WAmerican Laser Games was a company based in Albuquerque, New Mexico that created numerous light gun laserdisc video games featuring live action full motion video. The company was founded in the late 1980s by Robert Grebe, who had originally created a system to train police officers under the company name ICAT and later adapted the technology for arcade games. Its first hit game was Mad Dog McCree, a light gun shooter set in the American Old West. By mid-1995 they were recognized as the leading company in the medium of laserdisc-based arcade games. Almost all arcade games released by the company were light gun shooters and a number of them also had an Old West theme.
WAstron Belt (アストロンベルト) is a laserdisc video game in the form of a third-person, space combat rail shooter, released in arcades in 1983 by Sega in Japan, and licensed to Bally Midway for release in North America. Developed in 1982, it was the first major arcade laserdisc video game. The game combines full-motion video (FMV) footage from the laserdisc with real-time 2D graphics. The arcade game was available in both upright and cockpit arcade cabinets, with the latter having illuminated buttons on the control panel, a larger 25" monitor, and a force feedback vibrating seat.
WAttack of the Zolgear is an arcade game for one to six players released by Namco. It is a sequel to Galaxian 3. This game used two LaserDisc players simultaneously for the outer space background, while computer generated graphics were overlaid on top.
WBadlands (バッドランズ) is a 1984 LaserDisc video game developed and published for the arcades by Konami. In the vein of interactive movie games like Wild Gunman, Dragon's Lair, and Cliff Hanger, Badlands lets its players navigate through various animated sequences by pressing a single button at a precise moment. Since the game is themed as an old West shooter, the function of the button is almost always the fire the main character's gun to fend off against attackers. If the player shoots too soon, he will be hanged for murder. Failing to fire in time, however, will result in being killed by the attack. As the player progresses, the timing becomes more precise. The game was very particular about firing at the right time, which made it very difficult and often unplayable. At one point Buck must shoot a snake and fire at the snake at the exact second to succeed. It is even possible for Buck to shoot himself in sequences where it shows him. Distributed by Centuri in the U.S., it was Konami's only laserdisc game.
WGenma Wars is a Japanese science fiction manga and novel franchise that began in 1967. It was a collaboration in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by science fiction writer Kazumasa Hirai and manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. It was adapted into a 1983 anime film, a 2002 anime television series, and a 1983 laserdisc video game called Bega's Battle in North America.
WCliff Hanger is a laserdisc video game that was released by Stern Electronics in 1983. It is an interactive movie which requires the player to press a button or move the joystick in a particular direction when prompted by the game to progress the storyline.
WCobra Command, known as Thunder Storm (サンダーストーム) in Japan, is an interactive movie originally released by Data East in 1984 as a LaserDisc-based arcade game. A Mega-CD port of Cobra Command developed by Wolf Team was released in 1992.
WCrime Patrol is a live-action LaserDisc video game released by American Laser Games in 1993. American Laser Games released a sequel, Crime Patrol 2: Drug Wars later that year.
WCrime Patrol 2: Drug Wars is a live-action laserdisc video game, released by American Laser Games in 1993. It was ported to the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and CD-i. It is the sequel to the arcade game Crime Patrol, with very similar gameplay, objectives and scenery. The game was re-released by Digital Leisure in 2002.
WCube Quest is a shoot 'em up arcade laserdisc game by American company Simutrek released in 1983. It was primarily designed and programmed by Paul Allen Newell, who previously wrote some Atari 2600 games. It was introduced at Tokyo's Amusement Machine Show in September 1983 and then the AMOA show the following month, before releasing in North America in December 1983.
WDragon's Lair is a video game franchise created by Rick Dyer and Don Bluth. The series is famous for its Western animation-style graphics and convoluted decades-long history of being ported to many platforms and being remade into television and comic book series.
WDragon's Lair is an interactive film LaserDisc video game developed by Advanced Microcomputer Systems and published by Cinematronics in 1983, as the first game in the Dragon's Lair series. In the game, the protagonist Dirk the Daring is a knight attempting to rescue Princess Daphne from the evil dragon Singe who has locked the princess in the foul wizard Mordroc's castle. It featured animation by ex-Disney animator Don Bluth.
WDragon's Lair II: Time Warp is a 1991 laserdisc video game by the Leland Corporation. It is the first true sequel to Dragon's Lair. As with the original, Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp consists of an animated short film that requires the player to move the joystick or press a fire button at certain times in order to continue. It takes place years after the original Dragon's Lair. Dirk has married Daphne, and the marriage has produced many children. When Daphne is kidnapped by the evil wizard Mordroc in order to be forced into marriage, Dirk's children and his mother-in-law are clearly upset by the abduction of Daphne, and Dirk must once again save her.
WFast Draw Showdown is a live-action laserdisc video game, released by American Laser Games in 1994 for a limited number of platforms. As one of the last live-action rail shooters released by the company, which began the series with Mad Dog McCree, it is also arguably the shortest. The game was filmed entirely in at the Old Tucson Studios near Tucson, Arizona, with sets used for several notable films belonging to the Western genre.
WGalaxian3: Project Dragoon is a 3D rail shooter video game developed and published by Namco. It was originally a theme park attraction designed for the International Garden and Greenery Exposition in Japan, and was later released as an arcade game in 1992. The game involves players controlling a starship named the Dragoon in its mission to destroy Cannon Seed, a superweapon set to destroy what is left of the human race.
WThe LaserActive is a converged device and fourth-generation home video game console capable of playing Laserdiscs, Compact Discs, console games, and LD-G karaoke discs. It was released by Pioneer Corporation in 1993. In addition to LaserActive games, separately sold add-on modules accept Mega Drive/Genesis and PC Engine/TurboGrafx 16 ROM cartridges and CD-ROMs.
WThe Last Bounty Hunter is a live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games in 1994. Like almost all of the games produced by the now-defunct company, it is a rail shooter and, like the two installments in the Mad Dog McCree series before it, is set in the Old West. Filmed at Old Tucson Studios in Tucson, Arizona, it was one of the company's last releases before it was forced to close down. It was re-released by Digital Leisure in 2002 and was eventually packaged with Fast Draw Showdown by Global VR as an arcade cabinet under the name Six Gun Select.
WM.A.C.H. 3 is a shoot 'em up LaserDisc video game developed by Gottlieb and released for US arcades in 1983 under their Mylstar brand. The player controls a high-speed fighter aircraft in one of two missions: either a "Fighter Raid" seen flying forward at low altitude or "Bombing Run" seen in a top-down mode. Video backgrounds from the LaserDisc are overlaid by computer graphics. The title refers both to the speed of sound and is an acronym for "Military Air Command Hunter". It was released in Japan by Taito.
WMad Dog II: The Lost Gold is a live-action laserdisc video game produced by American Laser Games, released for the arcade, Sega CD, 3DO, CD-i and DOS, the first release being in 1992; the quality of the video is the lowest on Sega CD. A sequel to the moderately popular Mad Dog McCree, the game abandoned the rather simple style of the original, introducing elements that can be considered "Hollywood", including dynamic shootout scenes and in-game music, as opposed to the original's almost complete lack thereof. Like the first game, the player follows the storyline and is required to quickly shoot certain enemies to proceed on the quest. The game was re-released by Digital Leisure in 2003 on DVD-Video and again in 2009 on the Wii as part of the Mad Dog McCree Gunslinger Pack, a compilation that also includes the first Mad Dog game as well as The Last Bounty Hunter.
WMad Dog McCree is the first live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games. It originally appeared as an arcade game in 1990.
WNinja Hayate (忍者ハヤテ) is a 1984 laserdisc video game first developed and released by Taito and Malone Films for arcades in Japan and the United States. The game was later ported to the Sega CD video game console as Revenge of the Ninja in 1994.
WRoad Blaster (ロードブラスター) is an interactive movie video game developed by Data East featuring animation by Toei Animation, originally released exclusively in Japan as a laserdisc-based arcade game in 1985. The player assumes the role of a vigilante who must avenge the death of his wife by pursuing the biker gang responsible for her death in a modified sports car. The game would later be ported to a variety of home formats such as the MSX and Sharp X1, Sega CD, LaserActive, PlayStation and Sega Saturn. The Sega CD and Mega-LD versions were released in the west under titles of Road Avenger and Road Prosecutor respectively.
WSega is a video game developer, publisher, and hardware development company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, with multiple offices around the world. The company's involvement in the arcade game industry began as a Japan based distributor of coin-operated machines, including pinball games and jukeboxes. Sega imported second-hand machines that required frequent maintenance. This necessitated the construction of replacement guns, flippers and other parts for the machines. According to former Sega director Akira Nagai, this is what led to the company into developing their own games. Sega released Pong-Tron, its first video-based game, in 1973. The company prospered from the arcade game boom of the late 1970s, with revenues climbing to over US$100 million by 1979. Nagai has stated that Hang-On and Out Run helped to pull the arcade game market out of the 1983 downturn and created new genres of video games.
WSpace Ace is a LaserDisc video game produced by Bluth Group, Cinematronics and Advanced Microcomputer Systems. It was unveiled in October 1983, just four months after the Dragon's Lair game, then released in spring 1984 and, like its predecessor, featured film-quality animation played back from a LaserDisc.
WSpace Pirates is a live-action LaserDisc video game, released by American Laser Games for the arcade in 1992 and ported to MS-DOS computers in 1994 and the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer in 1995. The game was re-released for several platforms by Digital Leisure around 2003, with updated sound and video, among other American Laser Games titles.
WStar Rider is a racing LaserDisc video game developed by Computer Creations and Williams Electronics, and released for arcades in 1983. The object of the game is to win a futuristic motorcycle race that takes place in surrealistic settings. The tracks themselves and the background graphics are video played from a laserdisc, and are of higher quality than possible with real-time computer graphics at the time. The foreground graphics and racers are superimposed on the video. Star Rider has a rear view mirror—possibly the first racing game with one —which warns of opponents approaching from behind.
WSuper Don Quix-ote (スーパードンキホーテ) is an arcade laserdisc video game released by Universal in 1984. In it, the player controls the knight Don as he attempts to rescue a princess from an evil witch.
WThayer's Quest is a LaserDisc video game initially developed by RDI Video Systems in 1984 for their unreleased Halcyon console, and later released in arcades as a conversion kit for Dragon's Lair and Space Ace. In 1995 it was ported to home consoles and PC under the title Kingdom: The Far Reaches. The arcade machine had a membrane keypad for controls instead of a joystick. To help players learn the daunting—for an arcade game—controls, a small holder containing instructional leaflets was attached to the cabinet. A sequel, Kingdom II: Shadoan, was released in 1996.
WTime Gal is an interactive movie video game developed and published by Taito and Toei Company, and originally released in Japan for the arcades in 1985. It is an action game which uses full motion video (FMV) to display the on-screen action. The player must correctly choose the on-screen character's actions to progress the story. The pre-recorded animation for the game was produced by Toei Animation.