Jets'n'Guns

Between levels, players are given the option to buy upgrades for their ship. Some of the most vital upgrades are for maneuverability, speed, health/armor and cooling. They can also give their ship a new paint job for free. Another item is the Atarix, which gives players a chance to unlock crates found when they destroy transport ships during a mission.

There are several upgrades that boost the ship's defense and provide slow armor regeneration, such as shields and nanomachines. Other upgrades give players bounties for killing certain enemies, and bonuses for mass killings of enemy troops. There are also upgrades that allow players to customize up to five different weapon profiles, which can be switched mid-game, or allow players to change the angle of their weapons to adapt to changing strategic situations.

In Jets'n'Guns, the player starts out as a freelancer, contracted to drive out a gang of criminals from a sector of space. Soon, the player is contacted by their old commanding officer from a previous war, Col. Troubleman, who is based aboard the United Space Ship Impotence. He explains that Xoxx, the evil dictator, has appeared again and has kidnapped a scientist, Professor Von Hamburger.

The professor was developing a gigantic quantum cannon, which he intended to use for peaceful purposes. Xoxx, however, wants the cannon because it could, theoretically, destroy the entire universe with a single shot. Erecta Von Hamburger, the professor's daughter, also contacts the player, but she is mainly concerned with the rescue of her father.

The developers have stated they were heavily inspired by the games Tyrian 2000, Project-X and Walker. As in Tyrian, players earn money by destroying enemies and picking up bonuses in each level. In-between levels, players can purchase weapons and devices for their ship, and upgrade them, provided they have enough money.

However, Jets'n'Guns is more complex than Tyrian in this respect. There are many more weapons to choose from, a greater variety of devices to purchase and more ways to upgrade the player's ship. Also, unlike in Tyrian, where a player could get through most, if not all of the game using the weapons available at the start of the game (with upgrades and new ship systems), in JnG the player is forced to experiment with their weapons in order to be successful. The game has no lives, so the player can keep attempting a level until they beat it.