Duck Hunt

ダックハント (Dakku Hanto)NES, Arcade, Wii U1984

  1. JP1984
  2. NA1984
  3. EU1987
  4. RUDendy

Duck Hunt kept its name everywhere (ダックハント in Japan), and its arcade version was called Vs. Duck Hunt. The game was last sold digitally on the Wii U Virtual Console, where it uses the Wii Remote instead of the Zapper, but Wii U eShop sales ended on 27 March 2023 and no current store release is listed.

Duck Hunt is a light-gun game developed by Nintendo R&D1 and Intelligent Systems. It went on sale for the Famicom in Japan on 21 April 1984 at 3,800 yen, and in North America it was an NES launch title. The game was directed by Shigeru Miyamoto and produced by Gunpei Yokoi, with music by Hirokazu Tanaka. It grew out of Beam Gun: Duck Hunt, a 1976 Nintendo light-gun toy designed by Yokoi and Masayuki Uemura.

Game A shows one duck at a time, Game B shows two, and Game C replaces the ducks with clay pigeons; in Game A a second player can steer the duck with a controller. After Round 99 the game rolls over to a glitchy 'Round 0' kill screen. The gun registers a hit by detecting a change in brightness after the screen flashes, which is why the original Zapper needs an old CRT television. In North America the game was sold on the 'Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt' combo cartridge in the NES Action Set and with World Class Track Meet in the Power Set.

The dog and duck later became a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and returned in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Russian players remember it mostly for the dog that laughed at every miss.1234

Names and releases

RegionTitle on the boxPlatformDatePublisherSrc
NA Vs. Duck HuntNintendo VS. System; later also part of PlayChoice-10 Arcade April 1984 Nintendo 2
NA Duck HuntNES launch title; later sold in Zapper bundles (Deluxe Set, Action Set, Power Set) NES Oct 18, 1985 NintendoNES-DH-USA 2
NA Duck HuntVirtual Console; uses the Wii Remote instead of the Zapper Wii U Dec 25, 2014 Nintendo 2
JP ダックハントDakku HantoFamicom; retail price 3,800 yen NES Apr 21, 1984 NintendoHVC-DH 1
EU Duck HuntSpain had its own NES-DH-ESP release (serials per arcade-history.com) NES Aug 15, 1987 NintendoNES-DH-EEC 2
EU Vs. Duck Hunt Arcade 1987 Nintendo 2
JP ダックハントVirtual Console; uses the Wii Remote instead of the Zapper Wii U Dec 24, 2014 Nintendo 2
EU Duck HuntVirtual Console; Wii U eShop sales ended 27 March 2023 Wii U Dec 25, 2014 Nintendo 5

Also known as: ダックハント JP6Dakku Hanto JP6Vs. Duck Hunt NA2Утиная охота RU3Утиный тир RU4Охота на уток RU4

Box art by region

  • Duck Hunt box art, North America release
    NA Duck Hunt

Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.

Version differences

  • ContentVs. Duck Hunt (arcade)NES/Famicom

    Only the arcade Vs. Duck Hunt lets players shoot the laughing dog during the bonus round. On the home versions the dog cannot be hit, a choice made to keep the game family-friendly.2

  • GameplayPlayChoice-10

    The PlayChoice-10 arcade version alternates rounds of Game B (two ducks) and Game C (clay pigeons), uses 12 targets per round, can launch three targets at once and takes a life for every miss.2

  • GameplayWii U Virtual Console

    The Wii U Virtual Console release replaces the NES Zapper with the Wii Remote pointer, because the original light gun does not work on modern TVs.2

Reception

Duck Hunt sold about 28 million copies worldwide, largely thanks to bundles with the NES and the Zapper. IGN placed it 77th in its Top 100 NES Games, and Nintendo Power ranked it the 150th best game on a Nintendo system.2

In lists

Sources

  1. 1arcade-history.com
  2. 2en.wikipedia.org
  3. 3techinsider.ru
  4. 4life.ru
  5. 5nintendo.com
  6. 6nindb.net
  7. 7ja.wikipedia.org
  8. 8ja.wikipedia.org
  9. 9ja.wikipedia.org

Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13

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