 The Nintendo Super Scope (without its sight) | |
| Also known as | Nintendo Scope[1] |
|---|---|
| Developer | Nintendo |
| Manufacturer | Nintendo |
| Type | Video game console peripheral |
| Generation | Fourth generation |
| Released | 1992 |
| Discontinued | 1997 |
| Media | Input device |
TheSuper Scope[a] known as theNintendo Scope inEurope andAustralia, is alight gun peripheral created byNintendo for theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System. It is able to aim and fire at targets on a screen by connecting to a smallinfrared receiver module placed on top of the television. The peripheral was released in 1992 and packaged with the video gameSuper Scope 6. However, only twelve total games were compatible with the device, all released between 1992 and 1994.
The Super Scope is abazooka-shaped device, just under 2 ft (61 cm) long.[1] Unlike its predecessor, theNES Zapper, the Super Scope does not use a wired connection to the system and instead requires sixAA batteries for power.[1] Located about midway on top of the barrel are the "Fire" button, the "Pause" button, and the device's power switch, which can also be used to activate turbo fire.[2] In the middle on either side are two clips for attaching the sight.[2] At the far end of the gun, on the bottom, is a 6 in (15 cm) grip with another button labeled "Cursor"; holding this button and pressing "Fire" twice will reset any game to the title screen.[3]
On the end is the infrared receiver lens, approximately 1 inch (25 mm) in diameter, which picks up the light from a TV.[4] The sight mount is shaped like a wide, very shallow "U", about five inches long. The end that faces toward the shoulder mount end of the Super Scope has a round open cylinder holder, where the eyepiece goes. The other end has a short, narrow tube, which forms the sight when one looks through the eyepiece that is in-line across from it. The end of the eyepiece is very simple: it is a cylinder with the diameter of a quarter, with a removable rubber piece through which the shooter looks. The sight is designed so that the aim will be correct at a distance of 3 metres (10 ft). The sight can be positioned on the left or right side of the barrel to accommodate left or right handed play.[5]
The Super Scope comes packaged with a small infrared receiver module, 2.5 in × 2.5 in × 1 in (6.4 cm × 6.4 cm × 2.5 cm) in size, with a standardSuper NES controller cord attached. On the front is an oval-shaped black area, receding back from the two sides to an infrared transmitter about the size of adime. The receiver must be placed above the screen and connected to the system's second controller port for play.[3]
The Super Scope makes use of the scanning process used incathode-ray-tube monitors, as CRTs were the only widely used TV monitors until the early 2000s. On a CRT, the screen is drawn by a scanningelectron beam that travels horizontally across each line of the screen from top to bottom. A fastphotodiode will see any particular area of the screen illuminated only briefly as that point is scanned, while thehuman eye will see a consistent image due topersistence of vision.[1]
The Super Scope interprets this by outputting a0 signal when it sees the televisionraster scan and a1 signal when it does not. Inside the console, this signal is delivered to thePPU, which notes which screenpixel it is outputting at the moment the signal transitions from1 to0. At the end of theframe, the game software can retrieve this stored position to determine where on the screen the gun was aimed.[1] Most licensed Super Scope games include a calibration mode to account for both electrical delays and maladjustment of thegunsight.[4]
The Super Scope ignores red light, as do many guns of this type because redphosphors have a much slower rate of decay than green or blue phosphors.[4] Since the Super Scope depends on the short persistence and scan pattern of CRT pixels, it will not function with modern displays (such asplasma screens orLCDs) that continuously light each pixel.[1]
The Super Scope was released inNorth America and thePAL region in 1992, followed by a limited release in Japan in 1993.[2][6] The peripheral came bundled with the video gameSuper Scope 6, which was created to demonstrate the device's functionality.[2]
Only 12 games were released that feature Super Scope compatibility, half of which require the accessory for play.[2] Certain games released after the Super Scope—such asYoshi's Island andKirby Super Star—display a warning message indicating that the game is incompatible if it detects the receiver is plugged in.[7]
| Title | Year | Publisher | Required | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battle Clash | 1992 | Nintendo | Yes | |
| Bazooka Blitzkrieg | 1992 | Bandai | Yes | |
| The Hunt for Red October | 1993 | Hi-Tech Expressions, Inc. | No | Only used for bonus games[2] |
| Lamborghini American Challenge | 1993 | Titus France | No | Features an optional Super Scope-exclusive mode[2] |
| Lemmings 2: The Tribes | 1994 | Psygnosis | No | A secreteaster egg allows the Super Scope to destroy lemmings[2] |
| Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge | 1993 | Nintendo | Yes | |
| Operation Thunderbolt | 1994 | Taito | No | Also compatible with a standard controller or theSuper NES Mouse[2] |
| Super Scope 6 | 1992 | Nintendo | Yes | Packaged with the Super Scope[2] |
| T2: The Arcade Game | 1993 | Acclaim Entertainment | No | Also compatible with a standard controller or the Super NES Mouse[2] |
| Tin Star | 1994 | Nintendo | No | Also compatible with a standard controller or the Super NES Mouse[2] |
| X-Zone | 1993 | Kemco | Yes | |
| Yoshi's Safari | 1993 | Nintendo | Yes |
Mario & Wario was also planned to support the accessory, but this was dropped before release.[8]
In response to the Super Scope, Sega would release their own light gun peripheral for theSega Genesis, theMenacer, later the same year.[9]
A Super Scope was used as aprop in thelive-actionSuper Mario Bros. film (1993), representing King Koopa's "Devo gun". Images from the film were used to promote the Super Scope's 1993 release in Japan.[6][10] In the 2026 animated filmThe Super Mario Galaxy Movie,Yoshi is seen wielding a blue Super Scope.[11]
During the1993–94 United States Senate hearings on video games, SenatorJoe Lieberman used the Super Scope as evidence of video games promoting violence among children, citing the peripheral's resemblance to a real assault weapon.[12]
The Super Scope has made cameo appearances in other Nintendo games, including as a recurring item in theSuper Smash Bros. series beginning withSuper Smash Bros. Melee (2001),[13][14][15][16] as a microgame element in theWarioWare series,[6] and as the visual inspiration for the S-BLAST weapons inSplatoon 3 (2022).[17][18]
In 2020, a hobbyist developer created a hardware mod to allow the Super Scope to be used with modern televisions.[19]
