“FROM LARA CROFT to survival games aplenty, bows have become a staple in modern action titles. But in this Japanese indie game, the bow is everything.

Assistant professor Masasuke Yasumoto Ph.D. from the Kanagawa Institute of Technology has created what he calls the “Electric Bow Interface.” The device is self contained: a projector displays the game image on an surface, a sensor tracks the player’s movement, and a tiny PC inside runs the whole thing.

“The system can detect all-around, like a head-mounted display, but I dislike head-mounted display,” Dr. Yasumoto told WIRED. “It gives me a headache so it’s not good. But I want immersive content, so I used this projector for projection mapping and for games.”

The game on display at the Tokyo Game Show this weekend, also made by Dr. Yasumoto, is a simple target practice demo. He says his real pet project is a horror game called Shadow Shooter, but to play it more room is required so the player can view in all directions.

Dr. Yasumoto hopes to “commercialize” both his device and his game in the future, though it seems some Tokyo Game Show attendees don’t want to wait.

“Some people want to buy this [bow] but this is only a prototype,” he said, laughing.”