Jazz Jackrabbit 2 is a much loved classic that continues to live on thanks to the Jazz² Resurrection project, with a new release that went live recently bringing Flatpak support.
I must admit I missed the boat on this one. People mention it to me every time it has an update, so it clearly has a few fans. Perhaps you have fond memories of it and didn't know it existed either — well, now you do.
Here's what's in the latest update:
- Added Flatpak package and published on Flathub
- Added player weapon flare
- Added Reforged HUD and Reforged Main Menu as separate options
- Added
jjkcheat- Added Load gamepad mappings also from config directory if exists
- Added Don't show custom levels that should be hidden
- Improved Gameplay Enhancements menu section
- Improved Various internal performance optimizations
- Fixed Fish and LabRat enemies
- Fixed Airboard
- Fixed horizontal Spring orientation in some levels
- Fixed alignment of some level messages
- Fixed crash while rendering a lot of particles
- Fixed jumping out of water in some levels
- Fixed some cases where symbolic link to file couldn't be used
See more on the official site and GitHub. Easier than ever to run thanks to the new Flatpak.
It does require the original game to run which you can pick up on GOG.com.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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I've known of this one since it first appeared on the scene, but after waiting a long time for it to mature, I still haven't dived in yet - hopefully for the next revisit! 
3 Likes, Who?
They are making a huge progress, however still they have a lot to do. For now, I can feel that the physics is different (turtle shells are rotating a bit, while doing a stomp you cannot move left or right etc.) but I guess with more time they will create a masterpiece!
2 Likes, Who?
JJR probably was the PC's most successful "mascot platformer" from the early 90's, before people went crazy on FPS games. But if you consider how bad most western platformers were, the bar wasn't too high tough.
Last edited by M@GOid on 4 Jan 2024 at 8:07 pm UTC
Last edited by M@GOid on 4 Jan 2024 at 8:07 pm UTC
1 Likes, Who?
But if you consider how bad most western platformers were, the bar wasn't too high tough.What are you talking about? Some decent to great western platformers (and series) I remember enjoying on my Amiga 500 in the early nineties are Zool, Superfrog, James Pond, Fire and Ice, Leander, Toki, Gods, Chuck Rock, Rick Dangerous, Shadow of the Beast, Ghosts 'n' Goblins, The Addams Family, Disney's Aladdin & Lion King... I must be forgetting a whole load. But you get the idea.
5 Likes, Who?
TruckStopSantaClaus 4 Jan 2024
Gotta ask
Has anyone Tried playing this on Steam Deck, it being on Flathub should make it super easy (as long as there isn't any issues with controller support)
Has anyone Tried playing this on Steam Deck, it being on Flathub should make it super easy (as long as there isn't any issues with controller support)
2 Likes, Who?
But if you consider how bad most western platformers were, the bar wasn't too high tough.
What are you talking about? Some decent to great western platformers (and series) I remember enjoying on my Amiga 500 in the early nineties are Zool, Superfrog, James Pond, Fire and Ice, Leander, Toki, Gods, Chuck Rock, Rick Dangerous, Shadow of the Beast, Ghosts 'n' Goblins, The Addams Family, Disney's Aladdin & Lion King... I must be forgetting a whole load. But you get the idea.Some real classics in here!
(Though I would note that Ghosts 'n' Goblins was a conversion of a Japanese game. 
) And, a little later on the console side, there was the Crash Bandicoot trilogy (US), Croc (UK), and the Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Land trilogies (UK), just to name a handful of top Western-made platformers from back then. EDIT: And Heart of Darkness (French, spiritual sequel to Another World), as well! Granted, there were stinkers like Awesome Possum and Bubsy (both US-made, off of the back of the same craze that gave us Jazz Jackrabbit) and so on, but then again, there were plenty of bad Japanese-made platformers in that era too - they're just not as well-remembered.
Gotta askI haven't tried it yet, but I'll give it a look later.
Has anyone Tried playing this on Steam Deck, it being on Flathub should make it super easy (as long as there isn't any issues with controller support)
Hopefully it's not as much of a nuisance as running the original v1.20/v1.23 release of Jazz 2 on the Deck - I didn't have a good experience with that.Last edited by Pengling on 5 Jan 2024 at 12:18 pm UTC
1 Likes, Who?
I find Jazz
Look at the second entry of the "upcoming" changelog :)
They are making a huge progress, however still they have a lot to do. For now, I can feel that the physics is different (turtle shells are rotating a bit, while doing a stomp you cannot move left or right etc.) but I guess with more time they will create a masterpiece!
Look at the second entry of the "upcoming" changelog :)
1 Likes, Who?
(Though I would note that Ghosts 'n' Goblins was a conversion of a Japanese game. )You're right. I wrote Ghosts 'n' Goblins but was actually thinking of another game I don't quite remember the name of... But I guess I made my point anyway.
1 Likes, Who?
You're right. I wrote Ghosts 'n' Goblins but was actually thinking of another game I don't quite remember the name of...At the very least, it probably wasn't Night Walk, haha!
But I guess I made my point anyway.And added to my games-to-revisit list.
1 Likes, Who?
I find JazzOh cool! Thanks! I haven't read the changelog beforeThey are making a huge progress, however still they have a lot to do. For now, I can feel that the physics is different (turtle shells are rotating a bit, while doing a stomp you cannot move left or right etc.) but I guess with more time they will create a masterpiece!
Look at the second entry of the "upcoming" changelog :)
0 Likes
Gotta ask
Has anyone Tried playing this on Steam Deck, it being on Flathub should make it super easy (as long as there isn't any issues with controller support)
I haven't tried it yet, but I'll give it a look later.Well, that got cut short - searching for it in Discover on the Steam Deck brings up no results.
0 Likes
walther von stolzing 7 Jan 2024
But if you consider how bad most western platformers were, the bar wasn't too high tough.What are you talking about? Some decent to great western platformers (and series) I remember enjoying on my Amiga 500 in the early nineties are Zool, Superfrog, James Pond, Fire and Ice, Leander, Toki, Gods, Chuck Rock, Rick Dangerous, Shadow of the Beast, Ghosts 'n' Goblins, The Addams Family, Disney's Aladdin & Lion King... I must be forgetting a whole load. But you get the idea.
I think it's the ungodly amounts of licensed shovelware that got released on C64 & Amiga that casts a shadow on the genre in general -- that, and also the fact that while often very pretty, even the best of these 'western platformers' lacked the responsiveness of a Mega Man or a Mario. Also in terms of level design, as much as I adore the original Turrican games, they really don't hold a candle to Super Metroid.
1 Likes, Who?
TruckStopSantaClaus 8 Jan 2024
@pengling yeah was going to post about that, but I've been busy. Guess I'll just wait a bit 
1 Likes, Who?
TruckStopSantaClaus 3 Mar 2024
Coming back to announce that not only is JJ2R now on the Discover store, but it also works flawlessly on steam deck (make sure to add it as a non Steam game for easy access). Oh and that's not all, tried it on my desktop and it has support for ultrawide monitors. it's almost like cheating
Last edited by TruckStopSantaClaus on 3 Mar 2024 at 12:53 pm UTC
Last edited by TruckStopSantaClaus on 3 Mar 2024 at 12:53 pm UTC
1 Likes, Who?
Coming back to announce that not only is JJ2R now on the Discover store, but it also works flawlessly on steam deck (make sure to add it a non Steam game for easy access). Oh and that's not all, tried it on my desktop and it has support for ultrawide monitors. it's almost like cheatingOh sweet!
Thanks for the update!Will have to take a look at this when I've got a moment.
1 Likes, Who?
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