Better than the Zapper: Nyko's Perfect Shot

Filed in archive Peripherals on May 10, 2008

Image from Amazon.com

Nintendo's Zapper is OK, but let's face it: there are many who hate the peripheral. It isn't bad in the context of something you get with Link's Crossbow Training in a $20 package, but it has the following flaws, which I present in order of importance:

1. It does not look like a gun.
It looks.... sort of like a shotgun? Or a crossbow maybe? In any case, you don't feel "cool" while using this, or as cool as you should, which for a plastic shell is really where its usefullness lies.

2. The trigger does not have a spring.
Hence, the trigger on Nintendo's Zapper feels mushy and not like you'd expect.

There are many third party gun shells that address this issue, but perhaps the best is Nyko's perfect shot. As you can see, it looks great, with a realistic gun shape that uses the Wii's color scheme. The trigger has a spring, so it feels sturdy, like a gun trigger should feel.

It also has a sight on it, so for games that use calibration for cursorless aiming, such as Ghost Squad, you can shoot more accurately. The nunchuk is not held in the gun like the Zapper, but I actually like Nyko's solution better: the nunchuk plugs into the end of the handle, and you hold it in your other hand.

I play tested this with Umbrella Chronicles, and it felt great to use. I found myself "twirling" the gun much like Robocop, and in the end, this is what a cheap plastic shell is supposed to do; make you feel "in the game." I liked the Wii Zapper, but Nyko's Perfect Shot is not only something you can pick up (for beween $10-15 bucks in most places) for an extra gun shell for multiplayer, but it'll be the gun you use, while your visitor is "made" to use the Zapper!

The Perfect Shot on Amazon.com.