INTERTON ELECTRONIC VC 4000 RETROSPECTIVE
German manufacturer Interton launched its console into Europe in 1978 and scored with a cutting edge analogue controller, as David Crookes explains
W
hen considering the games consoles of yesteryear, certain names trip off the tongue: the Atari 2600, the Sega Mega Drive, the SNES and so forth. Very few people would immediately offer the early 8-bit Interton VC 4000, which is widely claimed to be the only console – give or take the East German BSS 01 – to have been manufactured in Germany. Perhaps this is an error on our part. After all, the blurb on the back of the box pulls no punches in its description of this machine. “The VC 4000 is a Video-Computer of the highest technical perfection,” it says, rather grandly. “It functions like the master set of a big computer and it is a read and control unit for a large variety of Video Programmes.” Whether or not you
take that at face value, Interton's machine was groundbreaking to some degree. It came with a set of controllers containing a 12-key keypad and two red fire buttons. Cardboard templates, which came as part of the packaging for some games, could be overlaid on to the controllers to help players better understand which button to press. But the main advance for the controllers was the presence of an analog joystick that auto-centred. Perched above the keyboard of each controller, its capabilities weren't fully utilised by every game but it made movements smoother and it would pave the way for future experiments by other companies including Atari and Nintendo. The console itself was arguably less awe-inspiring and it is also hard to say with conviction whether Interton itself came up the design of the innards. The VC 4000 had been in the planning for four-years prior to its 1978 release and it boasted 37 bytes of RAM, 32 of which were for general purpose use and the rest for graphics and defining the sprites. It also had a resolution of 128x200 pixels and a single audio channel
which had an analogue noise generator. The most intriguing parts were the Signetics 2650A processor running at 0.887Mhz and a Signetics 2636 Video Interface because Interton was not unique in using chips made by this American chip manufacturer. Electronics giant Philips had bought Signetics in 1975 and it would appear it was touting the 2650A and the GPU to various companies. Manufacturers such as Interton saw it as the perfect solution in enabling it to dip a toe into the fledgling videogame market. It is no doubt why similar machines with similar specs were also produced, among them Radofin's 1292 Advanced Programmable Computer System which was made in 1976 – there is much overlap between this and the Interton with many games for both having identical names. There are also some curiosities. Grundig made the Superplay Computer 4000 that could only be used with a Grundig television but was directly compatible with the Interton. Few of those companies had the muchneeded experience of Interton in the videogame market, though.
» Games would not run when inserted and would require the pressing of the Reset button.
» Programme cassettes were inserted into the top of the machine.
THE MANY FACES OF THE VC 4000
The German console goes by many different names… ■ Interton: VC 4000 ■ Grundig: Super Play
Computer 4000 ■ Radofin: 1292 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Radofin: 1392 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Hanimex: HMG-1292 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Hanimex: HMG-1392 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Fountain: Force 2 ■ Fountain: 1292 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Fountain: 1392 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Grandstand: Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Lansay: Lansay 1392 ■ Audio Sonic: PP-1292 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Audio Sonic: PP-1392 Advanced
Programmable Video System ■ Prinztronic: VC-6000 ■ Prinztronic: Tournament ■ Acetronic: MPU-1000 ■ Acetronic: MPU-2000 ■ Videomaster: Database ■ Waddington/Voltmace:
Database ■ Rowtron: Television
Computer System ■ Karvan: Jeu Video TV (Karvan
Video TV Game) ■ Societe Occitane Electronique:
OC-2000 ■ ITMC: MPT-05
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