Rapid Hero

Shoot 'em up Arcade Classic Playable Now 1994 🎮 Keyboard / Gamepad

Rapid Hero is a vertically scrolling arcade shooter developed by NMK and published by Media Trading in July 1994. One or two players fly ships that move freely around the screen, firing unlimited bursts of shots at large waves of enemies. The game spans eight stages set in space and on a planet surface, with frequent boss fights and dense bullet patterns. Some of its programmers had previously worked on NMK's Thunder Dragon 2, and it shares that game's aggressive style.

NMK Media Trading vertical shooter shmup 1994 two player Arcade

Controls

Arrow Keys - Move
Z - A Button (Jump / Attack)
X - B Button
A - L Shoulder
S - R Shoulder
Enter - Start
Shift - Select
Gamepad - Full support

What Rapid Hero is

NMK built a string of hard vertical shooters in the early 1990s, and Rapid Hero is one of the later ones. It was released in Japan in 1994 through Media Trading, and a version titled Arcadia was also produced from the same game.

The design leans toward what would later be called bullet hell: lots of enemies, lots of shots on screen, and bosses that come often. It never had the profile of NMK's better-known titles, so it is mostly played today by shooter fans exploring the developer's catalogue.

How it plays in your browser

This page runs the arcade version through an emulator, so there is nothing to install. The original cabinet used an eight-way joystick and three buttons per player, and the controls here map those to your keyboard or gamepad.

Two players can share the screen. With a friend the waves are easier to thin out, although it also adds to how busy the screen gets.

Tips worth knowing

  • Stay near the lower middle of the screen so you have room to dodge in any direction when a wave arrives.
  • Focus on the ship's small hit area and make small movements through bullet patterns rather than large sweeps.
  • Learn where the bigger enemies enter each stage and position yourself to destroy them before they fire.
  • In two-player games, cover separate sides of the screen so you are not both dodging the same bullets.
  • Expect bosses to come often. Clear the smaller enemies quickly so you have space to deal with the next boss when it appears.

Frequently asked questions

Who made Rapid Hero?

Rapid Hero was developed by NMK and published by Media Trading in 1994.

How many stages does Rapid Hero have?

The game has eight stages, set both in space and on a planet.

Is Rapid Hero a two-player game?

Yes, two players can play at the same time on the same screen.

Is Rapid Hero related to Thunder Dragon 2?

Not directly, but some of the programmers who worked on NMK's Thunder Dragon 2 also worked on Rapid Hero, and the two games share a similar hard-edged style.

More games like this

Ninja Clowns, Trog, Bubble Bobble. You can also browse the full games library or read the guides on the blog.