Best Shoot Em Up

Star Control II is a 1992 adventure shoot 'em up developed by Toys for Bob. The game features exploration of numerous exoplanet star systems through hyperspace travel, alongside interactions with twenty-five distinct alien races. It serves as a direct sequel to Star Control and incorporates elements...

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 is a twin-stick shooter developed by Bizarre Creations and released for Xbox Live Arcade in July 2008. The game features six distinct game modes: Deadline, Evolved, King, Pacifism, Waves, and Sequence, each with its own rules and objectives. It supports local multiplay...

Espgaluda II: Black Label is a 2007 arcade shoot-'em-up from the Japanese developer Cave. It is a revised edition of Espgaluda II, retaining the bullet-hell format while changing gameplay balance, enemy behavior, scoring rules, and the way its characters' abilities affect combat. The Black Label ver...

Robotron: 2084 is a challenging arcade shoot-em-up released in 1982. Players navigate a dystopian future where they battle relentless waves of robotic adversaries attempting to destroy the last human survivors. The game’s innovative design demanded quick reflexes and strategic aiming, appealing to p...

Radiant Silvergun is a challenging arcade shoot-em-up from Treasure released in 1998. Players navigate intricate levels as fighter pilots battling waves of robotic enemies fueled by an ancient crystal. The game’s innovative weapon system—featuring six unique shots and sword combat—demands precise co...

ESP.ra.de is a vertically scrolling arcade shooter developed by Cave and released in Japan in April 1998. Set in a near-future Tokyo and built around psychic abilities, it belongs to the bullet-hell style of shooting games; Cave identifies its gameplay features as a magnification system and a power...

Ikaruga is a bullet hell arcade game created by Treasure, building upon Radiant Silvergun’s mechanics. Players control Shinra piloting an Ikaruga fighter that switches between black and white polarity to navigate waves of enemy projectiles. This core system dictates gameplay, with bullets matching t...

Touhou Eiyashou: Imperishable Night is the eighth main entry in the Touhou Project series of bullet hell shoot-'em-ups, created by Jun'ya Ota (ZUN) and released in 2004. The game is distinguished by its two-character team system, allowing players to switch between a human and a youkai protagonist wi...

Mars Matrix: Hyper Solid Shooting is a vertical scrolling bullet hell shoot-'em-up developed by Takumi and published by Capcom for arcades in the year 2000. The game is known for its densely packed bullet patterns and a unique scoring mechanic centered on an energy-absorb shield. Players use this sh...

Gradius V is a 2004 PlayStation 2 scrolling shooter developed by Treasure. Players control the Vic Viper spacecraft against the Bacterian empire across a continuously scrolling space setting. The game received generally positive reviews for its level design and graphical elements, though some critic...

Mushihimesama Futari, commonly known as Mushi Futari, is a vertical-scrolling bullet hell shoot 'em up developed by Cave and released for Japanese arcades in 2006. As a direct sequel to Mushihimesama, players control one of two distinct characters, Reco or Palm, each utilizing different shot pattern...

DoDonPachi Resurrection is a vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up developed by the Japanese studio Cave and released in arcades in 2008. It continues the DoDonPachi series with selectable fighter craft, dense enemy fire, rapid boss encounters, and a score-focused play style. Its central Hyper Counter sys...

Touhou: Perfect Cherry Blossom is the seventh main installment in the Touhou Project series of bullet hell shoot-'em-up games, created by Jun'ya "ZUN" Ota and released by Team Shanghai Alice in August 2003 for Windows PC. It introduced a cherry blossom-based scoring system where collecting cherry it...

Space Invaders is a classic arcade shoot ‘em up where players defend against waves of descending aliens using a laser cannon. Players control the horizontal movement of the cannon and fire to eliminate the invaders, earning points with each successful shot. The game features continuous play until al...

Soukyugurentai is a Japanese vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up developed by Raizing and released in arcades in 1996. It presents a futuristic, machine-heavy setting and gives the player a choice of fighter craft with different attack characteristics. The game is known for dense bullet patterns, a scor...

Judgment Silversword, commonly styled Judgement Silversword, is a vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up developed for the WonderSwan Color by the independent designer M-KAI and published by Qute. It was created with Qute's WonderWitch development kit and was one of the winning projects in the 2001 WonderW...

G Darius HD is a high-definition version of Taito's 1997 arcade horizontally scrolling shoot-'em-up G-Darius. Released in 2021, it retains the series' branching routes and its capture-ball system, which lets the player seize certain enemies and use them against other opponents or release them as pow...

Eliminate Down is a 1993 Sega Mega Drive shoot 'em up developed by Soft Vision, renowned for its high difficulty and impressive alien visuals.

Darius Burst: Another Chronicle EX is an updated version of a 2010 arcade shoot 'em up developed by Taito. The original arcade game was housed in a distinctive, ultra-wide dual-screen cabinet designed to provide a panoramic viewing experience. As part of the long-running Darius franchise, the game f...

Gun*Nac is a 1990 vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up developed by Compile for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The player controls a small spacecraft through stages filled with enemies and hazards, collecting money and power-ups that can be used to improve a selection of weapons. Its bright presentat...

Syndicate, developed by Bullfrog Productions in 1993, is an isometric strategy game where players command a corporate entity seeking worldwide influence. The title initially launched on MS-DOS and Amiga, establishing it as the first installment in the Syndicate franchise. It features real-time tacti...

DoDonPachi Dai-Ou-Jou is a challenging arcade shoot-em-up developed by Cave. It’s notable for its complex gameplay centered around surviving waves of rapidly moving bullets and enemy projectiles. The game introduced the innovative Hyper Counter mechanic, adding another layer of strategic depth. Expe...

Touhou Eiyashou ~ Imperishable Night is a 2004 shoot 'em up developed by Team Shanghai Alice. Serving as the eighth installment in the Touhou Project series, it was created for the Windows operating system. The game features vertical scrolling gameplay and is the third main Touhou Project title rele...

Star Fox 64 is a 1997 console video game for the Nintendo 64. It’s notable for pioneering 3D rail shooter gameplay and incorporating dynamic on-screen effects through the Rumble Pak. The game appeals to players interested in arcade-style action, particularly those nostalgic for 1990s gaming or fans...

Nuclear Throne is a roguelike game developed by Vlambeer set in a post-apocalyptic world. Players navigate challenging levels utilizing weapons and character abilities to defeat enemies and advance. The title has been released across multiple platforms since its initial early access release in 2013.

Galaga is a classic 1981 arcade shoot-em-up developed by Namco. Players control a starship navigating through space to defeat waves of attacking Galaga aliens. The game’s notable feature is the tractor beam mechanic, enabling players to capture enemy ships and create powerful dual fighter formations...

Released in 2008 for the Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable, Space Invaders Extreme is an updated version of Taito's classic 1978 arcade shooter. The game revitalizes the original fixed-shooter mechanics by incorporating fast-paced gameplay, branching stage paths, and an interactive scoring system...

RayForce, known in North America as Gunlock and in Europe as Layer Section, is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up developed and published by Taito in 1994. The game operates on a dual-layer system where players control a ship firing standard weapons at airborne enemies while utilizing a specialized...

Descent was a 1995 first-person shooter developed for multiple platforms including MS-DOS and PlayStation. The game utilized true-3D graphics and popularized six degrees of freedom gameplay, placing players as mercenaries tasked with destroying extraterrestrial computer viruses within Solar System m...