REVIEW: Raiden V

When I was young Tyrian was one of my most favorite games. Not only did it feature beautiful graphics, but the levels were exotic and varied. The shooting mechanics were spot-on and the upgrade system coupled with the fantastic, powerful weapons made you feel invincible. While the title required a lot of skill, it was always fair and accessible due to adjustable difficult settings. To this day, Tyrian remains a title I keep going back to because I love it so much.

Now many of you youngsters might be wondering what Tyrian is. Well, Tyrian is an arcade-style vertical-scrolling shooter. It was developed chiefly as a homage to the works of Japanese publisher Compile. The player controls a spaceship fitted with different weapons and other equipment like shields or generators. The game features fast-paced shooting that throws various human and alien foes at you. I might even go so far as to call it the best arcade-style shooter ever made. However, that was before I played Raiden V.

In my opinion Raiden V is a true successor of Tyrian, and in that sense, a true successor of games like Zanac from Compile. The main feature all of these titles have in common has to be the overpowered weapons. I’ve played many arcade shooters over the years but I always felt like I was being held back because I wasn’t as powerful as I should’ve been. Maybe Tyrian spoiled me. Teslapunk, another Xbox One game from a small developer, managed to approach that sensation but it lacked depth when it came to its story. Raiden V fixes both of those issues and presents a truly remarkable package.

Before we begin discussing Raiden V and what makes it so great, let’s go back and talk about the story. The game is part of a long series of titles which detail events happening in the Crystal War. The Crystal War starts when Earth’s electronics are contaminated by an alien substance which forms crystals. The substance takes over all electronics and turns them against the planet. It’s up to a coalition of world governments to stop the spread of this alien infection with threatens everyone on Earth.

Raiden V takes place during a critical juncture of this war where Earth’s fighters finally confront the source of the crystals. While the story is satisfying, I have to warn you that it ends on one of the most shocking cliffhangers in the history of gaming. I can’t wait for the next chapter in the saga to find out what happens next. I really wish it was a standalone ending so that the wait would be more bearable.


The title, despite being an arcade shooter, incorporates elements of exploration and wonder I haven’t experience since I played the first Halo game when I stepped out on that ring and saw the beauty of the varied landscape. It doesn’t have generic alien worlds but level design I never expected to see. It’s definitely unique and not taken from other titles out there.

Two factors that immediately stand out are the voice acting and soundtrack. The voice acting is great even though it sounds like you’re listening to dubbed anime at times. It’s definitely one of the highlights of this experience. The music is orchestral and is as grand as the game’s story. It immerses you in the title and you want to keep on going just so you can listen to more of the fantastic tracks. While the developers could’ve easily gotten away with adding generic sound, the fact that so much attention and care went into these two elements proves their commitment to the franchise and their love of their art.

The gameplay revolves around a few key mechanics. The first is what type of ship you choose. Each vessel has its own different qualities and you can choose one that fits your playstyle. The second element you select are the types of weapons you want on the craft. You can choose three different guns which are all useful in different situations. By picking up different power-ups throughout levels, you’re able to change your playstyle by switching your offensive capabilities. Knowing which weapon to use where is the key to success in Raiden V. Additionally, there are also powerful bombs at your disposal which you can use a few times during each level. I would save these for when there are just way too many enemies around you that it’s impossible to get them all without getting destroyed.

Speaking of getting destroyed, the game is very forgiving. If you use up all your lives you have the option of continuing right from where you left off. The developers could’ve easily made this game longer by incorporating a punishing respawn system but they didn’t because they wanted to enhance accessibility. If you’re one of those hardcore players, you can always play it so you start each level from scratch. I don’t think I could handle that so I chose to continue every time I ran out of lives.

As mentioned earlier, the weapons are overpowered and cut through enemies like a sharp knife going through butter. Sorry for that Paula Deen analogy but that’s really how the game behaves. It’s just fantastic. You are an unstoppable force and you feel like one. There are direct lasers, homing shots and normal Gatling rounds. The variety is phenomenal and playing through the campaign again with a different loadout definitely feels unique.

There are also some unique weapons like the giant crystal which you throw out of your ship but have to continuously hit. Hitting this crystal splits the laser and creates a whirlpool of destruction. The creativity when it comes to weapon design is definitely top-notch.

The game also runs at a locked sixty frames per second and never wavers. There are a tremendous amount of on-screen enemies that shoot out hundreds of projectiles. Throughout the campaign I never experienced any performance issues but the loading screen at the beginning of the title lasted a little longer than I would’ve liked.

Playing on a reasonable difficult setting, you can complete the game in around three hours. While the title offers a lot of replayability due to its difficulty settings, various ships and weapons, spending fifty dollars on a rather short experience might be a hard pill to swallow for many.

The graphics are very arcade-like and in my opinion quite lovely. While they aren’t groundbreaking in any sense, they do the job adequately and the contrast between you and the enemies serves the title well. Everything is designed to facilitate gameplay and I appreciate that.

Before I conclude this review, I want to mention how the interface is designed to give you a wealth of information when it comes to your performance. There is a monitor and reader to your right which gives you constant updates on the story. Sometimes the action gets so intense that you might miss what your commanding officers are saying. Don’t worry though, you can always read their thoughts on the right.

On the left are all of the readouts from the ship. It shows you your health, shields and other important data which can be useful when you’re playing on very high difficulty. The left side of the screen also gives you tips on how to approach certain fights. For example, towards the end I had to fight a giant craft but I couldn’t figure out how to get rid of its little minions. Then a hint popped up saying that the minions would never stop coming and I just needed to focus on the main foe instead of even attempting to kill them all over and over again. This forced me to change my strategy and gave me a new way of planning my attack.

Summary

Overall, Raiden V is a phenomenal experience even though it’s quite expensive. It offers a lot of replayability despite its short campaign but stands at the top of the arcade shooter genre. The game is all about dodging attacks and making choices regarding when to sacrifice your vessel so that you can progress through a certain area. At higher difficulties it can be quite a tactical experience. The game evoked feelings of nostalgia for me because I finally got to experience a title designed for modern machines that gave me a true successor to Tyrian and other arcade shooters I played as a child. If you aren’t deterred by the price, I would recommend you pick this up immediately. It’s just so good and so much fun.