12.1. Fixed Shooter

Fixed Shooters are those in which the player character moves along a single axis and fires shots to defeat waves of enemies.

Space Invaders (Taito, 1979); Galaga (Namco, 1981)

Super-Subgenres

Gallery Fixed Shooters

The Gallery Fixed Shooter is relatively rare, though quite a few entries released between 1988 - 1990. It takes cues from the Gallery Shooter subgenre, with enemies appearing anywhere on screen and a more flexible reticle. However, this is merged with the player controlling a hitbox restricted to movement along one axis.

Cabal (TAD Corporation, 1988); Wild Guns (Natsume, 1994)

Alternates

The limitations of Fixed Shooters, as well as their short time in the limelight, means there are not many alternates to be found. The most common is the Isometric Fixed Shooter, which generally follows the same formula but with the screen slightly tilted:

Radar Scope (Nintendo, 1980); Juno First (Konami, 1983)

Beyond that, Charge 'n Blast (Sims, 2000) provided a 3D perspective:

The only Fixed Shooter with a gameplay modifier I have found so far is Konami's Block Hole (1989), which adds Tetris-like Puzzle elements.