You guys having fun translating the mountain of information I've left on the shmupforum discussion thread? ^_-
LUN has covered the main aspects of the game, make sure you keep that information in mind, as Raizing games need your full attention when you are playing.
Regarding suicides:
It is important to note that many of the scoring tricks in the game require bombs to access them. If you expect to access them all without at least dying once or twice, then you'll find your score will be a lot lower than it should be. Careful planning of suicides is important to maximising your scoring potential.
And like Garegga, Batrider does feature the rank decrease on death. Since you get less lives than you do in Garegga, the rank decrease is a lot higher on death, so timing a death every now and again can be beneficial in the long run.
If you aren't used to this type of game, then Raizing games will frustrate you a lot. Unlike Cave, Psikyo and so on, Raizing games expect you to be playing "on the knife edge" - on your last life with minimal weaponry, taking lots of risks - so getting acquainted with that mentality will help you a lot.
And risk-taking Raizing-style is very exciting. ^_-
I don't usually help my opponents, but that tip is for free.
