Raiden IV x Mikado Remix

I've spent time with a lot of vertical scrollers, and the honest thing to say about Raiden IV x Mikado Remix is that it knows exactly what it is and refuses to apologize for it. This is a score-attack shmup rooted in a 2007 arcade machine, rebuilt into its most complete form: all prior Raiden IV content rolled into one release, topped off with a remixed soundtrack curated by the legendary Japanese arcade venue Game Center Mikado. That context matters, because this package is built almost entirely around replay value rather than length. The core loop is clean and uncluttered. You pick one of three ships - the balanced Fighting Thunder ME-02, the harder-hitting Raiden MK-II, or the fast and tricky Fairy - then fly upward through waves of the alien Crystal force, cycling between a spread-shot Vulcan Cannon, a focused Ion Laser, and a bendy plasma cannon by collecting color-coded power-ups. Bombs clear the screen in a pinch, secondary missiles auto-fire, and the controls reduce to two buttons. That stripped-back simplicity is a genuine asset: the game never buries you in systems, and within a few runs the cognitive load shifts entirely to threat reading and positioning. Arcade Mode uses a Flash Shot scoring system that rewards aggressing into the top of the screen; OverKill Mode swaps that out for a gauge-filling mechanic where you keep hammering downed enemies for tiered score bonuses, adding real risk-reward tension. Additional Mode tacks on two extra stages and reworked bullet patterns. Score Attack, Boss Rush, and local co-op Dual Play (plus the unhinged solo Double Play option, where each analog stick pilots a separate ship simultaneously) round out a mode list that's genuinely substantial for the genre. The remixed soundtrack is the headline addition and it earns the billing. Artists including the Go Sato Band and Heavy Metal Raiden bring hard electronic, metal, and live performance tracks that sync well with the game's intensity. Players who prefer the original 2007 compositions can switch to those at any time, which is the right call. Vertical screen support (Tate mode) is present and well-implemented - rotating a monitor 90 degrees gives you the full-width arcade column that this format was designed for. PC performance is rock solid, including on the Steam Deck at high vertical resolutions. The caveats are real, though. Visually, this is mid-2000s 3D - functional and occasionally impressive on boss designs, but backgrounds can look muddy and there's nothing here approaching the visual identity of a Cotton Reboot or an Ikaruga. It is not a bullet hell shooter in the modern DoDonPachi sense; patterns are readable and the game is firm but fair, which is a feature for some and a mild disappointment for others chasing genuine screen-filling chaos. Steam user reception is mixed, sitting at 66% positive from a small review pool, with the main friction being the price-to-content ratio for players who already own a prior version of Raiden IV. Newcomers to the game specifically get the best deal here. One legitimate complaint: the replay save system defaults to overwriting your previous run, which is a careless design choice for a game built around chasing personal bests. Online co-op is absent, which stings given that local Dual Play is one of the better additions. If you have never played Raiden IV, this is simply the definitive version to own. If you already have Overkill sitting in a library somewhere, the soundtrack and Tate mode support are the real deciding factors. Casual players with no prior attachment to the genre will likely find it competent but generic. Score junkies and shmup veterans, on the other hand, have a well-crafted arcade package with enough mode variety to keep a leaderboard chase going for a long time.

Alex · Scout Team

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