<s>
The	O
Commodore	B-General_Concept
64	I-General_Concept
Games	I-General_Concept
System	I-General_Concept
(	O
often	O
abbreviated	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
)	O
is	O
the	O
cartridge-based	O
home	B-Device
video	I-Device
game	I-Device
console	I-Device
version	O
of	O
the	O
popular	O
Commodore	O
64	O
home	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
came	O
bundled	O
with	O
a	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
containing	O
four	O
games	O
:	O
Fiendish	B-Application
Freddy	I-Application
's	I-Application
Big	I-Application
Top	I-Application
O'Fun	I-Application
,	O
International	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
,	O
Flimbo	B-Device
's	I-Device
Quest	I-Device
,	O
and	O
Klax	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
was	O
not	O
Commodore	O
's	O
first	O
gaming	O
system	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
C64	O
hardware	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
unlike	O
the	O
1982	O
MAX	O
Machine	O
(	O
a	O
game-oriented	O
computer	O
based	O
on	O
a	O
very	O
cut-down	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
same	O
hardware	O
family	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
is	O
internally	O
very	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
complete	O
C64	O
,	O
with	O
which	O
it	O
is	O
compatible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Support	O
from	O
games	O
companies	O
was	O
limited	O
,	O
as	O
many	O
were	O
unconvinced	O
that	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
would	O
be	O
a	O
success	O
in	O
the	O
console	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ocean	O
Software	O
was	O
the	O
most	O
supportive	O
,	O
offering	O
a	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
titles	O
,	O
some	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
cartridge-based	O
only	O
,	O
offering	O
features	O
in	O
games	O
that	O
would	O
have	O
been	O
impossible	O
on	O
cassette-based	O
games	O
,	O
others	O
straight	O
ports	O
of	O
games	O
for	O
the	O
original	O
C64	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Denton	O
Designs	O
also	O
released	O
some	O
games	O
,	O
among	O
them	O
Bounces	B-Application
,	O
which	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
bundled	O
with	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
,	O
a	O
four-game	O
cartridge	O
containing	O
Fiendish	B-Application
Freddy	I-Application
's	I-Application
Big	I-Application
Top	I-Application
O'Fun	I-Application
,	O
International	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
,	O
Flimbo	B-Device
's	I-Device
Quest	I-Device
and	O
Klax	B-Application
,	O
were	O
likely	O
the	O
most	O
well	O
known	O
on	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
games	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
exception	O
of	O
International	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
,	O
were	O
previously	O
ordinary	O
tape-based	O
games	O
,	O
but	O
their	O
structure	O
and	O
control	O
systems	O
(	O
no	O
keyboard	O
needed	O
)	O
made	O
them	O
well-suited	O
to	O
the	O
new	O
console	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
International	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
was	O
previously	O
released	O
in	O
1983	O
on	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
for	O
the	O
original	O
C64	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ocean	O
produced	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
games	O
for	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
,	O
among	O
them	O
a	O
remake	O
of	O
Double	B-Application
Dragon	I-Application
(	O
which	O
was	O
only	O
sold	O
at	O
trade	O
shows	O
)	O
,	O
Navy	B-Application
SEALS	I-Application
,	O
RoboCop	B-Application
2	I-Application
,	O
RoboCop	B-Application
3	I-Application
,	O
Chase	B-Application
HQ	I-Application
2	I-Application
:	I-Application
Special	I-Application
Criminal	I-Application
Investigation	I-Application
,	O
Pang	B-Application
,	O
Battle	B-Application
Command	I-Application
,	O
Toki	B-Application
,	O
Shadow	B-Application
of	I-Application
the	I-Application
Beast	I-Application
and	O
Lemmings	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
the	O
earliest	O
Ocean	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
had	O
a	O
manufacturing	O
flaw	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
connector	O
was	O
placed	O
too	O
far	O
back	O
in	O
the	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
case	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
end	O
result	O
was	O
that	O
the	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
could	O
not	O
be	O
used	O
with	O
the	O
standard	O
C64	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Members	O
of	O
Ocean	O
staff	O
had	O
to	O
manually	O
drill	O
holes	O
in	O
the	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
to	O
make	O
them	O
fit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
System	O
3	O
released	O
Last	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Remix	I-Application
and	O
Myth	B-Application
:	I-Application
History	I-Application
in	I-Application
the	I-Application
Making	I-Application
,	O
although	O
both	O
were	O
also	O
available	O
on	O
cassette	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Domark	O
also	O
offered	O
two	O
titles	O
,	O
Badlands	B-Application
and	O
Cyberball	B-Application
,	O
which	O
were	O
available	O
on	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
only	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Through	O
publisher	O
The	O
Disc	O
Company	O
,	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
Codemasters	O
and	O
MicroProse	O
titles	O
were	O
also	O
reworked	O
and	O
released	O
as	O
compilations	O
for	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Power	O
Play	O
featured	O
three	O
MicroProse	O
titles	O
:	O
Rick	B-Application
Dangerous	I-Application
,	O
Stunt	B-Application
Car	I-Application
Racer	I-Application
and	O
MicroProse	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
,	O
although	O
Rick	B-Application
Dangerous	I-Application
was	O
produced	O
by	O
Core	O
Design	O
,	O
not	O
MicroProse	O
themselves	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Stunt	B-Application
Car	I-Application
Racer	I-Application
and	O
MicroProse	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
needed	O
to	O
be	O
heavily	O
modified	O
to	O
enable	O
them	O
to	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Commodore	O
never	O
produced	O
or	O
published	O
a	O
single	O
title	O
for	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
beyond	O
the	O
bundled	O
four-game	O
cartridge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
International	B-Application
Soccer	I-Application
was	O
the	O
only	O
widely	O
available	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
but	O
had	O
actually	O
been	O
written	O
for	O
the	O
C64	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
was	O
plagued	O
with	O
problems	O
from	O
the	O
outset	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Firstly	O
,	O
despite	O
the	O
wealth	O
of	O
software	O
already	O
available	O
on	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
for	O
C64	O
,	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
a	O
keyboard	O
means	O
that	O
most	O
cannot	O
be	O
used	O
with	O
the	O
console	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
means	O
that	O
much	O
of	O
the	O
cartridge-based	O
C64	O
software	O
,	O
while	O
fundamentally	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
,	O
was	O
unplayable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
standard	O
C64	O
version	O
of	O
Terminator	B-Application
2	I-Application
:	I-Application
Judgment	I-Application
Day	I-Application
was	O
designed	O
for	O
the	O
console	O
,	O
but	O
was	O
included	O
on	O
a	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
that	O
required	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
press	O
a	O
key	O
in	O
the	O
initial	O
menu	O
to	O
access	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
rendering	O
it	O
unplayable	O
,	O
despite	O
the	O
game	O
itself	O
being	O
entirely	O
playable	O
with	O
joystick	O
only	O
on	O
a	O
conventional	O
C64	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
partially	O
compensate	O
for	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
a	O
keyboard	O
,	O
the	O
basic	O
control	O
system	O
for	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
was	O
a	O
joystick	O
supplied	O
by	O
Cheetah	O
called	O
the	O
Annihilator	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
joystick	O
standard	O
is	O
fundamentally	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
ZX	B-Operating_System
Spectrum	I-Operating_System
's	O
Kempston	O
Interface	O
and	O
the	O
Sega	O
Master	O
System	O
,	O
but	O
no	O
other	O
joystick	O
on	O
the	O
market	O
offered	O
compatibility	O
with	O
the	O
proprietary	O
second-button	O
function	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Standard	O
C64	O
joysticks	O
and	O
Sega	O
Master	O
System	O
controllers	O
were	O
fundamentally	O
supported	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
second-button	O
support	O
(	O
the	O
Sega	O
Master	O
System	O
's	O
second	O
button	O
did	O
not	O
function	O
in	O
the	O
same	O
way	O
)	O
meant	O
that	O
the	O
Cheetah	O
Annihilator	O
was	O
essential	O
for	O
playing	O
certain	O
titles	O
such	O
as	O
Last	B-Application
Ninja	I-Application
Remix	I-Application
and	O
Chase	O
HQ	O
2	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Of	O
those	O
28	O
titles	O
,	O
only	O
9	O
were	O
cartridge-exclusive	O
titles	O
,	O
the	O
remainder	O
being	O
ports	O
of	O
older	O
cassette-based	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
titles	O
that	O
Ocean	O
announced	O
did	O
appear	O
for	O
the	O
GS	O
(	O
with	O
the	O
notable	O
exception	O
of	O
Operation	B-Application
Thunderbolt	I-Application
)	O
,	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
promises	O
from	O
other	O
publishers	O
failed	O
to	O
materialize	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
problems	O
plagued	O
rival	O
company	O
Amstrad	O
when	O
they	O
released	O
their	O
GX4000	B-Application
console	O
the	O
same	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
were	O
other	O
reasons	O
attributed	O
to	O
the	O
failure	O
of	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
,	O
the	O
major	O
ones	O
being	O
the	O
following	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Poor	O
software	O
support	O
:	O
Most	O
of	O
the	O
existing	O
software	O
on	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
did	O
not	O
function	O
well	O
with	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
enthusiasm	O
from	O
publishers	O
was	O
low	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ocean	O
Software	O
,	O
Codemasters	O
,	O
System	O
3	O
,	O
MicroProse	O
and	O
Domark	O
developed	O
titles	O
for	O
the	O
system	O
,	O
but	O
probably	O
only	O
because	O
the	O
games	O
were	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
original	O
C64	O
,	O
providing	O
the	O
titles	O
with	O
a	O
commercial	O
safety	O
net	O
in	O
case	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
failed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C64	O
computer	O
:	O
The	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
was	O
essentially	O
a	O
cut-back	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Commodore	O
64	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
games	O
developed	O
for	O
it	O
could	O
also	O
be	O
run	O
on	O
the	O
original	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C64	O
was	O
already	O
at	O
an	O
affordable	O
price	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
was	O
sold	O
for	O
the	O
same	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
People	O
preferred	O
the	O
original	O
C64	O
,	O
particularly	O
since	O
the	O
cassette	O
versions	O
of	O
games	O
could	O
often	O
be	O
picked	O
up	O
for	O
a	O
fraction	O
of	O
the	O
cost	O
of	O
the	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
already	O
saturated	O
console	O
market	O
:	O
The	O
8-bit	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
entered	O
the	O
market	O
in	O
1990	O
,	O
parallel	O
to	O
16-bit	O
fourth	B-Application
generation	I-Application
consoles	I-Application
such	O
as	O
the	O
Mega	B-Operating_System
Drive	I-Operating_System
and	O
the	O
Super	B-Application
Nintendo	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
TV	O
hookup	O
,	O
joystick	O
support	O
and	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
slots	O
were	O
already	O
found	O
on	O
regular	O
C64	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
years	O
later	O
,	O
Commodore	O
's	O
next	O
attempt	O
at	O
a	O
games	O
console	O
,	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
CD32	I-Device
,	O
encountered	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
same	O
problems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
specifications	O
of	O
the	O
C64GS	B-General_Concept
are	O
a	O
subset	O
of	O
those	O
of	O
the	O
regular	O
C64	O
;	O
the	O
main	O
differences	O
being	O
the	O
omission	O
of	O
the	O
user	O
port	O
,	O
serial	O
interface	O
,	O
and	O
cassette	O
port	O
.	O
</s>
