/vr/ - Retro Games

>16MHz Motorola 68000
>32-bit 32MHz graphics processor
>hardware scrolling
>PCM sample based sound chip with up to 25 voices
>up to 2000 sprites on screen
>7860 colors on screen at any one time
>only 32KB RAM for some reason
>was supposed to come out in 1991

Could it have worked?

These were apparently the planned specs for Atari's Panther console, which they were intending to release around 1991 before they scrapped it in favor of the Jaguar.
Would it have been successful? I'm a brainlet when it comes to hardware specs, but from what I can see, hardware-wise it would've mostly BTFO the SNES/Genesis and offered features that even the Neo Geo didn't have(more colors, more sprites, hardware scrolling, higher-clocked 68k), but it would've only had 32KB of general RAM(with the architecture allowing up to 32KB additional RAM to be stored in a cartridge if a game needed it) and 8KB of sound RAM.
For comparison, the SNES had 128KB general RAM, 64KB VRAM and 64KB sound RAM.
Why did Atari give the console such a low amount of RAM?

Jaguar as it was never had a chance. What Atari should have done is released the Panther in 1991 like they planned and then held the Jaguar off until 1996 when they could have produced something more like the N64. Not only was the Panther hardware pretty solid by 1991 standards, it would have helped the Lynx, which was awesome hardware but was stuck in a marketing no-man's land since Atari didn't have a home console to anchor it to. Based on what the Panther was supposed to be, it would have been like a midway point between a Genesis and a Neo Geo.

>>9780368
>>9780393
The Lynx would have been better situated had Atari released the Panther. The Game Boy had amazing software. Tetris alone got everyone to buy one. But over the long term the Game Boy benefited from marketing synergy with the NES and then later the SNES. They were paired in a way that games often had handheld counterparts. Super Mario Bros./World and Super Mario Land. Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Land. Link to the Past and Link's Awakening. Mega Man and...Mega Man, etc. Not to mention just straight up portable versions of certain games like Dr. Mario. That synergy alleviated the Game Boy's limits because it was treated like a portable, less expensive companion to the main consoles. The Lynx was left alone in no man's land. I remember as a kid I had just randomly assumed that it was the miniature Turbografx-16 because at the time my brain was wired to think that way. A handheld MUST have been related to a console somehow.

Do you think Atari should of went ahead with the Panther instead of Jagwire?

Release the Panther in 1991 to compete directly with the Genesis and SNES and leave the Jaguar in the oven until 1995.

There was no way to both beat the 32bit machines to market and also compete with them. You had to pick one since at the time technology was moving so quickly that all the early next gen systems became hilariously outclassed. And nobody was rushing out to buy next gen systems in 1994 since the 16 bit machines were still staying strong.

But really it's not just about hardware and release dates. Atari never fully embraced third party publishers and didn't seem to understand that they couldn't carry an entire console library internally. Like instead of getting Mortal Kombat on the Jaguar they decided to make their own shitty imitator.

They also just plain weren't making good games themselves. Cybermorph should have been the Jaguar's killer app but instead of showing off the system's power they insisted on making it some avant garde looking thing where you're flying around a desolate landscape in silence while a bald lady talks to you. It ended up looking less impressive than the technically inferior Star Fox just because it was less exciting.

>>8780972
The Panther was the 16 bit system that should have come out. Had it made a 1991 launch as planned it would have been a serious contender. That said, Atari never fully understood how third parties worked or cared to deal with them. They kept thinking people would come for Atari's own games but those games were often primitive or awkward to play compared to what Nintendo and Sega were putting out. Like Cybermorph is technically superior to Star Fox and should have been the Jaguar's killer app but while Star Fox gets you right into the action and you're shooting enemies to a banging soundtrack within 30 seconds, Cybermorph is like some avant garde shit where you're flying around a desolate landscape in silence while a bald woman talks to you. The way Atari approached game design was very strange.

Atari should have released the Panther. Great specs for 1991 and would have been great timing. And then they could have let the Jaguar cook more and been a decent N64 competitor.

>>8575597
The Jaguar's architecture was actually pretty solid for it's time. It just had a handful of other problems that made it impossible to get any traction. Atari really should have gotten the Panther out in 1991 and let the Jaguar cook for a bit.

Atari really needed to release the Panther in 1991 as planned. That would have made them more relevant during a crucial time when gaming was rapidly expanding it's appeal and given them time to perfect the Jaguar. The Lynx was never going to carry that weight by itself.

Do you think Atari should of released the Panther?