History YMMV / Raiden

* PolishedPort: Raiden IV Overkill, essentially a [=PS3=] UpdatedRerelease of Raiden IV, includes the two DLC fighters Fairy and Fighting Thunder Mk-II available from the start, exclusive levels, and has a special Overkill mode reminiscent of ''Videogame/EtherVapor''[='=]s SurplusDamageBonus.

* ParodyDisplacement: The game, despite made as a relatively low budget last ditch follow-up to the Shoot em up genre trend, ends up to be more successful worldwide than its Toaplan inspiration.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Throughout the 90's, ''Raiden'', ''II'', and ''DX'' were seen as the face of the ShootEmUp genre, with the former two games in particular being big hits in arcades and the latter two games are well-known for the purple "toothpaste laser"; if you wanted to descsribe shmups to someone who had never played one, you would probably say "oh, games like ''Raiden'', for example." The proliferation of BulletHell games in the 2000s and onwards (''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'', ''Franchise/TouhouProject'', and Creator/{{CAVE}} games in particular) have not done wonders for the series' popularity, especially amongst younger gamers who did not get a change to grow up in the pre-''danmaku'' era; nowadays it's seen as having lifeless, generic visuals and lacking pretty bullet patterns, not helped by the additional difficulty that stems from the huge hitbox and loss of most powerups upon death. Although new games in the series continue to be released today, ''Raiden IV'' and ''V'' in particular ended up going under the radar.

* FandomRivalry: There's some one-sided friction with fans of ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'', due to both of those games having a character also named Raiden who is better-known in video game pop culture (though in the case of ''Genshin''[='=]s namesake, her full name is Raiden Shogun), with those characters' fans often having no clue what this game series is (i.e. "Oh, Raiden? As in the ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty MGS2]]'' / ''Genshin'' character?"). This bleeds over into a generational rivalry in the case of ''Genshin Impact'' as well, due to ''Genshin'' fans generally being relatively young (teens or early 20s) and ''Raiden'' fans generally being millennials or older.

* CommonKnowledge: The enemies are often referred to as the "Cranassians" as if it's canon, but this name is actually a misspelling of "Carnassials" from the localized manual for the SNES ''Raiden Trad'', the only game where that name is used. This was largely put to rest with the release of ''Raiden V'', which refer to them simply as the Crystals.

* CommonKnowledge: The enemies are often referred to as the "Cranassians" as if it's canon, but this name is actually a mispelling of "Carnassials" from the localized manual for the SNES ''Raiden Trad'', the only game where that name is used. This was largely put to rest with the release of ''Raiden V'', which refer to them simply as the Crystals.

* BrokenBase: Fans of the series can't quite agree on whether the purple Bend Plasma weapon introduced in ''Raiden II'' is an overpowered and excellent weapon due to its ability to easily twist and hit off-angle enemies even at low power or an overrated AwesomeButImpractical weapon that isn't worth picking up due to having lower damage-per-second than the Lightning Laser or a point-blank Spread Vulcan and being a visually distracting weapon that can endanger the player. Generally speaking, [[CasualCompetitiveConflict casual players seem to gravitate towards the Bend Plasma, while 1CC- and score-focused players tend to avoid it]].

* VindicatedByHistory: Upon its release, ''Raiden III'' didn't get quite a lot of positive reception due to shmups and other 2D action game genres going out of style at the time in favor of games with more cinematic narrative-driven experiences, plus amongst those who ''did'' continue to enjoy shmups, it got criticized for its dull-looking 3D graphics, [[ReplacementScrappy replacing the iconic Bend Plasma weapon with a more generic Photon Laser]], and the change of developer from Seibu Kaihatsu to MOSS resulting in a much different-feeling game from the earlier entries. However, over time the shmup community has been willing to give the game another chance thanks to rereleases across multiple platforms and being able to judge it relative to later games in the series. The [[SequelDifficultyDrop reduced difficulty]] and [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap making the default spread shot much more usable at the lowest levels]] helps to further ease players into the game, as the Seibu-developed games are known for [[NintendoHard being relentless from start to end]].

* VindicatedByHistory: Upon its release, ''Raiden III'' didn't get quite a lot of positive reception due to shmups and other 2D action game genres going out of style at the time in favor of games with more cinematic narrative-driven experiences, plus amongst those who ''did'' continue to enjoy shmups, it got criticized for its dull-looking 3D graphics, [[ReplacementScrappy replacing the iconic Bend Plasma weapon with a more generic Photon Laser]], and the change of developer from Seibu Kaihatsu to MOSS resulting in a much different-feeling game from the earlier entries. However, over time the shmup community has been willing to give the game another chance thanks to rereleases across multiple platforms and being able to judge it relative to later games in the series. The [[SequelDifficultyDrop reduced difficulty]] and making the default SpreadShot much more usable at the lowest levels helps to further ease players into the game, as the Seibu-developed games are known for [[NintendoHard being relentless from start to end]].

* VindicatedByHistory: Upon its release, ''Raiden III'' didn't get quite a lot of positive reception due to shmups and other 2D action game genres going out of style at the time in favor of games with more cinematic narrative-driven experiences, plus amongst those who ''did'' continue to enjoy shmups, it got criticized for its dull-looking 3D graphics, [[ReplacementScrappy replacing the iconic Bend Plasma weapon with a more generic Photon Laser]], and the change of developer from Seibu Kaihatsu to MOSS resulting in a much different-feeling game from the earlier entries. However, over time the shmup community has been willing to give the game another chance thanks to rereleases across multiple platforms and being able to judge it relative to later games in the series. The [[SequelDifficultyDrop reduced difficulty]] helps to further ease players into the game, as the Seibu-developed games are known for [[NintendoHard being relentless from start to end]].

* VindicatedByHistory: Upon its release, ''Raiden III'' didn't get quite a lot of positive reception due to shmups and other 2D action game genres going out of style at the time in favor of games with more cinematic narrative-driven experiences, plus amongst those who ''did'' continue to enjoy shmups, it got criticized for its dull-looking 3D graphics and [[ReplacementScrappy replacing the iconic Bend Plasma weapon with a more generic Photon Laser]]. However, over time the shmup community has been willing to give the game another chance thanks to rereleases across multiple platforms and being able to judge it relative to later games in the series. The [[SequelDifficultyDrop reduced difficulty]] helps to further ease players into the game, as the Seibu-developed games are known for [[NintendoHard being relentless from start to end]].

* VindicatedByHistory: Upon its release, ''Raiden III'' didn't get quite a lot of positive reception due to shmups and other 2D action game genres going out of style at the time in favor of games with more cinematic narrative-driven experiences, plus amongst those who ''did'' continue to enjoy shmups, it got criticized for its dull-looking 3D graphics and not having the iconic Bend Plasma weapon. However, over time the shmup community has been willing to give the game another chance thanks to rereleases across multiple platforms and being able to judge it relative to later games in the series. The [[SequelDifficultyDrop reduced difficulty]] helps to further ease players into the game, as the Seibu-developed games are known for [[NintendoHard being relentless from start to end]].

* ToughActToFollow: ''Raiden II'' and ''DX'' are held up as the gold standard for the series, with ''II'' being an EvenBetterSequel to the first and ''DX'' adding its own refinements. The [[VideoGame3DLeap 3D-visuals]]/MOSS era has had a tough time measuring up to these two games due to what is widely regarded as inferior level design, the loss of the Bend Plasma in ''III'' and its dissimilar form in ''IV'' and ''V'', and the replacement of Go Sato and Akira Sato for a different composer in ''V''. While ''III'' through ''V'' are still great games, all things considered, they'll always be seen as a shadow of the 2D/Seibu-developed games.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Throughout the 90's, ''Raiden'', ''II'', and ''DX'' were seen as the face of the ShootEmUp genre, with the former two games in particular being big hits in arcades and the latter two games are well-known for the purple "toothpaste laser"; if you wanted to descsribe shmups to someone who had never played one, you would probably say "oh, games like ''Raiden'', for example." The proliferation of BulletHell games in the 2000s and onwards (''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'', ''Franchise/TouhouProject'', and Creator/{{CAVE}} games in particular) have not done wonders for the series' popularity; nowadays it's seen as having lifeless, generic visuals and lacking pretty bullet patterns, not helped by the additional difficulty that stems from the huge hitbox and loss of most powerups upon death. Although new games in the series continue to be released today, ''Raiden IV'' and ''V'' in particular ended up going under the radar.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Throughout the 90's, ''Raiden'', ''II'', and ''DX'' were seen as the face of the ShootEmUp genre, and was well-known for its purple "toothpaste laser". The proliferation of BulletHell games in the 2000s and onwards (''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'', ''Franchise/TouhouProject'', and Creator/{{CAVE}} games in particular) have not done wonders for the series' popularity; nowadays it's seen as having lifeless, generic visuals and lacking pretty bullet patterns, not helped by the additional difficulty that stems from the huge hitbox and loss of most powerups upon death. Although new games in the series continue to be released today, ''Raiden IV'' and ''V'' in particular ended up going under the radar.

* FandomRivalry: There's some one-sided friction with fans of ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'', due to both of those games having a character also named Raiden who is better-known in video game pop culture (though in the case of ''Genshin''[='=]s namesake, her full name is Raiden Shogun), with those characters' fans often having no clue what this game series is (i.e. "Oh, Raiden? As in the ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty MGS2]]'' / ''Genshin'' character?").

* FandomRivalry: There's some one-sided friction with fans of ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'', due to both of thoser games having a character also named Raiden who is better-known in video game pop culture, with those characters' fans often having no clue what this game series is (i.e. "Oh, Raiden? As in the ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty MGS2]]'' / ''Genshin'' character?").

* FandomRivalry: There's some one-sided friction with fans of ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'', due to both of thoser games having a character also named Raiden who is better-known in video game pop culture, with those characters' fans often having no clue what this game series is (i.e. "Oh, Raiden? As in the ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty MGS2]]'' / ''Genshin'' character?")

* FandomRivalry: There's some one-sided friction with fans of ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' and ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'', due to both of thoser games having a character also named Raiden who is better-known in pop culture. In particular, ''Raiden'' (Seibu) fans especially despise ''Genshin Impact'' fans, as many ''Raiden'' fans are fans of retro games in general, with the disdain for modern game industry business practices, especially GachaGames, that entail.

* NotSoCheapImitation: Not only did the first few ''Raiden'' games, which were basically ribbing Toaplan, end up being successful, to the point where many people who grew up with early 90s arcade games speak fondly of ''Raiden II''[='=]s signature "purple toothpaste laser", the series has managed to outlast Toaplan, which went bankrupt and closed down in 1994.

* NotSoCheapImitation: Not only did the first few ''Raiden'' games, which were basically ribbing Toaplan, end up being successful, the series has managed to outlast Toaplan, which went bankrupt and closed down in 1994.

** Throughout the series, the weapon items upgrade your weapon by one level if you collect an item for your current weapon, and change your weapon without any upgrades if you pick up an item that's different from your current weapon. This doesn't seem so bad at first, until you realize that under this system, it is possible to leave yourself quite underpowered for a difficult situation ahead if you carelessly and frequently change weapons; conversely, the best way to power up is to keep picking up more of the same weapon item, regardless of what weapon is best-suited for what's going on right now.

* BrokenBase: Fans of the series can't quite agree on whether the purple Bend Plasma weapon introduced in ''Raiden II'' is an overpowered and excellent weapon due to its ability to easily twist and hit off-angle enemies even at low power or an overrated AwesomeButImpractical weapon that isn't worth picking up due to having lower damage-per-second than the Lightning Laser or a point-blank Spread Vulcan and being a visually distracting weapon that can endanger the player.