🎮 Play R Type Japan Online (Arcade)

R-Type is Irem’s 1987 arcade shoot ’em up, a side-scrolling shmup famous for its punishing difficulty and inventive weapon system. This is the original Japanese release, putting you in the cockpit of the R-9 “Arrowhead” fighter to stop the Bydo Empire, an alien race that fuses biological and mechanical horrors, from wiping out humanity. Its H.R. Giger-inspired enemy designs and tight, memorization-heavy corridors made it one of the most influential and imitated shooters of its era.

How to Play

Move the Arrowhead with the arrow keys and tap the action button to fire a rapid stream of shots; hold it down to charge a much more powerful beam blast, then release to fire. The second button controls the Force, a detachable pod that can be worn on the front or back of your ship to soak up enemy fire, launched forward as a projectile, or left floating in place to guard a fixed spot on screen. The Force also levels up as you collect power orbs, changing how its detached shots behave.

Tips

• Keep the Force attached to your front through tight corridors — it blocks contact damage from walls and bullets alike, letting you hug obstacles you couldn’t otherwise survive.
• A fully charged shot pierces through multiple enemies and terrain in a line, so charge up before a corridor packed with turrets rather than spraying rapid fire at each one individually.
• Detach the Force and leave it hovering over a weak point on a boss (like the level-two heart) to keep chipping away damage while you dodge with your ship.