The most common technique is to place several infrared LEDs around a display, and then use an IR sensor in the light gun itself to determine where those LEDs are located. In the absence of CRT TV screens, light guns need some sort of frame of reference to work out where they're pointing. Interestingly enough, it's one that many gamers are already familiar with. With the rise of LCD displays however, light guns needed a new approach. CRT TVs made it unusually easy to determine precisely where a plastic gun accessory was pointed without needing any extra equipment or hardware. Later light guns would improve on this technique, taking advantage of the internal refresh rates and timings within a TV itself to identify where the gun was pointed. When you pulled the trigger, the screen would briefly flash a mostly-black image, and if the gun detected a white block of light, they'd know they were pointed at a target. The first home light guns were simple light detectors. Light gun games have been a permanent fixture in most arcades, and they came along for the ride when home consoles entered the scene. For as long as we've been able to detect or emit light from a handheld gadget, someone's been trying to turn it into a shooting gallery. The earliest light gun games were electro-mechanical installations taking advantage of light-sensing vacuum tubes. Not only that, but light guns predate video games themselves. Few controllers map so closely between player input and the action they're trying to simulate. Light guns hold a special place in the world of gaming. A Brief History Marty McFly had no idea how lucky he was to find a diner with a working Wild Gunman machine in 2015. We'll be back with our regularly scheduled portable gaming coverage, but for now, let's talk light guns. If you'll allow us this brief side excursion, we recently were able to test out this system and felt that it would resonate enough with our readers to post about it here. And now for something completely different! The GUN4IR project is retro, and you technically hold it in your hand, but it's definitely not a retro handheld.

Arcade light gun