GX 4000
The Amstrad GX4000 video game console.
Manufacturer	Amstrad
Type	Video game console
Generation	Fourth generation
First available	1990

The GX4000 was Amstrad's short-lived attempt to enter the games console market. The console was released in 1990 and was based on the still-popular CPC technology. The GX4000 was actually a modified CPC6128+ computer. This allowed The GX4000 to be compatible with a majority of CPC+ computer line software. Initial reviews were favourable - the console had impressive enhanced graphics and sound, a huge colour palette of 4096 (more than the 16 bit Sega Mega Drive), hardware sprites and hardware scrolling. The console itself had a sleek curved design (reminiscient of Nintendo 64, which came out six years later). It retailed for £99 and came bundled with driving game Burnin' Rubber. GX4000 game cartridges could also be used by the new 464+ and 6128+ computers released at the same time. Image File history File links AmstradGX4000. ... Image File history File links AmstradGX4000. ... A console manufacturer is a company that manufactures and distributes video game consoles. ... Amstrad is a manufacturer of electronics based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the UK. The name is a contraction of Alan Michael Sugar Trading. ... A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or electronic device that manipulates the video display signal of a display device (a television, monitor, etc. ... Video games were introduced as a commercial entertainment medium in 1971, becoming the basis for an important entertainment industry in the late 1970s/early 1980s in the United States, Japan, and Europe. ... In the history of video games, the 16-bit era was the fourth generation of video game consoles. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... Amstrad is a manufacturer of electronics based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the UK. The name is a contraction of Alan Michael Sugar Trading. ... A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or electronic device that manipulates the video display signal of a display device (a television, monitor, etc. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... The Amstrad CPC was a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad during the 1980s and early 1990s. ... In computer architecture, 16-bit is an adjective used to describe integers, memory addresses or other data units that are at most 16 bits (2 octets) wide, or to describe CPU and ALU architectures based on registers, address buses, or data buses of that size. ... The Sega Mega Drive ) is a video game console released by Sega in Japan in 1988, North America in 1989, and the PAL region in 1990. ... In computer graphics, a sprite (also known by other names; see Synonyms below) is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene. ... This article needs cleanup. ... This section needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ...

Commercial failure

The GX4000 was a commercial failure and is one of the least successful game consoles ever made. This was in part due to the GX4000 being powered by 8 bit technology and almost immediately being superseded by the 16 bit Sega Mega Drive (released in November 1990 in Europe), and eventually the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. There was little available software at launch, with some games being released months late or cancelled entirely. To make matters worse, several GX4000 games were simply CPC games from previous years rereleased onto a cartridge. This was not inspiring and users were not prepared to pay £25 for a cartridge game that they could buy for £3.99 on cassette instead. Within a few weeks of the initial launch, the system could be bought at discounted prices. Popular UK videogame magazines marked the system as "the worst system of the month" as voted by readers.^{[citation needed]} The Super Nintendo Entertainment System or Super NES (also called SNES and Super Nintendo) is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australasia between 1990 and 1992. ... The Amstrad CPC was a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad during the 1980s and early 1990s. ... Typical 60-minute Compact Cassette. ...

Many readers complained about lack of coverage in Amstrad magazines, Amstrad Computer User & Amstrad Action. Amstrad Action continued to give coverage for the machine when possible and included a complete rundown on every game released for the console that ran for 3 issues well after the GX4000s demise. Amstrad is a manufacturer of electronics based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the UK. The name is a contraction of Alan Michael Sugar Trading. ... Amstrad Computer User was the official magazine for the Amstrad CPC series of 8-bit home computers. ... Amstrad Action was a monthly magazine, published in the United Kingdom, which catered to owners of home computers from the Amstrad CPC range. ... Amstrad Action was a monthly magazine, published in the United Kingdom, which catered to owners of home computers from the Amstrad CPC range. ...

Games

In all, fewer than 40 games were produced for the GX4000, of which only half were original and unique to the console. The games were made by UK-based companies Ocean (Bought out by Infogrames UK and now Atari Inc.) and US Gold (later Eidos & now owned by SCI (Sales Curve Interactive). Notable GX4000 games were Burnin' Rubber, RoboCop 2, Pang, Plotting (AKA Flipull), Navy Seals and Switchblade. The last was later released for the CPC range with only minor concessions, mainly colour. The Ocean logotype had an often prominent placement on the box art. ... Infogrames Entertainment SA (IESA) is an international holding company headquartered in Lyon, France. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... US Gold was a British computer and video game publisher and developer during the 1980s and 1990s, producing numerous titles on a variety of 8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit platforms. ... Eidos Interactive is a publisher of video and computer games with its parent company based in the United Kingdom. ... SCi (originally The Sales Curve and later Sales Curve Interactive) is a [[England|] video game publisher. ... SCi (originally Sales Curve Interactive) is a videogames software development house based in the United Kingdom. ... RoboCop 2 is a science fiction film, released in 1990 and set in the near future in a dystopian metropolitan Detroit, Michigan. ... Pang can mean: The River Pang in south England. ... Plotting is the process of depicting mathematical functions or data visually. ... Flipull: An Exciting Cube Game is an arcade-style puzzle video game made by Taito, and was released for the Famicom Disk System in 1985. ... SEALs in from the water. ... A switchblade (also known as automatic knife, switch, or in British English flick knife), is a type of knife with a folding blade that springs out of the grip when a button or lever on the grip is pressed. ...

The GX4000 was only manufactured for a matter of months before it was discontinued.

Technical specifications

• CPU: 8-bit Zilog Z80A at 4 MHz
• Graphics:
  • 16 sprites
  • Resolution: from 160x200 to 640x200
  • 4096 colour palette - 32 onscreen
• Memory: 64KBytes RAM, 16 KBytes VRam, 32KBytes ROM
• I/O: Audio output, 2 x digital controller connectors, Analog controller port (IBM standard), Light gun connector (RJ11 socket), Audio & RGB video output (8 pin DIN), Scart connector (audio & video), power supply socket from external PSU, power supply socket from monitor
• Sound: 3 channel Mono; AY-3-8910 chip
• Game Format: cartridge

Zilog, often seen as ZiLOG, is a manufacturer of 8-bit, 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit CPUs, and is most famous for its Intel 8080-compatible Z80 series. ... Look up RAM, Ram, ram in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Read-only memory (usually known by its acronym, ROM) is a class of storage media used in computers and other electronic devices. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... REDIRECT RGB color model ... In various types of electronic equipment, a cartridge can refer one method of adding different functionality or content (e. ...

Screenshot gallery

External links

• Listing and pictures of Amstrad GX4000 games
• Old-Computers.com page on the GX 4000
• Complete list of GX 4000 games
• The CPCwiki article about the GX4000. Lots of info