Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Online

30 years of Holiday Hare

Posted:

18 Dec 2024 at 18:09

August 1st 1994 was only the beginning, not the end, of Jazz Jackrabbit! On November 28th 1994 we got to play Jazz CD, adding three all-new episodes (plus bonus levels), then in December 1994 the first Holiday Hare came out. The version of Jazz CD with Holiday Hare 94 included has been the definitive version of Jazz Jackrabbit 1 ever since, so at this point, we’re truly thirty years in.

Holiday Hare 1994’s main contribution to the franchise, of course, was the idea of Holiday Hare itself, an idea that Epic would follow successfully in 1995 and 1998 (and less successfully in 1999). Because Holiday Hare 1994 and 1995 were freeware and appealed to people making lists of christmas-related games, they were incredible ways to advertise the game online. But Holiday Hare 1994 also introduced the idea of multiple palettes for the same planet at different times of day, which would feature prominently throughout Jazz 2. It’s also interesting for having the series’ only sprite-based cutscene.

Buying Jazz 1 through GOG includes Holiday Hare 1994
Download the original freeware release
Play Holiday Hare in your browser
Patch to combine Holiday Hare 1994 and 1995
Some fanmade Holiday Hare episodes for Jazz 2
Use Holiday Hare 1994’s tileset in Jazz 2
Use Holiday Hare 1994’s enemies in Jazz 2

With Hanukkah starting in just a week, as well as other winter festivals, Jazz 2 Online wishes you all some Harey Holidays.

- Violet CLM