website/content/museum/commodore-c64-gs-games-system.md

title, categories, origins, years, cpus, params

title	categories	origins	years	cpus	params
Commodore C64 GS (Games System)	Consoles	U.S.A.	1990	6510	name image company company_name specs tabs photos screenshots emulators links comments oc_id source C64 GS (Games System) /media/museum/photos/commodore_gs64_1.jpg /companies/commodore Commodore label value NAME C64 GS (Games System) label value MANUFACTURER Commodore label value ORIGIN U.S.A. label value YEAR Christmas 1990 label value BUILT IN LANGUAGE None label value KEYBOARD Atari compatible controllers label value CPU 6510 label value SPEED 0.985 MHz (PAL) / 1.023 MHz (NTSC) label value CO-PROCESSOR VIC II (Video), SID (Sound) label value RAM 64 KB label value ROM 20 KB label value GRAPHIC MODES several, most used : 320 x 200 label value COLORS 16 label value SOUND 3 voices / 6 octaves (sound output through TV) label value I/O PORTS RGB (composite, chroma/luma and sound in/out), 2 x Joystick plugs, Cardridge slot, Power supply, RF TV output label value BUILT IN MEDIA Cartridges label value POWER SUPPLY External PSU label value PRICE £99.99 (UK, 1990) photos software emulators links title subtitle text image C64GS [Thomas Conté](http://www.pas.net) /media/museum/photos/c64gs.jpg title subtitle text image GYRUSS /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_gyruss_ss.png title subtitle text image LAST NINJA REMIX Title screen 1 /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_lastninjaremix_ss_1.png title subtitle text image LAST NINJA REMIX Title screen 2 /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_lastninjaremix_ss_2.png title subtitle text image LAST NINJA REMIX /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_lastninjaremix_ss_3.png title subtitle text image MOONPATROL /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_moonpatrol_ss_1.png title subtitle text image RICK DANGEROUS /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_rickdangerous_ss_1.png title subtitle text image STUNTCAR RACER /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_stuntcarracer_ss_1.png title subtitle text image INTERNATIONAL SOCCER /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_international-soccer_1.jpg title subtitle text image SCREENSHOT 1 When there is no cartridge inserted into the system, a small amiga-esque animation is diplayed, explaining how to insert a cartridge. The first image tells you that the system is powered but there is no cartridge inserted (thanks!). /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_boot_ss_1.png title subtitle text image SCREENSHOT 2 This image tells you to switch off the system and to insert a cartridge. /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_boot_ss_2.png title subtitle text image SCREENSHOT 3 The last image of the animation tells you to now switch on the system. /media/museum/software/commodore_c64gs_boot_ss_3.png title url platform text MESS emulator http://www.mess.org Other platform This well known multiplatform emulator emulates the C64 GS as well title url text Def guide to ZZAP64! http://www.zzap64.co.uk/zzap66/thec64gs.html An article from ZZAP64, dated from 1987, describing the brand new C64 GS system title url text The Secret Weapons of Commodore http://www.floodgap.com/retrobits/ckb/secret/ultimax.html This excellent site as a very nice page about the C64 GS author date text Nash Friday 8th December 2017 This wouldn''t have been a terrible idea if, one, the cartridge games never required keyboard commands, and two, if it would have come out in 1985 or 6, instead of 1990... author date text Nik Williams (UK) Wednesday 2nd March 2005 In 1991 I was working for a company that had the contract to repair all Commodore machines in the UK. I remember the C64 GS just as it was released but we didn't get many in for repair. At that time it was too little too late. If it had been released about 3 or 4 years earlier it could have been a great earner for Commodore. author date text Claus Ruglund Jakobsen (Denmark) Monday 5th July 2004 My parents gave me a C64G for christmas present in 1990, already then they were stopping production, there was the original GS-joystick and the cartrigde that came with the gs in the box, the games were good, but the joystick was utterly bad. author date text Nuey San Waldman (Amsterdam (NL)) Tuesday 27th April 2004 Actually, this thing was also sold in The Netherlands. I remember looking at it in a store display (running a soccer game) wondering why Commodore even bothered making this thing. 768 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20230604170655/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=768 2023-06-04

The C64 GS (Games System) is basically a C64 motherboard in a simple beige plastic case without a keyboad, serial port and tape interface. Apart from some minor ROM changes the circuitboard inside is exactly a C64. Thus it can play all the C64 cartridges that don't require interaction with the keyboard. Some cartridges were specificaly produced for the C64 GS, but there are a few... These cartridges could also be used with the original C64 or C128 both being equiped with the same cartridge slot.

Priced at £99.99 in UK (Christmas 1990), the console was packaged with a joystick and a cartridge containing International Soccer, Klax, Flimbo's Quest and Fiendish Freddy's Big Top O'Fun. But as history told us, putting aging computer technology into a gaming system, never made it a winner... The Amstrad GX-4000 (using CPC hardware), the Amiga CD-32 (using Amiga hardware), the Atari XEGS (using XE xomputers hardware) or the C64 GS never became top selling systems. The companies usually tried this strategy to desperatly compete with new waves of systems. For the C64 GS that was Nintendo NES and Sega Master System. The Megadrive was even released a few months later as well as the Nintendo Superfamicom (at least in Japan). Given this information, it's clear that the C64 GS, or the Amstrad GX-4000 released at the same time and same price, could not compete...

Moreover, for a few bucks more you could buy a real C64 computer! The C64 Games System was only sold in UK in 1990, and Denmark in 1991...It was a massive flop. 80,000 units were produced; less than 25% of them eventually sold. Most of the remaining units were taken back and dissassembled for parts for the 64G.

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Taneli Lukka from Finland reports:

The machine actually has a cassette connector and user port on the motherboard, but there are no holes for them in the case, it seems that either the machine was originally supposed to have the ability to play tape games too (would seem quite likely, you really only need one or two buttons to load a game from tape) or then it was cheaper to manufacture the motherboard with fewer changes compared to the C=64 computer. There might have also been some peripherals planned for the user port, but both the cassette compatibility and the user port thing must have been scrapped well before release because there are no holes for them in the case. These ports did enable Commodore to use the unsold machines as parts for C=64 computers when the console bombed.

The machine came packaged with a Cheetah Annihilator joystick, which is probably one of the worst joysticks of all time. It's a real wonder why Commodore didn't use one of their own sticks (which are all manufactured by other companies, they just have C= stickers on them) which are not very good either, but atleast you can play with them. The reason might be that The Annihilator just matched the colour of the machine.

We need more info about this computer ! If you designed, used, or have more info about this system, please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.