Raiden IV is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up game developed by MOSS and released in arcades. It was later distributed by UFO Interactive for the Xbox 360 in North America.
Gameplay
Raiden IV closely follows the mechanics of previous entries in the series. Players begin over a farm area and progress through cityscapes, aerial zones, and finally into space. The Flash Shot system, introduced in Raiden III, returns, awarding multipliers up to ×5.0 for quickly destroying newly spawned enemies.
As with previous Raiden titles, the player’s ship fires two weapons simultaneously: a main weapon and a secondary weapon. Each weapon has a power level that increases by collecting power-ups. Additionally, the ship is equipped with bombs that clear most of the screen, damaging enemies and neutralizing all enemy projectiles. At the beginning of the game, or after the player loses a life, the default setup includes the Wide Vulcan as the main weapon (providing a higher rate of fire compared to earlier Raiden titles), no secondary weapon, and three bombs. The number of bombs can be adjusted in the game’s settings. Weapon types, bombs, and bonus items such as fairies from Raiden III are retained in Raiden IV with similar functionality.
Player fighters
For additional information about the weapons used by the fighters in this game, see Weapons (Raiden IV)
The Fighting Thunder ME-02 returns from Raiden III as the default fighter, while the Xbox 360 version adds the Raiden Mk-II and the Fairy as DLC content.
Fighting Thunder ME-02
- Wide Vulcan: A spread weapon firing yellow bullets in 3, 5, or 7 directions. Power-ups increase the spread. Associated with the red crystal.
- Lightning Laser: A narrow blue laser that swerves slightly with movement. Upgrades increase width and damage. Associated with the blue crystal.
- Bend Plasma: A purple beam that locks onto targets, swinging with movement and damaging enemies in its path. Associated with the purple crystal.
- Proton Laser: A set of three purple beams that swing with movement. Narrower than the Plasma Laser but highly focused for precision damage. Higher levels add additional beams and increase the weapon's spread. Associated with the purple crystal.
- Bomber: Creates a spreading explosion from the player’s position, clearing enemy bullets and damaging all enemies within its radius.
Raiden Mk-II
- Wide Vulcan (Mk-II): A more powerful version of the ME-02's Vulcan Cannon, requiring more pickups (seven) to fully upgrade. Associated with the red crystal.
- Lightning Laser: Identical to the ME-02’s Ion Laser, usable by both ships. Associated with the blue crystal.
- Bend Plasma: Same as the ME-02’s Plasma Laser, which locks onto targets and arcs with movement. Associated with the purple crystal.
- Proton Laser (Raiden III version): The original version of this weapon from Raiden III, which is a narrow green beam that swings with player movement. Associated with the purple crystal.
- Conventional Bomber (Mk-II): This bomb operates similarly to the original Conventional Bomber from Raiden II, with a 1.5-second delay before exploding in a wide radius. It clears enemy bullets but affects only one-third of the screen.
Fairy
- Vulcan Cannon (Fairy): A cyan-colored variant with a narrower spread and slightly reduced damage compared to the ME-02’s Vulcan Cannon. Associated with the red crystal.
- Milky Laser: Fires blue light spheres that transform into piercing “arrows of light,” penetrating enemies with high damage. Associated with the blue crystal.
- Bubble Launcher: Fires slow-moving, translucent purple bubbles. Upgrades increase the number of bubbles, allowing them to cover a large portion of the screen. Associated with the purple crystal.
- Fairy bomb attack: Summons other Fairies that drop cluster bombs across the screen from the bottom to the top, damaging enemies and clearing bullets.
Secondary weapons (common to all fighters)
The following secondary weapons function identically across all fighters, but have a distinct visual appearance for the Fairy:
- Nuclear Missile: Fires straight-moving missiles that spread out laterally, accelerating forward. On impact, the missiles cause an explosion with area damage. Associated with the yellow "M" icon. The Fairy variant appears as smaller, whimsical sparkles that explode upon impact.
- Homing Missile: Seeks nearby enemies, tracking their movements. Though weaker in damage, it is ideal for consistent tracking. Associated with the green "H" icon. The Fairy variant appears as smaller, light-blue trails that curve towards targets.
- Radar Missile: Partially guided missiles that drift laterally, aligning with enemies before charging forward. Similar in explosive impact to Nuclear Missiles. Associated with the purple "R" icon. The Fairy variant appears as glowing purple spheres that adjust direction before striking.
Special techniques
After acquiring a sub-weapon, players can perform a special charged attack by releasing the fire button, then pressing it when the player's fighter is surrounded by lightning after a delay. This attack fires multiple missiles at once that grant extra points when they hit a target.
Items
- Extra Life (1UP): Grants an additional life.
- Full Power-Up: Temporarily maxes primary and secondary weapons.
- Fairy: Hidden item providing power-ups if collected before a life is lost.
- Medals: Accumulate for end-of-stage bonuses, resetting upon death.
Xbox 360 port
The Xbox 360 port includes extra modes, downloadable ships (Fairy and Raiden Mk-II), and a TATE display option for vertical screen orientation. The game also features 47 achievements and leaderboards for online ranking.
Game Modes
- Arcade Mode: Offers “Light” (easier) and “Original” (harder) versions. Light mode ends after five stages, while Original advances to a second, harder loop.
- Xbox 360 Mode: Exclusive to this version, featuring new enemy types and two additional stages. Completed stages can be replayed.
- Boss Rush: Players face all bosses in succession.
- Score Attack: Altered enemy placements and selectable music tracks.
Stages
The original arcade release of Raiden IV includes five stages. In Light difficulty mode, the game ends after completing Stage 5. In Original (Heavy) difficulty mode, however, the game progresses to a second loop, repeating all stages with increased difficulty. Completing Stage 5 in the second loop unlocks a final stage.
The Xbox 360 port introduces Additional Mode, which adds two new stages, bringing the total to eight.
| Stage | Name | Boss | BGM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Countryside | Exerey Iss | A Stormy front |
| 2 | City | Ordo, Fulas and Mairazard | Can't Retrace |
| 3 | Ocean | Famel Ya | Flap Toward The Hope |
| 4 | Ruins | Aguen and Ewat | Tragedy Flame |
| 5* | Floating Continent | Da Rutura | All or Nothing |
| 6* | Space Station | Isdogaram | Depression |
| 7 | Enemy Huge Battleship | Horda Gardia | Advantageous Development |
| EX | Final Base | Horda Gestorada | Repeated Tragedy |
* Exclusive Stages to Additional Mode
Gallery
Development history
Raiden IV underwent several location tests in Japan, introducing adjustments such as difficulty settings, weapon balancing, and additional features. It launched in arcades on June 7, 2007, and later on Xbox 360 in October 2008, adding new stages, online leaderboards, and TATE options.
Controversy
The game faced backlash over paid downloadable content in the Xbox 360 version, requiring players to pay for additional ships. Critics, including IGN, noted that half the stages are repeated, sparking debate over the value of the additional content.
Trivia
A modified version of the Stage 2 boss from Raiden III appears as a mini-boss in Raiden IV.
External Links
| Raiden video games | ||
| Raiden series | Raiden ● Raiden II (DX) ● Raiden III ● Raiden IV (Overkill) ● Raiden V (Story) | |
| Raiden Fighters series | Raiden Fighters ● Raiden Fighters 2: Operation Hell Dive ● Raiden Fighters Jet (text transcript) | |
| Compilations | The Raiden Project ● Raiden Fighters Aces ● Raiden Legacy | |
| Other Seibu Kaihatsu/MOSS shmups | Stinger ● Scion ● Air Raid ● Viper Phase 1 ● Caladrius (Blaze) ● Raiden NOVA | |