Gun Fight is notable for being the first Japanese arcade game to be exported to the United States, and also the first to use microprocessors instead of circuits. It was originally developed by Japanese video game manufacturer Taito, who licensed Midway to release it in the U.S. Midway consultant Dave Nutting- brother of Bill Nutting of Nutting Associates and Computer Space fame- improved the game by using new microprocessor technology. Gun Fight quickly became Midway's first great success in the video game industry.
The two-player game is based on a shoot-out between two cowboys from the Wild West. Players use one joystick to control their cowboy and another to control the gun. As the cowboys duel, additional obstacles, such as cacti and stagecoaches, appear between them.
Gun Fight opened the American market to Japanese video game companies. Midway and Taito continued working together until Taito began its own U.S. division in 1979. Gun Fight also introduced the video game industry to the use of microprocessor chips thereby initiating an overall improvement in graphics.