Your top 5 shoot em' ups

I'll go first

1. Radiant Silvergun

2. Ikaruga

3. M.U.S.H.A.

4. Raystorm

5. Gradius V

1. MUSHA
2. Galactic Attack
3. Thunder Force IV
4. Thunder Force III
5. Robo Aleste

1 Ketsui

2 Battle Garegga

3 DoDonpachi DaiOuJou

4 Armed Police Batrider

5 Musihimesama Futari 1.5

Raiden Fighters Jet
DoDonPachi
Ketsui
Raiden Fighters 2
Deathsmiles

I only got into shoot em ups this gen so I haven't played a lot of the older titles.

Tricky remembering them all.

1. Project X (Amiga)
2. Silkworm (Amiga)
3. After Burner (Arcade/Amiga)
4. Tyrian 2000 (PC)
5. Beat Hazard (PC)

1. aim400kg, that's a pretty intense shootemup. It's also not a shootemup
2. TF3

1. Musihimesama Futari

2. Mars Matrix

3. Deathsmiles

4. Parodius (the game that got me into the genre)

5. Axelay (again, an early favourite)

4. Thunder Force III
Renegade_Fury

Man, I really loved Thunder Force III.

I haven't played very many shoot em ups over the years, so I'll just list the ones I can remember playing:

1. Thunder Force III
2. Phelios
3. Truxton

That may be it...

1. Solider Blade 2. Gradius 3. Ikaruga 4. R-Type Final 5. 1942 If Space Harrier counts that would be number 1 instead. Anyway I am still pretty big noob when it comes to shmups. Devil-Itachi

I say Space Harrier counts. It was number 6 on my list. :D

1. Lords of Thunder (Sega CD)
2. Raiden II (Arcade)
3. Star Soldier (NES) - I know it's not the most polished shooter out there, even by NES standards. But it's probably the one I played the most and put down the foundation for my love of shoot-em ups.
4. Thunder Force V (PS1)
5. Darius Gaiden (Saturn)

1. Gunstar Heroes

2. Contra

3. Super C

4. R-Type

5. Contra III

Space Invaders

Galaga

Tyrian

Metal Slug

Shock Troopers 2

Run and Gun games and in screen shooters are not considered shmups .

Alien Breed (amiga)
Cannon Fodder (amiga)
Turrican (amiga)
1942 (C64)
Commando (C64)

Metal Slug and Contra aren't shoot-em ups. Their run-n-gun games, or often lumped in the more generic catagorization of action.

Metal Slug and Contra aren't shoot-em ups. Their run-n-gun games, or often lumped in the more generic catagorization of action.

Emerald_Warrior

They're side-crolling shooting games, just like GRADIUS, MUSHA ALESTE or any other.

I don't know who came up with all those convulted sub-categories, but they've always been labeled by their makers as shooting games, not action.

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

Metal Slug and Contra aren't shoot-em ups. Their run-n-gun games, or often lumped in the more generic catagorization of action.

Panzer_Zwei

They're side-crolling shooting games, just like GRADIUS, MUSHA ALESTE or any other.

I don't know who came up with all those convulted sub-categories, but they've always been labeled by their makers as shooting games, not action.

People came up with them to differentiate. You don't have a scrolling ship, plane, or whatever in Contra and Metal Slug. You have a man and you have platforming and gravity and such.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_(video_game)

Genre: Run N Gun

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

Metal Slug and Contra aren't shoot-em ups. Their run-n-gun games, or often lumped in the more generic catagorization of action.

Emerald_Warrior

They're side-crolling shooting games, just like GRADIUS, MUSHA ALESTE or any other.

I don't know who came up with all those convulted sub-categories, but they've always been labeled by their makers as shooting games, not action.

People came up with them to differentiate. You don't have a scrolling ship, plane, or whatever in Contra and Metal Slug. You have a man and you have platforming and gravity and such.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_(video_game)

Genre: Run N Gun

Technically, "shoot em up" is the name of the generic genre. R-Type, Galaga, Radiant Silvergun, and the like are all scrolling shooters.

They do talk about Contra and Metal Slug being shoot em ups on the Wikipedia page for shoot em ups.

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

Metal Slug and Contra aren't shoot-em ups. Their run-n-gun games, or often lumped in the more generic catagorization of action.

Emerald_Warrior

They're side-crolling shooting games, just like GRADIUS, MUSHA ALESTE or any other.

I don't know who came up with all those convulted sub-categories, but they've always been labeled by their makers as shooting games, not action.

People came up with them to differentiate. You don't have a scrolling ship, plane, or whatever in Contra and Metal Slug. You have a man and you have platforming and gravity and such.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_(video_game)

Genre: Run N Gun

They don't need to be differentiated, they follow the same basic conventions and rules, and thus belong within the same genre.

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

They're side-crolling shooting games, just like GRADIUS, MUSHA ALESTE or any other.

I don't know who came up with all those convulted sub-categories, but they've always been labeled by their makers as shooting games, not action.

Panzer_Zwei

People came up with them to differentiate. You don't have a scrolling ship, plane, or whatever in Contra and Metal Slug. You have a man and you have platforming and gravity and such.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_(video_game)

Genre: Run N Gun

They don't need to be differentiated, they follow the same basic conventions and rules, and thus belong within the same genre.

Are you seriously telling me you can't tell the difference between a run-n-gun and a shoot-em up?

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

People came up with them to differentiate. You don't have a scrolling ship, plane, or whatever in Contra and Metal Slug. You have a man and you have platforming and gravity and such.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_(video_game)

Genre: Run N Gun

Emerald_Warrior

They don't need to be differentiated, they follow the same basic conventions and rules, and thus belong within the same genre.

Are you seriously telling me you can't tell the difference between a run-n-gun and a shoot-em up?

Like I said, emerald, "shoot em up" is the name of the broad genre that encompasses all 2D shooting games like run-n-gun (Contra) and Scrolling shooters (Galaga).

They're ALL shoot-em-ups. Your ship games are scrolling shooters. And if scrolling shooters are the only shoot em ups, what the heck is Asteroids?

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

They don't need to be differentiated, they follow the same basic conventions and rules, and thus belong within the same genre.

WiiCubeM1

Are you seriously telling me you can't tell the difference between a run-n-gun and a shoot-em up?

Like I said, emerald, "shoot em up" is the name of the broad genre that encompasses all 2D shooting games like run-n-gun (Contra) and Scrolling shooters (Galaga).

They're ALL shoot-em-ups. Your ship games are scrolling shooters.

I saw what you said. But I think it's very easy to see a difference between run-n-guns like Metal Slug, Contra, and Turrican; apart from shoot-em ups like Gradius, R-Type, and 1941. There are VERY CLEAR differences there. Free scolling, flying levels in shoot-em ups. And platforming and jumping in run-n-guns.

And as I showed in my link, Contra is clearly labeled as a Run-N-Gun game in Wikipedia to show this. Here's Turrican and Metal Slug:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turrican

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Slug

[QUOTE="WiiCubeM1"]

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

Are you seriously telling me you can't tell the difference between a run-n-gun and a shoot-em up?

Emerald_Warrior

Like I said, emerald, "shoot em up" is the name of the broad genre that encompasses all 2D shooting games like run-n-gun (Contra) and Scrolling shooters (Galaga).

They're ALL shoot-em-ups. Your ship games are scrolling shooters.

I saw what you said. But I think it's very easy to see a difference between run-n-guns like Metal Slug, Contra, and Turrican; apart from shoot-em ups like Gradius, R-Type, and 1941. There are VERY CLEAR differences there. Free scolling, flying levels in shoot-em ups. And platforming and jumping in run-n-guns.

And as I showed in my link, Contra is clearly labeled as a Run-N-Gun game in Wikipedia to show this. Here's Turrican and Metal Slug:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turrican

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Slug

Yes, I know, but the Shoot-em-up page lists 4 types of shoot-em-ups (2 of which are just off-shoots of the main 2), with the main 2 being "Scrolling Shooters", which are your scrolling ships games, and "Run and Gun", which would be my Contra and Metal Slug. You're labeling Scrolling Shooter as Shoot-em-up.

There is a clear difference in style, but they are both still games in which you are given infinite ammo, one-hit deaths, power-ups, obstacles, dodging bullets and enemies, and the only goal is to kill everything in sight.

If you talk about games like Metal Slug or Space Harrier on the shmups forum and referring to them as shoot m up you will be tarred, feathered and carried atraight out of there .

They are all shooters but within that you have the run and guns , in screen shooter , on rail, shmup and lots more .

If you talk about games like Metal Slug or Space Harrier on the shmups forum and referring to them as shoot m up you will be tarred, feathered and carried atraight out of there .

They are all shooters but within that you have the run and guns , in screen shooter , on rail, shmup and lots more .

Caseytappy

People have differing opinions on where games fit into genres. I don't really think it matters all that much, but Contra is a shmup. Most people on those boards are nuts.

[QUOTE="Caseytappy"]

If you talk about games like Metal Slug or Space Harrier on the shmups forum and referring to them as shoot m up you will be tarred, feathered and carried atraight out of there .

They are all shooters but within that you have the run and guns , in screen shooter , on rail, shmup and lots more .

WiiCubeM1

People have differing opinions on where games fit into genres. I don't really think it matters all that much, but Contra is a shmup. Most people on those boards are nuts.

If Contra is a shoot-em up just because it has shooting, then does that make Halo a shoot-em up? No.

Saying that all shooters are shoot-em ups is like saying all Metal is Thrash.

If you talk about games like Metal Slug or Space Harrier on the shmups forum and referring to them as shoot m up you will be tarred, feathered and carried atraight out of there .

They are all shooters but within that you have the run and guns , in screen shooter , on rail, shmup and lots more .

Caseytappy

If that's true then it's incredible stupid, I've never seen any of such labels in a single game cover or game flyer.

Ultimately I don't care about how people label games, that's why I'm not feeling like arguing, but in Japan, and as far as the people that make those games are concerned, there are no shoot-em-ups, run-n-gun and all that convulted label nonsense.

You can look at the cover of METAL SLUG and the genre it will tell you it's "SHOOTING" or "SHOOTING ACTION". Look at the back cover of SPACE HARRIER 2, and it also clearly states "SHOOTING GAME".

Again, I just don't care about label some other guy coined together.

[QUOTE="WiiCubeM1"]

[QUOTE="Caseytappy"]

If you talk about games like Metal Slug or Space Harrier on the shmups forum and referring to them as shoot m up you will be tarred, feathered and carried atraight out of there .

They are all shooters but within that you have the run and guns , in screen shooter , on rail, shmup and lots more .

Emerald_Warrior

People have differing opinions on where games fit into genres. I don't really think it matters all that much, but Contra is a shmup. Most people on those boards are nuts.

If Contra is a shoot-em up just because it has shooting, then does that make Halo a shoot-em up? No.

Saying that all shooters are shoot-em ups is like saying all Metal is Thrash.

At some point in history, apparently Shmups became the new name for scrolling shooters and I was never really informed. Back when defining genres was something I cared about, like 10-12 years ago, Run and Gunners were called shoot em ups and Scrolling shooters were Scrolling shooters, but we counted them as shmups as the playstyle was pretty much the same. I guess over time, after I stopped caring, the diction changed and I never took notice.

All in all, you are never going to convince me that Contra isn't a shoot-em-up. The whole reason I came to know them as that was because I always thought of them as Beat-em-ups with guns, hence shoot-em-up. I have always referred to ship games as Scrolling shooters, and that's what I will always refer to them as. Even the Wikipedia page says that that title is just a broad title that encompasses 2D shooting games, run and gun and scrolling shooters alike.

I just find this whole conversation rather pointless. I can see you care about this much more than I do, but I think we can both agree Contra has NOTHING in common with Halo as a play style and is much more reminescent of Asteroids and Galaga. Don't try to sour my points.

Gradius

Gradius 3

Life Force

R-Type

Cobra Command

[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]

[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]

Are you seriously telling me you can't tell the difference between a run-n-gun and a shoot-em up?

Emerald_Warrior

Like I said, emerald, "shoot em up" is the name of the broad genre that encompasses all 2D shooting games like run-n-gun (Contra) and Scrolling shooters (Galaga).

They're ALL shoot-em-ups. Your ship games are scrolling shooters.

I saw what you said. But I think it's very easy to see a difference between run-n-guns like Metal Slug, Contra, and Turrican; apart from shoot-em ups like Gradius, R-Type, and 1941. There are VERY CLEAR differences there. Free scolling, flying levels in shoot-em ups. And platforming and jumping in run-n-guns.

And as I showed in my link, Contra is clearly labeled as a Run-N-Gun game in Wikipedia to show this. Here's Turrican and Metal Slug:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turrican

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Slug

In Japan these games are called STG aka shooting game but then you would argue that shooting game can be anything with shooting in it bla bla

Yes , but shmups are referred to as STG there and not other shooters .

Shmups here are shmups and run and gun is ....right !

But lets do it again for this casual noob forum then .

Halo 4

Space Harrier

Final Fight ( sometimes you get a gun and shoot )

Metal Gear Solid

GTA 4

There, my five favorite shmups :roll:

Edit :

Here's a link :

http://www.racketboy.com/retro/shooters/shmups-101-a-beginners-guide-to-2d-shooters

I had a feeling this topic would turn into a bicker match. :lol:

While i have my own definition of what a shoot em up is, the lines between the differing sub-genre's are often tiny so that it really doesn't matter. Run-n-gun and side-scrolling shooters ARE basically the same thing the only difference being whether you're controlling a man or a ship. Is avoiding asteroids/objects or flying down tunnels in side-scroller's really that different to platforming?

Having said that i still regard Run-n-gun games as a separate sub-genre. But as we're all posting in someone else's topic, it's up to them to decide what the requirements are for the list - though it should've been mentioned in the original post. :)

In Japan these games are called STG aka shooting game but then you would argue that shooting game can be anything with shooting in it bla bla

Yes , but shmups are referred to as STG there and not other shooters .

Shmups here are shmups and run and gun is ....right !

But lets do it again for this casual noob forum then .

Halo 4

Space Harrier

Final Fight ( sometimes you get a gun and shoot )

Metal Gear Solid

GTA 4

There, my five favorite shmups :roll:

Edit :

Here's a link :

http://www.racketboy.com/retro/shooters/shmups-101-a-beginners-guide-to-2d-shooters

Caseytappy

OK, I'll just say what I'm actually arguing.

I'm not arguing that Run and Guns are the same type of game as Scrolling Shooters. They are not the same type of game.

What I'm arguing is diction. Once upon a time, both of these type of games were shoot em ups. Some time in the last 10-15 years, Shoot em ups apparently became the new name for scrolling shooters and most classic afficianados accepted the change while a few of us either didn't notice or didn't care.

I am not trying to calling Contra a scrolling shooter, I'm calling it a shmup because I still think of a shmup as the broad name for a 2D shooter, not the new name for ship scrolling shooters.

Some of you get really offended by this.

Run and gun games where always called just that from the start and maybe a shooter, never Shmup although you may have called them that .

It's all good though , here relax and enjoy :

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AHhkq7p3Qw

Run and gun games where always called just that from the start and maybe a shooter, never Shmup although you may have called them that .

It's all good though , here relax and enjoy :

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AHhkq7p3Qw

Caseytappy