Atari Jaguar

The Atari Jaguar is a home video game console developed by Atari Corporation and released in North America in November 1993. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it competed with the 16-bit Sega Genesis and Super NES and the 32-bit 3DO Interactive Multiplayer which launched the same year. Despite its two custom 32-bit processors – Tom and Jerry – in addition to a Motorola 68000, Atari marketed it as the world's first 64-bit game system, emphasizing its 64-bit bus. The Jaguar launched with Cybermorph as the pack-in game. Development on the Atari Jaguar started in the early 1990s by Flare Technology which also designed the cancelled Atari Panther console. The multi-chip architecture, hardware bugs, and lacking developer support tools made game development difficult. Underwhelming sales further contributed to the console's lack of third-party support. The game library comprised only 50 licensed titles, plus another 13 games on the Jaguar CD. Atari attempted to extend the lifespan of the system with the Atari Jaguar CD add-on and marketing the Jaguar as the low-cost next generation console, with a price tag over $100 less than any of its competitors. With the release of the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation in 1995, sales of the Jaguar continued to fall. It sold no more than 250,000 units before it was discontinued in 1996. The commercial failure of the Jaguar prompted Atari to leave the console market. After Hasbro Interactive acquired all Atari properties, the patents of the Jaguar were released into the public domain, with the console declared an open platform. Since its discontinuation, hobbyists have produced games for the system.