented on an every-other-day basis when I'm working on something this big. So I check for errors, CRASH. What the fuck? I boot with a Win98 floppy and get back into the system. I format the D: drive and the system's back to normal, except my editing card (Miro DC30) doesn't want to work now. Granted I haven't scanned anything since the CDRW was installed, just been working with existing footage. SO I decide to pull the CDRW and take it back, but wait there's more. I check the CDs I burned before the system went south. They're a mess. Nothing salvageable. Two weeks of work - gone. Mark, not happy. After a half hour of cursing and screaming, I ripped the CDRW from my system and tried to scan footage. Nothing. Wait, I'm not done yet. So the footage's gone and my editing board's on the fritz. I call Pinnacle (makers of the DC30). I get the deer in headlights effect from them. After 1+ hour long distance Tuesday morning, nothing's fixed. It's down to that last ditch effort. Complete clean install of Win98 SE and my editing drivers. It works. Back on the map - at square one. Ok, square two. Rest of Tuesday re-installing other software, internet access, and such. So, here's the update. The tape will not be shipping on September 15. I hope to get it to the dupe house then. The good side is that I've already got the first hour in my head. So it's just a matter of piecing it back together. That'll be done by the weekend and with Saturday and Sunday off, I hope to have the bulk of the second hour done. I'd love to have it to you too, guys, but I had a really crappy Labor Day weekend. Now you're up to date. A very tired... Mark Santora //// 30 Sept 99 Hey everybody. It's your overworked producer here with an update on the status of the CGE video you've all ordered. First off, let me say thanks for all those who understood and didn't push when my system went south. It took me two weeks to get back up to speed and it was a nerve-wracking experience. Anyway, three weeks ago I joined the Discovery Channel/Travel Channel as a full-time editor. My interview included a copy of the first five minutes of the tape, and they liked what they saw. The good news was that they hired me and I've got a ton of new toys to play with - most of which I've never used, including the Quantel Edit Box. So last week they managed to get me into an intensive one-week training course on the box in Atlanta. It was: Monday, Mark you're going to Atlanta tonight. And I went. I had no access to my email, so please don't be offended if you emailed me and I did not get back to you. So here's the update. Polishing up the last twenty minutes. That was supposed to happen last week. Barring any "must work" weekends, on Monday I will be sending off copies of the tape to the CGE organizers for "approval". After that it goes to duplication. Oh, quick note, Stephanie Wukovitz's system died a nice horrible death. The kind you see in movies. So even though she had some music completed, it wasn't up to her standards and therefore will not be featured in the video - although some of the pieces from last year's video may make it. Another musician I know, Kerry Smith, is contributing in her place. I know everyone wants to see this, and frankly I need to have it done so I can stop editing 15 hours a day - ten at work, five at home. I need the down time at night. Expect a message once the tape is approved. Quick message next week once I get the tapes out. -Mark Santora CGE Video Producer //// 14 Oct 99 Well guys, it looks like we are finally hitting that home stretch. This morning, on my way to work, I placed three copies of the first-cut CGE Video in the mail to the show organizers. It's my way of making sure that they don't find anything offensive, and frankly to make sure I didn't screw anything up - like spellling. =-) They should get them this weekend, then next week I expect notes - lots of 'em. This will be followed by a hardcore editing session here, a final output and QC, then it's off to duplication. I _HOPE_ (read that word gang, it's HOPE) to be in duplication in 2 two weeks. Tapes will ship shortly thereafter. It's 4-5 working days at duplication as I don't have the largest order. I get done at the wee hours of the morning. There you go gang. Now you know. I will update again once I go through the notes and send the tape off for duplication. -Mark Santora //// 12 Nov 99 Here's what you've all been waiting on - the tape is DONE. That's right, put a fork in it. I dropped it off at duplication on my way to work this morning. Now I can catch up on all that TV I've been missing - except Buffy, Angel, and the Simpsons which I go out of my way to watch. So here's what is in the pipeline. Due to the relatively small order I placed, tapes will not be ready until the end of next week. I was told the 19th. If it's me versus a 300,000 tape run of the Blair Witch Project, who do you think's gonna win? But, If a window opens up before that, the tapes will be done earlier. So if I get them on the 19th, expect them to ship on Monday, the 22nd. That's the plan. Quickly I'd like to thank everyone who supported the project and of course not emailing me every week asking when it's gonna be done. It was a bigger job this year and I hope you'll all be satisfied with the final project. So it looks like I'll get a nine-month break until CGE 2000. Too much to think about now. I will email one more time once the first batch of tapes has shipped. More Later. Mark Santora //// 18 Nov 99 I had a message waiting for me today when I got back from work basically telling me that the tapes won't be done until Wednesday next week at the earliest. An order of less than 100 tapes compared to several thousand looses. And the dupe house is closed from Thanksgiving until the following Monday - so I'm hoping to get them on Wednesday, pack them, and start shipping as early as Saturday. Sorry guys. I know you want to see it, but it's just gonna take a bit more time. Mark Santora --==--==--==--==-- || JEO Trivia Challenge VI: The Answers || By: Clay Halliwell \__// clay.h@att.net ----------------------------------------------------------------- These are the original titles, and the game they became: 1. Hammerhead -> Skyhammer 2. Star Battle -> BattleSphere 3. BattleZone 2000 -> Hover Strike 4. Missile Command 2000 -> Missile Command 3D 5. Redline Racing, Checkered Flag II -> Checkered Flag 6. Rage Rally -> Power Drive Rally 7. Ultra Vortex -> Ultra Vortek 8. Air Car Wars -> AirCars 9. Dinolympics (Lynx), The Humans (PC) -> Evolution: Dino Dudes 10. NetWar -> I-War 11. Formula One Racing -> World Tour Racing BONUS QUESTIONS: 12. Green and Pissed -> Doom 13. Hover Hunter -> Phase Zero 14. Chaos Agenda -> Black Ice\White Noise 15. Phear -> Tetrisphere --==--==--==--==-- || || Shutdown ....................... Power off, * + #, EOL, Game Over \__// ----------------------------------------------------------------- Buzzword Index: Buzzword Occurrences Network 8 Bug 9 Protector 30 BattleSphere 33 Fest 40 Hasbro 49 CD 56 HTTP 88 Atari 312 Useless Fact O' The Month: The Jaguar's emergency backdoor encryption key code is, in hexadecimal: $03D0DEAD. Yes, this is a reference to then- competitor 3DO. 'Til next issue! Your Editor Clay Halliwell --==--==--==--==-- (This issue printed on recycled photons) --==--==--==--==-- Soylent Green is People! --==--==--==--==-- DNFTEC --==--==--==--==-- Where do you want to play Atari today? --==--==--==--==-- Jaguar Explorer Online Magazine is a diurnal publication covering the Atari Jaguar community. Reprint permission is granted, unless otherwise noted at the beginning of the article, to registered Atari user groups and not for profit publications under the following terms only: articles must remain unedited and include the issue number and author at the top of each article reprinted. Other reprints granted upon approval of request. Send requests to . No issue of Jaguar Explorer Online Magazine may be included on any commercial media, nor uploaded or transmitted to any commercial online service, in whole or in part, by any agent or means, without the expressed consent or permission from the Editor or Publisher of Jaguar Explorer Online Magazine. Opinions presented herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the staff, or of the publishers. All material herein is believed accurate at the time of publishing. The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plains. --==--==--==--==-- Atari, 400/800, XL/XE, 2600, ST, Mega ST, STe, Mega STe, Atari Falcon030, Blitter, Atari Lynx, ComLynx, Atari Panther, Atari Jaguar, AtariTel, Pong, and the Atari Fuji Symbol are all trademarks or registered trademarks of Hasbro Interactive, Inc. All other trademarks and identifying marks mentioned in this issue belong to their respective owners. --==--==--==--==-- Jaguar Explorer Online Magazine "Your Source for Jaguar News" Copyright (c) 1999, White Space Publishers ****** ** ** ** ** **** ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: J E O :::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: Volume 3, Issue 2 JAGUAR EXPLORER ONLINE November 20, 1999 :: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::