<iframe title="How the Nintendo Zapper worked in Slow Motion - The Slow Mo Guys" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V6XnSvB34y8?feature=oembed" height="113" width="200" style="aspect-ratio: 1.76991 / 1; width: 100%; height: 100%;" allowfullscreen="" allow="fullscreen"></iframe> **Duration:** 5:24 **Language:** **Complexity:** **Topics:** # šŸ“’ Personal Notes --- date: 2024-03-20 --- # YouTube ![]() ## Description: -> [Youtube video Link](https://www.youtube.com/embed/V6XnSvB34y8) ## Summary: ### Simple Description The video is a detailed exploration of how the Nintendo Zapper, a gaming peripheral for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), works, especially when used with the game Duck Hunt. It employs slow-motion footage to visually explain the technology and logic behind the Zapper's ability to accurately determine where it's pointed on the screen without requiring any additional equipment. ### Main Key Points - The Nintendo Zapper was a peripheral for the NES, compatible with games like Duck Hunt from 1984. - It could detect where it was aimed on the screen using only the gun itself, thanks to a clever use of light and timing. - The video demonstrates, using slow-motion footage, how TVs of that era (CRTs) drew images on the screen line by line from top to bottom, and how this relates to the Zapper's functionality. - When the Zapper's trigger is pulled, the console sends a signal that causes a white box to briefly appear around the target (like a duck in Duck Hunt), which the Zapper detects. - This detection is based on the Zapper sensing a specific sequence: a complete frame of black followed by a frame with a white box where the target was located. - The video reveals that the Zapper isn't actually emitting anything but is a receiver looking for a specific light pattern emitted by the TV. - For menu navigation, the Zapper uses the same detection method, flashing the entire screen to make selections. - The video concludes by praising the ingenious design of the Zapper, which made it compatible with nearly every TV available at the time, emphasizing the remarkable engineering behind its operation. ### Topics and Themes - Technology - Gaming