AMSTRAD GX4000
FUSION TAKES A LOOK BACK AT THE AMSTRAD GX4000 — WITH PAD IN HAND, LET’S PLUG IN A GAME CARTRIDGE
And here back in good old Blighty the competition was heating up between two major console manufacturers both out to make their mark and stake their claim in the newly emerging 16-bit market. In one corner you had Sega with its new 16- bit Mega Drive console, and in the other Nintendo with its
16-bit Super NES. However in what looked to be a simple two horse race, another contender was waiting in the wings, as looking to enter the console race for the first time was Alan Sugar’s company, Amstrad.
Now, rumours had already been circulating for around a year that Amstrad were planning to enter the console race and if what was being reported in the magazines was to be believed it was a console which promised to ‘Bring the whole arcade into your home!’ – Hmmm.. Where have we heard all this before?
But! The rumours were indeed true and in August 1990 along with a new 464 Plus and 6128 Plus computer range the Amstrad GX4000 console was unveiled to the world. Purely a dedicated gaming machine it featured an upgraded design based on the original CPC hardware and enhanced graphic capabilities. Priced at only a £99.99 it was by far the cheapest of the next gen consoles when released. It came bundled with the main console unit that looked like
Below: Some Amstrad advertising for its new console.nnot fail!
By the end of the 1980s computer games were one of the fastest growing forms of home entertainment and as the 1990s dawned, gamers eagerly sat on the edge of their seats awaiting the arrival of the next generation of home consoles.
some sort of sleek star fighter from outer space, a power supply, two control pads, based similar in design to the original Nintendo NES pads, and a racing game launch title from renowned software house Ocean, called Burnin’ Rubber. Furthermore the main unit also boasted a SCART output to the rear, something which in 1990 was extremely forward thinking and there was even an analogue joystick port along with an AUX connector for attaching peripherals such as the Trojan Phaser light gun.
So far so good! And indeed at first it was with most of the popular computer and console magazines of the time praising the systems impressive graphical capabilities and low price point. But sadly despite all the positives there were several negative as well with criticism given for the lack of adecent sound quality and of the poor feel and responsiveness of the new control pads. Furthermore, with the exception of Burnin Rubber, there were no other new software titles at launch with all other games released just being simply ports of CPC originals now at almost five times the cost. Because what you have to remember is that most 8-bit gamers up until this point were only used to paying £3.99 - £9.99 for a piece of software on cassette and they just weren’t willing to pay a whopping £25.00 for a cartridge that essentially had the same piece of software on