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AEO News Bulletin 04
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## ## ## ## ## AEO News Bulletin #4
####### #### ## ## Saturday June 18, 1994
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Atari Reveals Jaguar Plans at Shareholders' Meeting
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[] Wolfenstein 3D to begin shipping soon []
[] Jaguar Doom via Voice Modems []
[] Tempest 2000 audio CD master arrives []
[] Third party projects []
Editor: Travis Guy
aeo.mag@genie.geis.com
aeo_mag@delphi.com
The annual Atari shareholders' meeting took place on Friday, June 17th
at Atari Corporation headquarters in Sunnyvale, California. AEO's Tal
Funke-Bilu was present, and turned in this report. There is some
pretty hot stuff being lined up for Atari's near future!...
Before I turn this over to Tal, let me add a note. Traditionally in
many companies' shareholders' meetings, best case scenarios and target
dates are used. Understanding that sych things can change, here is
Tal's report:
--==--==--==--==--
Assistant Editor: Tal Funke-Bilu
aexplorer@delphi.com
explorer.5@genie.geis.com
Well, as Travis has just told you, I am back from attending the Atari
shareholders' meeting. And while I know that many of you have been
waiting anxiously to find out what Atari has up their sleeves, I can
honestly tell you that this AEO update contains what I believe to be
the most exciting Jaguar news since Atari announced production of the
Beast itself.
I was going to sit back and tell you how cool and collective the
Tramiels looked, ready to take the video gaming world by storm (as if
they have not done so already <g>). I was going to say how Jeff Minter
turned a light shade of red when everyone applauded in response to his
Virtual Light Machine. I was going to tell you a lot of things to set
the mood, and draw this update out as long as possible, but then I
realized that I could not hold back this info any longer. Are you
seated? You better be, because this is going to knock your socks off!
You want Jaguar games? They are coming. If everything goes as planned,
Wolf 3D should start showing up at Blockbuster and other stores in the
next couple of weeks. These will be the product of a "pre-release" of
Wolf 3D, where an unspecified amount of carts have been "rushed"
through production. Keep in mind, the "official" batch of Wolf 3D
carts will hit the shelves later. So call your local store and see if
you can reserve it, because it puts the PC version to shame! The
flamethrower is great!
That is almost good enough news to justify an update right there, but
I will not stop there. Before I go on, I would like to congratulate
the Tramiels on their 10th anniversary with Atari! They have handled
the good and the bad, and are pulling through to bring video gaming to
new heights! Great job guys!
OK, here is some news I thought you people all over net-land would
enjoy. Everyone is wondering whether DOOM will be ComLynxable. Well,
just stop using the term "ComLynx". (For a reason you will read about
later.) With DOOM you will be able to connect a minimum of 2 players
and possibly 4. But here is the catch - DOOM will be compatible with
the yet to be released VOICE MODEM to be shown by Atari at the SCES.
That is right! For two player games, you will be able to call up your
friend over the phone and engage in total carnage right in the safety
of your own home! As if that was not enough, the VOICE MODEM will
allow you to talk to your friend VIA THE HEADSET packed in w/ the
voice modem, at the same time, using the SAME PHONE LINE.
Let me say that again. Using one phone line, you will be able to talk
to your friend (using the VOICE MODEM HEADSET) and carry on a game of
DOOM at the same time. Unreal! In order for DOOM to be able to support
4 player gameplay, it will have to be connected over the Jag network
(what has been referred until now as the ComLynx) using special cables
to route them through your entire house. You will not have to keep
your Jags right next to each other in order to enjoy multi-player
games.
What? You want even more great news? There is this....
[] Mr. Tramiel emphasized the fact that Atari is focused more on
quality, than on rushing out sub-par games: "If we have to delay a
game for a month to make it better, that's what we're going to do." He
also stated that the Cinepac compression kit (developed by SuperMac)
in the CD-ROM drive is the best version of Cinepac ever done by
SuperMac, and even far superior to the PC version. A tentative release
time set for the CD was "by the end of October." In keeping with
Atari's original estimate, the MSRP is still at $199.99.
[] While we are on the subject of the CD-ROM, Mr. Tramiel stated that
the MPEG cart should be available around the same time as the CD-ROM
for a price under $150.
[] Also mentioned was the fact that there are now a minimum of 150
signed Jaguar developers.
[] In an effort to continue to stay ahead of the competition, Sam
Tramiel quickly touched on the fact that Atari has plans for Jaguar II
already in development. It is expected to maintain 100% downward
compatibility with the Jaguar, so as not to eliminate the current
software library. This announcement was geared more towards long-term
investors than current game players, so do not worry, Jaguar owners -
Jag II is not going to turn up next year!
[] Kasumi Ninja was shown briefly. From the quick 30 seconds shown I
can easily say that this is going to be the best fighting game to come
to any home system yet. I feel this could easily rival MKII in the
arcade. 24-bit true color animated backgrounds. Over 100 frames of
animation per character. BLOOD, BRUTAL FATALITIES, and MUCH MORE.
Already I can guarantee that it puts MK to shame, if not both MK and
MKII.
[] Brett Hull Hockey will be on CD-ROM and have full NHL/NHLPA
endorsement. They said it would very easily be POSSIBLE to include
digitized faces from every NHL player in the game.
[] The T2K master audio CD arrived in Atari this past week, and they
are currently deciding how to market it.
[] One company has approached Atari in an effort to incorporate the
Jag in exercise machines. This, combined with the "ANL" project (stay
in touch with AEO, and you will find out more about -that- after
SCES), represents Atari's outreach to non-game projects. The Jaguar is
definitely a "multimedia machine".
[] Atari also mentioned that they are also trying to license CD-I
technology, thus allowing future use of CD-I discs on Jaguar.
[] At SCES, Thrustmaster will display a steering wheel with pedals,
and possibly a flight yoke. The MSRP of the steering wheel/pedals
combo is $129.99.
[] Special Alien vs. Predator and Kasumi Ninja advertisements are in
the works.
[] There are a pool of games (numbering around 25) that Atari expects
to have out by Christmas.
I am sorry to rush out on you rather quickly, but I need to pack my
bags... now where is it I am going? As a last minute plug for our
SCES video, I thought I would mention the name of a certain individual
who I am sure you will all enjoy seeing... Jeff Minter.
--==--==--==--==--
AEO News! is a service of Atari Explorer Online Magazine, a bi-weekly
publication covering the entire Atari community. All material herein
is believed accurate at the time of publishing. Material published in
this issue may be reprinted (unless specified in the article) by
registered Atari user groups and non-profit publications, citing Atari
Explorer Online as the originator. Other reprints granted upon
approval of request. Send requests to <aeo.mag@genie.geis.com>.
--==--==--==--==--
Atari, ST, Mega ST, STE, Mega STE, TT030, Atari Falcon030, TOS,
MultiTOS, NewDesk, BLiTTER, Atari Lynx, ComLynx, Atari Jaguar, Atari
Portfolio, and the Atari Fuji Symbol are all trademarks or registered
trademarks of Atari Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned in
this edition of AEO News! belong to their respective holders.
--==--==--==--==--
AEO News! and
Atari Explorer Online Magazine
"Your Source for Atari News"
Copyright (c) 1994, Subspace Publishers
All Rights Reserved
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:: AEO News! #4 ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE June 18, 1994 ::
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