Editing Konix Multisystem (section)

===Issues and limitations===

Despite the impressive specification on paper, the design did suffer from some limitations. Nick Speakman of software developer Binary Designs pointed out that "the custom chips are very powerful, but they require a lot of programming talent to get anything out of them. The screen handling [also] isn't as fast as we anticipated it to be."

Brian Pollock of software publisher Logotron highlighted the limitations caused by the shortage of RAM (kept low to keep prices down), “My only concern is memory, or lack of it. For instance, in the game that I'm writing I am using six-channel FM synthesized sound. Now that takes up a hell of a lot of memory. I couldn't usefully fit any more samples, and that's sad.”<ref name="specs" />

The memory issue was also flagged by ''[[Crash (magazine)|Crash]]'' magazine, which pointed out that the floppy disk format meant that games had to be loaded into the machine's RAM (originally intended to be 128k) in turn requiring the system to be constantly accessing the disk drive. Konix intended to remedy the problem with RAM upgrade cartridges, provided that the price of RAM fell in the future.<ref name="crash">{{citation|title=March 1989 issue of Crash Magazine|publisher=Newsfield}}</ref>

Overall though, programmers received the system positively. Jeff Minter described the controller itself as "superb," while Chris Walsh of [[Argonaut Games]] stated that "Polygon based games like ''[[Starglider 2]]'' are going to be easy to program. The machine is geared up to rotating masses of vertices at incredible rates."<ref name="specs" /> However, of the original Flare One's vertex computation performance, ''[[Zarch]]'' author David Braben had noted that whilst similar levels of performance might be difficult to achieve on an Archimedes computer, the performance bottlenecks in solid 3D games were actually "scanning databases of shapes and putting polygons on screen".<ref name="ace198808" />

Numerous game developers were recruited to produce games for the system, including Jeff Minter's [[Llamasoft]], [[Electronic Arts]], [[Psygnosis]], [[Ocean Software|Ocean]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://whatculture.com/gaming/10-unreleased-video-game-consoles-you-never-knew-existed?page=10 | title=10 Unreleased Video Game Consoles You Never Knew Existed | date=9 May 2016 }}</ref> [[Palace Software|Palace]] and [[U.S. Gold]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://whatculture.com/gaming/10-unreleased-video-game-consoles-you-never-knew-existed?page=10 | title=10 Unreleased Video Game Consoles You Never Knew Existed | date=9 May 2016 }}</ref> with Konix promising 40 games to be available by Christmas.<ref name="crash" /> [[Lucasfilm]] was mooted as a developer with the possibility of releasing their own branded version of the machine in the US, but nothing was ever confirmed.<ref name="wyn">[http://www.konixmultisystem.co.uk/index.php?id=interviews&content=wyn#start Interview with Wyn Holloway at the Konix MultiSystem Archive]</ref>
<ref name="lucas">{{citation|title=December 1989 issue of [[The Games Machine]]|publisher=[[Newsfield Publications|Newsfield]]}}</ref>

Games known to be in development for the system during 1988 included Llamasoft's ''[[Attack of the Mutant Camels]]'', [[Studio 3|System 3's]] ''[[Last Ninja 2]]'', [[Vivid Image]]'s ''Hammerfist'',  and Logotron's ''Star Ray''.<ref name="games">{{citation|author=Paul Glancey|title=April 1989 issue of [[Computer and Video Games]]|publisher=[[EMAP]]}}</ref> A game called Bikers was to be developed by Argonaut Software to be included as a free game with the system.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.konixmultisystem.co.uk/index.php?id=interviews&content=jon#start | title=Slipstream: The Konix Multi-system Archive }}</ref>