IBM PC Shoot 'em ups Listed in Chronological Order

Posted for quick reference purposes, this is a chronological list of IBM PC shoot 'em ups that are being covered in my History of Shoot 'em ups.

This list thus far contains 66 original infographics that can be mouse-wheeled through in order to get an idea of the IBM PC shoot 'em up catalogue with no non-IBM PC admixture. You can also right-click the images and open them in a new tab at full resolution (2k-5k px).

This document was last updated on the 25th of October, 2024.

If a shooter entry has "IBM PC original" appended, that means the shooter was originally coded for IBM PC MS-DOS (or as PC Booter); that is, it is not a coinop or other-micro port, but rather an IBM PC MS-DOS-native game.

I also append "IBM PC exclusive" to the relevant entries. IBM PC-exclusive shooters are those that were only released for IBM PC MS-DOS or self-booter. I do not care if some IBM PC MS-DOS shooters were ported to "current gen platforms" decades later; that is utterly irrelevant to my authentic commentary. If you're playing 2020s ports of 1990s PC shooters on your cellphone, I don't care, they don't count, the shooters are still IBM PC-exclusives.

I also append "Best on IBM PC" to the relevant entries.

1982

Space Strike IBM PC 1982

Programmed by legendary coder and computer scientist, Michael Abrash (Quake), Space Strike is an early clone of Space Invaders packed into a 60 kbyte PC-Booter executable.

A polished and playable fixed-screen shoot 'em up that displays in 4-color CGA 320x200 and requires just 64 kbytes RAM, Space Strike supports joystick input and keyboard control.

IBM PC exclusive.

Cosmic Crusader IBM PC 1982

Also coded by Michael Abrash for i808x with 64 kbtytes RAM, Cosmic Crusader is one of the best early shoot 'em ups for IBM PC.

Not only is Cosmic Crusader highly playable even in 2024, but it is technically impressive as well due to the sheer number of on-screen sprites that it smoothly and simultaneously shifts across the playfield with its 60 kbyte of code. Displayed in CGA 320x200 Cosmic Crusader supports joystick input and keyboard control.

IBM PC exclusive.

Depth Charge IBM PC 1982

Jerry Kotler coded Depth Charge for the IBM PC in 1982. Displaying in monochrome 640x400, it is based on Gremlin's Depthcharge coinop of 1977.

1983

Galaxian IBM PC 1983

Namco's Galaxian coinop of 1979 was ported to i808x by AtariSoft in 1983 in 4-color CGA 320x200 (and 4-color CGA 640x400 for the instructions screen).

Supporting joystick input and keyboard controls, this 60 kbytes PC Booter requires an IBM PC compatible with 128 kbytes RAM. While not as good as the arcade-machine version, the sprites move about well and the controls are responsive.

Robotron 2084 IBM PC 1983

The Vid Kidz Robotron coinop of 1982 was ported to i808x by AtariSoft in 1983 in 4-color CGA 320x200. A multi-directional shoot 'em up, Robotron's 60 kbytes executable requires an IBM PC compatible with 128 kbytes RAM.

Robotron features 8-way movement and 8-way firing of the controlled sprite, Robotron Hero. In order to clear a stage players must destroy the Robotrons as they converge on the hero.

Defender IBM PC 1983

The legendary Williams Defender coinop of 1981 was ported to i808x by AtariSoft in 1983 in 4-color CGA 320x200. A bi-directional horizontally-scrolling shoot 'em up, Defender's 60 kbytes executable requires an IBM PC compatible with 128 kbytes RAM.

Defender supports 8-way movement and 3-button joystick or keyboard controls. It also supports the holding-down of two joystick buttons to execute the hyperspace jump.

Obvious audio-visual downgrade aside, the port's gameplay differs somewhat from the coinop as well. For example, the port features only one simultaneous abduction, no friendly fire and more generous point-rewards.

The variable-rate line-draw scrolling of the terrain is about as smooth as can be expected on i808x; that is, nowhere near the silky-smooth scrolling of the arcade-machine. That said, you can't ask for much more in 1983 on i808x.

Centipede IBM PC 1983

Atarisoft ported Atari Inc.'s Centipede coinop of 1981 to IBM PC Booter in 1983. Centipede is a fixed-screen shooter. Centipede features 4-way movement and progressive destructibility.

R. J. Grafe cloned Atari Inc.'s Centipede coinop of 1981 to IBM PC in 1983. Joystick support. This is a very good clone.

1984

Zaxxon IBM PC 1984

Sega's Zaxxon coinop of 1982 was ported to i808x by Sega Enterprises Inc. in 4-color CGA 320x200. An isometrically-scrolling shoot 'em up, Zaxxon's 20 kbyte PC Booter executable requires an IBM PC compatible with 64 kbytes of RAM.

Zaxxon features 4-way movement on the playfield. Control is via joystick input or keyboard. Zaxxon was ported to the Amiga as Public Domain / Freeware in 1995.

Defender only features a playfield made up of line-draws whereas Zaxxon features solid-color square-fills.

1985

Space Invaders IBM PC 1985

Next, we have the 1985 4-color CGA 320x200 i808x rendition of Taito's 1978 coinop, Space Invaders. The graphics are clear, collision detection is accurate, and the waves move with precision, but the PC-speaker sounds consists of bleeps and blurps (naturally).

1985 Space Invaders supports joystick input or keyboard control (Shift keys for left and right and Spacebar for fire).

Space War IBM PC 1985

Also in 1985 the Space War! PDP-1 mainframe game of 1962 was brought to i808x in glorious B&W by Bill Seiler. Spacewar displays its vectors in monochrome CGA at 640x400 resolution, but its line-draws are of 320x200 fidelity.

Like Zaxxon of 1984, both of these computer games have 20 kbyte executables.

IBM PC exclusive (in there sphere of home computers).

River Raid 1985 IBM PC Booter

Steve Hendricks ported Activision's River Raid of 1982 to IBM PC Booter in 1985. And while River Raid's ho-hum gameplay was most certainly old hat by 1985, the IBM PC version would not have gone by unplayed on such a platform. River Raid is a vertically-scrolling Scramble-like originally coded by Carol Shaw for the Atari VCS/2600.

1986

Ikari Warriors IBM PC 1986: Rambo Run n Gun

SNK's Ikari Warriors run and gun coinop of 1986 was converted to IBM PC Booter by Quicksilver Software. Ikari Warriors runs in 320x200 EGA graphics mode, but its vertically-scrolling playing field is only 208x132px, and its audio consists of naught but bleeps and blurps.

That said, this is a great port of the Ikari Warriors coinop in that it employs screen-draw tricks and compression techniques in order to maintain a colorful scrolling viewport, 8-way firing and two firing modes (gun / grenade) on a mere i808x with 256 kbytes of RAM.

The port features keyboard control or 2-button joystick input.

Commando IBM PC 1986

David Steffen of Quicksilver Software Inc. ported Capcom's Commando coinop of 1985 to IBM PC Booter in 1986. Commando displays in CGA 320x200 (224x128 playfield).

1987

Wizball IBM PC 1987

Sensible Software ported their Commodore 64-original Wizball of 1987 to IBM PC in the same year. Wizball is a horizontally-scrolling shooter with an innovative ball-bounce mechanic: the Wizball bounces off the ground and off objects while shooting and collecting.

The 75 kbyte executable taps into about 200 kbytes of data.

1988

Uridium IBM PC 1988

Xenon IBM PC 1988

Virus IBM PC 1988

Astro Blaster IBM PC 1988

Rolf Franzon coded Astro Blaster for IBM PC in 1988. Astro Blaster is based on Gremlin Industries' Astro Blaster coinop of 1981.

Contra IBM PC 1988

John Siegesmund of Banana Development ported Konami's Contra coinop of 1986 to IBM PC in 1988. Contra is displayed in 4-color CGA or 16-color CGA+ 320x200. Choppy scrolling. The in-game setup menu is displayed in 640x400.

Sidewinder IBM PC 1988

James McBride of Synergistic Software coded Sidewinder for IBM PC MS-DOS in 1988.

Sidewinder displays in 16-color EGA 320x200. And while its playfield may seem small at 248x200, it also scrolls horizontally to a degree, not just vertically, which means Sidewinder actually features more effective screenspace than most other v-shooters.

1989

Silpheed IBM PC 1989: Destroy Battleship Gloire & the Xacalites

Silpheed is a 1989 vector-based shoot 'em up converted from the 1986 PC-8801 original by Game Arts Co., Ltd. A rare gem in the MS-DOS shooter catalogue, Silpheed employs vector graphics from a fixed 3rd-person perspective, with movement-conveyance via a starfield.

Silpheed Weapons System (Pick-ups):

Weapons: Forward Beam, Phalanx Beam, V-beam, Laser Cannon, Auto-aiming
Items: Weapon Power Up, Speed Up, Automatic Fire, Set Barrier, Asteroid Belt, Destroy, Shield Advance, Invincible, Bonus Score, All Repair

DeathTrack IBM PC 1989

Developed by Dynamix in 1989, the hybrid shooter-racer DeathTrack is one of the most technically advanced and well-presented MS-DOS games of the late-80s. DeathTrack is one of the first big and fully thugged out arcade-action games on the PC.

Rendered similarly to the original MechWarrior of 1989 (which is a simulation), DeathTrack features 3D polygonal graphics for its tracks, supercars and other objects. Indeed, aside from its scrolling horizon DeathTrack is a fully 3D shooter-racer.

When running DeathTrack in 16-color EGA 320x200 an i80x86 with 512 kbytes of RAM is recommended. HDD storage required: 720 kbytes.

IBM PC exclusive.

Robocop IBM PC 1989

Data East's RoboCop coinop of 1988 was ported to IBM PC by FACS Entertainment Software Inc. in 1989. The RoboCop movie came out in 1987.

Rambo 3 IBM PC 1989

John Siegesmund of Banana Development ported Taito's Rambo 3 coinop of 1989 to IBM PC in 1989. Rambo 3 is a three-stage top-down flip-screen run and gun game that features a separate inventory screen and one dozen items and four different weapons. Movement and firing is 8-way. There is also a sprite-scaling, OpWolf-style level.

Rambo 3 runs in 16-color VGA 320x200 (not 256-color), 16-color 320x200 EGA, 16-color 320x200 TGA or monochrome Hercules 720x350. It supports IBM, Adlib, CMS and Tandy 3-channel audio.

Space Harrier IBM PC 1989

David R. Mattern and Brian A. Rice of Sega Computer Software ported Sega's Space Harrier coinop of 1987 to IBM PC in 1989. Space Harrier is a super-scaling railshooter.

Blasteroids IBM PC 1989

Atari Games Corporation ported Tengen's Blasteroids coinop of 1987 to IBM PC in 1989. A full-featured Asteroids-like with good controls and presentation, Blasteroids displays in 4-color CGA, 16-color EGA or 256-color VGA graphics modes.

Alien Syndrome IBM PC 1989

HSP of SEGA Enterprises Ltd. ported Sega's Alien Syndrome coinop of 1987 to IBM PC MS-DOS in 1989. The port is coded well and displayed in EGA graphics mode. Audio-visuals by Tahir Rashid.

Cabal IBM PC 1989

Wesley Hildebrandt of Interactive Designs ported TAD Corporation's Cabal coinop of 1988 to IBM PC in 1989. Cabal is a 3rd-person, fixed-screen run and gun game that displays in 16-color EGA. Graphics by Jennie Lee, music by Scott Etherton.

Operation Wolf IBM PC 1989

Taito's Operation Wolf light-gun coinop of 1987 was ported to IBM PC by William Rieder and John Siegesmund of Banana Development in 1989. This is a very good port that support keyboard, joystick or mouse control of the on-screen cursor.

Operation Wolf runs in 16-color VGA 320x200 (not 256-color), 16-color 320x200 MCGA, 16-color 320x200 EGA, 16-color 320x200 TGA or monochrome Hercules 720x350. Operation Wolf also supports CGA palette switching: four CGA palettes can be switched between via the F4-key.

Depending on graphics mode, Operation Wolf requires between 405-530 kbytes of free conventional RAM.

Audio-wise, Operation Wolf supports IBM, Adlib, CMS and Tandy 3-channel audio.

Sky Shark IBM PC 1989: P-90 Flying Fortress

Sky Shark of 1989 is an interesting shoot 'em up in terms of presentation and controls. For example, Sky Shark features joystick, keyboard and mouse control. In addition, it features a scripted tutorial with animations. And the scrolling is smooth enough. However, the MS-DOS port is nowhere near Taito's 1987 coinop.

Requiring 512 kbytes of RAM to run, Sky Shark runs in 16-color EGA graphics mode.

Sky Shark Weapons System (P-90): 1-7 Shots, Bomb, 1-up, Yellow Formation.

1990

Xenon 2 IBM PC 1990 The Bitmap Brothers

Blood Money IBM PC 1990

Super Contra IBM PC 1990

Eric Freytag of Distinctive Software Inc. ported Konami's Super Contra coinop of 1988 to IBM PC in 1990. Super Contra is displayed in 16-color EGA 320x200. Choppy scrolling. Graphics by DSI Art Team.

Wing Commander IBM PC 1990

1991

Wing Commander 2 IBM PC 1991

Llamatron 2112 IBM PC 1991

Llamatron 2112 was ported to 808x in 1992 from the original ST/Amiga versions of 1991. Supporting 2 joysticks for Robotron-style action, Llamatron is one of the best fixed-screen shoot 'em ups ever coded.

Super Space Invaders IBM PC 1991

Taito's Super Space Invaders coinop was ported to MS-DOS in 1991. Even though it lacks the arcade's vertical screen resolution, the port is solid.

Forgotten Worlds IBM PC 1991

Arc Developments ported Capcom's Forgotten Worlds coinop of 1988 to IBM PC in 1991. Forgotten Worlds displays in EGA 320x200 graphics mode.

Duke Nukem IBM PC 1991

IBM PC exclusive.

1992

RoboCop 3 IBM PC 1992

Digital Image Design's RoboCop 3 is notable for its slick presentation and early-90s, pre-Doom polygon-pushing. RoboCop 3 even featured some FPS gameplay.

Overkill IBM PC 1992

Ste Cork of Tech-Noir coded Overkill for IBM PC MS-DOS in 1992. Overkill is a Xenon 2-like. Graphics by Martin Holland. Composed by Anthony Williams.

1993

Alien Breed IBM PC 1993

Duke Nukem 2 IBM PC 1993

IBM PC exclusive.

Zone 66 IBM PC 1993: The 32-bit Arcade Game

Zone 66 and Major Stryker of 1993 feature scrolling that is passable but not ultra-smooth.

A labor of love, Zone 66 by Renaissance is a multi-directional scroller that displays in VGA 320x200 and requires a 386, 2 megs of RAM and MS-DOS 3.0. Zone 66 is a protected mode run-time.

In terms of features and design Zone 66 was impressive for its time.

The objective of each of the eight campaigns is to destroy all air, ground and naval enemy targets using a fighter jet equipped with gatling gun, missiles, lasers and bombs. There are also two tactical maneuvers to employ: shadow mode (cloak) and escape mode (extra speed).

Zone 66 programmed by Thomas Pytel.

IBM PC exclusive.

Major Stryker IBM PC 1993

Major Stryker by Apogee Software is a vertically-scrolling shoot 'em up that displays in EGA 320x200 and requires 640 kbytes RAM. Major Stryker features good controls, three layers of parallax scrolling, digitized sounds effects and cinematization.

Major Stryker programmed by Allen Blum.

IBM PC exclusive.

The Last Eichhof IBM PC 1993

Released in 1993 as freeware, The Last Eichhof is a Xenon 2-inspired shooter developed by Alpha-Helix. TLE features high-quality sprite-shifting, weapon configs, digitized sound effects and a square-pixel 320x240 VGA display. TLE requires 4 megs of RAM but will use up to 8 megs of EMS RAM.

Even though it does not support joystick control, TLE is a king-tier shoot 'em up.

The Last Eichhof programmed by Tritone and Zynax.

IBM PC exclusive.

Star Wars: X-Wing IBM PC 1993

IBM PC exclusive.

1994

Star Wars: TIE Fighter IBM PC 1994

IBM PC exclusive.

The Chaos Engine IBM PC 1994

Tubular Worlds IBM PC 1994

Developed by Creative Game Design in 1994 for MS-DOS and Amiga, Tubular Worlds is a slick multi-directional auto-scroller (primarily scrolls horizontally). Tubular Worlds features super-smooth screen-scrolling and sprite-shifting as well as big, multi-screen bosses.

Tubular Worlds programmed by Andreas Scholl.

Raptor IBM PC 1994

Developed by Cygnus in 1994, Raptor: Call of the Shadows displays in 256-color VGA 320x200 and requires an i80386 and 2 megs of RAM, but an i80486 and 4 megs of RAM is recommended.

A 27-level blaster featuring seven weapon bonuses, five money bonuses and 10 purchaseable weapons, Raptor features high sprite-counts and smooth, parallax screen-scrolling. Control is via mouse, 3-button joystick or keyboard.

Raptor Weapons System:

Weapon Bonuses: Air-to-Air Missile, Air-to-Ground Missile, Dumb-fire Missile, Energy Pod, Mega Bomb, Missile Pod, Phase Shield.
Special Weapons: Bomb, Death Ray, Ion Scan, Laser Turret, Micro Missile, Mini Gun Turret, Mini Gun, Power Disruptor, Pulse Cannon, Twin Laser.

Raptor programmed by Scott Host.

IBM PC exclusive.

Raiden IBM PC 1994

Coded by Steve Cullen for in 1994, MS-DOS Raiden was only a passable port of Seibu Kaihatsu's 1990 coinop; nowhere near arcade-quality. In 1994 MS-DOS Raiden should have been close to arcade-perfect. For example, on the first level you don't even take off from an aircraft carrier at the start; nor are there two boss units. There is just too much missing, even for a port. Still, beggars can't be choosers.

At minimum Raiden requires i80386, 384 kbytes RAM and MS-DOS 3.0.

To prove that MS-DOS Raiden could have been close to arcade-perfect in 1994, we can simply cite MS-DOS Street Fighter 2 of 1992.

Desert Strike IBM PC 1994: Apache AH-64 Gunship

Electronic Arts' Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (1994) features multi-directional scrolling of an isometric playing field. In addition to its momentum mechanic (toggleable with F4), Desert Strike features sprite rotation, strafing, and sprite drop-shadows. Its sequel 1995 Jungle Strike was more of the same.

Both Desert Strike and Jungle Strike display in VGA 320x200 and require i808386 and 4 megs of RAM (544 kbytes base memory).

Wing Commander 3 IBM PC 1994

1995

Tyrian IBM PC 1995

Developed by Eclipse in 1995 Tyrian displays in 256-color VGA 320x200 and requires i80386/33 and 4 megs of RAM. Tyrian is a full-featured shoot 'em up; indeed, it includes the kitchen sink.

Running on MS-DOS as well as Windows, Tyrian 2000 of 1999 added even more features and another episode, but Quake had well and truly taken over PC Gaming from 1996 onwards, and so barely anyone gave a damn.

Running at 60 FPS Tyrian features smooth sprite-shifting, parallax scrolling and transparency effects. Tyrian also supports serial and modem networking.

Tyrian Weapons System (upgradeable):

Front Gun, Rear Gun, Shield, Generator, Sidekick Weapons.
Special Weapons: Retractor, Repulsor, Ice Beam.
2-Player ships: Dragonhead and Dragonwing.

Tyrian programmed by Jason Emery and Andreas Molnar.

IBM PC exclusive.

Space Invaders IBM PC 1995

A belated but solid conversion of Space Invaders was coded by Paul S. Read in 1995. Coded for 16-color EGA at 640x400 resolution, this version of Space Invaders is naturally more colorful than Space Invaders 1985.

The Flying Tigers IBM PC 1995

Coded by Jay Kramer The Flying Tigers is a 1995 vertical-scroller that displays in 256-color VGA square-pixel 320x240 and requires an i80386 CPU and 4 megs of XMS RAM.

Control and collision are fine, the scrolling is smooth, the sprites are well drawn and every projectile is drop-shadowed, but the waves are repetitive and winning is too easy. Control via joystick or keyboard.

IBM PC exclusive.

Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom IBM PC 1995

Pop Software's Galaga-likes Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom and Return of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom were released as Shareware in 1995. Both games feature big and colorful sprites that move smoothly around the viewport in waves.

IBM PC exclusive.

Descent IBM PC 1995

IBM PC original.

1996

Abuse IBM PC 1996

Stargunner IBM PC 1996

Stargunner by WizardWorks was impressive in 1996. Stargunner displays in 256-color VGA square-pixel 320x240 and requires an i80486, 2 megs of RAM and 256 KB vRAM. However, it is recommended to run Stargunner on Pentium 90 MHz, 16 megs of RAM and VESA 2.0 video card with 2 megs of vRAM.

Stargunner's graphics are prerendered; that is, models were constructed in a 3D program, rendered out as raw 2D images and then modified for game-engine employment. In Stargunner, this allows for smooth sprite rotations. Stargunner also features parallax scrolling at 60 FPS.

Stargunner programmed by Craig Allsop (Lead) and David Pevreal (Hardware).

IBM PC exclusive.

Seek and Destroy IBM PC 1996

Developed by Vision Software, Seek and Destroy (1996) is a multi-directionally trucking pseudo-3D shoot 'em up displayed in VGA square-pixel 320x240. Coded for MS-DOS 5.0 Seek and Destroy features 360 degree screen rotation of a 3D playing field; its sprites rotate independently (as in Doom). Seek and Destroy also features helicopter strafing and tank turret rotation.

Involving the loading of seven on-board vehicle banks/bays, Seek & Destroy has one of the best weapons systems in shoot 'em up history:

Chain gun: Single stream, Dual stream, Dual stream swinging-arc.
Rockets (Chopper only): Dual rockets, Triple-fire rocket spread, Four Side rockets.
Air-to-Ground Ballistic (Chopper only): Non-locking rocket, Lock-on single rocket, Lock-on twin rockets.
Air-to-Air Missiles (Chopper only)
Napalm (Chopper only): Single stream, triple stream, multi-stream star-shaped napalm bomb
Air Strike: Low, mid and high impact air strike.
Shells (Tank only): Single shell, Rapid-fire, Dual shells.
Flame Thrower (Tank only): Single stream of napalm, long-range stream of napalm, Dual-stream long-range napalm.
Special Weapons: Mega Missile (Chopper only), Super Napalm (Chopper only), Bomb (Chopper only), Mine (Tank only), Power Shell (Tank only), Ground to Air (Tank only).

It is recommended to run Seek & Destroy on i80486/DX2-66 MHz CPUs with 8 megs of RAM and 1 meg vRAM. Seek and Destroy requires 550 kbytes of free conventional RAM and 2½ megs of RAM at minimum.

Explosion, terrain and overlay graphics detail is configurable.

Programmed by Aaron Koolen, Seek and Destroy came out on the Amiga in 1993, three years before the MS-DOS version. However, the MS-DOS version is far superior (as it should be, coming out three years later).

Best on IBM PC.

Descent 2 IBM PC 1996

IBM PC original.

1997

Gradius Windows PC 1997

In the Gradius Deluxe Pack of 1997 Konami bundled ports of their Gradius (1985) and Gradius 2 (1988) coinops to Windows 95 PCs. These belated ports display in 256-color square-pixel SVGA 640x480 via DirectX 3.0 (DirectDraw & DirectSound).

Gradius Deluxe Pack requires a Pentium 90 MHz CPU, 8 megs of RAM, 1 meg of vRAM and 40 megs of HDD space, but 133 MHz, 16 megs of RAM and 2 megs of vRAM is recommended.

Nebula Fighter IBM PC 1997

Developed by Holodream Software and released as shareware in 1997, Nebula Fighter is a horizontally-scrolling shoot 'em up that displays in VGA square-pixel 320x240. Nebula Fighter features pre-rendered graphics, digitized sound effects and parallax scrolling.

Nebula Fighter requires a Cyrix 686 P150 or Pentium 90 MHz CPU and 8 megs of RAM at minimum, but it is recommended to run Nebula Fighter on Pentium 150 MHz with 16 megs of RAM and 1 meg of vRAM. Nebula Fighter supports joystick, mouse or keyboard controls.

IBM PC exclusive.

1998

Axia IBM PC 1998

Dungeon Dwellers Design released Axia for IBM PC MS-DOS in 1998. An Asteroids-like, Axia was designed and coded by Jason Pimble. Cash is accumulated and a store can be accessed per five levels completed. Weapons include Cannon, Laser, Missile, Drone and Booster. Displays in 256-color VGA 640x400. Supports keyboard control or 4-button analogue/digital joystick.

IBM PC exclusive.

cf.