Kaikan

Kaikan is a vertically scrolling shooter in which you destroy enemies and collect items to build your score. You can choose from six aircraft, each with a different weapon. Moving at low speed changes the weapons’ characteristics and behavior.

Items and bombs

Destroying enemies releases bonus items. Collecting them raises the item rank and increases their score; missing one lowers the rank by one level. After a rank change, the rank stays fixed until you collect the number of items required for that rank. You can attract items to your aircraft by releasing the shot button, but pressing it while an item is being attracted makes the item fall again.

Normal bonus items also fill the purple bomb gauge. When it is full, you stock one bomb. If your aircraft is hit while a bomb is stocked, an auto barrier protects it, but the bomb stock is lost. Firing a bomb turns enemy bullets on screen into bomb bonus items and makes enemies hit by the bomb release them. These items score more than normal items and raise the counter on the right, but do not fill the bomb gauge.

Boss battles

The counter acts as a timer during boss battles and affects the score for bosses and their parts. Items used to destroy a boss restore the bomb gauge and count as BOSSMEDAL; these medals serve as the counter for the final boss battle.

Six aircraft

• Type A: Napalm that explodes on impact with an enemy.
• Type B: A wide shot that attacks across a broad area.
• Type C: Homing shots that track enemies.
• Type D: Fire that attacks across the screen.
• Type E: A high-powered blast.
• Type F: A ball that rotates around the aircraft and erases enemy bullets.

Changes in this version

This version supports Steam rankings through improvements to the production tool and changes the performance of the player aircraft other than the wide-shot type. It removes free left-and-right scrolling, widens the screen, and removes the off-screen item radar. It also displays the positions of falling score items and your aircraft on the mini-map.

During true boss battles, the counter now totals the BOSS MEDAL items from each side. Continuing is no longer possible after entering a true boss battle, and the no-continue bonus has been removed. Practice mode remains available after entering a true boss battle, but achievements for true bosses cannot be unlocked in practice mode. Two previously unlockable hidden aircraft are available from the start. The game also adds a blur effect for presentation, which can be turned off for parts related to gameplay, changes all BGM and supports controller vibration.