Vimana (ヴィマナ) is a vertical scrolling shooting arcade game released in 1991 by Toaplan, and licensed to Romstar for US distribution. In 2024 it was released digitally for PC on the Steam and GOG storefronts by Bitwave games.
The title "Vimana" is an Indian word that refers to a vehicle that can fly in the sky. The game was based on the orthodox shooting game world of spaceship battles, but also featured fantastic characters that reminded us of the mythological world of India.
Story[]
Long time ago, there existed a very prosperous planet. However, over time it became subject to corruption, madness and social deterioration. Only a few of the planet's inhabitants were able to survive. These survivors decided to save their planet by fighting the despair that befell their planet. They entrusted their lives and sanctity to a saint fighter named "Vimana", a warrior of great justice.
Gameplay[]
Vimana is a simple vertical shooter, with the player ship controlled with a 8-way lever and two buttons for shot and bombs respectively. Pressing the fire button fires a twin-shot forward which can be strengthened by picking up power-up icons dropped by enemies; quickly tapping the fire button allows the ship to fire faster and continuously, while holding down the button charges energy around the ship which can then be released in a blast that covers a 180 area in front of the ship.
Instead of regular smart bombs, the bombs in Vimana create a rotating shield of energy orbs around the ship. These orbs automatically home in onto the nearest enemies, causing damage and vanishing once their energy is depleted.