Raiden V

About

Raiden V is a single player and multiplayer arcade shooter game. It was developed by Moss Co., Ltd. and was released on May 11, 2016. It received neutral reviews from players.

"Raiden V: Director's Cut" is a vertical scrolling shoot 'em up game with enhanced features from the original "Raiden V". It includes a new stage, additional dialogue, and improved graphics. Players control a futuristic fighter jet and battle against hordes of enemy forces, upgrading their weapons and ships as they progress through multiple levels. The game features a dynamic narrative that changes based on the player's performance.

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54%

Audience ScoreBased on 261 reviews

music37 positive mentions

story15 negative mentions

The game features a variety of weapons and ships, allowing for diverse gameplay strategies.
The soundtrack is well-composed and enhances the overall experience of the game.
The cheer system adds a unique multiplayer element, allowing players to support each other during gameplay.

Bullet visibility is poor, with many projectiles blending into the background, making it difficult to dodge attacks.
The incessant NPC chatter during gameplay can be distracting and detracts from the overall experience.
The game lacks a vertical screen mode, which is a significant drawback for a traditional vertical shooter.

story
107 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
73%
14%
The story in Raiden V has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the attempt to introduce a narrative into the gameplay, while others criticize its execution as distracting and poorly written. Many found the dialogue intrusive during intense gameplay, detracting from the overall experience, and noted that the story itself is simplistic and often unengaging. Despite the branching paths based on player performance, the consensus is that the story feels tacked on and lacks depth, making it less appealing for those primarily interested in the shoot 'em up mechanics.
- “I like how the story changes according to performance and it might motivate players to perform better.”
- “The journey along the way rewards you with lovely period graphics, extra information on either side of the screen to preserve the aspect ratio, and what feels like a lot of radio commentary plot as you go through the levels.”
- “Basically, this is more of a story-driven version of Raiden compared to the prior arcade titles in the series - the actual gameplay is similar to Raiden 3 & 4 but with some nice new options, like being able to choose the specific versions of each power-up you want, a sort-of co-op assist feature, and branching storyline paths which are determined by your skills.”
- “The story is pretty simple: Earth had fought its last war against the crystals, which seems to have a unique affinity for contaminating, then controlling any weapon system it comes into contact with.”
- “Raiden V’s biggest weakness is the manner in which its story is presented.”
- “It's bad enough as it was that the story itself was a tad mediocre at best, but the fact that I constantly had to deal with dialogue going on in the background while I was trying to concentrate on blowing up anything that came to my screen made it quite challenging at times to focus on what I was doing.”
music
82 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
50%
5%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its epic and well-composed tracks, while others find it generic and forgettable. Many players note issues with audio balance, where the music often drowns out dialogue, detracting from the overall experience. Despite these criticisms, several reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature that enhances gameplay, particularly for fans of the genre.
- “The soundtrack alone (which slays if you're a fan of this genre) is enough to immerse oneself into the experience.”
- “The music is epic, the sound effects are epic, the weapons are epic, and the explosions are epic.”
- “Well worth the money - the gameplay is intense, the UI is excellent, the environment and models are detailed and varied, the music rocks, the sound design is great.”
- “The first thing that hits you is how generic the music sounds.”
- “I don't know what is wrong with the EQ and audio balance in that game, but the music, enemy sounds, and chat with the crew were just all mixed up.”
- “The music can kind of supplement the gameplay, but it becomes dull very quickly and easily forgettable.”
gameplay
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
68%
4%
The gameplay of Raiden 5 is a mix of classic shoot 'em up mechanics with some new features, such as a "cheer" system and various weapon options, but it suffers from poor UI design and distracting dialogue that can detract from the experience. While some players appreciate the fast-paced action and replayability, many find the gameplay repetitive and the visual clarity hindered by overwhelming backgrounds and hard-to-see projectiles. Overall, the game maintains the core elements of the Raiden series but struggles with execution and presentation.
- “Excellent presentation, fantastic soundtrack, and solid gameplay, with a surprisingly fleshed-out story, caters to not just bullet hell experts but also those who want to dip into the genre and get used to it.”
- “Gameplay is a mix of all the previous games, with Raiden 5 taking parts of each.”
- “Fantastic gameplay, even better than that of the previous games.”
- “Does very little to stand out from its genre peers, and what gameplay merits it does possess are marred by the poor art direction -- the copious enemy projectiles frequently being hard to see and thus dodge -- and the almost non-stop anime banter running in the background of every single stage.”
- “Fast-paced, hard to visualize, dead in seconds kind of gameplay where you're chugging through continues and lives just to beat the game while managing poorly what's coming at you and to you.”
- “Too many colorful and fast backgrounds make avoiding bullets hard in a way it shouldn't, actually not adding anything to the gameplay.”
graphics
61 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
59%
18%
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the nice visuals and retro aesthetic, while others criticize the outdated and sometimes unclear graphics that can hinder gameplay. Many users note issues with resolution options and graphical clarity, particularly on larger screens, leading to a frustrating experience in fast-paced scenarios. Overall, while there are moments of polished graphics and a good sense of speed, the lack of customization and clarity detracts from the overall visual experience.
- “The journey along the way rewards you with lovely period graphics, extra information on either side of the screen to preserve the aspect ratio, and what feels like a lot of radio commentary plot as you go through the levels.”
- “Graphics have that 'retro' feel but polished to 11 out of 10.”
- “The game's graphics are silky smooth and controls very well with an Xbox One controller.”
- “Terrible graphical interface, baffling gameplay, no option for full screen, somehow less creative and more repetitive than previous entries in the series 20+ years older.”
- “The graphics do suffer from lack of options and the fact that they are just upscaled from 1080p, on larger high resolution monitors or widescreen setups this causes them to have a slight blurry feel or look stretched.”
- “The combat, while fast and intense, is made visually frustrating with extremely fast background imagery that frequently conflicts with the projectile graphics (resulting in deaths that would otherwise be avoidable in other vertical shooters).”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
17%
25%
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players appreciate the multiple difficulty levels and ship options that enhance replay value, others find it lacking due to a barebones experience and limited incentives beyond achievements and leaderboards. Despite these criticisms, many still recognize the game's arcade roots as a factor contributing to its replayability.
- “There are several difficulty levels and 3 different ships to choose from, all unlocked from the start of the game, which greatly increases replay value.”
- “+multiple difficulty levels and 3 ships makes for great replay value for an arcade-style game.”
- “All of these elements combined make for some great replayability.”
- “So not much replay value or challenge there.”
- “The only knocks on Raiden V are that it is very barebones; there isn't much replay value, and it can be distracting trying to listen/read the story while trying to not get hit, but it is highly recommended nevertheless.”
- “I also beat the game in just over an hour, and while there are multiple paths, I’m not sure how much replayability there is outside of achievements and leaderboard tracking.”
humor
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding it amusing while others feel it falls flat, particularly due to localization issues and repetitive jokes, such as the commander’s obsession with coffee. While the narration and interactions between characters can be entertaining, the overall comedic tone may not resonate with everyone, leading to a varied reception among players. Despite these critiques, some appreciate the humor as a charming aspect of the gameplay experience.
- “I love the narration of the game when you're playing the various stages, and it has great humor in between levels with the captain and his assistant having different opinions on things.”
- “A must play for a grand arcade series for 25 years! If you love a challenge along with some hilarious conversations with a side of seriousness in total eclipse of galactic warfare, then this is the game you should own!”
- “If you looked for a color-blind mode in the menu, I wouldn't be surprised if it just linked to a YouTube video of the whole game studio laughing at you.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The optimization of the game has received significant criticism, with users highlighting performance issues on the PC version and a frustrating ranking system that inaccurately assesses player performance. The lack of tutorials and a convoluted interface further detracts from the experience, making it feel unwelcoming and messy, particularly for fans of the genre. Overall, the game's optimization fails to meet expectations, leading to disappointment among players.
- “I like how the story changes according to performance, and it might motivate players to perform better.”
- “On the right, you have a dialog and a radar (useless for play), and on the left, you have your bonus points, performance graph, and status display (number of bombs, charges, etc.).”
- “Playing it just isn't fun, keeps on making you feel bad about your performance, and as a fan of shoot'em ups I'm really disappointed I have to ask you not to play this one.”
- “Shaming you over your performance over and over during your first playthrough, unfriendly fast-paced bullet system that rewards pattern knowledge over pattern reading, no tutorial or explanation of the game's system at any point, really messy audio... Raiden V doesn't live up to its legacy for sure.”
- “The PC version has performance issues.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is frequently criticized, with users reporting persistent freezes, bugs, and glitches that hinder gameplay. Many players experience issues with controller support and compatibility with NVIDIA GeForce Experience, leading to a frustrating gaming experience overall.
- “The problem is, this thing is buggy as hell, and I can't complete the game.”
- “It's buggy, low resolution, full of annoying voiceovers and busy on-screen elements... and worst of all, it just hasn't learned any of the lessons that have informed game design in this genre in the intervening time.”
- “Controller support is buggy and may not work!”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be slow and tedious, expressing a desire for more flexibility in choosing routes to unlock story content. The current system requires restarting stages, which adds to the frustration and could benefit from improvements in future updates.
- “The game pacing is very slow and tedious.”
- “I would've much preferred if they gave you the choice of picking your route, allowing you the harder route only if you met the requirement, but having the option to pick any of the other routes even if you do (without having to restart via stage select), which would honestly make unlocking all story routes so much less tedious than it currently is. Perhaps sometime in the future they could fix this, but who can say...”