(CC) Gradius III (Arcade/PS2) - 1-ALL Very Hard Clear (684,090 to 2-1)

[@PikangsFutaba]

Yeah, I got kinda shocked to see Bacterian not attacking me after playing both the 2nd half of Salamander 1st stage and Gradius 1 stage 1 during some practice runs I did last month after reviving both my Fat and Slim Ps3, I guess it should be the same on the PSP release... well, the only way to answer my own question is just to play it again (heck, back in 2012 it was my prime time with Gradius III due to getting a PSP and having a way to play it on my way to work, during breaks... yeah, I think you can see were I'm trying to tell here) however I'm somewhat rusty with the game, but I have the feeling that I might be able to pull another run off before 2022 concludes on the actual Arcade difficulties and not on the PS2/PSP only easier difficulties (but still I want to re-do my Easiest mode run as I KNOW I can pull it off without using the Konami Code... while also showcasing the Extra weapon edit mode, as when I did my run, I wasn't able to find here on KZbin a run on either Easiest or Very Easy difficulties).

[@bubufubu]

I've not yet played the PS2 port but, of the multiple versions of Gradius III (Arcade) I _have_ seen and studied, the cube rush is _not_ 100% luck. This is a myth that has persisted, due to the difficulty of the section and players not doing the necessary research. However, there is a great deal of room for manipulation. Also, you aren't forced to merely camp in the lower left corner in hopes of survival. As mentioned in your notes, the cubes that actually rush are consistent. This fact can be exploited.

[@SuperViperT302]

I do understand that, but unless you've meticulously studied and analyzed all the different patterns and the ways to go about them, your best bet is the corner strategy, and you're pretty much leaving it up to luck. I'll edit my subtitles at some point in the future to correct that potential misinformation.

[@bubufubu]

@@SuperViperT302 Of course, some players are going to be better and put more effort into their play than others but that's beside the point. It's not 100% luck. Initially, I believed that there were multiple patterns and that some were more favorable than others. Then, I did more research into it. I saw that the same cubes were rapidly flying towards me every time and that they could be manipulated by my movement. It's not easy. This, I know. I've been watching four or five experts play the game for many months now and they confirmed what my gut told me several years ago. Their execution is top notch, but they proved that this section's difficulty doesn't live up to the legend. The more you practice, the more you'll improve your memory (mind and muscle). You can build up that wall pretty quickly if you're on top of your game and have that familiarity. It's not even overwhelmingly about patterns. It's about keeping track of which cubes will fly at you, getting a general sense of how much time you have before they do so, putting yourself in the right position to manipulate them with your movement, and having good reflexes. Personally, on Loop 1, I found Prominence Planet to be more difficult than the cubes. It's quite overwhelming, especially when you're firing Spread Bomb missiles. You wanna talk about places where you can easily lose 10 or more lives, that would be "Bubble Hell" on successive loops. That section is the run killer for those who play for points.

[@MusicalMinerdude]

> I promise you, I'm not sadistic or masochistic. HMMMMM

[@SuperViperT302]

This run literally took me 3 attempts (one ended at the bubble stage, one I terminated in stage 1 because I didn't feel I scored well enough), so it wasn't even that bad