In Irem’s 1987 arcade game R-Type, the detachable weapon pod is called Force.
Force is an armored pod that can attach to the front or rear of the player’s ship, the R-9. It can absorb certain attacks, fire its own weapons, and be launched separately to strike enemies or reach difficult positions. This gives the player both a shield and a tactical weapon.
R-Type is a horizontally scrolling shooter known for demanding enemy patterns and memorable mechanical bosses. The Force pod is not merely a temporary power-up; its positioning is central to surviving the game’s stages. Players may confuse the name with generic terms such as option or bit, which are used for similar devices in other shoot-’em-up series.