Project Horned Owl

• Title — Project: Horned Owl • Developer — Alfa System • Publisher — Sony Computer Entertainment • Artist — Masamune Shirow • Platforms — PlayStation • Genre — Light gun shooter • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer Project: Horned Owl is a light gun shooter video game developed by Alfa System and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation. Sony’s Japan Studio assisted on development while Movic provided anime cinematics for the game. The game was released in Japan in 1995, and in North America in 1996. It features character designs by manga artist Masamune Shirow. The game was a stylistic predecessor to Elemental Gearbolt, also developed by Alfa System.

• Illustration — Project Horned Owl screenshot. Project: Horned Owl is an arcade-style rail shooter, with the action taking place in a first-person perspective. The events of the game take place in the somewhat futuristic Metro City, where the player controls one of two Horned Owl Armored Mechanized Unit police officers, Hiro Utsumi or Nash Stolar, as they attempt to take down a terrorist organization known as Metalica. It has the option of utilizing the PlayStation mouse or the Konami light gun. There is a two player co-op as well as single-player mode, both taking place across five city-based levels, where the player controls a giant mech and fights off a variety of mechanized enemies. At the conclusion of each stage there is generally an anime cutscene.