Side-scrolling games sorted by release date

Side Arms: Hyper Dyne is a side-scrolling shoot-'em-up arcade game developed and published by Capcom in 1986 and later ported on various platforms. Players control a "mobilsuit," a futuristic combat robot, in a war against alien invaders. Side Arms is set in outer space and features mechanical and alien-inspired aesthetics.

Uridium is a classic shoot 'em up video game that was originally developed by Andrew Braybrook and published by Hewson Consultants in 1986 for various home computer platforms (including MS-DOS). In Uridium, players control a spaceship known as the Manta, and the objective is to destroy a series of enemy spacecraft, as well as ground-based inst...

Artura is a hack-and-slash side-scroller that looks like someone tried to draw Gauntlet from memory after a power outage. You’re some kind of Celtic warrior on a mystical mission, but really you’re just trying not to die while jumping over spikes and stabbing things that look vaguely hostile. The music is decent, the graphics are a feve...

Operation Getafix (1989) is what happens when you turn a beloved comic series into a game with the precision of a wild boar wearing gloves. You play as Asterix on a quest to help Getafix the druid recover his memory and his recipe for the magic potion. What follows is a mix of puzzle-solving and mini-games that will leave you both confused and oddl...

If Conan had a bad day and took it out on a few dozen goblins, you'd get something close to Axe of Rage. This 1989 DOS hack-n-slash isn't exactly subtle—you're a barbarian, there’s an evil warlord, and everything must be cleaved in two. The animations might remind you of a flipbook made by an angry teenager, but there's charm in its awk...

Released in 1989 for DOS, Baal is what happens when demons invade and the only thing standing between Earth and eternal damnation is a guy with a really big gun and absolutely no concern for platforming physics. You’re dropped into a hellish maze of traps, puzzles, and pixelated horror, tasked with recovering the parts of a weapon so powerful...

Ah, Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior—the game where loincloths are tiny and sword swings are deadly. This 1989 fighter slashed its way onto DOS with decapitations, grunts, and enough low-res gore to make Conan blush. Forget finesse: this is about button mashing your way to glory while your opponent’s head rolls off like it’s auditi...

Boot Camp (1989, DOS) is the game that turns military training into a button-mashing festival of pain. Ever dreamed of surviving basic training without breaking a sweat? This is it—if your definition of “not sweating” includes breaking your keyboard in half. You’ll run obstacle courses, throw grenades, and take aim at target...

Saddle up for an awkward mix of minigames that vaguely resemble rodeo events. Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show tries to recreate the excitement of a 19th-century traveling circus but ends up feeling more like a 1980s office party where someone brought a mechanical bull. You’ve got shooting galleries, knife throwing, lassoing… all rendered...

Face Off! is an abandoned hockey sports game developed by MindSpan (known for their Hardball series) and released by Gamestar in 1989 for DOS and also for Commodore 64. Face Off supports multiplayer in competitive or cooperative modes.

Lakers vs. Celtics and the NBA Playoffs is a classic abandoned action sports basketball video game. Developed and published by Electronic Arts, it was released in 1989 for the Sega Genesis (also known as Mega Drive) and DOS. This game holds the distinction of being one of the first basketball video games to feature real NBA teams and players, offer...

R-Type is a horizontally scrolling shoot 'em up developed and published by Irem in 1987. The game quickly gained popularity for its challenging gameplay and impressive graphics at the time. R-Type is known for its tough and memorable enemy designs, as well as challenging boss battles. The game features various power-ups that enhance the player...