Light gun games

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VideoGameCritic
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Light gun games

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 9th, 2019, 10:10 am

I've been reviewing Bazooka Blitzkrieg for the SNES which uses the huge Super Scope controller. Why in the heck did both Sega and Nintendo create such large, unwieldy light guns? It occurred to me that there may have been some controversy at the time about companies putting out toy guns that looked real. I remember they started requiring bright orange tips at the end of plastic guns. So I think this was Sega and Nintendo's way of avoiding that headache.

I'm wondering if it would be even possible for a game company today to release a controller that looks even vaguely like a gun. That's a shame because guys naturally enjoy playing with guns (see the popularity of all the first-person shooters) and light gun games offer a different type of experience. Actually most light gun games tend to me a lot more innocent and fun (see Duck Hunt).

Thoughts?

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Retro STrife
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Re: Light gun games

Postby Retro STrife » March 10th, 2019, 1:26 am

I think another reason for those big guns was the "bigger is better" mentality of that era. Rather than the practicality of a pistol style gun, a bazooka sized gun probably seemed more appealing to kids who would beg their parents to buy them one. Other than the NES Zapper and Duck Hunt, I can't think of another light gun that was ever really a big seller. So maybe these huge guns came with the hope of boosting sales. It worked to some degree - the Super Scope definitely looked impressive to a 10 year old kid browsing the video game aisle.

Consider squirt guns too - they were really popular during the early to mid 90's too. The Super Soaker was marketed everywhere and was one of the best selling kids' toys on the market. The squirt gun market became a series of one-upping each other -- each new gun had to be bigger and have more features than the ones before it. Maybe the light gun market was following those same cues.

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Re: Light gun games

Postby Luigi & Peach » March 10th, 2019, 3:54 pm

Retro STrife wrote:I think another reason for those big guns was the "bigger is better" mentality of that era. .


This. I was going to put something similar to this sentiment. It was kind of a reflection of the 90's wanting to go "more extreme!" I think. Sure, that little zapper from the NES was all cute & nifty, but if you wanted something "more extreme!" then you couldn't go more extreme than a bazooka. I have a suspicion that Sega came out with their Menacer first and then SNES felt that they had to follow this trend although this is based upon no research whatsoever.

I know what you're referring to about making toy guns less realistic with those orange caps, Critic, and I"m not the most familiar person with guns, but I really don't think anyone ever confused the NES zapper with a real gun.

PAAGaming
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Re: Light gun games

Postby PAAGaming » March 18th, 2019, 8:54 am

I remember a boy was shot when playing with the Master System light gun. After that companies like Sega and Nintendo went out of their way to make the guns look like toys.

I loved games like virtua Cop, House of the Dead and Operation Wolf. If a console came out with a light gun that works with modem televisions, has the Sega classic light gun games and the Sega racing games like Daytona and Sega Rally, I,d be 100% sold.

Also, chuck in Panzer Dragoon and that would be awesome.

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Re: Light gun games

Postby CaptainCruch » March 18th, 2019, 3:43 pm

I like playing games light gun games on the Wii, I love to use the remote control for it! For some reason however, I haven't used any light gun peripherals for the Wii. The Wii Zapper doesn't look real, but it's relatively big. But the Resident Evil Umbrella Wii Gun (& Knife) look more real. The Wii House of the Dead Hand Cannon looks more real too. A bigger gun is the Wii Blaster, that comes with the horrible game Chicken Blaster, but I can't say that looks very real.

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Re: Light gun games

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 18th, 2019, 6:23 pm

I really don't understand why it's so hard for them to make a light gun that works with modern TVs. My SNES Super Scope is very accurate and it uses a small box that sits on top of my TV. Why can't they have a similar system with HDTVs?

I was reading an old EGM (July 1994) and in the Arcade Action section they had a feature on a light gun shooter by Taito called Under Fire. It's a digitized shooter like Lethal Enforcers with cool locations like an amusement park. I would love to see a lost game like this resurrected on a compilation. Plus, anyone remember the old Lost World shooter?

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Re: Light gun games

Postby Herschie » March 19th, 2019, 4:14 am

They're great! Actually, my shooting accuracy has improved because of Duck Hunt. I learned how to hold a gun correctly, and that really helps. Gotcha! is an awesome game.

I'm a little miffed that The Punisher on NES doesn't have light gun controls. That would have been perfect with the automatic scrolling.

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Matchstick
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Re: Light gun games

Postby Matchstick » March 19th, 2019, 4:18 am

PAAGaming wrote:I loved games like virtua Cop, House of the Dead and Operation Wolf. If a console came out with a light gun that works with modem televisions, has the Sega classic light gun games and the Sega racing games like Daytona and Sega Rally, I,d be 100% sold.


Part of me wonders how well a game like Virtua Cop would go over nowadays, given the current political climate. A game where you play as a police officer who indiscriminately mows down legions of bad guys? Hm...

Yes, I've played Virtua Cop, and I know it's harmless, cartoony fun. The enemies are very clearly "bad guys" who are very clearly wielding weapons of their own. Still, I can see there being a massive uproar from the "woke" crowd if such a game were to be released today. It's a relic of a time gone by, for better or worse.

Now, House of the Dead? That game's still legit. At least, until a "Zombie Lives Matter" movement starts up someday down the line...


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