My wife is not an avid gamer, but she likes her House of the Dead III zombie shoot ‘em up. I’m not either, really, but I have an XBox all the same, and when I play, I’d prefer to play on my 52 inch TV rather than the 27 inch. After all, what’s the point of spending the money on a big screen if I’m not going to get the most out of it that I can? When we found out that House of the Dead III was available for XBox, we sought out to buy the game (used on Amazon) and a light gun to shoot with. If my baby wants to shoot some zombies, I’m gonna line ‘em up and hand her the gun. Sometimes, though, the gremlins sneak in and ruin it for us.

The first purchase (boring details)
First, I purchased a used light gun on Amazon, through a third party seller. It never showed up. I wish I had seen the Re Sell It’s horrible feedback rating before I purchased. After waiting almost a month and contacting the seller with no response, I let Amazon know that I wished they didn’t let people with that kind of selling reputation sell there. Or maybe have a red flag pop up before I buy. In any case, I filed my claim and moved on.

The second purchase (boring details)
After wasting my time with that one, my wife suggested that we get TWO light guns. This makes sense. Sometimes I don’t know where my head is. Advice noted, I ordered two new Game Elements light guns. This time, I was careful to choose a reputable seller, Classic Game Source Inc.. I don’t know if they respond to customer queries, but that’s because I didn’t have the need to make one. Shipping wasn’t lightning quick, but I had them in a week, which is quick enough.

Remove the Head. Destroy the Brain
Writing this, I’m reminded of Zombie Girl‘s song, GO ZOMBIE, which I am now listening to as I write. In the lyrics, she sings, “Remove the head. Destroy the brain.” That, my friends, is much easier said than done when you’re in the middle of a pack of zombies and your aim is all over the place, despite calibrating the light guns. My best guess is that my TV is simply not responsive to the light gun as it should be. We moved the whole shabang into the other room and played on the 27 inch, where zombies did, indeed, fall to the incredible aim and natural zombie-killing instincts my wife was throwing around.

Watch out zombies. We’re armed (and calibrated).