A side-scrolling video game (alternatively side-scroller) is a game viewed from a side-view camera angle where the screen follows the player as they move left or right. The jump from single-screen or flip-screen graphics to scrolling graphics during the golden age of arcade games was a pivotal leap in game design, comparable to the move to 3D graphics during the fifth generation.
Hardware support of smooth scrolling backgrounds is built into many arcade games, some game consoles, and home computers. Examples include 8-bit consoles like the Atari 8-bit family and Nintendo Entertainment System, and 16-bit consoles, such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis. These 16-bit consoles added multiple layers, which can be scrolled independently for a parallax scrolling effect.
Use of side-scrolling
A common use of the side-scrolling format is in platform games (platformers). Super Mario Bros. (1985) is an example of a platform game.
The side-scrolling format is also popular among beat 'em ups, such as the Battletoads series. Often in beat 'em ups, the screen will lock into place until the enemies on screen have been defeated.
The side-scrolling format can also be found in the shooter genre, such as in games like Gradius and R-type. In this genre, the player usually starts with a basic ship that flies from left to right, acquiring Power-ups which allow them to face an ever-increasing horde of enemies. This genre traces its roots back to fast-paced arcade games such as Defender.
Implementation of side scrolling design can vary depending on the game, often the screen will scroll forward or backward following the speed and direction of the player character. In other games or stages, the screen will follow the player character but only scroll forward, not backward, so once something has passed off the back of the screen, it can no longer be visited. Some games have stages in which the screen scrolls forward by itself at a steady pace, requiring the player to keep up in order to survive; this is generally referred to as auto-scrolling. The screen in shoot 'em ups, such as in R-type, often side-scrolls by itself. The Mario series has used all three types of side-scrolling.
Typically, the screen of a side-scrolling video game has the camera focused on the player. Other games generally adjust the camera with the character's movement, making the character off-center in the opposite direction of its movement, showing more space in front of the character than behind.
A game can use the side-scrolling mechanic without being considered a side-scrolling video game. One such game is Awesomenauts, where a side-scrolling mechanic is used since the objective is not simply met by scrolling to the side, it is therefore not considered a side-scrolling game.
History
Side-scrolling space/vehicle games (1977–1985)
Sega's Bomber was a side-scrolling shooter video game released for arcades in April 1977. Side-scrolling was later popularized by side-scrolling shoot 'em ups in the early 1980's. Defender, demonstrated by Williams Electronics in late 1980 and entering production in early 1981, allowed side-scrolling in both directions in a wrap-around game world, extending the boundaries of the game world, while also including a mini-map radar. Scramble, released by Konami in early 1981, had continuous scrolling in a single direction and was the first side-scroller with multiple distinct levels.
The first scrolling platform game was Jump Bug, a platform-shooter released in 1981. Players controlled a bouncing car and navigated it to jump on various platforms like buildings, clouds, and hills. While it primarily scrolls horizontally, one section includes coarse vertical scrolling. Taito's first attempt at a side-scrolling platformer was the arcade game Jungle King (1982), later altered and renamed to Jungle Hunt due to legal controversy over similarities to Tarzan.