Raiden III
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| Raiden III | |
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| Developer(s) | Moss LTD, Seibu Kaihatsu (licensing) |
| Publisher(s) |  MOSS LTDTaito (PS2) |
| Engine | Custom |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, Windows 2000, PlayStation 2 |
| Release date | Arcade
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| Genre(s) | Vertical scrolling shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, 2 player Co-op |
| Cabinet | Upright |
| Arcade system | Taito Type X |
Raiden III (雷電III Raiden Surī?) is a revival of the classic Raiden series of scrolling shooter games. It was developed by the Japanese company Moss with some assistance and license by Seibu Kaihatsu which produced Raiden and Raiden II, and published by Taito in 2005.
After a franchise hiatus of over 11 years following the release of Raiden DX, set in a universe different from all previous games and updated with a new look and feel. Raiden III is the first to use a new Taito Type X arcade system developed by Taito, instead of conventional arcade systems. New concepts are introduced, which includes a "new 3D scrolling system" that involves the camera pointing down to the ground and sometimes points to any degree. The blue Laser concept is more like a beam, instead of the ones seen in prior installments.
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[edit] Plot
Little is known about the game's storyline, other than the fact that Earth has been overrun by aliens.
[edit] Gameplay
Players once again take control of the famous Raiden Supersonic Attack Fighter. This time the game is in a full 3D environment and allows for the popular two-player mode; a new attack that is usable only in two-player mode is a beam attack that is usable whenever one player lines up in front of the other. Level design differs somewhat from prior Raiden installments, in that the first three levels are based on the previous games, with the first based on the original Raiden.
One of the significant features in Raiden III include moving away from the traditional 2-D gameplay, using more anime-looking 3D models, and incorporating a "flash shot system", which rewards players when they destroy enemies that appear very quickly.
The pace after completion of the mission is unlike those in prior installments. Instead of giving a 1,000,000 mission clear bonus and starting another mission back to the first level which is common to Raiden, Raiden II and Raiden DX, the game ends in a modern anime-style fashion.
There are in total 7 levels, the first to third take place on Earth and in space for the fourth to the last. Except for level four to six, the bosses appear are similar to those in Raiden II and Raiden DX in respective level.
[edit] Player ships
You play both the "Fighting Thunder ME-02"(Raiden mk-II and Raiden mk-IIb) fighters,[1] which are colored red and blue to represent 1UP and 2UP, or both in dual or double play mode.
[edit] Fighting Thunder ME-02(Raiden mk-II and Raiden mk-IIb) Stats
- Width: 14.2 m, 7.25m
- Length: 54.0 m
- Height: 7.25 m
- Wingspan: 19.10 m
- Weight: 13.54 kg, 27.024 kg
- Speed: Mach 0.95
[edit] Weapons
The ship fires simultaneously with two weapons: the main weapon and the sub-weapon. The power of the weapons depends on the level, which increases by collecting individual powerups. The bombs are used if only to destroy enemies widely, as well as to get players out of tighter spots in certain situations.
[edit] Main shots
When starting the game or each time the player ship dies, it starts out with a three-way main shot, instead of the normal one-way shot as in the last three Raiden installments. The main power can be reached into maximum by collecting individual main weapon powerups, instead of the traditional way involving collecting the same weapon powerups.
[edit] Vulcan
Shoots shots which spreads out in an arc with stretching barrage. It is useful for attacking the enemies from all sides. This weapon is suited for even beginner players. The powerup of this item appears red.
[edit] Laser
Shoots a stream of blue laser at the straight line, offers no defensive spread, leaving you vulnerable to enemy attacks from the side. However, this weapon can destroy tough enemies and bosses rather easily. This weapon is suited for intermediate players. The powerup of this item appears blue.
[edit] Proton Laser
Shoots a green laser that can swing in an arc while turning left or right. It can penetrate through enemies and bosses, but its damage is relatively slow and cannot "lock" onto enemies as in Raiden II and Raiden DX. Overall this weapon is situated between vulcan and laser, and is suited for experienced players. The powerup of this item appears green.
[edit] Sub-shots
Unlike the main weapons, it starts out with no sub-weapons, when starting the game from the first level or each time the player ship dies. Instead of collecting the same missile weapon powerup four times, it can be powered up by collecting individual sub-weapon powerups three times.
[edit] Nuclear missile
Shoots dumb-fire missiles that spread out. The nuclear missiles' explosions cause damage as well. Enemies can be effectively attacked from every location by sweeping left and right shooting this weapon. The powerup of this item appears the yellow letter "M".
[edit] Homing missile
Shoots missiles that targets the closest enemy from around the player, and pursues automatically. The damage is weak, but it is ideal for attacking enemies around the player. The powerup of this item appears the green letter "H".
[edit] Radar missile
Shoots missiles that heads straight for the enemy. The radar missiles' explosions cause damage as well, just like the nuclear missiles. The powerup of this item appears the purple letter "R".
[edit] Misc items
In addition to these weapon powerups, there are miscellaneous items as well.
[edit] Bomber Items
The bomber is used from the last obtained bomber on the center screen first. When starting or restarting the game, 3 bombers or dispersion bombers are loaded on the craft. The craft can carry up to 7 bombers. If another bomber is obtained when the craft already has 7 bombers loaded, bonus points are accumulated. The powerup appears as a letter "B" on an inverted triangle. This bomb stock can be changed in home versions only, in arcade versions, it is defaulted to 3 bombs.
[edit] Extra Life
When picked up, the player receives another life. Appears near the end of levels 3 and 6 only.
[edit] Full Power-Up
This appears under certain conditions such as the player dies many times, and when obtained, the primary and secondary shots will reach maximum power. Bonus points are obtained when this is obtained when the player already has maximum power. The powerup of this item appears to be the cyan letter "P".
[edit] Fairy
The fairy is hidden somewhere, but in levels 1 and 4, and the fairy appears by shooting at a certain point on the screen. When the fairy is obtained, it will help the player when the craft is damaged, by giving you a power-up item. This fairy cannot be hit by the player's shots, so don't worry about the fairy turning into a ten-point shot and disappearing.
[edit] Bonus item
Looks like a yellow sphere. When this item is obtained, bonus points are obtained. If the player can finish the level without dying, the number of items accumlated becomes the level completion bonus, as well as the remaining number of lives and stocked bombers.
[edit] Ports
Due to its design, Raiden III can be easily ported to different versions. The home versions have included features that are not present in original arcade versions: a menu, boss rush mode, score attack mode, stage select, adjustable difficulty levels, gallery, an 18,457,740-point high score replay, and a player's high score replay. In addition, the player and bomb stock can be adjusted to 5 and 7, respectively, instead of the default 3. A Score Trial mode allows the player to choose a stage to play and try to score the most points. Also, credits must be earned by how long the game is played, although free play is unlocked by completing all stages.
On March 17, 2006, there was a port of Raiden III to Microsoft Windows, published by Cyberfront. Soft-World International corporation published the Windows port of Raiden III in Taiwan, which includes an English translation of the text originally written in Japanese.
Raiden III was also ported to the PlayStation 2 console system. On September 29, 2005, it was first ported by Taito in Japan, and similarly, by 505 GameStreet in Europe in July 2006. The PlayStation 2 version is notable for the double play mode that involves one controller with both sides, instead of two independent controllers.
In addition, Raiden III was brought to several cell phones by Namco Bandai, through three different versions: Vodafone on April 5, 2006, DoCoMo i-appli fourteen days later, on April 19, 2006, and the EZ-Web version on November 15, 2006.
Originally, there was to be a US version released by XS Games for the PlayStation 2. The release date was listed as Q3 2006. When the date came and went, fans attempted to contact XS Games, without success. Finally UFO picked up the US distribution of the game. It was scheduled for a March 2007 release, but was finally released on April 17, 2007.
[edit] The Flash Desire Raiden III Game Capture DVD
The game capture DVD of Raiden III was released on November 2, 2006. It costs about 6,090 yen each, and has approximately running time of 120 minutes for a DVD and approximately 70 minutes for a CD. Its features include:
- Contents 01 - Raiden III Normal Mode Capture Image (Kinomoto will not in charge of playing; it plays back one-coin capture images of the same work from start to the ending.)
- Contents 02 - Raiden III Double Play Mode Capture Image (Hattori will be in charge of playing; it plays back 1 coin capture images of the same work from start to the ending.)
- Contents 03 - OUT TAKE (Other than the score image which is higher than normal mode main part, wonderful phenomenon and income technique, you record the opening movie.)
- Soundtrack CD (see below)
[edit] Game-related Tracks
- Shoot like lightning (Opening demo)
- Takeoff with the suffer (Start demo)
- Lightning strikes (Level 1)
- Passing pleasures (Boss)
- Mission accomplishment (Level clear)
- Electric Resistance (Level 2)
- Dawn of sorrow (Level 3)
- A labyrinth of steel (Level 4)
- Intruder (Level 5)
- Invisible menace (Level 6)
- Last fear (Level 7)
- Fairy (Ending)
- Game Over for Raiden I (Game over)
- Carve your name (Name entry)
- Preparations (PS2 Main menu)
[edit] References
- ^ Sources: Fighting Thunder on the official Raiden III website of Moss and the official Raiden III website of Taito Corporation
[edit] External links
- Raiden III at the official Japanese website of Moss
- Raiden III at Taito's website
- Raiden III at Cyberfront's website
- Soft-World Raiden III page
- The Flash Desire Raiden III on the INH Group's website
- Namco Bandai's Raiden III Yahoo/Softbank mobile version page
- Namco Bandai's Raiden III iMode mobile version page
- Namco Bandai's Raiden III EZ-Web mobile version page
- UFO Interactive Games' Raiden III website
- Raiden III at MobyGames
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