Play Gekirindan Online

Summary

Gekirindan is a vertical shoot‑'em‑up that lets you pick one of three time‑travelling ships – a sleek futuristic jet, a space‑ready helicopter, or a retro‑styled airplane – each with its own shot pattern. The game rewards you for chaining power‑ups: collecting “P” icons upgrades your main weapon, while “C” lets you swap between the two available shots, and colored letter icons summon missiles, napalm bombs or homing lasers as sub‑weapons. Bombs are limited but can clear the screen when the mech hordes get overwhelming.

Scoring feels oddly satisfying; gold‑shaped medals drop at the end of each stage for a hefty 5,000‑point bonus, and “Bonus” icons pepper the levels for extra flair. If you get hit you lose a life, your firepower drops, but you respawn right where you fell, keeping the action tight. The title ends after the fifth stage with no extra loops, so every run feels like a race against the clock.

Behind the scenes, former Toaplan talent assembled the game at Taito, with Osamu Ōta (aka “Lee”) producing and Zuntata’s Kazuko Umino and Koji Sakurai handling the soundtrack. It debuted on the Taito F3 System and was highlighted at JAMMA ’95, later earning a spot as the ninth‑most‑successful arcade title in December 1995 and a nod from Retro Gamer as an “above‑average” 1995 shooter.

Storyline

In Gekirindan, set in the year 3195, Earth creates a time machine that is promptly stolen by a mechanized being known as Huge Boss. He uses the device to travel back 3000 years and rewrite human history, and the only resistance comes from a team of six fighter pilots drawn from different eras. The pilots are: Hokuto Higara, a 32nd‑century male pilot of the Type A (P1) ship seeking vengeance for his family; Anne Kutos, a 20th‑century woman piloting the Type B (P1) ship who records her experiences while trying to rescue her family; Dietza Savis, a 1950s Elvis‑look‑alike in the Type C (P1) ship hoping to boost his rock‑and‑roll career; Grother Fedel, a confident Type A (P2) pilot of unknown era who carries a picture of a dark‑haired woman; Shario Vissen, a 32nd‑century young adult in the Type B (P2) ship fulfilling her late sister’s wish with a cat‑like pet; and the elf duo Orsa and Mayoru, Type C (P2) pilots who love nature and vow to avenge the devastation of Earth’s wildlife. Each has personal motives beyond simply saving humanity, but together they must stop Huge Boss from erasing three millennia of history.