Help:Shooting game

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Jotamide: Jotamide moved page Shooting game to Help:Shooting game: Moved to Help namespace

== Shooting Games (STG) ==
'''Shooting games''', also known as "'''shoot-em-ups'''", "'''shmups'''" or "'''STGs''' ('''S'''hoo'''T'''ing '''G'''ames)", are a genre of video game that focuses primarily on a single player shooting down waves of enemies in a typically auto-scrolling fashion. Shooting games have two primary subgenres of games: '''Horizontal''', also known as ''Yoko'' (''[[Gradius]]'', ''[[R-Type]]'', etc.), & '''Vertical''', also known as ''tate'' (''[[DonPachi]]'', ''[[Ikaruga]]'', etc.), as well as the occasional Isometric shooter (''[[Viewpoint]]'').

== History ==
The STG genre primarily originated in the arcades, and were often well known for their high level of difficulty (often ramping up greatly by stage 3), blistering-fast bullet speeds, and highly detailed artwork. As time went on, developers such as [[CAVE]] began innovating on the previously-established STG formula by introducing greater amounts of bullets, complex bullet patterns, smaller hitboxes, and complex scoring systems -- these games would be known as the "''manic shooter''" or "''bullet hell''" subgenre of shooting games.

Shooting game

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Jotamide: Jotamide moved page Shooting game to Help:Shooting game: Moved to Help namespace

#REDIRECT [[Help:Shooting game]]

Help:Dodging strategy

2020-08-02T21:46:47Z

Jotamide: Jotamide moved page Dodging strategy to Help:Dodging strategy: Moving to help namespace

Normally in shmups, one wants to avoid danger in the forms of bullets, enemies, and obstacles when aiming for a goal such as a [[Glossary_of_shmups#1cc|1cc]], [[Glossary_of_shmups#2-all|2-all]], or [[Glossary_of_shmups#Score run|score run]]. '''Dodging theory''' is an analysis of the different types of dangers one is likely to face as well as axioms for coming up with solutions to such obstacles.

= Avoiding bullets =

== Routing ==
In general, the best way to avoid any type of danger, including bullets, is to know what will happen beforehand and to plan a safe '''[[Glossary_of_shmups#Route|route]]''' to avoid that danger. Even randomized elements of a shmup can benefit from routing by analyzing the random elements and routing towards the greatest probability for success. For instance, routing oneself into a safer, less bullet-dense part of the screen far away from the source of random danger.

== Threat zones ==
[[File:PCB-bulletluring-jaimers.gif|thumb|right|Hundreds of bullets being herded into safe, simple lines on top of each other by careful tap dodging. Erratic movements would fill the screen with chaotic and dangerous patterns.]]
Sources of danger, such as enemy ships, enemy cannons, or fired bullets, can be thought of as projecting a '''threat zone''' along whatever their path is. The closer one is to this zone, the greater the chance the player will make an error and collide with a bullet. It follows then that dodging strategies should be centered around controlling and minimizing threat zones, thus giving the player the largest areas of safety and freedom possible. Analysis of threat zones is one way to theorize about the safest possible solution for any bullet pattern. In practice, they are mostly helpful for blind play or pre-routed play where the best strategy for any situation is not yet known or needs to be developed firsthand. Visualization of threat zones will lead to faster development of safe routes or improvements on old strategies.

=== Speedkilling ===
A vital strategy in many shmups, '''killing enemies as quickly as possible''' usually denies the existence of threats entirely. There can be no errors without threats.

=== Streaming ===
One of the most common ways to minimize threat zones is to force sources of danger to overlap each other via '''streaming'''. Essentially, threats that are overlapping share the same threat zone, and by luring many sources of danger into a small area or controlled trajectory, the player effectively frees up some other part of the screen they can use for maneuvers.

=== Herding / Luring ===
When possible, lure threats/bullets off screen or into areas that are already polluted with threats. It's much better to have one polluted area and one clear area rather than two mildly polluted areas.

=== Sealing ===
(WIP)

{{clear}}

= Bullet patterns =
Because "reading" bullet patterns is often error prone, and in extreme cases, impossible, it's useful to learn strategies that can be used to avoid danger without relying merely on sight. If a bullet pattern falls into a known type, a known solution is likely to be effective in surviving it.

== Static bullet patterns ==
[[File:Safespot-peg-s19453.gif|thumb|right|A dense and fast ring pattern that would be quite difficult without using safe spots.]]
'''Static bullet patterns''' are the same each time, so their threat zones fill predetermined positions and timings regardless of the player's position or other game states. Static patterns cannot be herded or lured, but instead they are very predictable, and thus static patterns are often solved safely by memorizing [[Glossary_of_shmups#Safe_spot|safe spots]]. Static patterns are more common in older shmups as their predictable nature makes them relatively simple to conquer with enough analysis.

==== Threat zone ====
Being completely static, the threat zones of static patterns can be visualized as thin, stationary lines traced from the sources of danger to the edge of the screen. Anywhere between these lines should be safe for maneuvering. In the case that a moving enemy fires a static pattern, one can still visualize the static threat lines and safe spots radiating out from the source.
{{clear}}

== Aimed bullet patterns ==
'''Aimed bullet patterns''' are patterns that are oriented towards or aimed directly at the player. These are the majority of patterns in shmups.
=== Aimed even ===
[[File:KGP-evenpattern-ako.gif|thumb|right|Easily surviving aimed even bullets by not moving.]]
Also known as '''enclosing''' patterns, aimed bullet patterns with an '''even''' number of bullets contain two or more streams of bullets aimed away from the player. Usually the best way to survive even patterns is to not move and let the danger pass by. [[Glossary_of_shmups#Macro dodge|Macro dodging]] is not recommended as even patterns are usually quite wide and are essentially designed to punish macro movements.

==== Threat zone ====
Aimed even patterns can be visualized as fans of threat lines oriented towards and around the player. Depending on the width of the area between the threat lines, it is sometimes possible to [[Glossary_of_shmups#Micro dodge|micro dodge]] threats that overlap with an even pattern. If there are no overlapping patterns, it's best to just not move and avoid the threat lines entirely.

=== Aimed odd ===
'''Odd''' bullet patterns contain one or more streams of bullets that are aimed directly at the player. Usually the best way to survive odds is to tap once perpendicular to the source of the bullets.

==== Threat zone ====
Aimed even patterns can be visualized as one or more lines oriented directly at and piercing the player's ship. By far the most common type of pattern in shmups. [[Glossary_of_shmups#Macro dodge|Macro dodging]] aimed odd patterns can be safe if the pattern isn't very wide. Continuous aimed odd patterns (including streams of single bullets) can only be tap dodged for so long until the player runs out of space on screen. [[Glossary_of_shmups#Cut back|Cut backs]] should be used to create an opening to slip under in order to continue tapping in the opposite direction when out of room.

=== Aimed restricted ===
(WIP)

{{clear}}

== Random bullet patterns ==
[[File:TH8-mokourings-mauler.gif|thumb|right|Rings with a random orientation. Strategy can't help here. The only solution is to react and find the gaps.]]
'''Random bullet patterns''' are patterns that may or may not be aimed at the player; they spawn with an unknown trajectory. Often, random patterns are actually oriented in some way towards the player, and are actually aimed random patterns. Random patterns can be bullets with completely random trajectories from a central source, or they can be patterned attacks such as rings that expand with an unknown trajectory that may or may not be aimed at the player.

==== Threat zone ====
Random patterns can be visualized as nebulous cones or circles. Since the trajectory of incoming attacks is random, there is no real way to form a consistent strategy against random patterns. Analysis of such attacks may reveal that certain parts of the screen will be less dense than others, increasing the chance of success if taking refuge in that area; however, the need to remain in a certain position to attack an enemy may make such solutions impossible to effectively execute. Ultimately the only way to avoid random patterns is to read the incoming bullets and react.
{{clear}}

== Homing attacks ==
[[File:TOH-homingattack.gif|frame|right|Homing attacks lured into a clump at one side, then allowed to run out of homing power over the length of the screen. If lured into the center, the player would likely end up trapped.]]
'''Homing attacks''' are bullets or missiles that spawn with some initial trajectory but continue to curve towards the player for some amount of time. Homing attacks are usually either slow with a high turn rate or fast with a low turn rate.

=== Fast bullet, low turn rate ===
Often depicted as homing missiles, the threat zone of this type of attack is a cone in front of the projectile. The sides and especially back of this attack are safe. Exploit their slow turn rate by cutting them off at a sharp angle and getting behind them. It will take a long time for them to reorient towards you and they may time out.

=== Slow bullet, fast/infinite turn rate ===
Often depicted as energy balls that follow the player around, outmaneuvering homing attacks with a high or instant turn rate is impossible, so general distance should be sought until they despawn. If possible, lure them all together in one area and then escape to the opposite side of the screen where one can deal with other patterns without worry of the homing attacks interfering.

=== Homing lasers ===
{{clear}}

== Magic bullets ==
'''Magic bullets''' (todo: maybe there's another term for this?) are bullets such as rotating bullets ([[Compile]]), oscillating bullets, or curving bullets. Depending on their speed and density, it may not be realistic to think of magic bullets as individual bullets with changing trajectories and threat zones. More likely, it may be best to visualize them as large swathes of bullets/fat lasers/large moving circles, and their entire trajectory treated as one large threat zone that should be avoided, as particularly erratic magic bullets with fast oscillations/rotations are often too dangerous to consider trying to weave through.

== Hybrid patterns ==

=== Aimed random patterns ===
Aimed patterns with elements of randomness added. They are the majority of bullet patterns in newer shmups. They usually cannot be avoided by memorizing when to tap/not tap like normal aimed bullets and instead must be reacted to.

=== Static aimed patterns ===
[[File:S1945-Russia2boss-Vludi-staticaimed.gif|frame|right|A static spray of shots from the center accompanied by aimed shots from the sides.]]
Combines elements of static and aimed patterns. Very common in all sorts of shmups. One possible strategy is to deliberately wait in the threat zone of the static attack between volleys. This will lure aimed shots to overlap the static pattern, thus leaving some other areas open for maneuvering.

In the example animation, the player deliberately waits in the known path of the static pattern. This lures the aimed shots into overlapping the static pattern, thus reducing the total area of threats on the screen. This leaves the player with two sides completely free of threats. Had the player waited outside of the static threat zone to begin with (as is likely one's first instinct), the aimed shots would have instead filled that safe space. The player would then have to make an extremely dangerous crossing of the static threat zone to avoid the aimed shots.
{{clear}}

== Overlapping patterns ==
Usually in shmups, especially during stages, different types of patterns will overlap. The safe zones of one pattern become a frame within one must maneuver around another pattern. For instance, one enemy firing a wide enclosing attack while other enemies shoot aimed bullets at the player. The solution then likely becomes a synthesis of both strategies. Move as little as possibly to avoid moving into the threat zones of the enclosing attack, but tap dodge and cutback just enough to avoid the aimed bullets.

Dodging strategy

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#REDIRECT [[Help:Dodging strategy]]

Help:Glossary

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Jotamide: Jotamide moved page Glossary of shmups to Help:Glossary: Moved to Help namespace, removed "of shmups" since this is the Shmups wiki

==0-9==
===1cc===
"'''1cc'''" stands for "'''1 Credit Clear''' or '''1 Coin Clear'''", and refers to completing all of the stages of a game on a '''single credit''' (no continues).

Another term that is used is "x-'''ALL'''", where x represents the number of [[loop]]s completed in a single run on a single credit. An example of an ALL is completing both loops of a game like ''[[DoDonPachi]]'', which features two loops; completing a 1cc on both loops of the game is referred to as a '''2-ALL'''.

==A==
===Arrange===
An '''arrange mode''' is an alternate version of a game, commonly either included with console ports, or made as part of special events, where mechanics, artwork, and various aspects of the game are "remixed" and modified in various ways.

Arrange modes typically don't have enough changes to be considered completely different games, as they are often re-conceptualizations of stages and mechanics, but in some cases, they do have enough differences to be given separate leaderboards, strategies, and stage routing.

===Auto-fire===
''Also called '''Auto-Shot''' or '''Full Auto'''.''

A feature found in some shmups which allows you to fire shots continuously by holding down the “fire” button, or a separately-designated “auto-fire” button, instead of tapping the fire button repeatedly. Depending on a weapon’s fire rate, and the situation, using auto-fire may or may not be to a player’s advantage at all times. Older shooters (or depending on a weapon that is gathered) usually required continuous button pressing to keep firing. Rapid fire can be gathered by either turning it on in an options menu, obtaining a certain weapon power up, or flipping on a turbo fire switch on a control pad (Usually a third party pad).

===Auto-fire rate===
Despite sounding similar, this is NOT the same thing as fire rate. Refers specifically to the amount of shots fired in a single “burst” when using auto-fire : in some shmups this setting is adjustable in the Options menu (or even in-game), while in other cases players will engineer an auto-fire hack to set extra buttons to different auto-fire rates to use in different situations. Usually, the auto-fire rate is represented in Hz, representing how many times the shot button is pressed per second. For instance, a 30hz auto-fire rate means that the shot button is being pressed 30 times a second.

==B==
===Bomb===
A '''bomb''' is the generic term for a limited-use weapon, usually one that does large amounts of damage, typically granting some amount of invincibility for use in emergency situations. Bombs are often stored in stocks similarly to lives, though sometimes they operate on a meter or even just a cooldown timer. They will often be replenished each time the player loses a life.

===Bullet Cancel===
In some games, destroying certain enemies or meeting specific conditions will result in bullets being deleted from the screen, known as a '''bullet cancel'''. Bullet cancels are typically used as a part of a game's scoring system, as cancelled bullets will often increase score, release point items, or create other similar effects.

===Bullet Hell===
''Also called '''Danmaku''' or '''Manic Shooter'''.''

A type of shoot-em-up characterized by large numbers of bullets, often in intricate patterns. Innovated in large part by the developers of [[Toaplan]] and [[CAVE]], and with [[DonPachi]], released in 1995.

==C==
===Chain===
''Also called '''Combos'''.''

Any of a number of various repeated techniques a player can perform to increase the points awarded for shooting enemies, collecting items, or other things under the right circumstances: the most common varieties involve shooting down many enemies (or enemies of a specific type) in a row, or collecting a certain type of score item many times in a row.

===Counter-stop===

A '''"counter-stop", counterstop, or CS''' refers to when a score counter reaches the maximum amount that it is able to reach, commonly displayed on a HUD as a series of 9s in each score digit. When a counter-stop is achieved, in most cases, the game stops counting score for the player. It is not possible to score higher than a counter-stop, so often players will stop using scoring techniques upon reaching it.

Games with particularly exploitable counter-stop strategies due to oversights in game design, such as ''[[Dogyuun]]'', are in many cases not played for high scores, or are played in ways that specifically avoid counter-stop strategies.

==D==
===Doujin===

Any artwork made by independent Japanese creators, often a small group or even a single person. Many famous [[shooting game]]s, such as the Touhou Project series, are doujin works. While often conflated with the Western concept of indie, many doujin creators consider themselves philosophically different from indie creators.

==E==
===Extend===
"'''Extend'''" is a term used primarily in arcade games (and especially in [[shooting game]]s) to describe '''extra lives''' / '''1UP'''s. In shooting games, extends are usually rewarded after earning a certain score, or after completing specific in-game tasks.

==G==
===Grazing===
'''Grazing''' is a mechanic present in some shooting games, in which some effect is produced by getting extremely close to, but not touching, enemy bullets. Grazing may be used in games to increase score, provide items, or even slow down bullets, among other effects.

==H==
===Hitbox===
A '''hitbox''' is a typically invisible box or region, used by a game to calculate whether objects have collided or not. They are typically made of simple shapes, and are used to simplify and add consistency to collision detection, as using every pixel of a sprite or model for collision detection would be both computationally more intensive and mechanically unwieldy. Player ships, enemy ships, bullets, environment, and so on, can all have hitboxes. Hitboxes are often much smaller than the objects might appear, so developers will often add some sort of visual feature to hint at hitbox location - such as a bright cockpit on a ship, an ornament on a character's back, or even displaying the hitbox itself with a small dot. Bullets may also have their hitboxes indicated via a different colored region toward the center of the bullet, that more closely matches its true hitbox.

===Hyper System===
'''"Hyper system"''' or '''hyper''' refers to a game mechanic where the player can spend a gauge or power-up that grants them '''massively increased firepower''' for a limited time, in exchange for '''harder game difficulty''', such as faster bullet speeds, denser bullet patterns, overall rank increase, and/or more aggressive enemy AI. The concept of the hyper system was originally conceived in ''[[DoDonPachi Campaign Version]]'', a special arrange mode of ''[[DoDonPachi]]'', and was refined and popularized by ''[[DoDonPachi Dai-Ou-Jou]]''. It has since appeared in a variety of games, such as ''[[Crimzon Clover]]''.

In more non-traditional uses of the term, '''hyper''' may be used to refer to any temporary, powered-up state.

==L==
===Loop===
''Also called '''Round'''.''

A successful completion of all of a shmup’s levels that are available for one “trip” through the game, from beginning to end. The term “loop” is most commonly used when a shmup starts itself over at the first stage after a player completes it, thus sending them through a second “loop,” or “lap,” of the game, which is usually more difficult than the first “loop.” Some shmups offer several successive “loops,” sometimes even ad infinitum, though most have a maximum of one or two. Successive “loops” of a shmup will usually leave the player’s score from the previous “loops” intact, enabling him to reach even higher scores.

Some shmups require a player to one-credit the game in order to reach a successive loop, while others will send the player to it no matter how many times he has to continue to finish the initial run . Sometimes “loops” which occur after the initial trip through the game will only require the player to progress through a limited portion of the game’s total stages, though most of the time they involve all stages; in other instances, later loops can contain a number of various things not seen in earlier ones.

It’s worth noting that some shmuppers do not consider the first, or “original” trip through a game’s stages as a “loop,” but only the successive ones: Thus, to them, the second successive run through is the “first loop”, the third is the “second loop”, and so on. However, most feel free to refer to the original run through a game’s stages as the “first loop,” and progress in succession from there.

Also worth noting is that, in games which contain one or more loops, the way stages are listed oftentimes also notes which loop the stage is in: most of the time, the loop is listed first, and the stage second. For instance, the first few stages in the initial loop of a game would be listed as “1-1,” 1-2,” 1-3,” etc., while the same stages in the second loop would be “2-1,” “2-2,” “2-3,” and so on.

==M==
===Memory shmup===
''Also called '''Memorizer'''.''

A type of shmup, usually horizontal in orientation, which forces a player to repeatedly play its levels and memorize its layout in order to perform effectively, though quick reflexes are also a factor to an extent. The R-Type games are the most well-known examples.

===Milk===
''Also called '''Leech'''.''

To “milk” an enemy, usually a boss, is to gain as many points from the fight as possible by taking advantage of infinite (or semi-infinite) sources of points which are present: in most cases, this involves leaving the enemy alive for as long as is possible, rather than destroying it immediately. Examples include continually grazing shots and repeatedly destroying any endlessly respawning weaker enemies or sub-parts for the entire duration of the battle, rather than attacking the core and ending the encounter quickly. In some cases, a player will have to take additional “unorthodox” actions (such as suicide or power down ) to milk most effectively. Even disregarding this, milking can still be risky, since some milkable enemies become more difficult to defeat if they’re left alive too long; the practice can also, simply put, be boring to the player, due to its highly repetitive nature. Also, if there is a boss timer in effect, in most cases the player will want to be sure to stop milking and focus on destroying the boss before it runs out, or else forfeit the points that the boss would have been worth.

==N==
===No-miss===
In shooting games (and many games that originate in Japan), a "miss" refers to player death; achieving a '''No-Miss''' means going through the entire stage, game, or boss fight without losing a life.

Many games offer significant bonus points for achieving a No-Miss at the end of the stage, or at the end of the game. In games that feature a [[True Last Boss]] or other hidden content, a No-Miss is occasionally a requirement to unlock said content.

==O==
===Option===
An "'''option'''" is an augment to a player's ship that grants additional firepower. In some games, options can also be used to block bullets. Options are usually represented by a pod-like object or a small ship that flies with the player's ship.

==P==
===Point-blank===
"'''Point-blank'''" is a term used by [[shooting game]] players to describe ''getting as close to an enemy as possible while shooting at them''.

In most cases, this concentrates all of their firepower on a singular enemy, increasing the rate of damage dealt to the enemy, in exchange for putting themselves at greater risk of receiving damage from enemies, and dealing less damage to other enemies coming into the screen. Some games will directly reward you for this kind of aggressive play, such as ''[[Ketsui: Kizuna Jigoku Tachi|Ketsui]]'' and its proximity chip scoring system, or ''[[DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu]]'' and its Hyper Counter system, which allows you to quickly charge/recharge your Hyper Meter by point-blanking with your Laser / Hyper Laser.

===Popcorn===
''Also called '''Cannon Fodder''', '''Zako'''.''

Term to refer to common, weak enemies which appear in large numbers at a time during the course of a shmup, but only take a shot or two apiece to destroy, and can thus be taken out in bulk (or “popped”) fairly easily. Literally, zako is the Japanese word for “small fry,” as in fish.

==R==
===Rank===
Gameplay system found in many shmups which will automatically adjust the game’s difficulty in accordance with the player’s performance: for example, in many cases more enemies will appear (and/or existing enemies will attack more aggressively) when the player is fully powered up. Some more “extreme” rank systems require that the player purposely avoids powering up, shooting down enemies, etc. in order to effectively increase his chances of survival, although often at the cost of higher scoring opportunities. Some rank systems are controlled directly by the player’s status and can change quickly, while others will continually increase depending on the player’s actions until they “max out,” and efforts to control them can only slow down how fast they increase.

==S==
===Safespot===
A "'''safe-spot'''" refers to a place on the screen that you can place your ship to completely avoid damage from incoming bullet patterns. Safespots are typically the result of system exploits, game design oversights, or glitches/bugs.

Particularly egregious safespots can often allow a player to completely avoid damage while still damaging enemies and bosses for the duration of an encounter, which can completely nullify the difficulty of said encounter.

===Shrapnel===
''Also called '''Debris'''.''

Graphical touch found in some shmups, in which “shards” or “chunks” of enemy craft appear to be blown off of them when they are shot or destroyed. In most cases shrapnel is included for purely presentational reasons and cannot directly harm the player, but it can still be a hindrance if enemy bullets are not very distinct, as they can blend in with the shrapnel and become hard to spot.

===Slowdown===
* Programming phenomenon commonly found in shmups, in which all onscreen action slows down and/or the frame rate drops when high amounts of separate elements (i.e. enemies, bullets, etc.) appear at once. Can be used to a player’s advantage by giving him more time to react to what’s going on, but can seriously hamper a game’s playability when found in abundance. The amount of slowdown present can be adjusted in some console shmups via the ”Wait” option.
* In this case, usually presented as two words (Slow Down). An ability found in some shmups, which enables the player to deliberately slow his craft’s movement speed, to assist in dodging tight and/or slow-moving bullet patterns; sometimes also changes the effect of the weapon the player is firing when in use. A few shmups also contain a built-in “slow down” function which can slow enemies and their attacks, but utilization of these is almost always considered a form of cheating.

==T==
===Time-out===
A "'''time-out'''" refers to a situation where a boss or mid-boss flies off the screen when it continues to survive for a certain period of time. Some games, such as ''[[Ikaruga]]'', feature an invincible boss that must be timed-out in order to win, forcing the player to rely on their dodging skills and pattern recognition. In most other games, time-outs typically exist in order to prevent the player from earning unlimited amounts of points from [[#Milk|milking]].

===True Last Boss===
Many [[shooting game]]s include a "'''True Last Boss''' (TLB)," a hidden boss encounter that only appears to highly skilled players. Reaching the TLB of a game often requires meeting a series of requirements, such as achieving a "[[no miss]]-no bomb (NMNB)" run, reaching a certain score threshold, destroying certain objects, entering a certain "path", or other objectives that can range from the obvious to the esoteric.

Even just reaching the TLB is a high achievement, and defeating them is, in some cases, a much greater challenge than an ordinary clear of the game.

==Z==
===Zako===
''See [[#Popcorn|Popcorn]]''

==References==
# https://www.sega-16.com/2005/04/unofficial-shmups-glossary/
# https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=11882

Glossary of shmups

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Jotamide: Jotamide moved page Glossary of shmups to Help:Glossary: Moved to Help namespace, removed "of shmups" since this is the Shmups wiki

#REDIRECT [[Help:Glossary]]

Jotamide: Created category

[[Category:Raiden series]]

Raiden Fighters Jet

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Jotamide: Added category

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<center><big>('''NOTE:''' This page is currently in need of a '''formatting''' and '''re-organization''' update to fall in line with the current [[(Template Page)|template]] format!)</big></center>

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== Raiden Fighters Jet ==

'''''Raiden Fighters Jet''''' is a [[shooting game|shoot-em-up]] developed by [[Seibu Kaihatsu]] and released in 1998. The third and final game in the [[Raiden Fighters]] series, RFJ is known for its '''fast bullet speeds''', '''energetic soundtrack''', and '''large number of hidden secrets and easter eggs''' found during gameplay which are integral to playing for score. It was rereleased in 2008 for the Xbox 360 as part of the [[Raiden Fighters Aces]] collection, and again on PC in 2013 as part of [[Raiden Legacy]].

== Gameplay Overview ==

''Raiden Fighters Jet'', commonly abbreviated as ''RFJ'', is a two-button game with fourteen playable ships, plus two secret ships. The stages progress in a branching path depending on player performance, with a full run of the game adding up to seven stages. RFJ contains two different scoring systems - one in which [[medals]] follow the player and increase in value by merging with each other, and another that's activated mid-run via an easter egg. Bonus points are awarded under certain conditions, including destroying enemies quickly before they begin shooting, destroying multiple enemies simultaneously, destroying parts of enemies in a certain order, and [[grazing]] enemy bullets. Easter eggs and secrets are very important to score, primarily in the form of point and item-granting fairies which appear under certain conditions, and ''micluses'', Seibu Kaihatsu's mascot, which come out from under specific locations in the scenery when the player hovers over them.

====Controls====
[[File:RFJ hitboxes.jpg|250px|thumb|right|The hit-boxes (yellow) and graze-boxes (red) for the different ships in Raiden Fighters Jet]]
* '''A (Press):''' Fires standard shots from the ship and [[options]]
* '''A (Hold):''' Fires a charged shot from the ship
* '''B:''' Fires a limited-use [[bomb]]

====Characters====

''RFJ'' contains fourteen standard ships and two secret ships. Each ship differs by speed, shot type, bomb type and base bomb count, and hitbox size, as well as whether they have access to laser and missile shot types. The two secret ships are a fairy and an option ship (referred to as "slave" in-game), selected by holding the B button when pressing start, then picking any of the other ships at the character select. Choosing the miclus ship will select the fairy, and choosing any other ship will select the option ship. The option ship inherets the speed and bomb type of the ship it was selected with, while having its own shot type and a significantly smaller hitbox.

====Resources====

''RFJ'' uses lives to measure player health, and starts the player at two lives. There are no extra lives granted to the player at any point.

The player starts off with two or three bombs depending on the ship selected, which are replenished after respawning from death, regardless of how many bombs they had before. Additional bombs are granted by killing specific enemies.

Those playing for pure survival are advised to use a bomb if they feel death is unavoidable, in order to maximize how many bombs will be available to them throughout their playthrough.

====Items====

''RFJ'' has four different types of items: '''power up items''' which increase the strength of the player's shot and switch it between laser type (L) and missile type (M) where applicable, '''bomb items''' which grant the player an additional bomb, '''option items''' which grant the player an additional option ship, and '''medals''' which grant the player score.

''(pictures of the items)''

==Scoring System==

''Full details: [[Raiden Fighters Jet/Scoring]]''

===Medals===

There are 3 phases of medal collection in Raiden Fighter Jet.

# '''Build up a 2,048,000 point medal:''' When the player has at least one Slave ship following them or when grazing bullets, medals dropped by enemies will begin to follow them. These follower medals can be guided around the screen to merge with each other and increase in value, up to a maximum 2,048,000 point medal. Reaching the maximum value medal is accompanied by a distinct sound effect.
# '''Make 9 medals appear:''' After picking up the maximum 2,048,000 point medal, the player then has to make 9 medals appear on screen at once, e.g. by shooting a Miclus but not immediately picking up the medals. When done correctly, the medals will explode and all subsequent medals will appear as gold medals instead, fundamentally changing the scoring system.
# '''Gold Medal Mode:''' In Gold Medal Mode, all medals have a base value of 10,000 points. Collecting all the medals on screen will increase the medal value by another 10,000 points, up to a maximum value of 100,000 points per medal. If a medal is dropped offscreen, the medal value will reset back to 10,000 for the next medal to appear on screen, and the player must start from 10,000 again. Once the player has entered Gold Medal Mode, the game will not return to any of the earlier phases of medal collection.

===Miclus & Fairy===

''Full details: [[Raiden Fighters Jet/Scoring#Secrets]]''

Hovering over certain locations in the scenery will cause a '''Miclus''', Seibu Kaihatsu's mascot, to appear. Continuously shooting a Miclus will release a total of 9 medals and destroying a Miclus awards an additional 100,000 points.

'''Fairies''' can appear when shooting down the main turret of a large ground enemy and waiting for it to advance far down on the screen. Picking up a fairy grants 100,000 points. Fairies will drop a bomb item if left on the screen for some time. However, they can also be killed by the player, reducing their value to only 10 points.

Both of them can also appear as rewards for fulfilling additional stage specific secret conditions.

===Bonus Message Chaining===

Certain actions will make various bonus text messages appear on screen. If these messages pop up in close succession, a multiplier x2, x3, x4 etc. is built up, which caps at x9. The multiplier is active as long as there is at least one text message displayed on screen. The bonus messages are as follows:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
| QUICK SHOT || Destroy certain enemies before they shoot
|-
| DESTROYED AT A TIME || Destroy certain 2 enemies simultaneously
|-
| DX BONUS || Destroy all parts of the trains in LEVEL 05
|-
| DISCOVERED THE MICLUS || Make a Miclus appear
|-
| DISCOVERED THE FAIRY || Make a Fairy appear
|-
| KILLED THE FAIRY || Shoot down a fairy
|}

The multiplier gained from chaining these text messages is applied to most of the score bonusses displayed on screen (except for medals). It is worth mentioning that the chainable text messages for the Fairy and the Miclus immediately appear with uncovering these characters themselves, which then increases the multiplier. However, the actual score which effectively can be multiplied is gained only after picking up the Fairy and blowing up the Miclus (after shooting it for 9 medals).

===Grazing Bullets===

Getting close to enemy bullets without touching them is known as [[grazing]], and will grant additional points as well.

===Stage Completion Points===

Bonus points are awarded at the end of each stage based on three criteria: '''ability''', '''medals earned''', and '''technical points'''. Ability is a cumulative bonus based on enemies killed, medals collected, and bonuses chained. Medals earned is the number of medals collected during the stage, excluding medals blown up to enter gold medal mode.

Technical points are awarded according to the following criteria:

# '''Not dying in the level:''' five points
# '''Enemy destruction:''' up to three points, based on the number of medium and large enemies destroyed
# '''Discovering at least one miclus:''' one point
# '''Discovering at least one fairy:''' one point. However, killing a fairy will deduct a technical point.

The number of technical points for a level cannot exceed ten.

== References ==

# Raiden Fighters Emporium | https://rf-emporium.ghegs.com/rfjet/index.html
# Primary info provided by [[User:SLRmercury|SLRmercury]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]]


[[Category:Raiden Fighters Jet]]