Developer: MOSS
Publisher: NIS America, Inc.
Platform: PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch
Tested on: PC
Raiden IV x MIKADO Remix – Review
Bullet Hell games have always been coin-eaters at the local arcade, but they were very rewarding if you were good at them. When this genre came to PC, players finally had the chance to brush up on their skills without paying all their allowance in the arcade. Raiden IV x MIKADO Remix is the perfect title for those who like the genre, as it has a lot of content. As the title is a mouthful we shall be referring to the game as Raiden IV Remix.
Story
Sometimes games from this genre come with a short story, but this is not the case with Raiden IV Remix. You jump straight into the game, blasting your enemies. The absence of the story isn’t missed at all as you can just launch the game and have some brainless fun without having to focus on anything, except for the bullets of course.
Graphics
Raiden IV Remix looks like it came straight out of an old arcade cabinet. The background is a static 2D image like you might remember from the old Resident Evil games, while the assets in the foreground are 3D. All the ships, tanks, and enemies are rendered in this older simpler polygon graphics style from the PSX era making the game look older than it is. One neat feature is that you can check out every individual enemy ship that is in the game in the extras menu. Another thing is that the game is locked at 58 FPS, presumably to emulate the 60HZ range that most old CRT TVs would run at. Lastly, to make the game fit nicely on modern screens there will be borders showing artwork to fit the 4:3 aspect ratio of the old screen styles, just like we saw with Mushihimesama.
Sound
The best music for an arcade bullet hell game is period-correct synth rock. The music can be compared with all the other 80s-inspired arcade titles and it gets you in the mood for playing. Long gone are the days of loud arcades where you could enjoy this music for days on end, but it sounds equally amazing hearing it through your headphones or speaker. The sound effects carry the same arcade vibes with many loud explosions and lasers shooting over the map.
Gameplay
Raiden IV x MIKADO Remix is a bullet hell game that plays like it has been directly ported from an arcade cabinet. In this genre, you must complete the levels while dodging your way through a never-ending stream of enemy gunfire and fierce bosses. For starters you have four different modes: Overkill -, Additional -, Score Attack – and Arcade Mode. Arcade Mode is the cabinet experience with two special difficulty levels that influence the gameplay with light mode only showcasing five levels, and if you want to experience the true game, then you’ll have to play the original difficulty. OverKill Mode might be the most interesting if you are looking for content, as this mode plays out very fast and has additional missions in between certain stages. Additional Mode is a variation of Arcade Mode with two new stages and Score Attack Mode has all the content from OverKill Mode where you must survive and fight to get the highest score.
Then it all boils down to the game settings, where you choose the difficulty settings and what spaceship you are going to be using. There is also a third secret ship available, which is a fairy (that is normally a collectible) and this one has a different weapon loadout than the other ships. When starting the battle, you can pick one of two main weapons, one that tracks enemies while the other one covers a large space.
While the four different modes sound different, generally speaking they are all the same. You fight through various stages with a boss fight at the end while collecting as many points and bonus items, including weapon upgrades, as you go. With a large selection of difficulty options, you can even opt to play a practice mode where the enemies won’t shoot. Other than that, you can also pick the easy setting where you can destroy certain bullets, and eventually crank it up all the way to hardcore where it takes an inhuman skill level to even make it through the first stage.
The low difficult modes might be a breeze in other titles, but in Raiden IV Remix they still require you to keep your attention as the game is hard but doable. You have a set amount of credits when your lives run out, and these will grant you the option to continue. If you run out of credits, however, it’s game over but you’ll get some extra credits for your next runs. Just like in the old console ports of Time Crisis where your total credits would go up until you either have a large stack of them or just get infinite continues, this does give the incentive to just try again as you’ll get farther after each run.
Controlling the game is pretty easy with only directional buttons for movement and two buttons for combat, one for shooting and one for an all-destroying bomb. These bombs come in handy when you need to quickly destroy a large number of enemies or when a bullet is flying straight for you and you cannot get out of harm’s way.
Conclusion
Raiden IV x MIKADO is a great title for those who like the bullet hell genre. Thanks to its many modes and different difficulty settings you can tweak the experience to your liking. You probably won’t clear any mode on your first try but you will be rewarded with extra credits to get farther every time you try. While there are enough things to choose from, every progression of the stages will go the same way, so it can get repetitive after a while. If you don’t care for this and just want to enjoy the easy controls, beautiful graphics, and amazing soundtrack, then this title will happily take you back to the golden arcade era.
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