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Raimais (pronounced "Ray-Maze") is a dot-collecting game with a super-80s future aesthetic and an amazing soundtrack. Think of it as a futuristic version of Sega's Head On.
Although this game uses a modest arcade board (the 8-bit Taito L System), it's actually considered very impressive for being an 8-bit game, pushing effectively the L System to its limits.
Unused Music#
Completely Unused#
NOTE: Track names are sourced from the official albumsTaito DJ Station -G.S.M. TAITO 5-(PCCB-00037) andTAITO RETRO GAME MUSIC COLLECTION 4 RIDING HERO CLUSTER(KDSD-00516~7). This track was intended to play during the title screen, but for some reason, it doesn't and the title screen is silent instead. Sound Code 0x05.
This track was intended to play when you clear a round. Again, for whatever reason, it doesn't, which also explains why the stage tracks keep resetting between rounds. Sound Code 0x07.
Partially Unused#
The final round track lasts 54 seconds and it loops. In the game, you can barely hear 19 seconds of this track, considering how short the QTE sequence is.
Unused Sounds#
"これはテストバージョンだ.", which translates to "This is a test version." Perhaps used in location tests?
Regional Differences#
The Japanese version features an unusual-for-the-time story: you take control of Rika Midorikawa in a mission to rescue her younger brother, Makoto, from the clutches of the evil Mr. Molto.
The World version went to the effort to localize the story dialouges and call some talented english voice actors to read them strip out the story entirely and replace the multiple endings with a single bland one. This is mostly the reason why players like to pretend that this version doesn't exist and stick with the original Japanese version.
According to Gaming.Moe page, a possible theory is that at the time western arcadegoers were mostly young males, and that young males didn’t want to play as women characters. In other words, the story scenes are cut and Rika is never shown because someone thought that Western players would dislike a female lead.
Disappointingly, Taito Legends 2 only includes the unceremoniously stripped out World version, which, bizzarely, still mentions stuff about your captured brother and multiple endings. LIES!
Copyright#
Of course, the Japanese version displays a standard export copyright notice on boot. Unsurprisingly, the World version doesn't have an equivalent notice, and instead go straight to the title screen.
Title Screen#
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Just like most Taito games on the era, the sole difference in the title screen is the Taito's copyright.
Intro#
The Japanese version shows an introductory cutscene of Rika putting on her helmet, enter in her futuristic car and begin her rescue mission. Since the story was stripped out in the World version, this cutscene was removed and instead it starts directly to the first round.
Mr. Molto Cutscenes#
Part of the game's story, after rounds 4, 12 and 24, the Japanese version shows a cutscene of Mr. Molto talking to Rika on a monitor. Obviously, this cutscenes were removed in the World version.
Molto dialogues will vary depending how well you perform:
- If you lost one or more lives, Molto will mock Rika.
- If you don't lost any life, Molto will mockingly praise Rika.
Ending (World Version)#
This game has a grand total of 128 levels, which only 32 of them are playable during a normal gameplay. In the World version, once you cleard the last 32nd maze...
...you'll be greeted with a rather bland and unsatisfying ending which depicts a building (presumably where the labyrinth was) is exploded and is on fire. After that you'll get a congratulations message where is says that you have cleared all the rounds, but there're more courses to follow and invites you to play again.
Final Round (Japanese Version)#
But, in the Japanese version, once you cleard the last 32nd maze, you'll be greeted with the true final round of the game where the showdown with Mr. Molto takes place. The showdown is a Time Gal QTE-esqe sequence where you have to watch the on-screen arrow cues and press the respective direction to avoid Mr. Molto laser shots seven times.
In this round, all your lives are voided in favor of a lifebar (where you can sustain a total of 5 hits) and continues are disabled, so if you lose, you can't retry and you'll get the worst ending (see below).
Endings (Japanese Version)#
As mentioned above, the Japanese version has multiple endings.
Bad Ending 1#
If you haven't obtained the light mirror, Makoto will come to the rescue to save Rika shooting Mr. Molto only to end up getting shot and dying along the villain.
This is probably the ending you'll get if you're playing the game the first times.
Good Ending#
If you obtained the light mirror instead, Rika remembers that has the mirror and a button cue/prompt will appear. If pressed, Rika will use the light mirror to deflect Mr. Molto's shot killing him. After that, Rika will walk in the room, opens the door where Makoto is locked in and finally she hugs him in joy.
Bad Ending 2#
Same as Bad Ending 1, but Mr. Molto has a different dialogue.
Worst Ending#
If you get shot five times, exhausting completely your lifebar, Rika will die. The same outcome happens if you fail to press the button when Rika remembers that has the mirror and the button cue appears, where Mr. Molto's shot will instantly kill Rika (visible from your lifebar being instantly depleted).
Secret/Joke Ending#
If you managed to reach the final round clearing less than 17 maze levels, without losing a life and obtained the light mirror, you'll get a plot twist where Makoto was the main villain all this time. Unlike Mr. Molto, Makoto won't try to shoot Rika during the supposed QTE sequence. After that, the outcome will be the same as the good (or worst) ending depending if you pressed the button or not:
- If pressed, Rika will use the light mirror to deflect Makoto shot killing him.
- If not, Makoto's shot will instantly kill Rika.