your favorite Raiden game?

[chronicdog]

Vote and post about your favorite Raiden game and why. 2 Votes are allowed if you cant decide or have a favorite for each series.

Ive been getting back into Raiden Fighters Aces (360 compilation), and Im starting to think I like these games more than the original Raiden or Raiden 2. Also, I recently gave Raiden IV another try, and was just as disappointed as when it came out. Everything I remember not liking came back to me very quickly. The Fighters series scoring system is pretty insane, maybe too insane in the first two games, but I really like the bullet patterns and bosses. Jet might be my favorite of the bunch, and overall favorite for the series. How about you?

[CptRansom]

But... but... I love all of them. =(

[rockaroller]

The three of the Raiden Fighters series are my all-time favorite games of the genre, the first one being the one I like the most. But I must admit that the whole series is of good quality, and that the first two games were milestones and very important to the genre development.

[Opethian]

DX for life!!!! 2 would be a close 2nd.

no love for Super Raiden on PC-ENGINE? it has 2 exclusive levels taking the game to a grueling 10 stages

[toaplan_shmupfan]

Voted for the original Raiden and Viper Phase 1.

[MathU]

That's really not fair to put the Raiden Fighters series in with the main series. It was never intended to be Raiden in the first place.

[nZero]

But... but... I love all of them. =(

[burgerkingdiamond]

That's really not fair to put the Raiden Fighters series in with the main series. It was never intended to be Raiden in the first place.

Exactly. I have a feeling that the RF games are gonna win this pole, because they are less frustrating than the original series. They really shouldn't be directly compared.

I voted for Raiden IV, and DX. The original is probably my least favorite, along with III (although I haven't given III a whole lot of play time).

On a related note. I just got a superplay DVD for Raiden IV, and unfortunately I'm kind of disappointed. The way that they play is so annoying. They milk almost every single enemy for points by intermittently tapping the fire button so that they do no damage with the main weapon and get a ton of hits with the heat seekers (500 pts per hit). It's really boring and slow to watch. The 2 ship runs (1 guy simultaneaously controlling 2 ships) are impressive but boring for the same reason as stated before. There are also some interviews but I don't know Japanese.... Unfortunately this might have been a bad purchase. But it's good for the collection.

[CptRansom]

What's the score on the superplay if you don't mind my asking? Top replay on Xbox 360 and Arcade modes didn't do too much milking, IIRC. I think you get more points for speedkills, but now I'm curious.

And yeah, Raiden Fighters don't belong on the same poll, really (though I disagree that they aren't as frustrating... if anything, they're more frustrating when playing for score, IMO).

My votes went to Raiden DX and Raiden IV, but I really do enjoy all of them and VP1 equally (even III).

[mortified_penguin]

How could anyone vote for Raiden III?

[IDruggedShamu]

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[incognoscente]

How could anyone vote for Raiden III?

By clicking the appropriate checkbox.

[apple arcade]

Jet. ...but I've only played a small few in the series.

I really want to like IV but it's just too slow, and most of the time I die, it's because I didn't see something, not because I couldn't dodge it. Plus your weapons are just way too weak.

[peace4myheart]

Definitely Raiden II bc I am not really that good with shmups and only play for survival. Everything is well done, from art style, to music, to play mechanic. The only thing I don't like about it is that if I die once, then it is game over toward the end for me as I'd lose most of my power and the enemies are ruthless, as it should be. =P

[maxio098ui]

How could anyone vote for Raiden III?

By clicking the appropriate checkbox.

It looks like 33 people missed the Raiden DX checkbox

[drunkninja24]

Is raiden 3 bad? I was going to buy it on eBay as I've only played iv. Or should I just invest in fighters aces instead? I'm a raiden beginner so I don't know much about the series.

I don't think Raiden III is bad, myself. But if you can only pick one, I'd definitely go with Raiden Fighters Aces, much better value and much better games.

[apple arcade]

Is raiden 3 bad? I was going to buy it on eBay as I've only played iv. Or should I just invest in fighters aces instead? I'm a raiden beginner so I don't know much about the series.

It's really, really boring. ...but if you like 4 you may dig it.

Aces is a much better purchase.

[Slump]

Good to see Raiden DX getting the love. I threw in a vote for Raiden IV too just cause I've probably sinked the most time into that on my 360.

[CptRansom]

Raiden DX > Raiden IV > Raiden II > Viper Phase 1 > Raiden > Raiden Fighters Jet > Raiden Fighters 2 > Raiden III > Raiden Fighters

Not trying to start shit, this is just my opinion (obviously) based on my experience with each game and I'm sure everyone will disagree with me and that's fine.

I'm interested in seeing your rankings as well - we can rank Cave games, why not Raiden?

[TrevHead (TVR)]

I really need to play more raiden games as all ive played is R1, R3 and a couple of credits of one of the fighters games on Mame (ive been avoiding them due to the PAL 360 pack thats due to be released "shortly" )

Whats R2 like compared to 1 and 3? Plus im right in saying DX is a hybrid of 1 and 2 right?

[burgerkingdiamond]

I really need to play more raiden games as all ive played is R1, R3 and a couple of credits of one of the fighters games on Mame (ive been avoiding them due to the PAL 360 pack thats due to be released "shortly" )

Whats R2 like compared to 1 and 3? Plus im right in saying DX is a hybrid of 1 and 2 right?

DX is basically* is Raiden II with 3 different modes and a much better scoring system, also has a lot of secrets. Raiden DX is really awesome. I'm so glad I got my hands on a PCB when I had the chance.

What's the score on the superplay if you don't mind my asking? Top replay on Xbox 360 and Arcade modes didn't do too much milking, IIRC. I think you get more points for speedkills, but now I'm curious.

And yeah, Raiden Fighters don't belong on the same poll, really (though I disagree that they aren't as frustrating... if anything, they're more frustrating when playing for score, IMO).

My votes went to Raiden DX and Raiden IV, but I really do enjoy all of them and VP1 equally (even III).

I'll check that score later tonight for you. I think all of the original series games are extremely frustrating (although I love them) because all of the ships are actively trying to snipe you. They aim for you and anticipate your movements. When I get sniped in Raiden I feel like the game is personally trying to fuck with me! No other game makes me want to punch in me screen like Raiden (it's a love/hate thing..).

I'm confused about the scoring in the superplay because I know you get a bonus for speed kills (max 5.0 multiplier), but I guess that the 500pts per heat seeker if done right get's you more points in the long run.

[burgerkingdiamond]

BTW, I'm selling a Raiden II PCB at the moment. Theres a thread for it in the Trading section.

[MathU]

Raiden DX is also easier than II. That's actually why I like it more. Some of the later stages and bosses in II (particularly the stage 5 boss; they toned it down a lot in DX) are extremely frustrating.

I love that stage 1 theme in II so much though and I hate that they removed it for DX.

[spadgy]

I went straight for four without hesitation - it's the best Raiden for Double Play by far, and that's what I like.

In general I far prefer the core Raiden series to the Fighters series. Very distinct experiences too.

Raiden's my favourite series of shooters ever, and I do love them all. I've got a big soft spot for VP1 too.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

I've always enojyed both Raiden II & Viper Phase 1 U.S.A. (aka Viper Phase 1 New Version in JPN) when they were at my local arcades back in 1994-1998. My local arcade known as the Regency Game Palace had first gotten a brand new Raiden II PCB conversion kit back in February of 1994 -- it even sported a "New Game" sign on top of the Dynamo cab as well.

The Dyanmo upright cab inside the local Nickel Play arcade that had VP-1 U.S.A. up & running had some kind of special setup that would retain the highest scores and intials even after being powered down for the night. Powering it back up and the high scores/ high score initals would still be there.

One of my best cheap-ass arcade PCB steals/deals was scoring a barebones Seibu Kaihatsu VP-1 U.S.A. SP1 cartridge for a mere $20.00 USD off of eBay many moons ago. Playing the arcade PCB iteration of Raiden II is classic Seibu at it's finest.

I did come across an odd-ball Raiden II PCB conversion kit placed inside a Dynamo cab at the Circus-Circus casino/arcade in Lake Tahoe, NV back in the mid-1990s that would save high scores/high score initials upon being powered down for the night. Strangely, on a real Raiden II PCB setup, there is no battery save for saving high scores/high score intials. The back-up battery found in some Raiden II/DX PCBs was supposed to be used as an "suicide battery method" (similar to the CPS2 suicide battery setup) but Seibu decided not to implement it. On my Raiden II PCB, the back-up battery is still there for posterity despite having been "dead" for many years.

Sure, the Raiden Fighter series would've been re-titled "Gun Dogs" but changed at the last minute to capitalize on the famous and well-known Raiden arcade franchise that Seibu built up over the years.

Don't forget that Seibu also re-released both Raiden II PCB & Raiden DX PCB under the official title release of "Raiden II: New Version" & "Raiden DX: New Version" PCBs as well. Arcade posters of Raiden II & DX "New Version" PCBs do exist, indeed.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[chronicdog]

My problem with Raiden IV is simple: the two ships are too slow for my taste and I dont want to play as a Fairy who blows bubbles (even though I forked over extra cash for the two DLC characters).

Furhtermore, the lack of online coop for a $40 retail game is inexcusable. This doesnt matter to many folks, but I have several SHMUP playing friends on XBLA, and Deathsmiles proved it can work really well.

I want to like this game, but could someone point out to me what Im missing or the best way to approach it? I tried forgetting about scoring, and focus on pure survival but that didnt seem to make it any more fun.

[Galactic Empire]

For me, it's Aces all the way. I know Aces isn't one game, but for my money, you can't more value on a disk. Aces on the Xbox 360 is the closest you'll get to an emulated game on a major counsel. I just joined shmups today, and will be posting my high scores for all my favorites soon. So far, I have a lot of love for this very unique site.

[saucykobold]

I love most of the games on the poll, but DX is far and away my favorite.

DX > VP1 New > II > RFJet > I & IV > RF2 > III > RF > VP1 Old

[mjclark]

Why such little love for Raiden III? is it just because it's dull, or are there better reasons for disliking it?
I enjoy it cos it's pretty and I can play it tated on PC, but I know those things don't carry much weight round these parts.

[Blackbird]

My problem with Raiden IV is simple: the two ships are too slow for my taste and I dont want to play as a Fairy who blows bubbles (even though I forked over extra cash for the two DLC characters).

Welcome to classic Raiden =P. It's practically tradition that your ship is sluggish in the classic series, with bullets typically matching or outrunning your ship's speed. I grew up playing games like this, so I got used to it - it just seemed like intended difficulty to me. So it doesn't bother me very much. To the contrary, I see games with a newer style like Raiden Fighters and think "Man, the ship is way too fast!"

I could see how people used to more maneuverable ships would find it awkward going back to the slower ships, though.