Gradius III and IV Game Sample - Playstation 2

[@AlviEao]

Known as Gradius III and IV: Fukkatsu no Shinwa (Myth of Resurrection) in Japan, the 2000 PlayStation 2 release Gradius III and IV is a dual compilation of 1989's Gradius III: Densetsu kara Shinwa e (From Legend to Myth) and 1999's Gradius IV: Fukkatsu (Resurrection) produced by Konami's KCE Tokyo division. Anyone familiar with the Gradius series knows about the signature Vic Viper and Lord British ships, the traditional weapon system (which normally includes Speed Up, Double, Laser/Ripple, Missile, Option, and "?" for the Shield/Force Field), and recurring elements such as the Intruders (dragon-like creatures), Moai heads (which went MIA in the Treasure-developed Gradius V), Zub Rushes (where the numerous orbs randomly appear around the screen to charge at you), boss rushes, and the cakewalk final bosses. Both titles are direct ports of the arcade versions with some extras and differences; it's worth noting that neither game left Japan until the PS2 compilation (the SNES version of Gradius III was a different story). It would be remiss to not delve further on both games in detail, so let's dive in. Gradius III used the same arcade hardware that powered Aliens, Crime Fighters, S.P.Y./Special Project Y, Super Contra, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Thunder Cross 1 & 2. While the folks at System 16 dubbed it the TMNT-based hardware, its technical name is actually the Konami GX945. On a visual standpoint, Gradius III isn't a huge leap from 1988's Gradius II: Gofer no Yabou (Gofer's Ambition) - Vulcan Venture. The music is vastly different, so it lacks strong percussion like in the second game, even if the actual music is otherwise fine. If there's one word to describe Gradius III, it's stagnation. However, even stagnation was the least of its worries. Where there are some interesting elements, much of these were rehashed themes from the previous games. It’s also notoriously brutal that even hardcore Gradius fans couldn't tolerate (though I salute KZbinrs like PEG, slowbeef and Higemaru for braving though it), with the difficulty increased further up the wazoo. Even worse, you're not allowed to continue at all; after running out of lives, it's GAME OVER MAN! The only real addition is the expanded arsenal; like the last game, there are four different weapon setups but there's a new Edit mode, which lets players customize each power-up. The catch is some weapons were only on normal setups or Edit mode; the new ones include the Free-Way (which fires in any direction), Twin Laser (which is less powerful but more focused than the Ripple), Control (which lets you remote control missiles along with the ship's movement), E. Laser (a charging laser that acts as a shield by holding down the fire button), a new Option formation that provides a wider range, the Free Shield that sticks a shield orb to any part of your ship, a Reduce shield that shrinks the ship for easier dodging and absorbs one hit, and the "!" that removes all your current power-ups, decrease speed, or trading extra lives into Options. The Japanese version featured a “Beginner Course” which reduces the difficulty, but only the first three stages are available. This feature is missing from the Asia/World versions however. While the PS2 version is based on the JP arcade release, it lets you select any cleared stage and has a checkpoint system, allowing you to resume a game or restart at an earlier point if you need to power-up. There’s also a bonus “Cube Attack” mode where you challenge the flying crystal blocks of the eighth stage (not that it changes the fact that nobody playtested that segment in the first place). You can also unlock an Extra Edit mode after beating the game, which lets you to choose some of the extra weapons from the SNES port (F-Option, R-Option and Reduce II). Since the PS2 was more powerful than the original arcade board, the game maintains a normal speed in situations where slowdown happens; KCET added an optional "Wait Level" setting that adjusts or eliminates the slowdown. It's all peachy keen, but Gradius III remains one of the lower points in the mainline series. Gradius IV marked the return of the series in arcades after a ten-year gap, if we're not counting the numerous spinoffs including the novelty 3D shooter 1997's Solar Assault (Revised). Gradius IV used the Konami Hornet hardware, which also powered Hang Pilot, NBA Play By Play, Silent Scope, Silent Scope 2: Fatal Judgement/Dark Silhouette and Teraburst. It's also the only game to present the 3D attract sequence of the 1999 Konami logo, using a normal font from the copyright text in the Japanese boxart for various Konami games. With more advanced arcade technology came higher resolution graphics and polygonal environments, but not much else unfortunately. Gradius III suffered from stagnation to an extent, but it's much worse with Gradius IV. It's barely a new game whatsoever, as it also rehashed elements from earlier Gradius titles, but with clean and shiny 3D visuals. The only thing Gradius IV brought to the table are the boss battles, which is just as inventive as 1997's Gradius Gaiden for the PlayStation. But since it's a Gradius arcade game, the brutal difficulty of the earlier titles returns in full force. While it wasn't as obscenely difficult as Gradius III (the arcade, not SNES), it's about on par with Gradius II. Gone is the two-player mode and the cool weapon edit modes from Gaiden, and most of the configs from previous titles. There are a few new weapons, like the Armor Piercing Laser in Config 1 and the Flying Torpedo Missile in Config 6, but the arsenal selections were lackluster. Sure, the visuals are technically advanced but not necessarily better; the beautiful 2D visuals from Gradius Gaiden made way for clean, shiny but soulless 3D visuals. The music in Gradius IV harkens back to the peppy synth of earlier games, but the implementation is awful. The music was composed by Atsuki Watanabe, who later worked on the GuitarFreaks and DrumMania titles in Konami's popular Bemani franchise. It might as well be called Gradius III Redux, not just because it added nothing new to the series, but it's also one of the hardest games along with Gradius III. The PS2 version lacks the cool checkpoint system from the PS2 Gradius III port, but it includes Boss Attack and Level Select modes after beating the game, and the option of removing slowdown from the arcade original.

[@Zsolti_HUN]

Legendary comment

[@nicodimus2222]

Gameplay starts at 4:28

[@richycline]

Gradius is cool but Parodius is my favorite shmup :).

[@reversalmushroom]

R-Type?

[@Bloodreign1]

I love Parodius and Twinbee too, but my love for Gradius and Salamander/Life Force is just as strong.

[@nievesthegamer5333]

12:00 name of this song ?

[@danielfotheringhamproducti7368]

I think this one is good, but if Konami wanted to do a shoot-em up collection, they could have put the Gradius games in one collection (With multiple options to change stuff) and the other ones (same as their earlier compilations) into another, but that’s my thoughts.

[@dr.decker3623]

That would be a lot of games though,.. they also entail the Nemesis series, and Lifeforce/salamander and Scramble,.. I would rather them release Gradius 64 :P

[@dr.decker3623]

This game was released with 3, but it is the home release of Gradius 4, the first time the Arcade game of the same name was ported to console since the N64 version got cancelled