Best Side Scroller Steam Games on Sale
Unlike generic lists, our game recommendations use a rigorous analysis of Steam user reviews to identify and feature only the best, community-validated side scroller games.
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Teslagrad
A journey begins... A treacherous tower... Unravel its mysteries!Discover the secrets kept in the long abandoned Tesla Tower!Magnetism and other electromagnetic powers will help you explore a non-linear world of beautiful hand-drawn environments, in a steampunk-inspired vision of old Europe.
Oozi: Earth Adventure
Oozi: Earth Adventure is a classic 2D platformer with old school gameplay - no puzzles, no punishment, just 100% pure classic platforming fun! Its most prominent features are HD visuals and beautiful hand-drawn art, but despite its visual style, it’s a good fit for all kinds of gamers!
SteamWorld Dig
SteamWorld Dig is an action-adventure puzzler with strong Metroidvanian influences set in the SteamWorld Universe. You’ll need to dig deep into the earth, gather resources to upgrade your tools and abilities, take on enemies, solve challenging puzzles and uncover the secrets to save a dying town.
Eryi's Action
One fine day, Eryi went to eat the melon that she had been SO looking forward to... but it was nowhere to be found! Then she noticed a note on the table. She picked it up and read: "Your melon looked delicious, so I took it. From Farta X" Fuming with rage, Eryi set out from her house to get her melon back from Farta.
Final Exam
Jump into the frenzied action and the whacky humor of a pure 2.5D side-scroller! While they were going to their old high school for what was supposed to be the party of their life, four long-time friends end up in a ghost town full of monstrous creatures.
Valdis Story: Abyssal City
Assume the role of Wyatt in this Action/Exploration Platformer as you explore the ruins of a holy city that was lost many years ago. Battle various types of demons, angels, and a new threat known only as the “Ferals”, using swordsmanship, martial arts, and sorcery.
Nihilumbra
Discover the beautiful world of Nihilumbra and join Born on his adventure to find himself whilst trying to escape from his inevitable curse. Born was created from the absolute nothingness: The Void. But somehow he separates himself from the black emptiness and appears in the world.
Syder Arcade
Killing zombies never gets old, but sometimes you just need a break. Get back to some serious old-school gaming with Syder Arcade! Syder Arcade is a love letter to Amiga games of the ‘90s, no coins, no upgrade grinding, just your tenacity and a motherload of alien invaders.
Super Amazing Wagon Adventure
Super Amazing Wagon Adventure is a fast-paced 2d shooting game with a random story. You control a group of three migrants traveling west along a wagon trail. The game consists of short scenes that are sequenced together in a semi-random way to tell a crazy adventure story.
Megabyte Punch
Megabyte Punch is a fighting/beat ‘em up game in which you build your own fighter! As you travel through different environments, you battle other creatures to get their parts. Parts have their own powers and bonuses, like gun arms for a shoot ability or powerful hips for a devastating pelvic thrust attack.
Knock-knock
There is an unusual cabin deep in the woods. It had served as a laboratory and a dwelling for three generations of Lodgers.But as of late the latest Lodger has been noticing weird changes in familiar surroundings; things are missing, noises and rattle heard. Something odd is coming out of the woods.
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams - Rise of the Owlverlord
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams is a fast-paced platformer that will plunge you into the heart of two opposing worlds.
Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures
"The most rewarding game of 2013!" Influenced by retro classics Mega Man and Castlevania, Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures features the AVGN and friends as they blast their way through 10 levels of fun, fast paced 2D action based on the AVGN's adventures in his online series.
Volgarr the Viking
Return to the Golden Age of arcades with a hardcore action platformer that pulls no punches! Possesses all the hallmarks of true classics like Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts (SNES), Rastan Saga (Arcade), Castlevania (NES) and more with precise controls, high challenge, and meticulous design.
Electronic Super Joy
Electronic Super Joy is a brutally hard platformer set in a world of pulse-pounding electronic music. Run, jump, smash & fly your way through 45+ weird & different levels, with low-gravity, world rotation, giant monsters & swarming missiles.
DuckTales: Remastered
DuckTales: Remastered is a beautiful hand-crafted reimagining of one of the most cherished 8-bit titles of all time. Go back to one of the golden ages of gaming, now refined with a level of detail that will please the most hardened devoted Disney or retro Capcom fan alike.
Guacamelee! Gold Edition
Guacamelee! is a Metroidvania-style action-platformer set in a magical Mexican-inspired world. The game draws its inspiration from traditional Mexican culture and folklore, and features many interesting and unique characters.
Beatbuddy: Tale of the Guardians
Awakened from his slumber, Beatbuddy journeys through lush hand-painted environments on a quest to save his companions and his own immortality. Beatbuddy interacts with the living breathing environment that pulses to the beat of an original soundtrack, aiding him as he unlocks new paths and solves puzzles.
Bleed
Wryn is a girl with a big arsenal and big dreams -- she wants to be the ultimate videogame hero! Help her take down the Greatest Heroes of All Time in an action-packed bid to claim the title for herself and show the world what a true hero looks like!
Rogue Legacy
Rogue Legacy is a genealogical rogue-"LITE" where anyone can be a hero. Each time you die, your child will succeed you. Every child is unique. One child might be colorblind, another might be a dwarf with vertigo. But that's OK, because no one is perfect, and you don't have to be to succeed.
Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara
Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara brings reworkings of two of Capcom’s classic arcade hits - Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom and Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara – together in one definitive digital package.
The Swapper
What if someone knew your mind better than you did? The Swapper is an award-winning, narrative driven puzzle game set in the furthest reaches of space.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Immerse yourself in a gorgeous hand-painted world on a search for your true identity. As the mysterious warrior, Dust, your action-packed journey will take you from peaceful glades to snowy mountaintops and beyond.
Sacred Citadel
Sharpen your axe, string your bow, brew your potions! Ancaria needs heroes like you. Grab your friends to join the resistance!The once peaceful land of Ancaria is in grave danger. The evil Ashen empire has enslaved its population and is using the orc-like Grimmoc to wipe out the Seraphim, who swore to protect it.
La-Mulana
LA-MULANA is an “Archaeological Ruin Exploration Action Game,” bringing the classic appeal of adventure with the punishing difficulty of retro-inspired gaming. Search inside ancient ruins, seeking out the “Secret Treasure of Life” – which sleeps in the sprawling ruins of “LA-MULANA” and is said to be the beginning of all civilization.
BIT.TRIP Presents... Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien
Step into rhythmic bliss with Runner2! Best Indie Game winner, Guinness World Record holder, and narrated by Charles Martinet. Unleash vibrant moves and beats in 120 levels!
Waking Mars
In 2097, life is discovered on Mars. When your mission of first contact becomes trapped by a cave-in, you must master the alien ecosystem to survive. Soon you stumble upon more than anyone expected, and with time running out, you will make a decision that determines the fate of a lost planet.
Dead Pixels
A toxic waste spill finds its way into the water supply, causing the recently deceased to rise from their graves. Now it's up to you to blast your way through the hordes of undead if you're going to escape the city. On the way to your rescue, you'll search stores and houses for supplies, and trade with other survivors.
Thomas Was Alone
Guide a group of rectangles through 120 levels, using their different skills together to overcome a series of obstacles in each environment. Discover the human-made story of the first sentient artificial intelligences with Danny Wallace’s BAFTA-winning narration.
Pid
You are stranded on a strange and peculiar planet. It’s time to embark on your journey and find your way home! Explore a gravity defying and challenging platformer with striking visuals and a captivating story that transports you to a world beyond ours.