The Raiden series is a super popular group of 2-D vertically scrolling shooters.  I’ve seen them in arcades and ported to nearly every home console since then.  Just like NIS did earlier this year with Raiden IV, now you can play the third one with some new features and additions.  Still not sure what the MIKADO in the titles mean, but you can play it on all current consoles and PC (reviewed on PS4 here).

Play control is super simple.  Move around with the L stick and shoot with the button.  Another button lets you use a limited amount of screen clearing bombs.  You can pick up power-ups that give you more bombs or points, or upgrades whatever weapon you have.  You can get spread shots, a forward laser, or a homing beam.  Two can play at the same time, and while you get limited continues, you can set the difficulty to your liking.  There’s even a super easy setting where the enemies don’t even fire at you, making it a bit boring!

I feel that this has less content than the Raiden IV game did, but there are still a few game modes you can tinker around with.  There’s the main game, a score attack where you try to get the highest points in a level, and a boss rush.  You can check local and world rankings, view your replays and art in the gallery, change your side wallpaper and other options, and view the credits.  My only problem is the limited continues, but otherwise it’s a pretty decent shooter.

Kid Factor:

Raiden III x MIKADO MANIAX is rated E-10 with ESRB descriptors of Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes.  Didn’t really notice anything suggestive, and you just shoot spaceships that explode and that’s it.  Reading skill is helpful for the text, and with the wide variety of difficulty levels and two player support, players of all ages should be able to enjoy this.

Tags: Game Reviews