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In the 1990s, the run-and-gun genre was at its peak. Developers were starting to move toward first-person shooters on PC, but console players were enjoying the fruits of lessons learned from games like Contra. These run-and-gun shooters were always a fast-paced, thrilling adventure that put your skills to the test. While the SNES wasn’t eating quarters like an arcade machine, many developers coded as if it were, leading to some of the toughest games on the platform. This helped make the SNES one of the best places to play great shooters during the era.
Here are the six best run-and-gun shooters on the Super Nintendo.
6) Demolition Man
You might be surprised to learn that the Sylvester Stallone-Wesley Snipes joint had a great video game adaptation. Published by Acclaim, this run-and-gun shooter puts you in control of John Spartan as he embarks on his quest to take down his nemesis, Simon Phoenix. For much of the game, you’ll play through relatively standard side-scrolling action, but Demolition Man isn’t afraid to get weird with it.
At various points, you’ll switch to top-down gameplay, helping keep you on your toes. These camera switches let Demolition Man stay frenetic throughout. Thankfully, the SNES version is generally the better of the ports because it looks much livelier than the Genesis version. Plus, the SNES includes cheat codes, which is always a bonus in my book.
5) Cybernator
Konami’s Cybernator is called Assault Suits Valken in Japan, which is a much better name. Despite the unfortunate title, Cybernator is an excellent mecha-based run-and-gun action game. It’s technically the second game in the Assault Suit series, but this is a prequel to the first game.
It is a gorgeous-looking game on the SNES, giving players the appropriate amount of grit and grime for the setting. Cybernator‘s blaster-filled gameplay isn’t too far above the rest of the run-and-gun games on the SNES, but it’s pushing the system to its limits visually, while delivering solid gameplay. If you want to see where Japan’s sensibilities were in 1992, it’s worth checking out.
4) Pocky & Rocky
Pocky & Rocky is a top-down side-scrolling game, which gives it a slightly different feel from most of the other games in the genre at the time. If you’ve played games like Smash TV, it’s somewhat similar to that. The thing that makes Pocky & Rocky so great is the two-player co-op.
Unlike many games of the era, you can continue indefinitely, making Pocky & Rocky‘s co-op a great way to introduce new players to the genre. Plus, the characters can work together to deal big damage by sliding into one another. It stands out compared to most of the gritty games of the time, giving younger players a chance to jump into the genre.
3) Contra 3: Alien Wars
Contra 3 takes everything you know from Contra and Super Contra and dials it up to 11. Players fight across six stages to take down an alien invasion. Four of those stages are traditional sidescrolling, while two move to an overhead perspective, keeping players on their toes. Plus, the use of Mode 7 was some of the best on the system.
There’s also a level where you fight off enemies while hanging onto a missile. It’s a perfect representation of the overly macho late ’80s and early ’90s that gave us movies like Terminator and Predator. For many, this is the best the Contra series has ever been. The gameplay has enough depth to keep you around for the long haul, and the visual innovations put it over the top.
2) Super Turrican 2
Developer Factor-5 got its start making R-Type knockoffs, which eventually led to the team making the Amiga version of the hit arcade game. From there, Factor-5 worked its way up to making the exceptional Turrican series.
Super Turrican 2 is technically the fifth game in the series, as Factor-5 made three Turrican games before adding the “Super” for the SNES games. This is the best of the bunch, though. It shrunk down the levels to take advantage of the Mode 7 effects on the system, making for a stunning run-and-gun adventure. Toss in the new grapple hook to give players even more maneuverability, and you have one of the best games on the system.
1) Mega Man X2
To be clear, you can pick your favorite SNES Mega Man game and slap it on this list. Pretty much all of them are great, so take your pick from Mega Man 7, Mega Man X, Mega Man X2, and Mega Man X3. Heck, I’d even throw Mega Man’s Soccer into the ring, but it doesn’t fit this criteria.
The simple answer is that Mega Man was still near the peak of its powers on the Super Nintendo. All four games are phenomenal, and I probably could’ve weaseled them all on this list. Instead, I’ll keep it to one entry and let you pick your favorite. No matter what, it’s safe to say that Mega Man remained the best run-and-gun series even with the move to the Super Nintendo.
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