1982 – 1994

Games

The complete Irem catalogue - from Moon Patrol to Gunforce II. Nineteen key titles across arcade, NES, Super Famicom, TurboGrafx-16, and beyond.

Full Catalogue

Art Title Year Platform(s) Genre Notes
Moon Patrol flyer Moon PatrolMuun Patororu 1982 Arcade (M52), Atari 2600, C64, many more Action / Shooter First game with full 3-layer parallax scrolling. Distributed in NA by Williams.
10-Yard Fight flyer 10-Yard FightAmerican Football 1983 Arcade, NES Sports Early American football game with perspective shift between plays.
Kung-Fu Master flyer Kung-Fu MasterSpartan X (JP) 1984 Arcade (M62), NES, many ports Beat ‘em up First beat ‘em up. Designer: Takashi Nishiyama. NES port sold 3.5M copies.
Spelunker cover Spelunker 1985 Arcade, NES/Famicom, Atari 8-bit Platform Original by Timothy G. Martin (Atari, 1983). Irem published the arcade version.
Sqoon box art Sqoon 1986 Famicom Shooter Underwater Famicom shooter with a food rescue premise. Japan-only release.
R-Type flyer R-Type 1987 Arcade (M72), TG-16, Master System, Amiga, C64, many more Horizontal shooter Japan's top table arcade game 1987. Force device mechanic. Distributed in NA by Nintendo.
Image Fight flyer Image Fight 1988 Arcade, NES, PC Engine Vertical shooter Pod-based weapon system, four speed levels. Japan's top table arcade, Dec 1988.
Ninja Spirit flyer Ninja SpiritSaigo no Nindō 1988 Arcade, TG-16, SNES Action platform Shadow clone mechanics; well-regarded TurboGrafx-16 port.
Vigilante flyer Vigilante 1988 Arcade, Master System, TG-16, C64 Beat ‘em up Spiritual successor to Kung-Fu Master; urban setting, nunchaku mechanics.
R-Type II flyer R-Type II 1989 Arcade (M84), TG-16, Game Boy Horizontal shooter R-9C spacecraft; 5 weapon types; true ending requires two clears. Gamest Best Graphics.
Hammerin Harry flyer Hammerin’ HarryDaiku no Gen-san (JP) 1990 Arcade, NES, Game Boy, C64, Amiga Platform Carpenter defends hometown from corrupt construction. 93% in C64/CV review.
Super R-Type SNES cover Super R-Type 1991 Super Famicom / SNES Horizontal shooter Developed by Tamtex. SNES-exclusive entry; criticised for reduced difficulty and slowdown.
Gunforce flyer GunforceBattle Fire Engulfed Terror Island 1991 Arcade (M92), SNES Run ‘n’ gun Run-and-gun action; SNES port developed by Tamtex.
R-Type Leo flyer R-Type Leo 1992 Arcade Horizontal shooter Two-player co-op R-Type spinoff. Arcade-only. Precursor Force units.
Undercover Cops flyer Undercover Cops 1992 Arcade (M92), SNES Beat ‘em up Three cops (Zan, Flame, Rosa) fight city crime. Known for regional content differences.
In the Hunt flyer In the HuntKaitei Daisensō 1993 Arcade (M92), PlayStation, Saturn Horizontal shooter Submarine shooter. Kazuma Kujo (designer), Akio Oyabu (art). Nazca / Metal Slug origins.
R-Type III SNES cover R-Type III: The Third Lightning 1993 Super Famicom / SNES Horizontal shooter Three Force types. Developed by Tamtex. EGM Best Shooter 1994; ranked #23 in EGM's best ever (1997).
Gunforce II flyer Gunforce IIGeostorm (NA) 1994 Arcade (M92) Run ‘n’ gun Final chapter of Irem's golden era. Vehicle commandeering mechanic.
R-Types compilation artwork showing R-Type and R-Type II
R-Types (Tozai Games, 1999) artwork - a two-game compilation of R-Type and R-Type II