Robo Aleste follows the traditional vertically scrolling shooter style, with the player flying forward and enemies coming from the front, sides, and rear. At the end of each level is a
boss, which the player must defeat to move on. Each boss is one of the enemy warlords. Like most scrolling shooters, there are several weapons which can be collected and powered up. The main
kunai shot and the three subweapons from
Musha Aleste return, joined by new power levels for the main shot and a new subweapon. The sideship system has been completely redesigned: the player is always accompanied by two indestructible units, which also fire subweapons themselves. The ability to give the sideships commands has been replaced with a new subweapon that hits in many different directions. Additionally, the sideships can be launched at enemies. The Aleste starts out with nothing but the main shot and sideships, and will return to this state whenever the player loses a life. To power up the main weapon, the player must collect small power chips dropped from a certain type of friendly ship. As more chips are collected, the number of knives in a shot increases (up to four), and eventually the Aleste can start firing stronger fireballs instead. The other weapons are subweapons that each have a particular ability and function separately from the main weapon; only one subweapon can be equipped at a time. To collect, switch between, and power up subweapons, the player must collect one of four colored spheres dropped by another type of friendly ship. Each subweapon has four levels of power, growing stronger and more destructive with each increase in level, obtained by collecting the same subweapon again and again. The four subweapons are: • The red Bakuryu-housen-ka, or Exploding Flower, releases a large barrage of bomblets, which explode upon impact with the ground or an enemy. Useful for quickly clearing the entire forward screen of foes, as the explosion persists for a short time after impact. This weapon returns from
Musha. • The yellow Hiei-meppu-jin, or Flying Shadow Formation, causes the options that normally fly in front of the craft to circle the Aleste with a protective shield. The options will also actively attack any nearby enemies. It is useful for when enemy craft are coming in from the rear of the screen, and the options can still block bullets in this mode. This weapon returns from
Musha, where it was blue. • The blue Raisen-ha, or Lightning Flash, fires a large blue bolt of electricity at the player's foes. Useful for large enemies (such as bosses) or for when many foes are flying in from the front of the screen, as it deals great damage but with poor horizontal range. This weapon returns from
Musha, where it was yellow. • The green Fuusha-shuriken, or Windmill Throwing-Knife, fires large
shuriken in either four or eight different directions, depending on the weapon's powerup level. The stars are flaming at higher levels. Useful for when many enemies are coming in from the front and sides. This weapon is new to
Dennin, and as mentioned replaces the ability to give the sideships commands. ==Plot==