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Blasting zombies with a light gun never gets old! Sega’s House of the Dead tore up arcades in 1996, and its Saturn port brought all the gory action home two years later. The visuals took a major hit, but the gameplay and design were mostly unscathed, offering a solid and fun light gun title that’s worth checking out.
The Saturn debuted with few titles, among them the 2.5D platformer Clockwork Knight. While it had some impressive effects, it didn’t really do much to bring the genre into the “next generation” of hardware. It’s not a bad game, but it’s not exceptional either.
Sega set a new benchmark for light gun games in 1995 with Virtua Cop 2. Improving on almost everything that made the original game so great, the sequel came locked and loaded to the Saturn, giving players one of the signature titles in the genre. If you own a Saturn, this one needs to be on your shelf.
Tomb Raider was conceived on the Saturn but found its niche on Sony’s PlayStation. Lara Croft went on to practically become the machine’s go-to character. Even so, the Saturn version is still highly playable and worth owning. It might not be as visually impressive, but its gameplay still holds up despite its flaws.
The Saturn sports some great arcade conversions, and one of the best is Virtua Cop. It can be an exhilarating experience when played with the Stunner light gun, and anyone with the console needs to have this one in their library. A great port of a great game!