Compatible emulators

Synopsis

The game is the sequel to R-Type, which was first released as an arcade game in 1987 and deeply influenced later shooters with its charged shots, unique weapons, and grotesque enemies. Hudson Soft ported the final 4 levels of the original R-Type to PC Engine with the title R-Type II, but Hudson's version is unrelated to the game described in this article.

The player controls a ship called the R-9C (or R-9 Custom), which is an upgraded version of its predecessor's ship; the R-9. The ship's design was slightly modified and the wave gun received guidance capabilities. Two new weapon types (the Search Laser and Shotgun Laser) have been added, bringing the total number of weapon types to five. A new anti-ground bomb has also been added to the missile inventory.

Although the number of levels has been reduced compared to the previous one, the number of enemies, their durability and the number of bullets they fire have been significantly increased. Enemy movement and terrain have also been made more tricky, significantly increasing the difficulty of the game. The same revive system is used as in the prequel, where the player is returned to a checkpoint each time their ship is destroyed.

The controls are mostly unchanged from the R-Type, where the 8-way joystick controls the ship's movement and the fire button triggers the ship's main beam. The other button is used to equip or unequip the Force; the most unusual innovation of the series. Pressing the fire button fills the blue beam gauge, and releasing the button causes a wave beam to travel a certain distance depending on how long the button was held. If the button is pressed until the blue gauge is fully charged, a red gauge appears and fills quickly. Filling the red gauge causes it to flash blue and red, releasing the fire button at this point fires an even more powerful beam.

Unlike the normal beam which only travels in a straight line, the new Shotgun laser beam explodes in multiple directions after traveling a short distance. This shot causes heavy damage if the player can target a single enemy with it. However, holding the button after the gauge flashes causes the beam to revert to the normal cross beam (the gauge alternates between flashing and returning to normal while the button is held), so the player must release the button at the right time in order to successfully target enemies. The other newly added beam, the Search Laser, is semi-enabled and can bend at angles up to 45°.

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