There are few genres of retro game more beloved than the twin-stick shooter. Despite falling in popularity once 3D games became the norm, this once-dead genre has made a huge comeback as thไe indie game industry booms.
Nowhere is there more of a selection of great twin-stick shooters than on Steam. The amount of excellent titles on offer is so large that it can be hard to figure out which games you should spend your time playing. To help you pick, we've compiled a list of the very best twin-stick shooters on Steam, from classic arcade-style shooters to groundbreaking roguelite adventures.
10 🎉 𒉰 Synthetik: Legion Rising
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Synthetik: Legion Rising is a roguelite twin-stick🏅 shooter that forces you to think as well as shoot. High-speed resource management mechanics force you to slow down and strategize as you dodge the oncoming fire.
Your movement is also affected by your strategy in Synthetik, as the accuracy of your gun becomes worse the faster that you move. This encourages you to find a place to stand still amongst the mayhem that is constantly unfolding around you, a unique challenge in the frenetic twin-stick shooter gen൲re.
9 💙 Alienation
Alienation melds the high-speed action you'd expect from a Housemarque game with some light dungeon-crawling elements. While these elements aren't an amazing addition on their own, the added focus on looting and building your character makes Alienation much more replayable than many twin-stick shooters.
The shooting is excellent, too, taking the form of a hyper-violent fight against a huge library of grotesque alien threats. In typical twin-stick shooter fashion, Alienation's five-hour campaign is also littered with excellent bosses and mini-bosses to put you through your paces.
8 Assault An🐻droid Cactus+
Assault Android Cactus+ is a frantically paced twin-stick shooter about destroying robꦆots and chasing h💝igh scores. While the concept is simple, Assault Android Cactus+ keeps you around by introducing ever-increasing odds for you to overcome.
Gameplay is kept fresh by the wide array of androids that you can control, each of which have different weapons and playstyles. Assault Android 𓆏Cactus+ delivers accessible pick-up-and-play action for up to two players of any skill level.
7 B🐻eat Hazard ♔2
Beat Hazard 2 foregoes the typical twin-stick shooter campaign, trading in hand-crafted stages for levels generated from music. This feature isn't just limited to a select group of songs, however. Beat Hazard 2 will actually generate a level from any song you give it.
New to Beat Hazard 2 is compatibility with all major streaming services, a feature which lets you quickly pick a song to fight enemy spaceships to. The sound, speed and length of your ch♐osen song all affect the pace of the gameplay, as well as the shape and danger of the huge boss fights that cap off songs.
6 Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions Evolved 💯
Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions Evolved takes classic twin-stick shooting mechanics and squeezes every drop of high-octane action fun from them. A minimalist art design lets Geometry Wars cover the screen in explosions without ever obscuring the mayhem that you're creating.
Geometry Wars 3's inclusion of 3D space merges flat arcade levels with mind-bending geometric battlegrounds. The world shifts as you fly across it, blasting neon shapes with similarly beautiful projectiles that explode into glorious bursts of color.
5 Xeno Cr⛦isis
Xeno Crisis isn't just another retro-inspired shooter. Rather than just use graphics and mechanics inspired by the classics, Xeno Crisis actually released on the Sega Genesis in October 2019. That's right, the actual Sega Genesis. Luckily, those who don't own the classic console can still experience this authentically retro shooter on Steam.
Xeno Crisis is the best retro-style twin-stick shooter on Steam, delivering satisfying arcade action that sees you take down an army of unnatural science experiments gone awry. The combat in Xeno Crisis is stellar throughout, whether you're fighting mutant snakes, sentient trees or even Cthulhu.
4 ♊ Enter The Gungeon
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Enter The Gungeon is a monumentally successful roguelite twin-stick shooter that focuses on guns above all else. They're everywhere, from the varied firearms that you shoot, to the enemies and shopkeepers that take the form of sentient bullets.
Even the excellent boss battles hammer home this firearm-theme, with bosses such as the Gatling Gull and Ammoconda capping off the crawl across each level of the procedurally-generated Gungeon. As well as a charming dedication to its theme, Enter The Gungeon also has a ton of replay valu💮e thanks to its huge cast of guns and playable characters.
3 🉐 T🐲he Ascent
Twin-stick shooting meets Diablo-style looting in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Ascent, a genre mashup set in a beautifully grimy cyberpunk world. The best elements of both genres meld excellently, with frenetic arcade shooting complemented b꧙y detailed ch🍰aracter building.
There's even side-quests, a remarkably rare feature to see included in an arcade-inspired, ultra-violent shooter. The Ascent also has a surprisingly open world, a feature that landed it on our countdown of 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the best open-world games of 2021.
2 The Binding of Isaac: Rebirꦛth
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth might not be the first game that comes to mind when you think "twin-stick shooter". Don't be fooled by its roguelite mechanics and relatively slow pace, though — The Binding of Isaac is a twin-stick shooter through and through.
The Binding Isaac: Rebirth is the definitive edition of this roguelite classic, and is enhanced even further by the massive Afterbirth and Repentance expansions. Isaac's trip through his personal hell is full to the brim of bosses, items, and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:hellish transformations that will keep you coming back for dozens of hours💝.
1 🐷 Nex Machina
Nex 🌳Machina is the best twin-stick shooter from legendary studio Housemarque. Everything the studio is known for is on display, with a sparkling finish that makes Nex Machina l♑ook as amazing as it feels to play.
Particle effects explode out of every enemy alien and piece of scenery. Weapons spit out satisfying laser bursts that destroy the world around them. Each corner hides secrets that beg to be uncovered. Nex Machina is as close to twin-stick shooting perfection as you can get, and there is no doubt that it is one of the best games in Housemarque's stellar catalog.