VS. Duck Hunt

The Good
This was my second game on the NES and I can still say it is very entertaining. It requires the zapper as a controller, which is absolutely fun to use.

The best part is naturally the light gun. It's just fun to use, especially in a game from 1985. You can stay close to the TV for some ease, or stay back to improve your accuracy and aim.

The clay pigeon shooting adds some nice diversity to the game, as well as the chance to shoot two birds at once.

The graphics and the music aren't exactly spectacular but are pretty good for an NES.

Oh, an naturally everyone loves your hunting dog that will laugh in your face if you don't shoot any birds!

The Bad
The bad part is the repetitiveness of the levels. Nothing changes except for the speed of the ducks, which do get harder and harder to shoot. But that's about it. The game is tremendous fun, but after two rounds of it, you will start to get bored, and even clay pigeon shooting doesn't bring the interest back. I continually go back and play it because it's fun, but it's only good in short bursts.

Also, the necessity of the light gun makes it hard for some people to play, since it won't work with anything else. The controller doesn't react to the game. So even if you have a WORKING NES, with the game, it might be even harder to find a working light gun.

The Bottom Line
This game is actually tremendous fun because we have relatively few good games which use a light gun, and this is the one of the earliest ones. Unfortunately, those without a light gun will not be able to play it. And even then, it may be even better to the the SMB combo to fall back on when you get tired of the game.

The Good
I used to play Duck Hunt way back since I first grabbed an NES from my brother. Those were the good ol' days when Nintendo used to have those orange light guns (a.k.a. the NES Zapper) in preparation for both pack-in titles include Super Mario Bros and Duck Hunt. It was a very funny game and that duck always try to be hiding someplace.

The Bad
The only character I don't like is the dog. Once I almost try to beat every level (except the Round 100 glitch), that dog always tries to trick me while I miss another shot killing that duck. And when the screen says "GAME OVER," he wins. Thanks a lot Nintendo for rubbing it in and let this dog tortured my Elmer Fudd dreams.

The graphics may be fun, but who wants to aim while shooting properly? The sound effects were badder than the dog, and the music is far from perfect unless the developers might've gotten this while watching Good Will Hunting.

The Bottom Line
I think it's a perfect example of a game that's so bad, it's good. Because I've been down this road for a while now and while this is Nintendo's greatest master plan to aim players concentrating on a hunting field trip where ducks can always be your best friend, but when this is all said then done, it's going to be a Dog Day Afternoon once this dog mocks at you. I hope Nintendo should put this on the Virtual Console soon and without light guns, you can always use your precious WII-motes to shoot ducks either single or multiplayer. Don't let this Dennis the Menace-like dog happen the same thing to you over and over again.

The Good
The concept, I mean, shooting ducks is fun(in a videogame sense of course). It also is simple which is sometimes a refreshing quality in a game. The clay pigeon shooting mode adds to its playability, and the dog laughing if you miss is a nice touch.

The Bad
The repetitiveness of the levels, nothing drastic really changes. I wont criticise the sound or the graphics because they were fine for 1985.

The Bottom Line
Fun(except for Ducks) retro trip to the past.

The Good
Ahh...what can you say against Duck Hunt ? So many memories. Like not letting your sister have the zapper after an hour. Ahh... memories. But how could you not put it down? It's great arcade action! And extremely addicting!

Story

You start the game, your hunting dog sniffs around, barks, and jumps into the grass and starts chasing out ducks.

Gameplay

The gameplay is very simple. Just point the light gun at the and shoot ! You only get three shots to get a duck that flies up on screen. Shoot too many times, or miss and it'll fly away. And then we all know what happens next. Your trusty dog pops out of the grass and laughs at you. I personally think it's kind of funny. He also holds up the ducks you shoot.

The real challenge of the game is increasing speed of the ducks, and your aim. If you're a lousy shot, you won't get very far. I got almost all the way to 22,000 points.

If you get tired of shooting ducks, you can always shoot clay targets! Yes, there's another game included ! It's at the bottom of the selection screen. It's slightly more challenging than the ducks. One cool aspect is you can shoot a target when it's really far away.

Oh yeah, and you have to use the Zapper gun with this game. There's only one downside though, but I'll get to that later. It's far better than using a controller.

Sound

The dog barking, the ducks, and that little chord that plays when you shoot a duck. Oh yeah, and the dog laughing at you. There's some music at the title screen, but it's not very memorable. And that's it more or less.

Control

There's actually no control at all (unless you use cheats.) When you pull the trigger on the zapper, if you hit a duck, it registers it as a hit. It's only as accurate as your aim, so you can't say it cheats (Ha ha! You stink !)

The Bad
Control

The only downside as far as I can see is the need of the Zapper gun. You see, it works with reflection. That was no problem with old glass screen TV's, but today's flat screen TV's won't work with it. I know, I've tried. Other than that I have no complaints !

The Bottom Line
This is a great game for all ! If you read the review, I'm not sure how to convince you to try it, but you'll love it if you do !