Popular games for franchise Gradius
The Director General of Space Science Agency Dr. Venom was exiled to Planet Sard for a failed coup d'état. In the year 6665, he escapes and invades Planet Nemesis and the seven planets it controls with the help of Bacterion. The Nemesis High Council sends James Burton, ex-pilot of the Vic Viper, to pilot Metalion and attack Dr. Venom and the Bacterion invaders.
The lovely rocket-riding ladies of Otomedius Gorgeous arrive in the US for the first time in Otomedius Excellent, the highly anticipated sequel to the Japan-exclusive arcade hit. Otomedius Excellent is an Xbox 360 exclusive and features nearly ten playable characters, heart-pounding classic Gradius-style shoot-em-up gameplay, a dazzling array of stunning visuals, thrilling multiplayer action locally or via a connection to Xbox LIVE, an improved upgrade system, downloadable content and of course the Otomedius Excellent game disc. With all this and more it is sure to be the must-own arcade style shooter for Xbox 360 players in 2011 and beyond.
Life Force is an action-packed shooter where there are six levels which alternate between side and vertical scrolling, each of them ending with a powerful guardian. Throughout the game, destroying certain enemies will release power ups which can be used to equip your ship with more powerful weapons, extra speed, and shields. Gameplay is for one player or two players simultaneously.
Gradius V is the fifth entry in Konami’s Gradius series, originally released for PlayStation 2. It introduces new mechanics while retaining core side-scrolling shooter gameplay. One notable addition is the ability to control the firing direction of "Options" (the yellow support pods) using the analog stick. While adjusting direction, the player’s ship remains stationary, adding tactical risk and challenge. The rest follows standard Gradius mechanics: avoid collisions and enemy fire while collecting power-up capsules to upgrade weapons. Gradius V was later released on PlayStation 3 as a PS2 Classic but has since been delisted and is no longer available for purchase.
8 Konami arcade classics of the 80s, from Nemesis to TwinBee. Including bonus eBook packed with new information never before revealed to the public.
Vulcan Venture (also known as Gradius II: Gofer no Yabo) is a side-scrolling shoot ’em up developed by Konami and released in arcades in 1988. Players control the Vic Viper spacecraft as it battles the Bacterion Empire, now led by Gofer. The game builds on the original Gradius by retaining the power-up bar system while introducing selectable weapon configurations and expanded abilities such as different missiles, double, and laser options. It also incorporates elements from Salamander (Life Force) and introduces a stage focused entirely on consecutive boss encounters.
In the darkest reaches of infinite space, pure evil lies in wait ... The Dark Forces led by the god of destruction, Bacterian, prepare to launch a massive onslaught against the planet Gradius. Possessing unstoppable power, the Dark Forces threaten to plunge the Universe into total war and complete annihilation. Their invasion force smashes the Gradius defenses, and the surrounding planets soon fall like dominoes. Now Bacterian's evil grasp reaches for the heart of the resistance...planet Gradius itself... To counter the oncoming threat the United Gradius World Forces gather all their fighter craft. Half of them form a defensive net - the other half a strike team. But they are badly outnumbered and The Dark Forces easily tear through their thin frontline. No fighters survive the slaughter.... In a last gasp move, the United Gradius World Forces send out two fighters, previously considered too dangerous for combat missions: The InterDimensional VIC VIPER fighters. The Fighters take off for the heart of darkness to join the fray that will decide the fate of the Universe...
Salamander is a scrolling shooter arcade game released by Konami as a spin-off to Gradius. It introduced a simplified power-up system, two-player cooperative gameplay and both horizontally and vertically scrolling stages. Some of these would later become the norm for future Gradius games.
Gradius: The Interstellar Assault retains the traditional horizontal scrolling gameplay from the Gradius series. Once again the player takes control of the Vic Viper and flies through five different stages destroying Bacterion's army. The game retains the traditional power-up bar from the original Gradius. The player can speed-up multiple times, use missiles, shoot double firepower or lasers, use several options at a time and use the classic shield (although it is referred to as a forcefield). However, before each game is started or continued, the player is given a "Weapon Select" screen. Here the player can choose between one of three settings for the missiles, double firepower, and lasers.
One of the defining characteristics of the Gradius series is the use of a "power meter." The power meter is powered by a power-up item, whose purpose, when collected, is to move a highlight to the next power-up on the power meter. When a power-up that the player wants becomes highlighted, he or she may activate it, also causing the highlight to reset.
The Famicom port of Gradius II.
The NES port of Gradius.
A fledgling television program has been suffering from poor audience approval, and the station that carries the show has informed its producers that they will have to rectify the situation or face inevitable cancellation. An unorthodox plan is implemented: broadcast a contest pitting various superstars from differing realities in physical combat in order to increase ratings.
Gradius IV is the fourth arcade installment in a series of scrolling shooter video games developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo. It was preceded by Gradius III, released in 1989, although spinoffs had been released prior to it such as Gradius Gaiden. This title brings a considerable graphical upgrade, particularly with the use of colored lighting. In addition, there have been several additions and removals to the vaulted weapons system; specifically, the edit mode has been removed and an online ranking system was added.
Gradius III and IV (released in Japan as Gradius III and IV: Fukkatsu no Shinwa) is a compilation title released in 2000 for the PlayStation 2. It includes the direct arcade ports of Gradius III and Gradius IV, notably being the first time both titles had received a home port, as well as two animated CG movies.
A version for the PC Engine was released on December 6, 1991. Based on the arcade version of Salamander, changes on this port include starting from a pre-defined checkpoint upon death in 1 Player mode, faster enemy animations, and improved music.
The MSX port of Salamander (沙羅曼蛇, Saramanda) is significantly different from the original and any other ports. New to this port is a graphical introduction that introduces human pilots for each ship, as well as names for each stage. The levels are notably longer than the arcade original, and the player is forced to start from a pre-defined checkpoint upon death of either pilot, instead of starting where he left off. After level two, the player can choose the order of the next three stages. In addition, the player can collect "E" capsules by destroying certain enemies. Collecting fifteen will permanently upgrade one of the available weapons on the power-up bar. Some weapons allow the player ships to merge, one player controlling movements and the second player controlling weapons. Instead of the Vic Viper and the Lord British Space Destroyer, the ships are known as the Sabel Tiger and the Thrasher; piloted by human characters named Iggy Rock and Zowie Scott. The story takes place in the year 6709 A.D and has 2 different endings. The MSX version was re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console in Japan on January 12, 2010. It was later released for the Wii U's Virtual Console on July 20, 2016. They were also made available for the Project EGG on Windows Store on May 19, 2015.
PC-8801 port of Gradius.
A remaster of Gradius: The Interstellar Assault.
The Konami GB Collection is a series of video game compilations for the Game Boy Color. The compilations were originally released from 1997 to 1998 in Japan for Game Boy, and were later released in Europe in 2000 for Game Boy Color. Included in Volume 4: - Gradius II: The Return of the Hero (Gradius: The Interstellar Assault) - Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge - Yie Ar Kung-Fu - Antarctic Adventure This was released as Volume 3 in Japan.
Amstrad CPC port of Gradius. You are the last hope of the gentle people of Gradius. You've just lifted off to confront the all-out attack of the amoeboid Bacterions. Your hyper-space fighter is armed with the greatest arsenal in the galaxy. Air-to-surface and double beam laser cannons for incredible firepower. Powerful force fields for protection. Time and space warps for fleeing the dimension. You'll need it all just to survive. Because at the heart of the Bacterion Empire lies the Xaerous Superfortress - the nerve center of the all-knowing, all-seeing Bacterion Bio-Computer. It's a duel to the death, while the entire galaxy watches, waits, and hopes!
Arcade Archives: Gradius is a port of the shooting game Gradius. Players control the Super Dimension fighter Vic Viper and fight Bacterian with the aid of devastating power-ups. This shooting game is the first of a masterpiece series from Konami that had a major impact on later shooters.