Luigi's Mansion Has A 4th Game That Most People Haven't Played

Normally, Nintendo inaugurates each new console with a Super Mario title. However, the company tried something different with the GameCube. Instead of launching its purple lunchbox of a console with a title starring the world's most popular red-capped plumber, Nintendo took a gamble on Mario's cowardly twin brother, Luigi. That gamble was called Luigi's Mansion, and it more than paid off.

While Nintendo has released fewer Luigi's Mansion games than you have fingers on one hand, each entry was well-received. The second game, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is one of the best games available on the 3DS, and Luigi's Mansion 3 is a great baby's first horror game that introduces younger audiences to survival horror-esque mechanics without scaring them (too much). However, Luigi's Mansion 3 holds a dark secret that you might not be aware of: The game is technically the fourth entry in the franchise. The true third Luigi's Mansion game is unlike any of the other entries out there, and you've probably never played it before.

If you want to learn about this mysterious Luigi's Mansion, you can put away your flashlight because we're about to shine some light on this game.

Light gun games are a common sight in arcades. It's easy to spend your afternoons (and hard-earned money) trying to clear these virtual shooting galleries. While one of the most popular light gun games is Sega's House of the Dead, Nintendo tried its own luck in the light gun arcade business with Luigi's Mansion Arcade.

Luigi's Mansion Arcade is an oversized arcade cabinet that leads players by the hand through haunted locations based on Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon. The game doesn't feature puzzles and is pure ghostbusting action. Unlike other light gun games where you fill enemies full of holes, Luigi's Mansion Arcade requires you to first stun ghosts by charging up your flashlight and shining it in their faces. Then you have to suck them with your Poltergust, and if you pull it in the opposite direction of where a ghost is fleeing, you can vacuum them up faster. The more ghosts you catch all at once — and the more coins you collect — the higher your score bonus. And if you're ever overwhelmed by ghosts, you can stun them all with a limited number of flash bombs.

Since Luigi's Mansion Arcade is an arcade cabinet, it's obviously only available in certain arcades. While the game officially launched stateside in 2017, Dave & Buster's patrons got a sneak peak of the game prior to its American release.