Japanese Shmup Raiden III Finally Gets A Western Release On PC

Moss Co.’s alien invasion shmup Raiden III has been released for Windows PCs in the west for the first time since it originally hit Japanese arcades in 2005.

It’s possible that you’ve played Raiden III before in Europe and North America as it was previously released on PlayStation 2, but ports for other platforms never happened. Until now, of course, as the game is available on GOG.com and Steam.

Unfortunately, the port is very raw, with only the options being translated into English, and no other perks like adjustable screen ratio. That said, if you’re a fan of side-scrolling shooters then you can probably see past that.

Raiden III has you piloting the Raiden Supersonic Attack Fighter once again as you defend the Earth from aliens. It has a two player co-op mode, seven main levels to get a high score on, as well as Score Attack and Boss Rush modes to try out.

What this third game in the series introduced was 3D scrolling backgrounds, that sees the scenery moving in different directions to portray the idea of climbing, flying horizontally, and descending at different points throughout levels.

This “Digital Version” of the game also comes with two CD’s worth of soundtrack for you to listen to. Its full price is $9.99, but it has been discounted to $8.99 for its launch week.