While there were no gaming consoles in the early 1900s, there were moving pictures and, of course, plenty of guns to kickstart one of the world’s first video game scenario.
Imagine it. You step into a small movie theater, pick up a gun of your choice, and begin shooting bullets at the screen.
Here’s one description of these early shooting galleries turned gamer’s delight:
“The marksman takes his place before a screen, upon which suddenly appears a figure approaching with a gun. From time to time the man in the picture lifts his gun to his shoulder and fires point blank at the marksman. In this fashion, he approaches yard by yard, until he is almost on top of the marksman.”
As the filmed figure approaches the gamer, the gamer takes aim and fires back at the screen. It is almost like playing Halo live, and probably more fun because you are shooting an actual gun.
Incidentally, it was also suggested in 1909 that:
“platoon target practice could be furnished in this way [shooting at moving pictures], troops being portrayed approaching, forming and firing. It has even been further suggested that real wars could be fought out in this fashion, pictures of the forces of the enemy being set before the soldiers on each side as targets. The targets’ record would indicate the imaginary morality on either side. These could be exchanged and the results of the battles determined in this way, rather than by the exchange of shots between living forces.”
Imagine that. A war fought without bloodshed while using technology?
The article mentioned above was published in the New York Tribune. You can read the full article here.
