Shoot-em-ups are one of the genres that the Sega Genesis is known for. Plenty of great games were released for the system, and I wanted to gather ten of my favorite shooters/shoot ‘em-ups.
Many of these games are ports of arcade games, while others draw heavily on arcade shoot ‘em-ups. This means some annoying parts in the games are carried over from the arcades. Things that are intended to keep the player spending money on the game. Like one-hit deaths and limited continues.
Bottom Line up Front: The Shoot ‘em-up Genre on the Sega Genesis is better than the Shoot ‘em-ups on the SNES.
Selection criteria
The games on this list are from my collection. This limits me to about 400+ games out of the 878 officially released games. To qualify for this list, the games have to be:
- Released for the Genesis in the 80s and 90s
- Sega CD and 32x games are excluded.
- Not a homebrew, ROM hack, or modern release
Let’s get into the games!
Vapor Trail
Developer: Data East
Genre: Vertical Scrolling Shooter
Vapor Trail is a surprisingly great game. It is a vertical-scrolling shooter similar to 1942 and Raiden. It also reminds me of a game I played on the PC in the 90s, but the name of it escapes me.
Vapor trail gives you a choice of several planes, each with strengths and weaknesses. You also have four weapons to pick from. Finding the right plane and weapon combination for you is part of the fun of games like this. I think it is all personal preference and a sort of difficulty setting in some cases.
In this game, you fight against a terrorist organization that has conquered New York. This was a game that I hadn’t heard of until the 2010s when I started collecting games again. After playing it, I think it is one of the better shooters on the Sega Genesis.
HellFire
Developer: Seismic
Genre: Horizontal Scrolling Shooter
This is a side-scrolling shooter that is set in space. This game does do something a little different. Instead of having one weapon or changing directions, you have four weapons that you cycle through while playing.
This can sometimes be fun and incredibly frustrating until you get the hang of it. It is a nifty mechanic as it can get you out of some situations; it is different enough to make the game stand out from the other shoot’em ups.
Hellfire’s gimmick stood out from the other shoot ’ ‘em-ups on the Genesis. It is also a fun game that has solid controls and good graphics.
Granada
Developer: Wolf Team
Genre: Free Roaming Shooter
Have you ever wondered what Gauntlet would be like if you played as a tank? Well, that is basically what you have here with Granada.
In Granada, you travel around a reasonably large map while trying to blow up bases that spawn enemies. Once all of the bases have been destroyed, a boss tank appears. Like other shoot-em-ups, you can collect power-ups along the way. The game has a strafe button, making moving around a bit easier. It allows you to use the buildings and other parts of the environment as cover while fighting the hordes of enemies.
This game is a nice change of pace from the other shooters on this list. It reminds me of Thunder Force II but done much better.
Thunder Force III
Developer: Technosoft
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
This game improves on its predecessor in every way. Gone are the top-down levels where you’re trying to blow up bases. In Thunder Force III, you play a traditional horizontal side-scrolling shoot-‘em-up.
The game has you switching weapons like in Hellfire, but you can collect more as you pass through the levels. Switching between them is unnecessary, but some weapons work better in certain situations. Thunder Force III also lets you choose which level you want to start at. I always liked this because it allowed me to experience each level.
This is a challenging game. It seems like Thunder Force III relies on level memorization more than other games on this list. It isn’t an unfair game, but it can be frustrating to play.
Sagaia
Developer: Taito
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
This is a port of Darius II. I don’t know why it was renamed Sagaia, but it has giant fish robots, so it must be great!
The game suffers from the same issues that other arcade games suffer. The developers kept the one-hit deaths meant to keep the player pumping quarters into the machine. It also relies on memorization to know how to get through the levels.
The Darius games are my favorite shooters! It has solid gameplay, isn’t too difficult, and has giant fish robots!
Bio Hazard Battle
Developer: Sega
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
Bio Hazard Battle reminds me of the Darius series. It is an original game by Sega, but it has some of the same tropes you would see in games like Darius and R-Type. This is part of the reason why I like this game so much.
You pick one of four bio-mechanical ships to fly and fight against other bio-mechanical enemies. The game can sometimes be challenging and relies on memorizing the level as you play. Despite this, it is a unique game on the Sega Genesis.
This is my favorite of the games on this list. I found this game when in high school and started collecting video games. It was one of those happy moments where you feel like you’ve discovered something no one knew about.
Steel Empire
Developer: Hot B
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
Much like Bio Hazard Battle, this is one of my personal favorites. However, Steel Empire puts forward a better story to go along with excellent gameplay.
Steel Empire is a side-scrolling shoot-’em-up that occasionally makes you change the direction of your attacks. You have two ships to choose from. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, which force you to play the game a bit differently.
This game has a steampunk setting and a story that you would expect to see in a different genre. While the story isn’t anything new, having it in a shoot-‘em-up differs from other games like this. This is another one of the games that I found out about while I was collecting games back in high school. It is an entertaining game to play and is one of my personal favorites.
Lightning Force
Developer: Technosoft
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
This is the fourth game in the Thunder Force series. I’m not sure why it was renamed Lightning Force, but that doesn’t change the fact that it is a fantastic game! While the game has you scrolling to the right, you can also move up and down to reveal more enemies.
There are ten levels, and you can select which area you want to start in. You can shift through the different weapons that you collected during the levels. Some enemies drop power-ups and upgrades.
This is arguably the best shoot ‘em-up on the Sega Genesis. I like this game more than Thunder Force III, but the two games are close enough that it could go either way. I feel like this is an easier game than Thunder Force III, but that might be due to me playing this game more.
Arrow Flash
Developer: ITL
Genre: Horizontal scrolling shooter
Arrow Flash is one of those games that I didn’t give much of a chance when I first played it the game. I remember thinking it looked good if a little too cartoony for me. I tested it and put it on a shelf. Then I played it again while I was putting this list together, and I was very impressed by the game.
In Arrow Flash, you can change from a spaceship to a mech. It is a bit like the fighters on Robotech or similar media. Each form has a special attack which is awesome! Knowing which form to use takes some time, but you can quickly change between them.
This ended up being one of my favorite games on this list. I’ve said that a few times, but this isn’t just one of my favorite shoot ‘em-ups on the Sega Genesis, but one of my favorite games on the system.
Sub-Terrainia
Developer: Zyrinx
Genre: Free Roaming shooter
This is a free-roaming shooter. Gravity plays a big part in this game, as everything has weight to it. You almost feel the weight as you play this game and try to line up your shots. It can make things very frustrating until you get the hang of things.
You must fly around and save POWs after aliens invade a mining base. For some reason, aliens love giving you a reason to hop into a spaceship and blast them into bits. You can collect three weapons, and each can be leveled up several times.
This was a late release on the Sega Genesis, as it was released in 1994. I remember picking this one up and being surprised by how the game played. It was better than I expected, and I think it is one of the better shoot ‘em-ups on the system.
Best of the Rest
Unfortunately, I had to leave some games off of this list. I considered making this a top 15 but decided ten was good enough. Here are the other games that could have been on the list:
- Thunder Force II
- Final Zone
- Whip Rush
- Truxton
- Insector X
- Space Harrier II
- Gaiares
- Twin Cobra
- Fire Shark
- Phelios
Conclusion
There are so many great games that I left off of this list. Some of them are games I don’t like as much as others. It happens, not everyone likes the same thing, and I’m sure each person’s list will look slightly different.
The shoot ‘em-up genre has one of the better selections of games on the Sega Genesis. It beats out the shoot ‘em-ups on the SNES.