# Best 2D scrolling shooter? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [February 7, 2009, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810 "2009-02-07T16:07:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Buran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Buran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buran)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2009, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/1 "2009-02-07T16:07:20Z")
My console experience ends with the Sega Megadrive _(Oh, all right, Genesis)_ but I remember that seemingly every other game was a side-scrolling or top-down scrolling shooter and I was wondering what everyone thinks was the best of that genre. Although R-Type _(+ points for coolest name ever)_ was generally considered the epitome of the genre and I really liked it I personally always preferred Gradius. I felt that the latter had better weapons, a better power-up system, better level design and was more reliant on skill than luck. And there are few feelings more satisfying in gaming than vapourising an enemy with concentrated five-option laser firepower. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f19dbf/32.png) [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2009, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/2 "2009-02-07T16:15:29Z")
If you don’t just mean the “in a spaceship with wave after wave of enemies coming after you” variation on the theme, then the NES **Contra** game (presumably the arcade version, too) had a few scrolling levels that really made the game that much more amazing. “Waterfall” is a classic in level design, having a forced vertical scroll that requires your fighter to keep pushing up, shooting all along the way. ---
**Author:** ![Commander\_Keen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@Commander\_Keen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Commander_Keen)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2009, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/3 "2009-02-07T22:27:44Z")
My favorite vertical-scrolling shmups are [the Raiden Fighters series](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raiden_Fighters_(series)) and [Radiant Silvergun](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiant_Silvergun), and my favorite side-scrolling run & gun platformer is [Gunstar Heroes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunstar_Heroes). For a more free-roaming, move & shoot in separate directions type game (think Robotron or Smash TV), I really like [Bangai-O](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangai-O). Really, it’s hard to go wrong with anything made by Treasure. ---
**Author:** ![Panurge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/fbc32d/32.png) [@Panurge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Panurge)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2009, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/4 "2009-02-08T10:39:22Z")
[Blood Money](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Money_(computer_game)) from Psygnosis was pretty good, but I preferred Team 17’s [Project X](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project-X) - that was a _great_ shoot-em-up. Earlier there was [1942](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942_(video_game)) and the sequels. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2009, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/5 "2009-02-08T14:49:28Z")
**Contra III: The Alien Wars** is the hands down correct answer. Nothing else comes close. **Gradius** and its sequels were probably the best horizontally scrolling shooters. **Ikaruga** is probably my favorite vertically scrolling shooter. Although **1942/1943** were also great fun. If you’re looking for a more modern scrolling shooter, I’d recommend **Heavy Weapon** for the Xbox Live Arcade. It’s fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Robin\_Goodfellow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Robin\_Goodfellow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robin_Goodfellow)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/6 "2009-02-09T03:39:20Z")
[Ikaruga](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGNSdcy-apU). No contest. ---
**Author:** ![Commander\_Keen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@Commander\_Keen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Commander_Keen)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/7 "2009-02-09T04:46:49Z")
Also if you have good reflexes and an even better memory, there’s always [Mushihime-sama](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQZuidKexBQ) 😉 ---
**Author:** ![tds1273](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df705f/32.png) [@tds1273](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tds1273)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/8 "2009-02-09T23:25:59Z")
2.5-D count? If so then I nominate [Einhander](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einh%C3%A4nder)for the PS1. The action and music were intense and the graphics, especially at that time, were just superb. One of my favorite games for the PS1. > [@](#): > > The game’s graphics are in “2.5D”; that is in 3D with occasional shifting of camera angles, but with player’s movement restricted to a two-dimensional plane. The Raiden games were awesome. What was the game from the Arcade and 16-bit generation that took place in the Wild West? You could pick from, I think 4 different cowboys as a character. The first level was walking(side-scrolling) through a town and the boss would bounce back and forth from the first and second floors of the saloon. There were then first-person shooting levels; sort of like Shinobi. Vague enough? It was a pretty fun game though. ---
**Author:** ![Claptree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Claptree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claptree)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/9 "2009-02-09T23:50:59Z")
I am very fond of the old [Flashback](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashback:_The_Quest_for_Identity) game. I only played it on the Amiga, and never got very far, but I could toy with the animations for hours. Very cool game. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/10 "2009-02-10T00:25:56Z")
> [@tds1273](#): > > What was the game from the Arcade and 16-bit generation that took place in the Wild West? You could pick from, I think 4 different cowboys as a character. The first level was walking(side-scrolling) through a town and the boss would bounce back and forth from the first and second floors of the saloon. There were then first-person shooting levels; sort of like Shinobi. Vague enough? It was a pretty fun game though. It took me a minute, but the title came to me. Sunset Riders. You’re right, it was a good game. > **[Sunset Riders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_Riders)** > > Sunset Riders\[a\] is a 1991 run and gun video game developed and published by Konami for arcades. It was released in North America in October 1991 and Japan in November 1991. It is set in the American Old West, where the player(s) take control of bounty hunters who are seeking the rewards offered for various criminals. > The arcade version was released in two variants: a two-player version and a four-player version. Home console versions of Sunset Riders were released for the Mega Drive/Genesis in ... ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/11 "2009-02-10T00:43:42Z")
Nothing can touch Contra for me. The original NES Contra. ---
**Author:** ![rayh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@rayh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rayh)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/12 "2009-02-10T01:09:18Z")
> [@Claptree](#): > > I am very fond of the old [Flashback](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashback:_The_Quest_for_Identity) game. I only played it on the Amiga, and never got very far, but I could toy with the animations for hours. Very cool game. From **[Abandonia.com](http://Abandonia.com)** - [Flashback CD Version](http://abandonia.com/en/games/823/Flashback+CD+version.html) featuring new cinematics with better music and digitized speech. Instructions on running it with DosBox [here](http://www.glennsguides.com/2008/03/flashback-pc-game-free-download-install.html). In a similar vein was [Prince of Persia](http://abandonia.com/en/games/10/Prince+of+Persia.html). Alternatively try [Console Classix](http://www.consoleclassix.com/) - classic console games on your pc. A free account will give you access to hundreds of Nintendo (NES), Atari 2600 and Colecovision games. Full membership gives you access to classic games for the Super Nintendo (SNES), Sega Genesis, Gameboy Color, Sega Game Gear and Sega Master System. ---
**Author:** ![tds1273](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df705f/32.png) [@tds1273](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tds1273)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/13 "2009-02-10T02:12:11Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > It took me a minute, but the title came to me. Sunset Riders. You’re right, it was a good game. > > [Sunset Riders - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_Riders) Thanks, that’s the one I was thinking of. It was a fun one. Though as it turns out, it was only one of the one’s I was thinking of. I didn’t see anything about the first person shooting levels I was of so I did a little bit of looking and found that it was actually third person, and not just one level but the entire game. [Blood Bros](http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=blood-bros.&page=detail&id=291). Dropped a lot of quarters into that one too. Do light gun games count in here? The [Point Blank](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_Blank_(arcade_game))series were good times. Sometimes terribly frustrating, and utter madness others, but always really fun. Well it probably would count as a 3D shooter, any arcade that had Area 51 in it was always guaranteed to get a buck or two out of me. I put in here only because I just realized it is almost 15 years old! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/14 "2009-02-10T02:28:13Z")
My favorite was the arcade game “Heavy Barrel” where you picked up pieces of the super gun as you went along. When you picked up the final piece, you would hear the game announce in a giant booming voice, “HEAVY BARREL!” Then you were holding the assembled mega weapon which would devastate an entire screenful of baddies with a single shot. It was so fun to just go nuts laying waste to everything as soon as you heard “HEAVY BARREL!” ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/15 "2009-02-10T04:03:44Z")
I liked Xevious ---
**Author:** ![Claptree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Claptree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claptree)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/16 "2009-02-10T08:48:57Z")
> [@rayh](#): > > From **[Abandonia.com](http://Abandonia.com)** - > > [Flashback CD Version](http://abandonia.com/en/games/823/Flashback+CD+version.html) featuring new cinematics with better music and digitized speech. Thanks! I’ll definitely have to look into this. ---
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/17 "2009-02-10T17:23:00Z")
If you’re looking for the “Contra Style” sidescroll “guy with a gun” shooter, then I’ve yet to play a better one than Metal Slug 3. (There are lots of games in the series, but I found 3 to be the high point.) Top down “flying ship” scroller, yeah, Ikaruga. (Or if you can find it, Radiant Silvergun.) Sidescrolling “flying ship”? Dunno. For whatever reason, that particular variant never hooked me in. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/18 "2009-02-10T17:41:18Z")
Scramble (This was the spaceship one - there was also a version with a chopper whose name escapes me right now). ETA: Super Cobra ! ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/19 "2009-02-10T19:25:38Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > My favorite was the arcade game “Heavy Barrel” where you picked up pieces of the super gun as you went along. When you picked up the final piece, you would hear the game announce in a giant booming voice, “HEAVY BARREL!” Then you were holding the assembled mega weapon which would devastate an entire screenful of baddies with a single shot. It was so fun to just go nuts laying waste to everything as soon as you heard “HEAVY BARREL!” Ooh yeah, I played that one to death. That twisty stick seemed designed to create painful bleeding blisters after 5 minutes. I also have to brag that I was eventually able to beat the game on a single quarter 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810/20 "2009-02-10T22:28:38Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Nothing can touch Contra for me. The original NES Contra. Exactly, why is this even a debate? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-2d-scrolling-shooter/484810.md?page=2)