N64 I just learned that the N64 didn't have a light gun

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

It doesn't really surprise me because it's painfully obvious that the marketing strategy behind the N64 was to make it the "family-friendly alternative" to the Saturn's edginess and whatever the PS1 was doing in-between rounds of dominating genres that were formerly Nintendo's to rule (mostly RPGs). But it's still a bit jarring, you know?

I bet that many of the people who decided to get an N64 had been playing Zapper and Super Scope games in the past and were, if not eager, then at least expecting to continue doing so now that the stage was bigger and the games were finally more arcade-like, not just flat screens to point at — it was fair to expect it, especially considering that both Sony's and SEGA's offerings did include such peripherals.

This is never brought up whenever I talk to those who were fortunate enough to grow up with the system (their gripes are elsewhere), but I found it very interesting regardless... I mean, why not try falling back to a brand-defining classic now that a couple of trusted developers had jumped ship and holes were appearing everywhere? It would have made sense and wouldn't have alienated their target audience all that much because the console was still overwhelmingly about said audience.

It's just strange, man.

Thoughts?

 

[Sanomoe]

I wonder how playing Sin and Punishment would fare there. I've emulated it using the controls closer to what the N64 controller was, and it's easy to get lost in this hellish multi-tasking it required

 

[Jeff]

N64 never had one when I was with the N64's 5 year life span. The NES had a Zapper which is a normal blaster gun, and SNES had the Super Scope which is a sniper bazooka. if N64 had one, game, or a shotgun style zapper addon for the controller if Duck Hunt had an N64 game.

Surprised Rare didn't create a plastic Goldeneye silencer pistol peripheral for Goldeneye 64 which follows the cursor around the screen. But, it won't be a good idea to give a plastic replica of a gun like that to kids.

 

[Graw]

The nes zapper was pretty common to have because it came bundled with the nes for a while to try and push the nes as a toy and not a video game console. I had the Zapper and Duck Hunt but I don't even know anybody that had the Super Scope. I honestly have to say, this is probably the first time I've ever even considered the idea of having a light gun for the N64.

Although, looking it up after reading this thread apparently there was a light gun planned for the N64 but it was cancelled.
There's a thread about it here:

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/nintendo_64_forever/the-n64-light-gun-that-never-was-t2628.html

 

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

Although, looking it up after reading this thread apparently there was a light gun planned for the N64 but it was cancelled.
There's a thread about it here:
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/nintendo_64_forever/the-n64-light-gun-that-never-was-t2628.html

Thanks for the info — hearing about that planned gun was actually what made me want to make this topic, because... well, it really is the only console I know of not to have any sort of gun, and that's damn interesting to me.

 

[BigTony]

The N64's limitations probably wouldn't have made it a great choice for a light gun game specifically the limited file size

 

[UnDubious]

Yeah, I don't think the Super Scope was a big hit, because I only ever met one kid with one. Bazookas seemed like the coolest thing to us back then, but it wasn't a practical video game accessory compared to a normal light gun (you wouldn't want to hold it for too long...) and Nintendo's image wasn't a good fit for light gun games. So it makes sense they dropped it in the following gen.

 

[Rocket2049]

I had a super scope but that thing drains batteries STUPIDLY
like, 6 AAs in an HOUR, imagine going through a 12 pack of AAs in a single DAY.
i had rechargable AA batteries but damn they don't last lol

 

[Iraito]

The N64 performed commercially bad everywhere but the USA and in general many developers and manufacturers simply abandoned the platform, this is also one of the reasons why we don't see a lot of peripherals for the N64

 

[χKai]

N64 never had one when I was with the N64's 5 year life span. The NES had a Zapper which is a normal blaster gun, and SNES had the Super Scope which is a sniper bazooka. if N64 had one, game, or a shotgun style zapper addon for the controller if Duck Hunt had an N64 game.

Surprised Rare didn't create a plastic Goldeneye silencer pistol peripheral for Goldeneye 64 which follows the cursor around the screen. But, it won't be a good idea to give a plastic replica of a gun like that to kids.

Those ideas would have been so cool to see on the N64's graphics.
Just think if they made a game like Gotcha! The Sport for NES; Where you'd have to use the controller in one hand, just to move/pause and the gun in the other hand. One thing is that players could easily hold the controller by the middle prong, and still have access to the Z button.

 

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

Yeah, I don't think the Super Scope was a big hit, because I only ever met one kid with one. Bazookas seemed like the coolest thing to us back then, but it wasn't a practical video game accessory compared to a normal light gun (you wouldn't want to hold it for too long...) and Nintendo's image wasn't a good fit for light gun games. So it makes sense they dropped it in the following gen.

Jesus! My grandpa would have killed me if I had a toy that wasted batteries like that.

The SS really did seem pretty bulky, too.

 

[Yousef Yousef]

That’s interesting, on my end, I owned something called Polystation as a kid, a bootleg NES of unknown origins. So I thought I had a light gun, but I later found out it used a completely different light gun ! No wonder it felt a bit off as a kid …

 

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

That’s interesting, on my end, I owned something called Polystation as a kid, a bootleg NES of unknown origins. So I thought I had a light gun, but I later found out it used a completely different light gun ! No wonder it felt a bit off as a kid …

You serious? I HAD THAT TOO!

Maaaaaaaan, the trigger was such garbage — snapped like a twig after three days XD

 

[Ikagura]

Maybe people didn't buy as many accessories as before...

 

[hardcoretyphoon hardcoretyphoon]

I wouldn't be surprised if the columbine massacre played a part in that. The Official Dreamcast light gun wasn't released in the US and the Perfect Dark mode that let you put pictures of peoples faces on the models was scrapped for that very reason. Heck i guess even before that sega's justifier was part of that big court case that lead to the esrb being a thing. Nintendo def didnt wanna get in any trouble

 

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

I wouldn't be surprised if the columbine massacre played a part in that. The Official Dreamcast light gun wasn't released in the US and the Perfect Dark mode that let you put pictures of peoples faces on the models was scrapped for that very reason. Heck i guess even before that sega's justifier was part of that big court case that lead to the esrb being a thing. Nintendo def didnt wanna get in any trouble

You know what? That could very well be.

But it seems to have been a conscious decision made during the design phase of the system itself. Hardly any game released for it would have been a good fit, and I don't think that's because developers suddenly hated the genre.

 

[Graw]

I wouldn't be surprised if the columbine massacre played a part in that. The Official Dreamcast light gun wasn't released in the US and the Perfect Dark mode that let you put pictures of peoples faces on the models was scrapped for that very reason. Heck i guess even before that sega's justifier was part of that big court case that lead to the esrb being a thing. Nintendo def didnt wanna get in any trouble

The columbine shooting happened in 1999. Three years into the N64's lifecycle. Perfect Dark came out in 2000. I'm fairly certain any decisions about lightguns and the n64 were made long prior to Columbine.

 

[shaggi]

There never been many light gun games for home consoles. Nintendo 64 not lost much not having these. Nintendo was behind anyway, because of not using CD.

 

[hardcoretyphoon hardcoretyphoon]

You know what? That could very well be.

But it seems to have been a conscious decision made during the design phase of the system itself. Hardly any game released for it would have been a good fit, and I don't think that's because developers suddenly hated the genre.

wasnt goldeneye gonna be a rail shooter? i guess light guns went out the window the moment the n64 became the "FPS Machine"

 

[Ikagura]

Wasn't Goldeneye gonna be a rail shooter? i guess light guns went out the window the moment the n64 became the "FPS Machine"

Yes.

And this is a good observation since Rail Shooters are extremely linear (to save on space for maps and RAM since they only show what you need to see).

The Rail Shooter genre by itself is archaic when N64 games are selling freedom with Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time later.

 

[SamanthaSamantha's icon]

Good points.

But, then again, Pokemon Snap not only existed, but was hailed as a system-seller for a while.

 

[UnDubious]

There never been many light gun games for home consoles. Nintendo 64 not lost much not having these. Nintendo was behind anyway, because of not using CD.

The 32-bit era was good for light gun games, though. The Virtua Cop series, Time Crisis series, House of the Dead, etc.

 

[Ikagura]

Good points.

But, then again, Pokemon Snap not only existed, but was hailed as a system-seller for a while.

I'd also argue that it was the "Pokémon" part of the game that was selling it (and how it was less arcade and more family friendly than shooting bad guys in a Time Crisis or House of the Dead).

Pokémon had a weird experimental phase in the 90's and 00's with Hey You Pikachu and some other spin-offs on the GBC/GBA and DS/DSi before slowing down on the 3DS and Wii U...

Post automatically merged: Apr 16, 2026

This video also summarised perfectly the same for shmups

 

[Morgan Katarn]

Did any console beside ps1 and ps2 hvae light gun after the snes era? And no gun addon for wii does not count.

 

[Ikagura]

Did any console beside ps1 and ps2 have light gun after the snes era?

The Sega Saturn had one IIRC.

And no, gun addon for wii does not count.

Okay, so I won't count the PS Move nor Kinect shooting games either.

I think Time Crisis 4 had a sort of setup but it was a beautiful mess to setup properly on a modern screen