Atari XG-1 Light Gun
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The Atari XG-1 light gun is a video game controller which was released in 1987. Atari's only
light gun A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games, typically shaped to resemble a pistol. Early history The first light guns were produced in the 1930s, following the development of light-sensi ...
, it is compatible with the
Atari 8-bit computers The Atari 8-bit computers, formally launched as the Atari Home Computer System, are a series of home computers introduced by Atari, Inc., in 1979 with the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The architecture is designed around the 8-bit MOS Technology 650 ...
,
Atari 7800 The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a home video game console officially released by Atari Corporation in 1986 as the successor to both the Atari 2600 and Atari 5200. It can run almost all Atari 2600 cartridges, making it the ...
, and
Atari 2600 The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS), it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridg ...
. It was bundled with the
Atari XEGS The Atari XE Video Game System (Atari XEGS) is an industrial redesign of the Atari 65XE home computer and the final model in the Atari 8-bit computer series. It was released by Atari Corporation in 1987 and marketed as a home video game console ...
Deluxe home computer and video game console combination system, and with the light gun game ''Bug Hunt'' for the 7800 as model XES2001 for . Atari eventually released five light gun games on the 7800 ('' Alien Brigade'', ''Barnyard Blaster'', ''
Crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an Elasticity (physics), elastic launching device consisting of a Bow and arrow, bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar f ...
'', ''Meltdown'', and ''
Sentinel Sentinel may refer to: Places Mountains * Mount Sentinel, a mountain next to the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana * Sentinel Buttress, a volcanic crag on James Ross Island, Antarctica * Sentinel Dome, a naturally occurring granit ...
'') and one on the 2600 (''Sentinel'').


Hardware

The XG-1 is a specialized
light pen A light pen is a computer input device in the form of a light-sensitive wand used in conjunction with a computer's cathode-ray tube (CRT) display. It allows the user to point to displayed objects or draw on the screen in a similar way to a to ...
. Generic light pen support was built into the Atari 8-bit home computers since its 1979 launch. The ''Atari 400/800 Hardware Technical Reference'' recommends a calibration procedure each time a light pen is used, so that the software can compensate for this offset for maximal accuracy. ''Bug Hunt'' and ''Barnyard Blaster'' for the XEGS each have unique hard-coded values. A reddish-orange version of the gun was planned for the 2600 and 7800 but was never released.


Games

''Sentinel'' is the only game released for the gun on the 2600 console, and ''Shooting Arcade'' was planned but never released.


Reception

For ''Antic'' magazine in August 1988, Matthew Ratcliff criticized the poor horizontal accuracy of the XG-1 light gun compared to the
NES Zapper The Zapper is an electronic light gun accessory launched within the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in North America on October 18, 1985. It is a cosmetic redesign by Nintendo of America's head designer Lance Barr, based on Gunpei Yokoi's , ...
or the Sega Light Phaser. In December 1988, he said that, to switch between light gun and joystick games, active XEGS gamers are frustrated by the need to continually re-plug their devices and power cycle the system, due to the system's lack of autodetection, which is complicated by its awkwardly downward slanting ports. He said "''Barnyard Blaster'' and ''Bug Hunt'' could have been just a bit smarter" by including the simple routine that the magazine was forced to write and publish as a workaround. In the August 1989 issue of ''A.N.A.L.O.G. Computing'' magazine, Matthew Ratcliff wrote a front page feature on programming the XG-1 in users' custom software, including his program allowing the light gun to be used to make menu selections. He gave the XG-1 a positive review, calling it an "exciting alternative to joysticks". He said it "has much more 'noise' in the horizontal direction than vertical" due to hardware limitations. The 2014 book ''Vintage Game Consoles'' also criticized its accuracy compared to Nintendo and Sega, but says it became collectible as Atari's only light gun.


See also

*
Atari 8-bit computer peripherals Atari 8-bit computer peripherals include floppy drives, printers, modems, and video game controllers for Atari 8-bit computers, which includes the 400/800, XL, XE, and XEGS. Because the Atari 400/800 8-bit computers were bundled with an RF modulat ...


References


External links


Atari XEGS Information
by ''Antic'' contributing editor Matthew Ratcliff
The Atari 8-Bit FAQ
{{Atari hardware Atari 8-bit computers Light guns