In each stage of increasing difficulty, players maneuver their fighter craft, engaging various enemies and avoiding their attacks.

The VCD immediately launches a new model of the Raiden fighter, the Fighting Thunder ME-02 Kai, to stop the Crystals from taking over the Earth.

The first location test for Raiden IV was held at Akihabara Hey on July 22–23, 2006, on an Egret II system.

The third location test was held at High-Tech Sega in Shibuya and Taito Game World in Shinjuku on December 27.

[2] The port was set to be released on September 11 by Moss, but was pushed back to October 2 as the game needed more polish and bug fixes.

A version titled Raiden IV x MIKADO remix was released for Nintendo Switch on April 22, 2021 in Japan, on May 6, 2021 in North America, and October 22, 2021 in Europe.

The disc named Raiden IV Secret File, contains player ship specifications, enemy combat data, strategies for the game and concept art.

Backlash over the pay to play ships has created controversy at several gaming forums, leading gamers to wonder whether the extra content is worth the price to obtain them.