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[Afro Republican]

April 3rd is when Atari broke their own announced time frame and released shipments of the Lynx in the US to take fire of the Game Boy after analysts saw the trends of how fast the console was selling and wanted to show a better alternative to slow down sales. However this was limited to some states in the US only and worldwide and naationwide production wouldn't be ready for another few months.

The Atari Lynx was the most powerful portable until the GameBoy Advance came out 12 years later, and could do some thing even a console like the SNES couldn't do. It did really well in Europe and was sold along with even the computer lines, and did pretty good in the US, there was a little known niche in Japan as wel. Of course Atari never released sales numbers coming from the gaming espionage age where people would crack information, buyout engineers, and other stuff. So we will never actually know how many it actually sold, but Atari reported a profit in old business wire press releases for the Lynx every single time the console was included and it was a financial success. To bad Atari put all thier bets on one last home consoles instead of sequel to its portable line-up which was cancelled. Lynx was also capable of polygon games in limited fashion, which was impressive back then, but now those games are "mostly" near unplayable. Though some hybrid games like Stun Runner that uses sprites a flat polygon here works, but generally polygon on a 1989 portable game system hasn't aged well.

Some of The Lynx Games in Action:

The Lynx was a amazing machine with a great library of games and should definitely be added to your collection, especially since it's the only old skool portable that has actually aged well. Lynx 2 is recommended for the nicer hold and slightly better screen.

Darn shame that the cancelled successor was never made, was expected to be a good deal more powerful and cleaner, with the ability to run polygons at a decent speed (unlike Lynx Steel Talons which runs like a slide-show) and you could plug it into the TV. But yeah with 3DO there, and the fact the computers were already in 3D land I can see why they decided to drop a console hybrid when the successor was originally going to launch when the Lynx did. It would be horribly outclassed.

But maybe it could have worked, the SNES and Genesis (mostly the former) managed to stay a float until 95 and there were some decent 2D games on PSX/SAt for another year or so before they went full on 3D.

Anyway crazy how it took 12 years before the Lynx was surpassed.

 

[Sqorin Hammerfarf]

By my calculations, that's 131,400 AA batteries to run a Lynx for 30 years.

 

[Lupin3]

I still can't figure that button placement out. I wonder what the thought behind it was.

 

[molasar]

I still can't figure that button placement out. I wonder what the thought behind it was.

"a switchable right-handed/left-handed (upside down) configuration"

 

[Afro Republican]

I still can't figure that button placement out. I wonder what the thought behind it was.

So left and right handed people can play.

Or for some games, to play vertically. Because that's also a thing for software like Gauntlet. Which actually works better than you would think.

 

[stranno]

 

[Mihos]

My lynx is in pretty bad shape, it still works, but I need to get a backup soon.

 

[Son_of_Zardoz]

I wish I still had mine. I remember buying it in middle school and loving it, but it sucked that nobody else I knew had one.

 

[nkarafo]

it's the only old skool portable that has actually aged well

Why is that?

The Atari Lynx was the most powerful portable until the GameBoy Advance came out 12 years later

The TurboExpress and the Sega Nomad were more powerful.

 

[Afro Republican]

Why is that?


The TurboExpress and the Sega Nomad were more powerful.

The Turbo express is not "stronger" than the lynx. The Lynx has better sprite tech and had polygon support. The TG16 which the TGE is based off of, does not. The Nomad is a Genesis, which while faster and having better sprite sizes and detail, doesn't have the polygon support the Lynx has and can't do all the Sprite warping stuff the Lynx can either, at least not without something added to the cartridge. The lynx runs everything natively.

 

[nkarafo]

The Turbo express is not "stronger" than the lynx. The Lynx has better sprite tech and had polygon support. The TG16 which the TGE is based off of, does not. The Nomad is a Genesis, which while faster and having better sprite sizes and detail, doesn't have the polygon support the Lynx has and can't do all the Sprite warping stuff the Lynx can either, at least not without something added to the cartridge. The lynx runs everything natively.

The sprite warping and (very) limited polygon support does not make the Lynx more powerful than the TGE and Nomad.

That's like saying the Mega Drive/SNES are more powerful than the 32X because the later doesn't have have as good tilemap acceleration or a "mode 7".

Is the Lynx more powerful than the Neo-Geo too because of it's polygons? That's absurd.

And btw, there are demos that show the Genesis handling polygons better than the Lynx.

 

[Chittagong]

Wow, I never realised Lynx was 1989. That’s a year before Europe even saw Game Boy, and a mere three years after NES in Europe.

I got one imported. RoadBlasters, Gauntlet, Xenophobe, I think those were all the games I had.

 

[Lupin3]

"a switchable right-handed/left-handed (upside down) configuration"

So left and right handed people can play.

Or for some games, to play vertically. Because that's also a thing for software like Gauntlet. Which actually works better than you would think.

That was my initial thought, but I've never heard of left handed people complain about the button setup on any handheld or controller. Nice try/initiative nonetheless though, I guess. Perhaps it did help some people out, I don't know.

 

[TLZ]

A nice video from GameSack.

 

[Afro Republican]

The sprite warping and (very) limited polygon support does not make the Lynx more powerful than the TGE and Nomad.

That's like saying the Mega Drive/SNES are more powerful than the 32X because the later doesn't have have as good tilemap acceleration or a "mode 7".

Yes it does, because it requires powerful tech to generate those polygons. Mode 7 is a software trick, Polygons require hardware power.

Also the TG16 is severely weak, it's not even an argument the Lynx is stronger. At least with the Genesis there can actually be comparisons but the TG16 only advantage was the sprites are made for a TV screen (which by default has higher resolution than the Lynx) and the chip generates more colors.

The Lynx has:

1. hardware scaling

2. "Unlimited" sprite size and quantity based on available memory.

3. Multi-layer scrolling native

4. hardware division/multiply

5. Polygon support.

The Turbo native has 1 scrolling background layer while the Lynx has multiple. The Turbo can't do games like Stun Runner, Hardrivin, or Steel Talons, It can't do the scaling or warping effects of the Lynx either. The Lynx custom chips would make the TG16 closer to a gen 2 cart chip SNES if you installed them inside one, that's how far behind the TG16 is.

The TG16 had two main advantages over the Lynx, the Resolution and the color count. So the sprites will be bigger, more colorful, and cleaner,

The TG16 being a TV based system gives it higher resolution and the Sprites are made to be larger to fit that, in fact some games are hard to play on the TE because of the small screen.

The Genesis is a much more comparable to the Lynx when talking about actual graphical power, but the Lynx still edges the Genesis out. However, some people won't take to nice to the resolution and color count of the Lynx, as aesthetically Genesis games on average will look cleaner and more colorful, however it is NOT MORE powerful.

Technically, the SNES is also not as powerful as the Lynx, but that's not really fair since the SNES was designed to have addition hardware in the cartilages since its inception. There is a very very small amount of games that actually just run on native SNES hardware. So it's not really fair to compare the Lynx to the SNES without chips. In which the SNES is more powerful in most categories.

But for the native TG16 and Genesis the Lynx is more powerful. Whether you tolerate it's weaknesses is a completely different subject.

Also one could in theory claim you're building a strawman by mentioning shrunken down consoles as portables like the GBA and Lynx, but either way the Lynx was still stronger. Also would be the strongest, until 2001.

The question about the Lynx isn't whether or not it's weaker than the GEN/TG16, it's stronger,, the question is will you trade resolution and color count for more power. Some people say yes, some say know. Wouldn't be until the PSP before that compromise was eliminated.

 

[Afro Republican]

Check out this homebrew Lynx game coming out soon (or now?) it's looking pretty good and takes advantage of some strengths better than the average homebrew. Got a Cuphead/Air Zonk look.

 

[Vawn]

 

[nkarafo]

Check out this homebrew Lynx game coming out soon (or now?) it's looking pretty good and takes advantage of some strengths better than the average homebrew. Got a Cuphead/Air Zonk look.

I'm looking at this and scratch my head, sorry. Is this really the example of Lynx's superiority over Genesis, SNES and PC Engine? This would be a bad looking game on these systems.

Played a few Lynx games and seen almost all of the rest in Youtube. There is nothing there that comes even close to a good looking (or even average) game on these systems. I don't really understand what "more powerful" means to you. To me it means the ability to display advanced graphics on screen, with lots of detail, animations and effects. Lynx games look barely better than good Game Boy Color games with sprite scaling and maybe 12 polygons in a couple of games in the whole library.

It's really dumbfounding to me that you may look at something like, dunno, Street Fighter 2, Vectorman, Adventures of Batman and Robin, Donkey Kong Country and countless other great looking games and still claim the Lynx is the more powerful console.

Again, is the Neo-Geo less "powerful" than the Lynx because it can't do the polygons Lynx does (all 12 of them)? By your logic it must be.

Sorry for being that guy who ruins the Lynx's birthday party but man, i think you are crazy.

 

[Afro Republican]

I'm looking at this and scratch my head, sorry. Is this really the example of Lynx's superiority over Genesis, SNES and PC Engine?

No but you did basically ignore my previous post, skipped to the next one and took it out of context. (even though the game you quoted shows things the TG16 has issues doing in the second half of the video)

If that's the way you conduct yourself during a discussion that's not a good look.

Also you use incredibly weak aesthetic arguments. for why a game seems "more powerful" to you. The Ouya has games that look much better than the 360, but the Ouya is weaker.

You are confusing power with eye-candy, the Lynx is stronger than the Genesis and especially the TG16 no matter how much the low resolution and color count may not appeal to your "eyes" that's not relevant.

The TG16 for example is a TV consoles, by default it will have a higher resolution, and the sprites will be bigger. But the TG16 can't have multi-layered background scrolling natively, and doing it by hardware causes cuts in other areas and even then it still can't do as many as the Lynx, it can't do polygons, it doesn't have the pseudo-3d scaling smoothness and "draw distance" that the Lynx has, in fact, the best 2D pseudo 3D game the TG16 has graphically is a racing game that has the actual track only appear 3 feet in front of the car at a time. Add in other warping effects, the fact that you can have unlimited sprites in numbers and in any size only limited by the memory of the system, and you have a more powerful system. If the put the Lynx tech in a TG16 it would be on par with second gen cartridge chip SNES games. The TG16 as it is now, doesn't even come close to most 1st gen, sometimes even using the supergraphx which technically is a different system. The actual consoles is pathetically weak, which is why in most SNES and Genesis debates the system is barely brought up because it's a whole tier down.

The Genesis is stronger than the TG16, and does better in most areas, but the Lynx still has a key advantage with still having more sprite options, unlimited sprites, and no size limitations. It also handles flat polygons better with native hardware while the Genesis needs a chip and still a lot of those games chug worse than a 1989 portable handheld. It's scaling is also superior to native Genesis hardware but the Genesis is actually able to match the amount of parralax. It's also a faster machine. The difference between the two isn't that significant in the areas the Lynx wins though, I would say a narrow win at that.

Again the question isn't about the Lynx being stronger or not, because it is, it's if you want to accept a lower resolution and a low color count for the actual portable. This is where your argument stems from, you don't pay attention to the advantages, you pay attention to the eye candy on the screen. It's easy to put certain Lynx games next to Genesis and say Genesis games "look" better, but that doesn't mean anything when talking about hardware.

As for the Neo-Geo, it's more powerful than the Lynx because of its raw horsepower, although the Lynx does have some advantages with polygons and a few sprite tricks, the Neo-Geo is arcade hardware with very strong chips that serve their purpose well to the strengths the system has. The Genesis and TG16 don't have a 3rd of that raw power.

You are comparing a console with a lower resolution than a game by (but 500x more powerful) and a low color count to a genesis games usually in screenshots the Genesis game will look better. But that's not the argument here.

There is a reason why people have always talked about a scenario where the Lynx was a console because it's just that powerful of a machine. The low color count and low resolution however will make any screenshots look worse. If the Lynx had say, a Sega Nomad screen and devs were made with that screen in mind we it would improve that situation, but it's a 1989 portable consoles with the best screen tech available at the time, what could you do.

You also make a lot of odd comparisons, you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman, and using 4th gen SNES games with high-end chips in the cartridges like DKC which the SNES couldn't run on its own. That doesn't even make a lick of sense.

One thing, again, that you don't consider is that games made for the Lynx are designed to work with the very low resolution and color count. So a screenshot won't look pretty "most" of the time.However, that doesn't take away it's abilities during gameplay. But natively the Lynx is more powerful than the Genesis (barely) and the TG16 (by a good margin).

One big issue about the Lynx though is that it was too strong for the time period. The display tech as I said already just was not far enough along to really do much to amaze people at the level it needed to. Sure the console sold millions of units but it was nowhere close to the gameboy, which while weaker, has a better screen (for resolution not reliability or color) was cheaper, and launched Worldwide earlier than the Lynx which only launched some shipments in NA early before it's real Wordlwide launch months later.

So while people were amazed by the Lynx when they held it, it wasn't impressive enough to pay a console premium and then have 500 boxes of AA batteries drained in a few months. The original model was also huge. The issue with your posts is you aren't able to see the actually technical prowness in motion, you're focusing too much on which game has better visual aesthetics instead of power, which doesn't make sense when you're comparing a 1989 portable handheld to a 1988 home consoles based on an arcade machine (genesis)

 

[nkarafo]

You also make a lot of odd comparisons, you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman, and using 4th gen SNES games with high-end chips in the cartridges like DKC which the SNES couldn't run on its own. That doesn't even make a lick of sense.

I didn't want to reply cause what you write is, well, crazy but i'm curious about the line i quoted. Afaik DKC runs without addon chips like the FX2. Also what do you mean by "you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman "?

Also, all the talk about screenshots... dude, Genesis games have much better/smoother animations with many more frames on the sprites. In pictures the games look better than the Lynx, in motion they look one generation ahead.

I'll ask again, which is more powerful, the Lynx or the Neo-Geo?

Whatever, i still don't understand how you define "powerful". If Lynx is more powerful then it seems the best looking game only uses like 5% of it's power.

 

[nkarafo]

Here are some Genesis games GIFs

You heard it in GAF... The Lynx is "more powerful"

GIFS taken from this thread: https://www.neogaf.com/threads/cool-visual-effects-in-16bit-console-games.1247148/

 

[Vitacat]

Oh, how I loved my Lynx back in the day.

I had a pristine Lynx II and about 40 CIB games up until around 10 years ago. Sold it all for probably way too little, because reasons. I regret almost everything I've sold. I don't even want to know how much some of that stuff is probably worth now. *SIGH*

 

[Havoc2049]

Check out this homebrew Lynx game coming out soon (or now?) it's looking pretty good and takes advantage of some strengths better than the average homebrew. Got a Cuphead/Air Zonk look.

Zaku has been out for a while now, like maybe three or four years. They still do runs every now and then. Great game and up there in the mix as one of the better games on the Lynx.

I've been a Lynx owner since 1991 and enjoy the system. Great system for late 80's and early 90's Atari Games arcade ports and a few other exclusives. Many of the Atari Games arcade ports were better than the console and computer ports of the day. The system really shined in the multiplayer department. Games like Warbirds, Battlewheels, Rampart, Awesome Golf, Gauntlet: The Third Encounter and others were great multiplayer games.

People like to yak it up and complain about the battery life, but my battery compartment remains empty 99% of the time. Using AA batteries on a Lynx is like throwing away money. It's also frustrating loosing progress in a game or the power going out in a multiplayer game. Only idiots use AAs on a Lynx. Lynx owners mainly use the AC adapter and when we want some portability away from an outlet, Atari made a car adapter and a D-cell battery pack, which lasts up to 40 hours.

Happy Birthday, Lynx!

 

[SpiceRacz]

No but you did basically ignore my previous post, skipped to the next one and took it out of context. (even though the game you quoted shows things the TG16 has issues doing in the second half of the video)

If that's the way you conduct yourself during a discussion that's not a good look.

Also you use incredibly weak aesthetic arguments. for why a game seems "more powerful" to you. The Ouya has games that look much better than the 360, but the Ouya is weaker.

You are confusing power with eye-candy, the Lynx is stronger than the Genesis and especially the TG16 no matter how much the low resolution and color count may not appeal to your "eyes" that's not relevant.

The TG16 for example is a TV consoles, by default it will have a higher resolution, and the sprites will be bigger. But the TG16 can't have multi-layered background scrolling natively, and doing it by hardware causes cuts in other areas and even then it still can't do as many as the Lynx, it can't do polygons, it doesn't have the pseudo-3d scaling smoothness and "draw distance" that the Lynx has, in fact, the best 2D pseudo 3D game the TG16 has graphically is a racing game that has the actual track only appear 3 feet in front of the car at a time. Add in other warping effects, the fact that you can have unlimited sprites in numbers and in any size only limited by the memory of the system, and you have a more powerful system. If the put the Lynx tech in a TG16 it would be on par with second gen cartridge chip SNES games. The TG16 as it is now, doesn't even come close to most 1st gen, sometimes even using the supergraphx which technically is a different system. The actual consoles is pathetically weak, which is why in most SNES and Genesis debates the system is barely brought up because it's a whole tier down.

The Genesis is stronger than the TG16, and does better in most areas, but the Lynx still has a key advantage with still having more sprite options, unlimited sprites, and no size limitations. It also handles flat polygons better with native hardware while the Genesis needs a chip and still a lot of those games chug worse than a 1989 portable handheld. It's scaling is also superior to native Genesis hardware but the Genesis is actually able to match the amount of parralax. It's also a faster machine. The difference between the two isn't that significant in the areas the Lynx wins though, I would say a narrow win at that.

Again the question isn't about the Lynx being stronger or not, because it is, it's if you want to accept a lower resolution and a low color count for the actual portable. This is where your argument stems from, you don't pay attention to the advantages, you pay attention to the eye candy on the screen. It's easy to put certain Lynx games next to Genesis and say Genesis games "look" better, but that doesn't mean anything when talking about hardware.

As for the Neo-Geo, it's more powerful than the Lynx because of its raw horsepower, although the Lynx does have some advantages with polygons and a few sprite tricks, the Neo-Geo is arcade hardware with very strong chips that serve their purpose well to the strengths the system has. The Genesis and TG16 don't have a 3rd of that raw power.

You are comparing a console with a lower resolution than a game by (but 500x more powerful) and a low color count to a genesis games usually in screenshots the Genesis game will look better. But that's not the argument here.

There is a reason why people have always talked about a scenario where the Lynx was a console because it's just that powerful of a machine. The low color count and low resolution however will make any screenshots look worse. If the Lynx had say, a Sega Nomad screen and devs were made with that screen in mind we it would improve that situation, but it's a 1989 portable consoles with the best screen tech available at the time, what could you do.

You also make a lot of odd comparisons, you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman, and using 4th gen SNES games with high-end chips in the cartridges like DKC which the SNES couldn't run on its own. That doesn't even make a lick of sense.

One thing, again, that you don't consider is that games made for the Lynx are designed to work with the very low resolution and color count. So a screenshot won't look pretty "most" of the time.However, that doesn't take away it's abilities during gameplay. But natively the Lynx is more powerful than the Genesis (barely) and the TG16 (by a good margin).

One big issue about the Lynx though is that it was too strong for the time period. The display tech as I said already just was not far enough along to really do much to amaze people at the level it needed to. Sure the console sold millions of units but it was nowhere close to the gameboy, which while weaker, has a better screen (for resolution not reliability or color) was cheaper, and launched Worldwide earlier than the Lynx which only launched some shipments in NA early before it's real Wordlwide launch months later.

So while people were amazed by the Lynx when they held it, it wasn't impressive enough to pay a console premium and then have 500 boxes of AA batteries drained in a few months. The original model was also huge. The issue with your posts is you aren't able to see the actually technical prowness in motion, you're focusing too much on which game has better visual aesthetics instead of power, which doesn't make sense when you're comparing a 1989 portable handheld to a 1988 home consoles based on an arcade machine (genesis)

Most of the games look like shit and aren't comparable to Genesis.

 

[Stefan.North]

You also make a lot of odd comparisons, you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman, and using 4th gen SNES games with high-end chips in the cartridges like DKC which the SNES couldn't run on its own. That doesn't even make a lick of sense.

DKC doesn't use enchancement chips, it's stock SNES.

 

[Mobilemofo]

By my calculations, that's 131,400 AA batteries to run a Lynx for 30 years.

Lovely stuff.

 

[bhunachicken]

Here are ome Genesis games GIFs

I never had a Megadrive or SNES. I went Commodore Plus 4 > C64 > Amiga > PS1 > PS2 > PS3 > PS4.

In my next life, I'll start with a NES

 

[Afro Republican]

I didn't want to reply cause what you write is, well, crazy but i'm curious about the line i quoted. Afaik DKC runs without addon chips like the FX2. Also what do you mean by "you are comparing Genesis games that aren't running native on hardware to Vectorman "?

Also, all the talk about screenshots... dude, Genesis games have much better/smoother animations with many more frames on the sprites. In pictures the games look better than the Lynx, in motion they look one generation ahead.

I'll ask again, which is more powerful, the Lynx or the Neo-Geo?

Whatever, i still don't understand how you define "powerful". If Lynx is more powerful then it seems the best looking game only uses like 5% of it's power.

The reason why you aren't responding is because you didn't read the post. That's why you asked the Neo Geo BS again despite me addressing your strawman in the same post you didn't read.

This isn't a winnable argument for you, you're ignorant of the subject and clearly have no intention of having a real discussion since you immediately went to dismissing my post.

To make it simple for you, if you kept the Lynx and Genesis specs the exact same outside moving the Lynx hardware to a TV and matching, not exceeding the Genesis color count, the Lynx would be the better console.

The architecture in the Lynx is stronger than the Genesis. The chips can do more than what the Genesis can, this is especially true when comparing to the TG16 which has issues with background scrolling.

For some reason you dismiss that though due to "Screenshots" which doesn't make sense when one is a portable from 1989.

Sorry to say but the only crazy thing here is you thinking the Genesis can match the Lynx custom chips. Lynx sprite system is completely free and has no size or quantity limits. It can move as much on screen as possible with no limits as long as the memory is there. It can do flat polygons with native hardware. It can draw further distances in pseudo 3D games so it's not a bunch of sprite poplin 3 feet in front of you. It has many hardware features the Genesis doesn't even have for rotation and scaling. This is just fact. It's a shame it was wasted on a portable device but it's good hardware.

If the only argument you have to disagree with FACTS is comparing screensshots from a console on a TV and a console with a small low res panel display, you don't have much of an argument at all. It's about the power and features of the systems graphical architecture which the Lynx has hands down

Then you have the fact the TG16 and Gen weren't great hardware in the first place and we're riddled with compromises, which is why the later 4th Gen consoles mopped the floor with them easily. Good games though.

 

[Afro Republican]

DKC doesn't use enchancement chips, it's stock SNES.

It used the memory enhance pcb board.

However DKC otherwise isn't impressive, it's 3D models rendered into 2D sprites for prerendered objects. Sure, the technique was cool and expensive for the time, but almost every console then could do the same thing. Prerendered was frequent late that gen which looked nice but had nothing to do with hardware power, it was just impressive looking sprites. A technique that could make SNES games look close to early PSX 2D games.

In fact, DKC is an example of people thinking eye candy = power. That's not how it works.

 

[nkarafo]

Guess what. The GBA also has a "small low res panel display" but you can see how it's more powerful than these consoles by looking at the games. When you see a game like the GBA port of DOOM, there is no doubt its more powerful. It's a proof of it's capabilities, despite the screen being shit.

There are no games in Lynx's library that come close to what the Genesis or TG16 can do. Practically. Evidently.

You say "it can do this", "it can do that" but apart from one or two games with VERY FEW polygons on screen, there is nothing there to show off all these in a way that makes it look more powerful.

Having support for a few dozen polygons doesn't mean the hardware is more capable. The Genesis can draw more polygons in software so that means the CPU must be a lot more powerful than whatever the Lynx has.

The fact is that the end result does not agree with your arguments. We know that the games don't look as good or as advanced and there is proof. So you even have proof that the Lynx hardware is more capable? Because if it is, man, the Lynx must be the most under-utilized console in the history of ever.

However DKC otherwise isn't impressive

Still one full generation ahead of the best looking Lynx game.

 

[ReBurn]

I loved the Lynx. I have a couple of them around here. One of each revision.

I played Klax, Blue Lightning and California Games forever.

 

[Bullet Club]

I had a Lynx, it was pretty good. Chips Challenge & Slime World were the games I played most on it.

 

[Afro Republican]

Guess what. The GBA also has a "small low res panel display" but you can see how it's more powerful than these consoles by looking at the games. When you see a game like the GBA port of DOOM, there is no doubt its more powerful. It's a proof of it's capabilities, despite the screen being shit.

There are no games in Lynx's library that come close to what the Genesis or TG16 can do. Practically. Evidently.

You say "it can do this", "it can do that" but apart from one or two games with VERY FEW polygons on screen, there is nothing there to show off all these in a way that makes it look more powerful.

Having support for a few dozen polygons doesn't mean the hardware is more capable. The Genesis can draw more polygons in software so that means the CPU must be a lot more powerful than whatever the Lynx has.

The fact is that the end result does not agree with your arguments. We know that the games don't look as good or as advanced and there is proof. So you even have proof that the Lynx hardware is more capable? Because if it is, man, the Lynx must be the most under-utilized console in the history of ever.


Still one full generation ahead of the best looking Lynx game.

Do i really have to start posting magazine tech analysts because you're too dumb and too stubborn to realize your wrong and won't do any reasearch debating only on what you WANT to believe?

Are you really stupid enough to compare the GBA screen from 2001 to a 1989 lower quality and VASTLY under rezzed screen?

Your whole argunent stems from ignorance and making the worst comparisons possible.

Your whole GBA rant is pointless. The lynx has games the Genesis would (and has) trouble running. The TG16 is quite a bit weaker than the Genesis.

The Ngage is stronger than the Jaguar but I bet I can find jaguar screens that look better than the Ngage. Stop being simple.

I can pull an Ace magazine article pointing out the TE being weaker than the lynx and the features of its custom chips. This is an argument you aren't qualified for.

 

[Agent X]

I'm one of the biggest Lynx fans out there, but I'm certain that it was released much later in 1989 than the month of April. Perhaps you're thinking of Game Boy, which celebrated its 30th anniversary a few days ago. If I recall correctly, Atari officially announced the "Portable Color Entertainment System" (the "Lynx" name came later) at the Summer CES in June or July of 1989.

Afro Republican and nkarafo are really engaged in a war of extremes here. Afro Republican is overstating the hardware considerably, and at the same time nkarafo is doing an equal job of selling it short. The Lynx was quite a powerful portable, but by no means did it outpower the Genesis or the TurboGrafx-16. It's in the same general class as those systems, though. Its capabilities are easily far above Game Boy and Game Gear.

There are several games (notably some arcade ports) that exist on the Lynx and other 16-bit systems, where the Lynx version is superior. That's a definite feather in the Lynx's cap. Even in instances when the Lynx version wasn't the best version available, it often held up very well. You had "16-bit quality" games in a portable package, often with some really cool multiplayer options that other systems of the day couldn't touch.

The Lynx had a great ratio of high-quality games, particularly from 1989-1992. Check this thread. Daniel Thomas MacInnes had some excellent capsule reviews on page 4.

Don't judge the system on JPEGs, GIFs, and old YouTube clips. Play some of the system's finest games and decide for yourself.

 

[20cent]

I'll always remember the day I went to a local vg shop with my parents not long after the release of the Lynx model 2, I wanted to resell my Gameboy for a Lynx... The guy there told my parents "no, seriously ,keep the Gameboy, or get a GameGear instead, but please don't buy this to your kid, he'll regret it".

 

[Daniel Thomas MacInnes]

It's always great to see an Atari Lynx thread, but I believe your dates are off. Neither the Lynx nor the Gameboy were released in April 1989 in the West. The GB was released in late August, while the Lynx was given a limited release in October, NYC and LA and some major department store chains like Sears and JC Penny's (which is where I ordered mine via the catalog).

In addition, Atari Corp. was beset with supply problems from their LCD sources, which resulted in a lawsuit. Because of this, widespread distribution of the Lynx was not possible until May 1990. Perhaps Afro Republican was thinking of that date and confused it with GB's Japanese launch?

There is a website somewhere that chronicles the Atari timeline from the 1970s to the 1996 JTS merger in painstaking detail, everything sourced as well. If you can track it down, save it for reference because it's a terrific resource.

 

[nkarafo]

lynx has games the Genesis wĺould (and has) trouble running.

The genesis could easily handle most lynx games except the ones that feature sprite scalling. On the other hand the lynx could not handle 99% of the Genesis library.

There are several games (notably some arcade ports) that exist on the Lynx and other 16-bit systems, where the Lynx version is superior

Interesting. Could you share some titles?

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Some people are comparing Lynx games to Genesis? Whatcha smoking?

 

[StreetsofBeige]

"a switchable right-handed/left-handed (upside down) configuration"

Imagine driving a car where they put the pedals centred beneath the steering wheel. lol

 

[nkarafo]

Some people are comparing Lynx games to Genesis? Whatcha smoking?

I know right?

Its probably the strangest argument i ever been in

 

[Agent X]

Interesting. Could you share some titles?

Just off the top of my head, I'd say Klax, RoadBlasters, Todd's Adventures in Slime World, and Rampart are noticeably better on the Lynx than the Genesis versions of the same games. Toki is another one, although the Genesis version could be considered a different game. Shadow of the Beast and Lemmings are close calls..

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Just off the top of my head, I'd say Klax, RoadBlasters, Todd's Adventures in Slime World, and Rampart are noticeably better on the Lynx than the Genesis versions of the same games. Toki is another one, although the Genesis version could be considered a different game. Shadow of the Beast and Lemmings are close calls..

Every system can have some decent games vs. another system.

I had Tengen Tetris on NES. I'd take that over just about every other version of Tetris I've played on consoles in the past 30 years due to authenticity and simple gamplay. But in terms of pure graphics and sound, Tengen Tetris is archaic.

I never played Shadow of the Beast on either system, but how is Lynx "close"?

 

[nkarafo]

Just off the top of my head, I'd say Klax, RoadBlasters, Todd's Adventures in Slime World, and Rampart are noticeably better on the Lynx than the Genesis versions of the same games. Toki is another one, although the Genesis version could be considered a different game. Shadow of the Beast and Lemmings are close calls..

Ok but we argue about graphics and hardware performance. Not which game is better.

 

[Agent X]

I never played Shadow of the Beast on either system, but how is Lynx "close"?

The videos that you posted make the case. Obviously, the Genesis has a major advantage when it comes to screen resolution. That's always going to be the case with Lynx versus almost any other game system. Aside from that, the Lynx version holds up remarkably well.

It's been years since I've played the Lynx version, and even longer since I've played the Genesis version. Both of these were ports of the Amiga game, and I recall that the Lynx version was tweaked to account for that system's strengths and weaknesses. Watching the videos in their entirety, you can observe that the level layouts are somewhat different on both versions. I don't know which is actually closer to the original Amiga version (which I've never played), but it's interesting that the Lynx version appears to have more variety and interaction in the levels. Either content was added to the Lynx version, or cut from the Genesis version.

In any case, it's evident that the Lynx is definitely capable of standing toe-to-toe with the Genesis, and is a clear cut above Game Boy, Game Gear, and even Game Boy Color.

Ok but we argue about graphics and hardware performance. Not which game is better.

Sure. My point is that you're grossly understating the Lynx's abilities, while Afro Republican is grossly overstating them. The truth is in between.

 

[Afro Republican]

The genesis could easily handle most lynx games except the ones that feature sprite scalling. On the other hand the lynx could not handle 99% of the Genesis library.

This is a false statement. Name me games that run on native Genesis hardware that can't run on a machine that is more sprite capable when the whole point of the genesis was to create a mini spite scaling arcade like device for the home? You can't.

I'm one of the biggest Lynx fans out there, but I'm certain that it was released much later in 1989 than the month of April.

Did you actually try reading the OP?

but by no means did it outpower the Genesis or the TurboGrafx-16. It's in the same general class as those systems, though.

Except it did. The TG16 is a limited week machine that was pumped out by NEC and was the bare minimum to look visually superior to the NES in commercials and Screens, but it basically has zero graphical features. The Genesis, which was a cheap attempt with cut corners to bring some arcade-like hardware to the Home, is a good deal more powerful than the PC Engine. The PC Engine is known as the upgrade machine for a reason, NEC released so much shit to try and keep the PC Engine competitive it's silly. In fact, for a single consoles, the PC Engine may have the most expansions/add-ons/Revisions tthen anyone else. t wouldn't take much to make a more powerful consoles, again other guy isn't arguing tech, he's arguing which looks better in still screens which will always be the machine with the higher resolution. It's like comparing a DS screen to a N64 screen.

The videos that you posted make the case. Obviously, the Genesis has a major advantage when it comes to screen resolution. That's always going to be the case with Lynx versus almost any other game system. Aside from that, the Lynx version holds up remarkably well.

And NKa continues to fail to understand this.

 

[Mr Nash]

Haha, I remember at the time being so enamored with the system when it came out back in high school. I would never have been able to afford it, so stuck with my Gameboy. Glad I did in the end.

 

[nkarafo]

This is a false statement. Name me games that run on native Genesis hardware that can't run on a machine that is more sprite capable

Wat

Most of the Genesis library...

Especially the games i posted above via gifs.

Cant believe you still argue this. Its really weird.

Your DS screen vs the N64 comparison is also pretty funny considering there are DS games that do look better than the N64 regardless thanks to better texturing and geometry.

The screen argument doesnt make sense. If there was a Lynx game more advanced than a Genesis you would see it even in that screen.

 

[demented waffle]

This thread makes me feel old.

I remember the Lynx.

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

I feel so old. I remember that coming out and wanting it. But I couldn't afford it

 

[DigitalScrap]

Damn, I’m old. My memory made me think I was MUCH younger when the Lynx came out. Holy shit, I was 16!!!