Bullseye! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Duck Hunt

"Duck Hunt" was part of an interesting combo deal back in the day. When players purchased an NES console in North America they would also receive a combo copy of "Super Mario Bros." and "Duck Hunt" on the same cartridge. "Duck Hunt" required an NES Zapper light gun to play and the premise was simple: shoot down the ducks. All you needed to do was point at the screen and pull the trigger. Players of the game may remember the snickering dog that appeared at the bottom of the screen who laughed when you missed the birds. Yeah...no one really cared for that dog. The game also features a Clay Shooting/Skeet mode in which you shoot clay pigeons.

Answer: House of the Dead

"House of the Dead" has always been a survival horror mainstay, at least in the arcades. In this game up to two people can use light guns to shoot otherworldly and undead creatures and progress through houses, crypts, and other spooky locales. Dr. Curien happened to be an evil character met in the first game; the name has continued throughout the series. Of course, if you've heard of Uwe Boll's film adaptation of "House of the Dead" (released in 1996) you've been aware of the horrible reputation. Don't fear though! Sega's game series has been quite popular and well-received.

It's also appeared on certain consoles; "House of the Dead: Overkill" was a well-reviewed rail shooter for the Wii.

Answer: The Lost World: Jurassic Park

The interesting thing about "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" is that this light gun arcade game was built in both a stand-up and sit-down form; you could simply sit back and fire away as dinosaurs chased you through the island jungles and visitor's centers of a new Jurassic Park island. Loosely based on the second film in the "Jurassic Park" series, the point of the game was to search for rescue. Of course, armed with a light gun, you also had to face off against some brutal dinosaurs. Like "House of the Dead", the game was made by SEGA and was quite the popular arcade fare.

The next "Jurassic Park" arcade game was created by Konami and, likewise, very loosely followed its film's plot.

Answer: Yoshi's Safari

"Yoshi's Safari" was quite the unique game as it was the first "Mario" series game played with a gun. Players moved along a rail system (on the back of Yoshi) and used the Super Scope, a large, bazooka-like light gun, to attack foes onscreen. The catch: many people avoided purchasing the Super Scope. Only usable for eleven games on the SNES, the weapon was cumbersome, reaching a total length of two and a half feet. Nonetheless, Mario and Yoshi faced off, once again, against Bowser...only this time it seemed they had more firepower.

Answer: Time Crisis

"Time Crisis" first appeared in arcades in the mid-1990s and made its console debut on the Playstation in 1997. A typical rail/light gun shooter, the games follow similar storylines about gunfights in a modern setting, usually involving terrorist activity.

The unique thing about these games is the use of the G-Con (or Guncon...or 'Gun Controller'), a plug-in controller shaped like a pistol without a slender barrel like the NES Zapper. Different G-Cons were released for the different Sony systems over time though each Sony system lacked compatibility (a PS2 G-Con could not be used in the PS3, for example). Nonetheless, a handful of popular games in several series (eg. "Resident Evil", "Ninja Assault", etc.) cropped up on these systems. All of the major "Time Crisis" games were ported from the arcade to the consoles after approximately a year of release.

Answer: Goldeneye 007

"Goldeneye 007" was a player favourite on the Nintendo 64. A truly revolutionary first-person shooter from Rare, the game followed the storyline of the movie including several original missions and featured an addictive multiplayer option for up to four people. Along with dozens of unique weapons (including a laser watch, shotguns, throwing knives, etc.) the game also had many unlockable cheats to make the game more interesting. "Goldeneye" was released in 1997 winning Nintendo's 'Game of the Year' award.

It was remade in 2010 for the Nintendo Wii though this version (made by Eurocom) was a reimagining in many respects. The original was also one of the earliest games to use a crosshair targeting system which activated when you held the R button down.

Answer: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

All of the items listed are essential to the completion of "Ocarina of Time"; the Fairy Slingshot is a major ranged weapon found in the game's first dungeon, the Deku Tree; the Hookshot (and the subsequent upgrade, the Longshot) is used as an adult to transport items or cling to a far away target; the Fairy Bow, found in the Forest Temple, can shoot arrows of many kinds. Players could attach one of these items to down, left, or right-C and hold the button to go into a first-person view.

The analog stick would then be used to aim. Players wouldn't be shooting blind though-- a red targeting circle would help along.

Answer: Link's Crossbow Training

Players purchasing the Wii Zapper upon its release in 2007 would also receive a copy of "Link's Crossbow Training", a weird, yet short game made all the more interesting due to the fact that Link never used a crossbow in any previous games. Although short, it's meant to give the player a quick trial run with the Wii Zapper, a gun-shaped device that fits the Wii Remote into the top and the nunchuck attachment at the back.

This device would be highly recommended for many later shooter titles just as the Wii Wheel would be beneficial for "Mario Kart Wii". Unlike many earlier gun devices for video game consoles, no electronics or plugs were needed for it to function-- it simply fit around the existing controller(s).

Answer: Umbrella Chronicles

"Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles" debuted on the same day as the Wii Zapper and despite such an early release, it received fairly modest reviews. In this game, players moved around on a rail system (which would be repopularized by the Wii Zapper in titles such as "House of the Dead Overkill" and this game's sequel "Darkside Chronicles") to fight enemies in scenarios from past games including the original "Resident Evil", "Resident Evil 3: Nemesis", and "Resident Evil Zero".

These were also accompanied by several new stories. Like many light gun games before it, there was a bit more to the process than a simple point-and-shoot; players also needed to reload by shaking the zapper, toss grenades, and find hidden items in diverse settings to achieve good grades for completion and unlock more files in the chronicles.

Answer: Dead Space: Extraction

"Dead Space: Extraction" was highly anticipated considering the critical praise for the original on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, but unsurprisingly it was released as a typical Wii rail shooter. While still quite popular with critics, the game was regarded as short, as is typical of rail games.
Oddly enough, the game was later ported to the Playstation 3 to make use of the innovative Playstation Move device. Much like the Wii Remote, this item allowed for a range of motion in a 3D environment.
Due to a lack of sales (commonly seen in M-rated Wii titles), the game received the 'Best Game No One Played' award from Gamespot despite being called the 'Best Shooter for Wii' by IGN.