Hunting games like Cabela's Big Game Hunter (pictured at left) have found their niche among gamers in recent years. An entrepreneur in Texas, however, has pushed the virtual hunting envelope to its extreme, provoking outrage as well as a spate of legislation.

An article in the Los Angeles Times (registration required) describes how legislators in 15 states, including California, are drafting bills designed to prevent virtual hunting of live prey.

At the center of the controversy is Live-Shot, a website run by John Lockwood of San Antonio. Live-shot uses a webcam connected to a scoped hunting rifle to allow users to hunt game on a 300-acre ranch without leaving their easy chairs. Users pay $14.95 for a 30-day membership and $5.95 for each ten shots they fire.

According to the L.A. Times piece, Lockwood has managed to attract only two paying customers, but Live-shot has been a magnet for both publicity and outrage. When the service was profiled on NBC's Today, program earlier this year, co-host Matt Lauer could barely conceal his disgust. Politicians, journalists, and hunting advocates alike, are similarly inflamed.

In California Democratic State Senator Debra Bowen of Redondo Beach (left) has introduced legislation designed to prevent Californians from participating in or operating virtual hunting operations. As quoted in the L.A. Times, Bowen said:

"What happens if this technology gets expanded to other uses? It's actually pretty scary. What's the line between real life and a video game? It has all the video game feel: It's remote, it's disconnected from the reality of it, the hunter doesn't have to deal with any blood or wounding or tracking."

Despite the controversy, Live-shot, which has garnered neither support nor much business, seems determined to, um...stick to its guns.