Before we begin with the video, I just want to thank Nintendo Switch Amino for sponsoring
today's episode.
Amino is great network of communities for virtually any topic in existence, full of
friendly people who love the same things you're into.
It's available to download for free on your mobile devices and you can see just a few
of the wide-range of Amino Communities available on screen now.
Going along well with today's video is the Nintendo Switch Amino - which holds overwhelmingly
positive reviews on the app store.
Here you will be able to connect with other Nintendo Switch fans and start discussions,
catch up on news, take part in polls and share videos, memes and more.
There's also fun quizzes and lots of other cool things to do.
For instance, here was me earlier commenting in one of the chat rooms on a retro Game Boy
advert somebody shared.
If you're a fan of Nintendo you should really take at least a few seconds to check it out
yourself by clicking on the link at the top of the description.
For all Nintendo conversation, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, there’s no place quite
like Amino.
Light guns have been a popular video game accessory ever since the first home video
game system, the Magnavox Odyssey, was released back in the early 70s.
An add-on for the Odyssey was released called "Shooting Gallery" and this is cited as the
first ever video game light gun.
As well as containing the realistic looking rifle, Shooting Gallery provided players with
4 new light gun games that they could play on their TVs at home - Shootout!, Shooting
Gallery, Prehistoric Safari and Dogfight!
The add-on proved to be quite popular and left a lasting impression on the blossoming
video game industry.
The market would soon see an influx of light gun games and accessories, both in arcades
and on home devices.
However, none would be so popular as Nintendo's offering for the NES.
The Zapper, as it was known in Western markets, was released in North America in 1985 and
originally sported a grey, futuristic appearance.
The light gun was compatible with NES games such as Duck Hunt and Wild Gunman and has
become an iconic part of pop culture.
But, did you know that the accessory had a very different design over in its home country
of Japan?
Whilst Western gamers will either remember the gun as a grey, 'ray gun'-like device or
its later re-design, which swapped out the grey colour scheme for an orange coat of paint,
Japanese gamers will remember a much more realistic looking device.
The "Zapper" in Japan was simply called "The Gun" and was based on a traditional revolver
weapon.
The device was dark black with a brown handle and it looked very realistic.
This isn't the only example of a light gun being made less realistic outside of Japan.
The majority of guns produced following the late 80s were given bright colour schemes
and other toy-like alterations.
For instance, the Sega Saturn's Virtua Gun, or the "Stunner" as it's known in North America,
was released in Japan with a dark black colour scheme.
This was changed for US and European markets though, with the US receiving a red version
and Europe a blue version.
This brings up the question of why these changes were made.
Were they simply Western marketing decisions or is there something deeper behind it?
Now, as mentioned, prior to the late 80s, light guns were much more realistic, such
as the Magnavox Odyssey's Shooting Gallery.
However, following a growing concern in the United States that these weapons resembled
real weapons too much, a rise of accidental deaths from police caused by imitation firearms,
as well as an increase in crime being committed with fake weapons - a lot of pressure was
put on the US government to regulate them.
This led to laws being created in 1989, under the Code of Federal Regulations Title 15,
Subtitle B, Chapter II, Subchapter H, Part 272 - MARKING OF TOY, LOOK-ALIKE AND IMITATION
FIREARMS.
The regulation specified here applies to not just video game light guns but most imitation
weapons.
This is also the reason why many toy gun retailers will often place disclaimers stating that
all guns are sold with an orange tip and that removing it will be punishable by law.
The exact requirements specified by law are as follows:
Either...
(a) A blaze orange or orange color brighter than that specified by the federal standard
color number, solid plug permanently affixed to the muzzle end of the barrel as an integral
part of the entire device and recessed no more than 6 millimeters from the muzzle end
of the barrel.
(b) A blaze orange or orange color brighter than that specified by the Federal Standard
color number, marking permanently affixed to the exterior surface of the barrel, covering
the circumference of the barrel from the muzzle end for a depth of at least 6 millimeters.
(c) Construction of the device entirely of transparent or translucent materials which
permits unmistakable observation of the device's complete contents.
(d) Coloration of the entire exterior surface of the device in white, bright red, bright
orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright blue, bright pink, or bright purple, either
singly or as the predominant color in combination with other colors in any pattern.
This seems to be the reason why the NES Zapper was later redesigned from the original grey
design to the later orange model.
As for why it was initially grey and futuristic, rather than Japan's black revolver style,
this was likely something that Nintendo decided to do themselves due to the differences in
culture between the West and Japan, as well as their commitment to try and keep their
brand as family friendly as possible in the West.
It wasn't just the Zapper that would be toned down in later models.
The Sega Master System's Light Phaser was originally released in entirely black.
This was later redesigned so that the light gun had a bright orange tip.
Curiously, the original all-black Light Phaser would be much later used to hold a woman hostage
in Brazil in 2009.
The elderly woman was released safe and well after 10 hours of negotiations.
It's not just light guns either.
Most fake weapons were affected by this law, including devices such as the Super Soaker
water pistols.
It's interesting to take a look at how different the Super Soaker catalogues were from 1987
and prior and then following.
In 1987, the catalogue was full of realistic-looking designs, such as these.
That all changed in later years though, with them all being made extremely colourful and
toy-like.
Bringing things back to video game light guns, one of the latest to be toned down outside
of Japan is Namco's GunCon 3, which was released overseas in bright orange, whilst the Japanese
version was pure black.
In fact, the GunCon 1 and GunCon 2 were also released in Japan in black.
The US version of the GunCon 1, however , was painted grey with an orange muzzle, whilst
the European version was also grey but didn't have the orange tip.
The US version of the GunCon 2, though, was completely orange and the European version
was blue.
Important to point out is that you will occasionally be able to find light guns from 3rd parties
that don't meet these US regulations, although, these could potentially be found to be breaching
US law.
These regulations are still in effect today and, despite the decrease in popularity of
light gun games, as well as certain issues they have with modern day TVs, this is something
you may want to keep in mind when it comes to any possible future releases.
What do you think of these regulations and do you prefer the US Zapper design or the
Japanese one?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and, until next time, thank you for
watching.