I always enjoyed this one, both as a rental and for some quick later play. But I'll admit it's been quite a few years since I played it now, and I don't think I ever finished it. It seems like the sort of game that would be more timeless if it had been an SNES title. I'm realizing I never played the arcade version, and I'm putting that on my list to check out.
As for the whole Native/Amerindian thing (I prefer "Amerindian", it's my quirk, but it's an unambiguous term unlike all the alternatives and is standard usage in many contexts):
I'm a few years older than you. In the mid-80s, I still remember singing "One little, two little, three little Indians" at my church preschool. I also remember a school play where we dressed up as braves with bows and arrows and feather headbands. My and my parents' best recollection is that it had something to do with Zechariah 9:13-14 with a bow and arrow metaphor. I've never found any information on it online so it must be something that someone at our church made up.
I don't know. I think the depiction of Amerindians as brave warriors or skilled woodsmen (e.g. in the Boy Scouts) is rather a different thing from minstrel shows, for example, which were mostly just jeering and mocking. There was a lot more respect embedded in it, which is why these depictions survived into the 1980s, when minstrelsy was deservedly long dead. To me, it feels like there's an erasure going on compared to my childhood, when Amerindians were depicted everywhere. Now, in an effort to avoid offense, we just don't talk about them. My kids still have no real idea what they are, when I was well-acquainted by my eldest's age in particular. But I'm not the type to go out of my way to cause offense here.
I will observe that Sunset Riders also had a level like this, but at the end the chief's sister steps in and intervenes to save her brother's life, saying something to the effect that he's not such a bad guy and was only following orders from the Big Bad, and your character spares his life (unlike the other bosses). So maybe that's the difference between 80s sensibilities and 90s sensibilities regarding the topic (at least as brought over from Japan).
Curious to how the arcade version plays also. Wonder if the level design is the same or more interesting.
Wow, I totally forgot about that Indians song, I remember that from somewhere as well. Not church though, I don't think.
Yeah I don't care for the erasure of Amerindians either, to use your term. It's almost like America at the moment has no idea how to discuss them so they just get forgotten, which is a shame.
At any rate, I do think fighting a Native boss called Devil Hawk feels more cringe in 2025 compared to 1988. I don't blame Capcom for it or think it should be censored or anything like that, but... still feels weird to me.
Ever since I saw that Game Sack video telling how this game really shines with an NES Advantage and the turbo feature on, I can't play it any other way. I get that it might seem off, but honestly, I honestly think rapid fire makes the game way more enjoyable.
I always enjoyed this one, both as a rental and for some quick later play. But I'll admit it's been quite a few years since I played it now, and I don't think I ever finished it. It seems like the sort of game that would be more timeless if it had been an SNES title. I'm realizing I never played the arcade version, and I'm putting that on my list to check out.
As for the whole Native/Amerindian thing (I prefer "Amerindian", it's my quirk, but it's an unambiguous term unlike all the alternatives and is standard usage in many contexts):
I'm a few years older than you. In the mid-80s, I still remember singing "One little, two little, three little Indians" at my church preschool. I also remember a school play where we dressed up as braves with bows and arrows and feather headbands. My and my parents' best recollection is that it had something to do with Zechariah 9:13-14 with a bow and arrow metaphor. I've never found any information on it online so it must be something that someone at our church made up.
I don't know. I think the depiction of Amerindians as brave warriors or skilled woodsmen (e.g. in the Boy Scouts) is rather a different thing from minstrel shows, for example, which were mostly just jeering and mocking. There was a lot more respect embedded in it, which is why these depictions survived into the 1980s, when minstrelsy was deservedly long dead. To me, it feels like there's an erasure going on compared to my childhood, when Amerindians were depicted everywhere. Now, in an effort to avoid offense, we just don't talk about them. My kids still have no real idea what they are, when I was well-acquainted by my eldest's age in particular. But I'm not the type to go out of my way to cause offense here.
I will observe that Sunset Riders also had a level like this, but at the end the chief's sister steps in and intervenes to save her brother's life, saying something to the effect that he's not such a bad guy and was only following orders from the Big Bad, and your character spares his life (unlike the other bosses). So maybe that's the difference between 80s sensibilities and 90s sensibilities regarding the topic (at least as brought over from Japan).
Curious to how the arcade version plays also. Wonder if the level design is the same or more interesting.
Wow, I totally forgot about that Indians song, I remember that from somewhere as well. Not church though, I don't think.
Yeah I don't care for the erasure of Amerindians either, to use your term. It's almost like America at the moment has no idea how to discuss them so they just get forgotten, which is a shame.
At any rate, I do think fighting a Native boss called Devil Hawk feels more cringe in 2025 compared to 1988. I don't blame Capcom for it or think it should be censored or anything like that, but... still feels weird to me.
I'm genuinely curious what an Old West smart bomb looks like 😂
I never played this, I didn't really get into the NES catalogue of games, but I enjoyed reading your review of it
Don't think I ever tried that one out, so me and you both, haha.
Thank you, Peter!
Ever since I saw that Game Sack video telling how this game really shines with an NES Advantage and the turbo feature on, I can't play it any other way. I get that it might seem off, but honestly, I honestly think rapid fire makes the game way more enjoyable.
Rapid fire with NES Advantage is indeed the best way to go!
Funny this game pops up, I was recently looking into the Master System version, it seems pretty solid by NES standards
They made Gun.Smoke on Master System?!
They did! It seems to be Japan only which I actually only just realised but it does indeed exist and it looks ludicrously bright red
Ohhhh ok, I looked into it a bit more and it’s unlicensed. That makes more sense.