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GENERATION IN VIEW: AMSTRAD GX4000 (GX4K)
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Manufacturer: Amstrad.
Generation: 3rd. Released: September 1990 (Europe) Ceased Production: February 1991 Processor: 8-bit Zilog Z80 4mhz Preceeded By: Amstrad CPC 6128 Posted 14th September 2012. By Chris Weatherley © 2012 |
In 1990, after finally getting sick of waiting for my old CPC tape games to load, the demanding teenager that I was had his heart set on the latest machine to be released at the time, this happened to be the Amstrad GX4000 console. All of my peers either had a SEGA Master System or a Nintendo (NES). I wanted to buck that tend, and recieved a GX4000 to my utmost joy. After six months had passed, I withstood a torrent of p!ss-takes and wind-ups from my fellow gamers, waving their Mega Drive carts under my nose and banging on about '16-bits'. Suffice to say, the GX4000 did not fair well and its production was short lived, thusly it has been deemed by some as the 'biggest flop in console history' (erm, Virtual Boy anyone?!). This really shouldn't have happened however. The machine was technically superior to both the Master System and NES, and would have been at least a partial success if it hadn't been for a lack of funds plus the utterly incompetent and inexperienced management by Amstrad.
LAUNCH: A DIFFICULT BIRTH
During the early eighties, the UK home computer market was dominated by three affordable home systems. The Amstrad CPC range, the popular Commodore selection and the Sinclair ZX range. It is probably fair to say that from 1984, Amstrad, Sinclair and Commodore shared the home computer market quite evenly in Europe, and coming to the end of the eighties most kids who owned an 8-bit machine chose between either the Amstrad 6128 or the Commodore 64C. At this point the 16-bit machines of were becoming vastly more affordable and popular, so the two companies decided to re-vamp their 8-bit machines and also produce a games-only off-shoot system. The Amstrad CPC range became the CPC+ series and included a cartridge port in the side of the new machines. The third machine released was to be a keyboard-less, direct to television games-focused only console. On paper, this all looked promising, but unfortunately Amstrad did not do their research very meticulously on what they would be getting into. Commodore, who already had used cartridges with the C64C, likewise made the same mistake with the C64GS console. Unlike the GX4000, the Commodore GS was just a C64 with no keyboard, which had comical results when playing games which required a keypress.
LAUNCH: A DIFFICULT BIRTH
During the early eighties, the UK home computer market was dominated by three affordable home systems. The Amstrad CPC range, the popular Commodore selection and the Sinclair ZX range. It is probably fair to say that from 1984, Amstrad, Sinclair and Commodore shared the home computer market quite evenly in Europe, and coming to the end of the eighties most kids who owned an 8-bit machine chose between either the Amstrad 6128 or the Commodore 64C. At this point the 16-bit machines of were becoming vastly more affordable and popular, so the two companies decided to re-vamp their 8-bit machines and also produce a games-only off-shoot system. The Amstrad CPC range became the CPC+ series and included a cartridge port in the side of the new machines. The third machine released was to be a keyboard-less, direct to television games-focused only console. On paper, this all looked promising, but unfortunately Amstrad did not do their research very meticulously on what they would be getting into. Commodore, who already had used cartridges with the C64C, likewise made the same mistake with the C64GS console. Unlike the GX4000, the Commodore GS was just a C64 with no keyboard, which had comical results when playing games which required a keypress.
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For those of you that are not familiar with this system, I assume that's quite a few of you, here's a quick run-down. The GX4000 was released in 1990, using the 8-bit technology of the CPC 6128. Amstrad chose to do this based on the success of the 6128 and 464 machines, this also reduced developmental costs. The machine did however boast an improved processor, custom graphics chip and no loading times. The system was sold at an initial retail price of £99, and was bundled with two joypads, power adaptor, UHF coaxial lead and racing game Burnin' Rubber. The whole package was impressive and affordable compared to the currant SEGA and Nintendo rivals at the time. As of it's odd name, I have no clue where or how Amstrad came to name it the GX4000, any good ideas are welcome. I only know that it shares it's name with that of the American made Ice Hockey stick, a reel-to-reel tape player and a fishing reel spool!
Performance and looks wise the GX4000 had no problems. It looked sleek and futuristic; a new look for a console compared the box designs from Nintendo. It also boasted a reliable but advanced Zilog processor, high graphic capability with a massive 4096 colour palette and many peripheral ports including the full SCART socket. (The first and only console to have this) Sound capabilities was not improved greatly, almost exactly like the CPC of old, but on the whole the machine was regarded in high praise technically. The designer, Cliff Lawson, said that the “GX4000 was more on par with the Super Nintendo” (which was released in 1991) than any other machine at the time. He also went on to state why the console flopped, but more on that later. Even the respected CVG magazine said it was “technically impressive with good potential for such a low cost”. This potential was never fully realised. The machine lasted only six months in production, with only about 15,000 units being sold in the UK and over Europe.
GAMES: TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE
So, how could this smart looking, technically superior 8-bit system flop during the gaming boom of the nineties? I believe I can explain it very simply, and it’s primarily down to the naivety, lack of funding and inexperience of Amstrad. The reasons are three-fold. The promised games from the developers never came or were released too late, and contrary to belief was nothing to do with their price tag. Many game houses promised they would port games to it, but never did, with only Ocean, Loriel and Titus mostly living up to their declarations. Secondly, half of the games released were just direct ports of the CPC originals, not making use of the GX4000’s improved tech at all. Fans were not impressed with this needless to say. I was one of them. Finally, Amstrad never foresaw what SEGA and Nintendo were plotting, developing their 16-bit machines that would prove to be the final assassinators of the 8-bit era. If Amstrad had produced the machine as a 16-bit, and made more of a marketing push with the games available or in development, the console may have lasted a lot longer, possibly even competing with the Mega Drive and Super Nintendo.
Performance and looks wise the GX4000 had no problems. It looked sleek and futuristic; a new look for a console compared the box designs from Nintendo. It also boasted a reliable but advanced Zilog processor, high graphic capability with a massive 4096 colour palette and many peripheral ports including the full SCART socket. (The first and only console to have this) Sound capabilities was not improved greatly, almost exactly like the CPC of old, but on the whole the machine was regarded in high praise technically. The designer, Cliff Lawson, said that the “GX4000 was more on par with the Super Nintendo” (which was released in 1991) than any other machine at the time. He also went on to state why the console flopped, but more on that later. Even the respected CVG magazine said it was “technically impressive with good potential for such a low cost”. This potential was never fully realised. The machine lasted only six months in production, with only about 15,000 units being sold in the UK and over Europe.
GAMES: TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE
So, how could this smart looking, technically superior 8-bit system flop during the gaming boom of the nineties? I believe I can explain it very simply, and it’s primarily down to the naivety, lack of funding and inexperience of Amstrad. The reasons are three-fold. The promised games from the developers never came or were released too late, and contrary to belief was nothing to do with their price tag. Many game houses promised they would port games to it, but never did, with only Ocean, Loriel and Titus mostly living up to their declarations. Secondly, half of the games released were just direct ports of the CPC originals, not making use of the GX4000’s improved tech at all. Fans were not impressed with this needless to say. I was one of them. Finally, Amstrad never foresaw what SEGA and Nintendo were plotting, developing their 16-bit machines that would prove to be the final assassinators of the 8-bit era. If Amstrad had produced the machine as a 16-bit, and made more of a marketing push with the games available or in development, the console may have lasted a lot longer, possibly even competing with the Mega Drive and Super Nintendo.
Pang
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Robocop 2
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The few games that did trickle out during production were difficult to buy, many stockists not even bothering at all, and future games were released AFTER the machines production had stopped. Madness! In total, there are only twenty-five officially released games for the GX4000, plus a few unofficial bootleg titles like Chase HQ, Street Fighter II, and Gazza 2. Under thirty games all in all, but at least that was better then the 22 titles on the Virtual Boy.
LEGACY:
Although it’s quite crazy of me, I have an unexplained fondness of this machine, as do many others. It’s like a great animal that never grew, failings of its parents, that was stomped into the dirt by the big boys. I have firmly come to believe that the GX4000 suffered its premature death due to the incompetence of its creators and supporters, not due to its abilities. They produced a truly great machine for it's time, and even though the 16-bit market was taking over from the third generation, it could of had a decent run at mopping up the remnants of the 8-bit faithful. The machine could technically stand side-by-side with the Mega Drive and SNES, but was marketed in the worst possible fashion, never utilized to it's potential, and with developers failing to back it, it wouldn't be unfair to say that it was doomed before it even started. Amstrad were always going to have a hard time selling this machine due to the public awareness of SEGA and Nintendo, and so should have put in so much more effort and money to get it right, instead of hoping it technical abilities and aesthetic pomp would shine through via the games. Titles like Pang, Robocop 2 and Navy Seals showcased this, but alas it was too few to make an impact. It's a shame that this happened, because it really doesn't deserve the title 'Biggest console flop ever', it was just poorly marketed and supported. So mad as it is, I will continue to defend the GX4000, and hope that one day it is recognised in it's future value as a piece of games console history. The epic gaming machine that never was, but so could have been.
LEGACY:
Although it’s quite crazy of me, I have an unexplained fondness of this machine, as do many others. It’s like a great animal that never grew, failings of its parents, that was stomped into the dirt by the big boys. I have firmly come to believe that the GX4000 suffered its premature death due to the incompetence of its creators and supporters, not due to its abilities. They produced a truly great machine for it's time, and even though the 16-bit market was taking over from the third generation, it could of had a decent run at mopping up the remnants of the 8-bit faithful. The machine could technically stand side-by-side with the Mega Drive and SNES, but was marketed in the worst possible fashion, never utilized to it's potential, and with developers failing to back it, it wouldn't be unfair to say that it was doomed before it even started. Amstrad were always going to have a hard time selling this machine due to the public awareness of SEGA and Nintendo, and so should have put in so much more effort and money to get it right, instead of hoping it technical abilities and aesthetic pomp would shine through via the games. Titles like Pang, Robocop 2 and Navy Seals showcased this, but alas it was too few to make an impact. It's a shame that this happened, because it really doesn't deserve the title 'Biggest console flop ever', it was just poorly marketed and supported. So mad as it is, I will continue to defend the GX4000, and hope that one day it is recognised in it's future value as a piece of games console history. The epic gaming machine that never was, but so could have been.
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CHRIS'S FIVE FAVOURITE
GX4000 TITLES: PANG ROBOCOP 2 SWITCHBLADE BATMAN THE MOVIE NAVY SEALS |