Top 10 Rail Shooters of All Time
Рет қаралды 79,078
Күн бұрынRail shooters have always been one of my favorite video game genres, with non-stop action and intense, focused gameplay. But you don't see them all that often anymore. So in this video, I explain the basics of the rail shooter genre before presenting my picks for the top 10 rail shooters of all time, across platforms.
Some capture notes (as mentioned in the video):
In most cases I used real hardware, including appropriate controllers. In a few cases that wasn't possible, mainly because not every game is available for home gameplay.
Vampire Night, Time Crisis II: actual PS2 gameplay captured over composite and played with a Guncon 2
Confidential Mission: actual Dreamcast gameplay captured over composite using standard controller (I have an Interact light gun but it has never worked with this game)
The House of the Dead 2, 3 & Overkill, Sin and Punishment: Star Successor: actual Wii gameplay using Wiimote captured over HDMI
Rez: Infinite, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood: played on PSVR using standard and Move controllers, captured through the social screen over HDMI (lower resolution than what's actually in the headset, but this is the only way to capture PSVR)
After Burner, Star Wars, Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom, Space Harrier: actual gameplay using MAME
Planet Harriers: actual gameplay using Demul
Gunblade NY: actual gameplay using Model 2 Emulator
The Walking Dead, Star Fox 64, Star Wars: Battle Pod, After Burner Climax, (a little of) Rez: Infinite: official trailer footage
Afterburner PSP: gameplay captured using PSP TV output over component
Panzer Dragoon Orta: Xbox One S gameplay captured over HDMI
For all PC capture (ie. emulators), I used OBS Studio for the capture.
None of these games are current but most can be purchased on Ebay, and I'd love it if you used my Ebay link to get there: ebay.to/2hFrsCr
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@jiraiya0698 9 ай бұрын
A Sega Rail Shooter Collection is needed in this world.
@finalhazard883 3 жыл бұрын
Star Fox and Kid Icarus Uprising are my favorites.
@Neo-Metal17 2 жыл бұрын
Hey old account
@Mik_lackofbits 6 жыл бұрын
History says that Sega hates itself so much, and the fact I can't see most of its on rail masterpieces on Steam just confirms that.
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
I pretty much agree.
@Tehstroyer 6 жыл бұрын
Especially since at least some are already ported. And lack of the OG Typing Of The Dead hurts the most (even if I prefer the normal entries in the series).
@DragonGrafx-16 6 жыл бұрын
It took a third part dev to even get Rez on PC...
@agroed Жыл бұрын
Personally I'd put light gun games in their own category but I get the argument for them. This was a great list, thanks for all the hard work. Very cool to see Orta at the top. Hats off to the best series that no one's played.
@bananonymouslastname5693 10 ай бұрын
I agree. Light gun games are a lot different from traditional rail shooters. Yes, you're on rails, but there is no dodging/direct character control.
@theliveisnoshit 5 жыл бұрын
some of my fav that didnt get mentioned Time Crisis 4, Ghost Squad and Pokemon Snap (yes that counts as a rail shooter)
@MrBoy-qj3bs 6 жыл бұрын
I agree with all these picks, but I'm a big fan of "Ghost Squad," too. I blew countless hours playing that on my Wii.
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
I'm not sure if I ever played that, although I probably did once or twice in the arcades (I play basically any rail shooter I find in arcades). It does look pretty fun, I think I just gravitate a bit more towards the fantasy-based shooters. But I will have to pick that up on Wii and try it out on that system.
@MrBoy-qj3bs 6 жыл бұрын
I think rail shooters are some of the Wii's best games. There's certainly no shortage of them on that console.
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
Yeah, I was very late to the Wii (in fact, I never actually had one until I got my Wii U, which is backward compatible), and ended up finally getting it because of the fact that it had games like HotD and S&P:SS on it. I hadn't realized previously that it had become kind of the last bastion of light gun games because of the Wiimote. I ended up buying those Cabela shotgun attachments for the Wiimote, and they really make for awesome video game guns but they don't work in any other developers' games. So I still need to pick up a decent gun attachment for the system, but the Wiimote works ok on its own.
@ryandixon7604 2 жыл бұрын
Yeah but the game was way too short.
@leonarddillon256 3 жыл бұрын
Mad respect for putting a Panzer Dragoon game on the top of the list 👍 Rail shooters is such underrated genre. It’s more video game-like than Platformers and other genres.
@KameWeeb Жыл бұрын
Having played Panzer Dragoon Orta on Xbox One, I can say it's one of the best rail shooters I've ever played. It's absolutely FANTASTIC.
@TheTrueBro Жыл бұрын
House of the Dead Overkill's hilarious voice acting and its cheap 80s zombie movie story makes that game a jewel.
@StompDeni42 4 жыл бұрын
It was a great video, it was both very entertaining and informative to watch, thank you for uploading!
@proximacentaur1654 8 ай бұрын
Came here because of the Air Twister game by Yu Suzuki. Panzer Dragoon Orta looks sublime. Thank you!
@MetalJesusRocks 5 жыл бұрын
Great list!!! Love these types of games :)
@janX9 4 жыл бұрын
*Ed Hunter* the entire soundtrack is by Iron Maiden (PC) *Lethal Enforces* Arcade and Sega CD *CarnEvil* Arcade game inspired by the 1962 movie Carnival of Souls Mad Dog McRee by American Laser Games Sewer Shark Sets Sega CD Jurassic Park Arcade Series Area 51
@kraziezombie 3 жыл бұрын
All this time and I had no clue Panzer Dragoon was available on Xbox One! Downloading now! Thanks man!!
@rainond.cooper2971 3 ай бұрын
I remember playing Gunblade in an arcade often as a kid. There was one particular stage I just could not beat
@mylifeingaming 6 жыл бұрын
[Coury] probably my favorite genre of game. Some really great picks here. S&P2 is probably the best game on the Wii, and the number 1 pick is right on the money. Great video!
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
Thanks - yeah S&P:SS feels like it *should* be in the top 10, but between the original and S&P and SS, I just find myself playing the original more. I could have lumped them in as a series in one entry, but that feels strange with only 2 games. SS is a great game, though. I think there's something about the controls I could never quite get used to, whereas I eventually did with the original. They both have kind of weird control schemes.
@aeiouxs 6 жыл бұрын
Great list! Thanks!
@CattoRayTube 5 жыл бұрын
Not really a genre that has ever interested me, but gee Rez looks good! I might actually give that one a go. Thanks for making the list!
@Dark4arker 3 жыл бұрын
Man... Still, time crisis 3, Crisis zone and terminator Salvation be always, and always in my heart
@Nazgul094 5 жыл бұрын
I almost got angry at the lack of Panzer Dragoon Orta. But man, am I really happy to see it on your No. 1 spot.
@chocobochick5390 5 жыл бұрын
I can see it on the list but completely disagree with it being no.1. And Project Slypheed should really be somewhere on this list.
@williamhenderson2266 2 жыл бұрын
This list itself just shows how great SEGA was in arcades, and created classic after classic in many genres.
@Jrez 5 жыл бұрын
Sin & Punishment is awesome. Great list! Couple I never heard of like Vampire Night, which I am going to try and experience soon. I consider Killer 7 a solid rail shooter and it is high on my own list. The only other ones I made a beeline for in the arcades were Time Crisis 1 and 2 as well as that one Gunblade NY, with the absolutely gigantic gun that I can never remember the name of.
@PhyA52 6 ай бұрын
The game you're thinking of is L.A. Machinguns: Rage of the Machines. A port for both games was made for the Wii. I think that's the only port ever made. And then you also have the Wii remote you can use as a light gun. It's pretty fun.
@rathalos143 5 жыл бұрын
Nice list, I only missed RE: Darkside Chronicles from Wii
@jweinrub 5 жыл бұрын
Awesome video there!
@OptimisticZenox Жыл бұрын
"Time Crisis Series" and "House of the Dead Series" is the most nostalgic for me
@borkotigaragames1643 7 ай бұрын
House of the dead for me too
@shockz1715 5 жыл бұрын
Wii definitely has the best rail shooter setup of any console which adds charm to it. If only we could've gotten more ports like Virtua Cop and Panzer on there. At Least we got House of the Dead ports, and Dead Space/Sin and Punishment
@StandingUpForBetter 5 жыл бұрын
Great list and I have to agree on Orta. It looks AMAZING on the Xbox One X! Other rail shooters I enjoy are Link's Crossbow Training on the Wii, Star Wars The Arcade on the 32X, Soul Star on the Sega CD, Galaxy Force II on the 3DS and Star Blade on the PS1. Also I don't think Heavy Fire Afghanistan on the Wii gets enough love.
@Dkentflyer 5 жыл бұрын
Loved the star wars arcade game, i seem to remember it had several pokey chips for performing the digitised sounds. Same as the Atari 8 bit line.
@VanquishSpeed 2 жыл бұрын
After seeing Valve’s “Aperture Desk Job”, I really think it really opens my eyes towards this genre.
@alan.alimudin 4 жыл бұрын
I like the way you say "This is my opinion. Yours maybe different but that's okay too" 😊 Good list. But you may play Time Crisis 4, Residents Evil Darkside Chronicles & Ghost Squad. It was the best light gun games i've play 😎
@Airik1111bibles 5 жыл бұрын
Panzer Dragoon is addictive and also one of the coolest looking games ever made....Its way ahead if its time and also I had no idea the X-box One has a HD 60fps version! NICE😁
@carteljameson8395 4 жыл бұрын
Orta was always 60fps, even on the original Xbox. That console was super powerful in its time. A lot more games ran at 60fps on that console than people remember.
@Airik1111bibles 3 жыл бұрын
@Major Gear It would of been amazing if they made this game into a full RPG OPEN WORLD adventure. Current gen games are beautiful but many of them lack the atmosphere that oldschool games had. I guess I'm just getting old, my nostalgia is showing LOL😆 My sons think I'm crazy cause I love my Vita more than the Switch .
@bunnybreaker 4 жыл бұрын
Solid list.
@crowstakingoff 3 жыл бұрын
I think the music at 9:26 in House of the Dead influenced the Hang Castle theme from Sonic Heroes. More specifically, the Hang Castle reversed (upside down) theme
@AutistCat 6 жыл бұрын
Die Hard Trilogy on Playstation using a lightgun is my fave
@Justin-TPG 5 жыл бұрын
Big fan of Rez on Dreamcast and then later in HD on the 360, but oh my it looks amazing in VR. I lack the hardware for now, sadly.
@sunnyfatigue Жыл бұрын
Time Crisis being an honourable mention is a crime against humanity. Also Walking Dead above House of the Dead? What?????? Other than that, great list. Rail Shooters are one of my favourite genres.
@acharat6 2 жыл бұрын
Great video, but I would've kept light gun shooters out, since they're kinda their own genre. Really made me want to try Planet Harriers.
@That_Handle 6 жыл бұрын
6:32 - Can someone please finally settle the contradictory information I've seen for Vampire Night's support of the PS2's system link (4-pin Firewire AKA 's400' ) ... Does it support the linking of two PS2s like that of the Time Crisis 2 and 3 titles? I don't want to search out then shell out money for a second copy of it doesn't...
@CatsGamesWhatever 5 жыл бұрын
Dead Space Extraction is another that is worth playing if you like that genre on the wii.
@DarkShroom 3 жыл бұрын
wasn't star fox a rails shooter as well? if so that's a big omission Star Wars Trilogy Arcade was the most memorable non-gun rails shooter of the 90-00s arcades for me..... it's more forgiving also than most arcade games, which seemed fair, it was about the experience feeling like a movie and you got quite some playtime for a few credits
@jackawaka 5 жыл бұрын
This has made me want to make a rail shooter, might try it out
@yudosai 3 жыл бұрын
did you make it yet?
@jackawaka 3 жыл бұрын
@@yudosai Unfortunately not, I've been working on more casual games such as this work in progress: sokyogoku.itch.io/purrlins-potion-shop I did do a study of rail shooters mechanics at uni for one of the terms though.
@yudosai 3 жыл бұрын
@@jackawaka ah, i see. glad you kept at game dev though! and your game looks cool!
@lukass64 9 ай бұрын
Panzer Dragoon Otra is such an awesome rails shooter. My criticism to this list is that guncon and vr games should have their own lists because there are a lot of great rail shooters like Kid Icaris for 3DS and even Gamera 2000 for PS1. I enjoyed this list very much since you introduced a few games I've never heard of.
@PhyA52 6 ай бұрын
I would really enjoy an update to this video for 2024! There's plenty of new games that have been released for the genre, not to mention the new peripherals to play all old school light gun games.
@1ambad 3 ай бұрын
where did you find a rom for Planet Harriers? Or does the MAME run on Dreamcast emu?
@Pyttykustu 2 жыл бұрын
Good choices.
@NIGH11 6 жыл бұрын
What the..no Panzer on the list?! REEE how dare y...oh wait...GREAT LIST ! Seriously though great channel man !
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
Ha, yeah it was kind of a fakeout. I intentionally didn't include any footage of any PD game until the end :)
@modernretrorenaissance2520 7 ай бұрын
Panzer Dragoon Orta is in my top 5 favorite games ever. It has aged perfectly. I was afraid you were going to leave Panzer Dragoon off your list and then you surprised me by placing Orta #1. Great choice.
@gloglablyn 3 жыл бұрын
Orta was a welcome nostalgia surprise, but Elemental Gearbolt needs to be here too.
@treyh9635 3 жыл бұрын
Nice list, although I'm surprised Deadstorm Pirates is not up there at all.
@Trusteft 5 жыл бұрын
Good video man. I can't say I agree about how you define a game as a rail shooter or not. It's funny but I would never consider some of these games to belong in the rail shooter category. Space harrier, After burner, Star Wars etc. They were always for me just shoot 'em ups in pseudo 3D. I am not saying you are wrong, just that I don't see them like that. Rez HD is the one of two reasons I still own an Xbox 360. Fantastic game. As for favorite rail shooters, I would add Operation Wolf (2D rail shooter) and Roller Coaster Rumbler (which I played mostly on the Atari ST but there are other versions)
@pcplayerzero7636 4 жыл бұрын
Does anyone know the name of a very old arcade rail-shooter in which you shoot monsters ? It didnt take itself seriously and was more or less as old as Terminator 2 i guess. I really wanted to get a ported version of it ...
@eazyrat 4 жыл бұрын
wow the 2d after burner looks great in 4k
@JerrardJDDavis-gy9hh 7 ай бұрын
I Love Rail Shooter Games
@TSL73 4 жыл бұрын
I still have afterburner climax on my 360 and the psp version all great games.
@beohyl 3 жыл бұрын
@modern classics why did you list the N64 sin and punishment over the Wii version? Why do you like it better?
@gfxdaddy 5 ай бұрын
N20 Nitrous Oxide. Game and soundtrack are crazy.
@Crazy-vb9oz 3 жыл бұрын
My favorite rail shooter of all time is Jurassic Park 1994 Sega, because the seat moved. Fun as hell, and easy for a young kid to play through on a few credits.
@GroversMill 5 жыл бұрын
Still great games. We love them.
@BlueflagAlpha 6 жыл бұрын
you should do top 10 shoot em up games
@donaldfontes1437 Жыл бұрын
Do you like fmv games I love them thanks for the very awesome video.
@hansmayer7814 3 жыл бұрын
How about the spin-off Typing of the Dead? Helped me increase my wpm. Plus there was so much campy bonus content.
@ModernClassic 3 жыл бұрын
I have that game (and still have my Dreamcast keyboard for it), and it's good for what it is, but I'll take HotD2 over it any day.
@vuurwater6784 Жыл бұрын
I miss all the resident evil on rail shooters in this video. They were awesome just like Link's crossbow which had secret stages. Link's crossbow training is way underrated.
@jeepdriver456 6 жыл бұрын
Always wanted to do this... first... lol. Love me some rail shooters
@nicholasevon845 3 жыл бұрын
I was hoping to see the jurassic park rail shooters in the list or at least in the honorable mentions thing , oh well maybe next time in another top ten thing
@Tirade 5 жыл бұрын
ever tried omega boost for the ps1
@SNKBossSyndrom 9 күн бұрын
I'd say Sin and Punishment Wii is the best. It's just bonkers and full on action. Great when you're intoxicated ^^
@NothingHereForYou 2 ай бұрын
id love to make a modern take on a rail shooter. I feel like i could see it done. Open areas, but with gameplay that feels like a rail shooter. I was thinking like a Panzer Dragoon wit an underwater aesthetic.
@codafett 2 жыл бұрын
This is a whole world I never got to experience, save for HOTD
@LittleBigKid707b Жыл бұрын
Really nice list. Of course, we are all going to disagree on some of the games listed, but still great list. I would personally put the arcade or Saturn Port of space Harrier in there. Also in my humble opinion, having played both sin and Punishment extensively, I think star successor is possibly the best game on the Wii with the best use of the motion controls. I would put that above the first sin and Punishment. And I know I'm in the minority here, but I personally love the way Star Fox Zero's control scheme was implemented for the Wii U. Another game that in my opinion used the Wii U control pad to perfection
@KameWeeb Жыл бұрын
I've actually beaten The Walking Dead. Multiple times. The entertainment center I used to go to had the game, and I played that all the time! I can attest to its greatness. If you can find it, PLAY IT.
@WWRNC 3 жыл бұрын
Pokémon Snap should be on here! Hey it counts!
@PerKroon 5 жыл бұрын
You do know that you can modify your light gun to work with modern screens? Actually make them better, more accurate aiming, all easy modified by a few lines of code.
@ModernClassic 5 жыл бұрын
I'm not aware of that - do you have a link where I can read about it?
@PerKroon 5 жыл бұрын
github.com/charcole/LCDZapper/
@JerrardJDDavis-gy9hh 7 ай бұрын
My Favorite Rail Shooter Games Is Wild Guns And Time Crisis With Endgame (PS2 GAME)
@burnem5520 5 жыл бұрын
im triying to find a game where you fight agains giant spiders , i cannot remember the name , i think its something like island tour or some like , im not sure
@arioca 6 жыл бұрын
Gunblade NY was paired with its sequel LA Machineguns in the Wii compilation Gunblade NY & LA Machineguns Arcade Hits Pack.
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
I will absolutely check that out. I was late to the Wii and missed a lot of its gun games when they came out.
@arioca 6 жыл бұрын
Cool. The other game I'd recommend checking out is SoulStar for the Sega CD.
@ModernClassic 5 жыл бұрын
Unfortunately I sold my Sega CD, which I have regretted ever since...
@Packguardian_gacha8684 2 жыл бұрын
Rail shooter games were my favorite. I wish I could find one on the Xbox.
@bramvandenbroeck5060 5 жыл бұрын
My favorite rail shooter of all times is Microsofts Deadly Tide, check it out man, ive been looking for this game for a VEEEERY LOOOONG TIME and i cannot find it anywhere, its a awesome game with a great story! I miss this game
@47KRoman 4 жыл бұрын
The most recent I liked a lot was Major Mayhem on PC.
@pelgervampireduck 6 жыл бұрын
nice list, I like the time crisis series, house of the dead series, but for me the best rail shooter is "elemental gearbolt", if you haven't played it you should check it out, it has a good fantasy anime setting with an interesting story, I loved it!. by the way, I disagree in including games where you can control the movement, like after burner 2 or star fox 64, I don't think as those as rail shooters. for me a rail shooter is a game where you don't control the movement of the character, you just control the aiming and shooting. if you can move the space ship or character then it's not on rails.
@ModernClassic 6 жыл бұрын
Well, both Star Fox 64 and After Burner offer very limited movement - essentially there's a box you're allowed to fly through, and the screen just shows a smaller version of that box. Rez, Planet Harriers and Panzer Dragoon and PD Orta are the same, as are a lot of other rail shooters.
@Tallefer 5 жыл бұрын
Still, dude has a point and I agree with him - the difference is there, should be two categories, either name one half a "3d shmup" and/or the other half a "shooting range". You have mentioned shmups, and there were many shmups where you also can't see the whole field at once, hell, even Xevious was like that IIRC (or some other ancient one). But it's still YOUR top list, so I am fine with that. :) BUT! There was no mention of StarBlade. WHAT. REALLY?! SHAME! %)
@bananonymouslastname5693 10 ай бұрын
I wish light gun games were separate, but here are a few others I enjoy: Vanark Night Striker GI Joe (arcade) Gamera 2000 Super Robot Shooting Cowboy Bebop (PS1) Internal Section Burning Force
@smittylikesto 3 жыл бұрын
playing rail shooters on the oculus is amazing
@yamahayamaha5488 4 жыл бұрын
Does anyone know a game where you get to choose a male or a blond female cop to play as, each with different stories? From what i remember it was in japanese (maybe chinese idk). It was also 2d with enemies that tbh looks hand drawned
3 жыл бұрын
Time Crisis series should dominate the list.
@Solqueen86 4 жыл бұрын
6:40 Vampire Wesker
@mtariq7489 3 жыл бұрын
This genre is verry nostalgia
@ModernClassic 3 жыл бұрын
This genre is what video gaming is all about.
@mijajlovic_004 7 ай бұрын
There was a game Literally like moorhuhn(crazy chicken) and instead of having only chicken you have much more animals like boar, deer, of course chicken and much more and you have order what to kill for example you must kill 10 boars and 10 chickens and 5 deers and when you do that next screen is unlocked and you have time for example you have 5 minutes to do that. Game was in german language, in the menu of the game there was a hunter sitting next to the camin on couch. And Yes i remember there was 5 birds who stand on wire and you shoot electricity and birds get electriced, on left click on mouse you shoot and on right mouse click you load gun, gun 30% appers on screen
@davesart1501 2 ай бұрын
No Umbrella and Darkside Chronicles? I can't believe it
@janX9 4 жыл бұрын
List of rail Shooters en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Rail_shooters
@kalkazar13 5 жыл бұрын
I say Time Crisis II should have been higher on this list. But otherwise, good list.
@BlackHammer0891 Жыл бұрын
Look at those Dreamcast graphics still Holding up, and no Time Crisis?
@prestongreen9622 5 жыл бұрын
time crisis and die hard trilogy, gta vice city has some of it also
@robrmaytry 3 жыл бұрын
Area 51 and CarnEvil are why ima here.
@sethreign8103 4 жыл бұрын
It's a shame you didn't mention Star Fox.
@bradybarton5455 4 жыл бұрын
Panzer dragoon is getting a remake and is being released on stadia this year if anyone is interested
@Kirbicle 8 ай бұрын
My only complaint is that Star Fox 64 only made it onto the honorable mentions, seeing as it’s my favorite game of all time, I think it deserved better. (Also the original is slightly better than the remake, just saying)
@anderfu8273 5 жыл бұрын
Panzer dragoon is beautiful
@user-jr3rx8dg2c 2 жыл бұрын
Weres die hard trilogy that had 3 different games 1 driving 1 on rail shooter 1 3rd person shooter which was such fun playing on the PS1
@bdeink 5 ай бұрын
What's the name of the game at 1:22?
@ModernClassic 5 ай бұрын
Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom. Early Sega arcade game, later adapted to most home consoles and early computers. Basically a precursor to Space Harrier.
@barrycooper8640 6 жыл бұрын
Thunder Force was absolutely awesome. Who remembers it?
@etank222 6 жыл бұрын
Barry Cooper Thunder Force? Don't you mean Galaxy Force? If so, yeah I agree, amazing game, and I'm kind of surprised it didn't get a mention. The game received 2 fantastic home conversions courtesy of M2, one on PS2 and later on 3DS complete with stereoscopic 3D effects.
@DragonGrafx-16 6 жыл бұрын
Yeah the Thunder Force games are great but those are shmups... You could have also thought of Thunder Blade....
@Destr360 2 жыл бұрын
Elemental gearbolt my bois
@laserbeam3836 4 жыл бұрын
the best one is gunblade .. what a badass game
@michaelschwartz8730 4 жыл бұрын
If #2 wasn't on there, I'll admit I'd've been a little mad
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