Ah the side-scrolling beat ‘em up, the game where you took on the might of 100 enemies by yourself, picking up Iron bars, swords and god knows what else in order to get closer to the big guy and end the whole street war. But which were the best? Good question, what follows is a fan list, be warned, there is only one game per franchise, so if your individual favourite is missed off, it is not because its awesomeness isn’t known… It is just that another game of the franchise is more awesome!

#10: Alien Storm (GEN)

Kicking off the list is this alien fighting side scroller, a fun and interesting experience in that you battle left to right fighting all manner of aliens. Blobs, evil plants and slugs, as well as numerous others. You play as either the electricity shooting male, the fire shooting woman or the whip wielding robot.

Like many of this ilk you have special attacks which involve huge bombs, air strikes and even a suicidal robot! But what makes this game stand out is that at the end of a level, instead of a boss you have a 2-D shooter in the style of ‘Operation wolf’ to end the level, an interesting way to round the levels off. Also there are two levels where your character run left to right and shoot everything! A unique way to break up the gameplay!

#9: Die Hard Arcade (SAT)

The very last of the side-scrollers appeared on Sega’s doomed console after a life in the arcade, such a shame as it is excellent. This is a wild card entry in that it falls between 2D and 3D. While the action is side scrolling left to right, you move up and down the screen. Yet, you can actually have full control so instead of your character constantly facing right, you can move freely.

As well as that it features an absolute ton of weapons, pistols, clubs, grenades. What makes it even more excellent is the way that attacks feel similar to a traditional one on one beat em up, with varied punch and kick combos, plus combo moves for your weapons. A title that is often overlooked, well worth dusting off if you can!

#8: Comix Zone (GEN)

This wonderfully original title is a delicious visual feast, but boy is it tough. In the game you play cartoonist Sketch Turner that is sucked into his comic by the character he created, Mortus, the idea being that if Sketch is killed in the comic, Mortus becomes real. It sounds cliched, but the fact that this game takes place in a real comic strip, with Sketch leaping from cell to cell is just excellent.

One problem with the game is that sketch has a ton of moves, which you have to figure out by yourself, no manuals for these in the game boolet. Even then you’ll find this game hard, with you only having a single life to get through six levels. Though you have help from a rat and the ability to become a super hero. It will leave you with a huge grin and make you frustrated at the same time, get the cart or at worst the ps2/PSP collection it is on!

#7: Battletoads (NES)

Oh god, this game is quite possibly the hardest side scroller you’ll ever play, it’ll frustrate you, beat you and mock you… But you’ll not want to stop, this game is everything that a side scroller should be. It’s fast paced, features a swarm of bad guys ganging up on you and has some killer moves that you can pull out on those who cross your path. The idea of some steroid guzzling toads beating up the baddies might seem ridiculous, but who cares? It’s a frantic, fun and engrossing game. Who can possibly get bored of uppercutting an enemy off the screen all day long? (mortal kombat eat your heart out)

#6: Golden Axe (GEN)

A game that Manowar themselves would endorse, you wield your mighty sword or axe and are on a quest to end the evil of the malicious “Death Adder”. This medieval side scroller is just excellent. Featuring nine foot bad guys as your bosses and enemies that could have been taken from the film ‘Legend’, and you are up for some great fun.

As well as the great controls and smooth combos, you can also unload magical attacks, running assaults and ride mythical beasts that breathe fire, on the evil creatures you are sworn to destroy. It might look cheesy when watching, but get your hands on the controller and you’ll be pledging allegiance to Odin all over again!

#5: Double Dragon II: The Revenge (NES)

This legendary series really pulled its act together with the second one, not that anything was wrong with the original of course. It features both Billy and Jimmy Lee hunting down the killers of their love interest in a revenge plot, a mission that takes you through a ton of awesome levels that feature everything from tanks to bodyguards. 2

Player on this is still a wicked way of spending an evening, it might have some grainer graphics and occasionally the character sprites will go translucent. But the moreish music and brutal savagery of the kung fu you can unleash more than makes up for it!

#4: Streets of Rage II (GEN)

Sega’s answer to the ‘final fight’ series really delivered with this classic gaming experience. Eradicating the repeated backdrops and jerkier controls of the first game, while avoiding the camp and over the top plot of the third, SOR2 forms a perfect balance in side-scrolling gaming. It has the awesome urban techno soundtrack of Yuzo Hoshiro, as well as beautifully varied locations.

Everything from video arcades, pirate ships, beaches and military bases feature. The enemies are also varied with bikers, punks, ninjas and kick boxers tooling up against you. It might seem a tad slower than most of the games featured, but it sure as hell packs a killer punch, play this all night and you’ll wonder what you’ve been missing.

#3: Final Fight 3 (SNES)

This game is the perfect embodiment of the legendary series, delivering after the disappointing second title. It has the return of ‘Guy’ and ‘Hagar’ plus new characters ‘christy’ and ‘dean’. For the first time all the characters stand out as unique, there is no ‘token’ brawler or busty broad this time. As well as that the difficulty curve is excellent while the characters also have special attacks that require certain motions to pull off, for example Guy can use a classic fireball using the same control as in SF2. It really adds depth to the characters but another depth that has been added is the multiple paths through the game. It has challenge and tons of reply value, well worth hunting down despite its rarity.

#2: The Simpsons (ARC)

It seems a bit odd that a show as hilarious as the simpsons would produce such an awesome side-scrolling beat em up, yet it does. Featuring the brilliant Groenig humour of the show you have to hunt down Maggie using any of the other four Simpsons characters. It features them using weapons that sum up their character, most memorable ones being Bart and his trademark Skateboard and Marge with her Vacuum cleaner.

It’s a shame that this classic was never ported anywhere, despite the deluge of rubbish simpsons titles, the best one never made it. Some may call it a mindless action game, but it is funny and brilliant, find a cabinet and play it… You’ll love it.

#1: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (ARC)

The title which has everything that makes this genre great. A stack of bad guys who just never stop coming, the ability to have four players all kicking rear at the same time, and a brilliant difficulty curve that starts relatively simple and gets ridiculous.

As well as having all four turtles, it also has all the main baddies from the classic cartoon series. Throw in the fact that you can use the background in attacks (who doesn’t get bored of seeing foot soldiers sliding down a wall?) and the lush frame rate, and you have a quarter/pound eating classic. The home conversions are quite good but nothing beats standing at the original cabinet with three mates, all beating the stuffing out of Bebop and Rock Steady. Find one and rediscover the magic.

This list has brought back so many memories, the side-scrolling beat ‘em up was a proper no nonsense affair, you didn’t need a deep plot, you didn’t need any excuses. Someone did something bad, you cracked your knuckles, rolled up your sleeves and got ready to go to work. It’s a shame that these games died out, unlike the 2-D shooter, these games didn’t make it past the millenium. There was a rumour that Sega were thinking of doing a new Streets of Rage for the Dreamcast, but that is about it. Part of me would love to have one more go at Dr X in Streets Of Rage, or battle for Metro City in Final Fight. But truth to tell, these games are classics, and it is actually a blessing that they haven’t been bled dry as cash cows. Long may their legacies remain.