The Wild West, bounty hunters and ... ninjas? Grab your six shooter and cowboy boots, because we're about to get dirty when we ask the all-important question: Should Capcom reboot Gun.Smoke?


Once upon a time there was a TV series called Gunsmoke, featuring the old west exploits of Matt Dilon, Chester, Doc Adams and Miss Kitty. It spawned from a popular radio series, and stayed on the CBS lineup for twenty years. With 635 episodes, Gunsmoke is also the most prolific scripted TV series of all time. To put that into perspective, even after 26 seasons, The Simpsons are more than 60 episodes behind the old school western.

But forget everything I just said about Gunsmoke, because the classic TV show has nothing to do with the game we're talking about today. This is Gun.Smoke, Capcom's absurdly titled vertical shooter. While you may not hear the difference, this 1985 hit is spelled with a period separating the words "Gun" and "Smoke." Most companies would have gone with a slightly different name -- like Gun Fire or This Ain't Gunsmoke: A XXX Parody. But not Capcom. They stuck with that Gun.Smoke name until the end ... for some reason.

You play Billy Bob, a Wild West bounty hunter tracking down vicious criminals and collecting the rewards. It's a lot like Django Unchained, only without racism stuff. Billy Bob walks up the path shooting at bandits, criminals and Indians. Lots and lots of Indians. So yeah, maybe it's not completely without racism.

Billy Bob can fire in three directions -- to his right, his left and straight forward. While this may not sound like much, it actually opens up the gameplay in significant ways. It allowed the developers to create more interesting levels and obstacles you don't normally see in this style of game.

But as much as I love the setting and unique gameplay, I really don't want Capcom to focus any attention on Gun.Smoke. It's a fun game that is still worth revisiting, but the three button gimmick and western setting isn't enough of a hook to bring the series back. So instead of resurrecting Billy Bob, I welcome another developer to come up with a Wild West-themed dual stick shooter that embodies the spirit of the 1980s arcade scene. Only this time don't name it after the most popular television western of all time.