The humble shoot ‘em up has been a staple genre ever since the very beginning of video games when Spacewar! laid down the basic groundwork in 1962. No, that is not a typo; in the year that Marilyn Monroe died and The Beatles recorded ‘Love Me Do’, some boffins at MIT were busy inventing video games. Of course, it wasn’t quite Space Invaders – that wouldn’t appear until 1978 – but the point is that the concept of using a little ship to blast enemies has been with us virtually as long as video games themselves.

Perhaps the STG’s close relationship with the origins of the medium is one of the reasons for its extremely dedicated, hardcore following. Shmups require dedication to master and inspire a special sort of feeling, encouraging the player to achieve a flow state – to simply react rather than think too much – and that can be a significant barrier to entry if your brain is intent on parsing all the visual information in the busiest bullet hells. The trend of more forgiving mechanics found in modern games makes the hardcore shoot ‘em up genre ever more niche, but for those willing and able to invest the time and effort, there’s nothing quite like ‘em.

The genre is a vast one with many offshoots and blends, be it fixed shooter, tube shooter, rail, vertical or horizontal scrolling, multi-directional twin-stick, isometric, bullet hell – there’s a different shmup for every day of the week and Switch has become a natural home for them, for several reasons. For one, it’s a powerful little handheld with a good-sized screen that can handle all the classics as well as new entries in the genre with aplomb. Secondly, the ability to undock means it’s arguably easier to dedicate the necessary time to conquering some of these games.

However, it’s probably the console’s natural facility with Tate mode that makes it a favourite with shmup fans. ‘Tate’ – often in CAPS – is Japanese for ‘vertical’ and correctly pronounced tah-tay, although enough people rhyme it with ‘hate’ for the debate to have become a jif versus gif-style internet-based clusterbomb. Regardless, many arcade shoot ‘em ups were designed for an upended monitor in the cabinet and playing these vertical shooters on conventional TVs means either turning your TV 90° onto its side for portrait mode or enduring a much smaller picture with borders either side of your landscape screen. The former option was easier with a big chunky CRT in the ‘90s, but most modern paper-thin OLEDs wouldn’t survive the rotation.

Fortunately, Switch’s unique form factor provides the perfect handheld solution. The release of Flip Grip, a third-party ‘cradle’ that enables you to attach the screen and Joy-Con to each other in a vertical configuration, makes the Switch an ideal option for vertical shmup enthusiasts and those looking to dip their toe into a genre that can seem overwhelming and impenetrable to the outsider.

Below we’ve rounded up a taste of the best shoot ‘em ups on Switch, presented in no particular order. We’ll keep an eye on new releases and add to this selection as and when necessary. So, are you ready? Let’s go…