Retro Gunner

Gun Bullet – also AKA’d as Point Blank. Not the usual conveyor-belt murder. Weird thing is you’re basically playing extremely simple kids’ games – picture pairs, snap, spot the difference – but looking like you’re playing The House of the Dead.

It’s like playing 90s CD ROM edutainment with a lightgun as the pointer.

Like playing a Wii game.

Burn.

So why on Earth is this so GOOD? The only explanation is the cartoon dress-up of silly pictures, punchy sounds and a big plastic bang bang gun.

A hunky, heavy, kickbacking waterpistol on a thick, slinky showerhose.

And this doubledeep screen buried under a mirror – to fake catswinging room in an elbows-in Tokyo gamedump.

Still true since forever: arcades are an experience design playground that homeplay hasn’t ever matched.

“Gun Bullet” in Japan but “Point Blank” elsewhere. An interesting one: for a blank game about pointing, “Point Blank” is too honest. Meanwhile, “Gun Bullet”, screaming violent action thrills, doth protest waaay too much – what *other* kind of bullet needs delineating here, anyway? – but that suits.

Glorious old thing still looking fresh and playing fresh in Taito Hey.