Gradius

n/a

PC-8801 mkII SR PC Engine
Gradius
System(s): PC-8801 mkII SR, PC Engine, Virtual Console (Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U), Windows 8
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Konami
Original system(s): Arcade boards
Genre: Shoot-'em-Up
Number of players: 1, 1-2
Release Date RRP Code JP 1986 ¥6,8006,800 JP 1991-11-15 ¥6,0006,000 KM91001 JP ▼ 2007-08-07 600pts600 JP ▼ 2010-06-10 JP ▼ 2013-12-25 ¥598 (628)628i JP ▼ 2014-04-16 ¥581 (628)628i US ▼ 2017-02-02 $6.996.99 EU ▼ 2017-02-02 €6.996.99 DE ▼ 2017-02-02 €6.996.99 UK ▼ 2017-02-02 £6.296.29 JP ▼ 2013-12-19 ¥276 (290)290i
Non-NEC versions Arcade Amstrad CPC Commodore 64 Game Boy MSX Nintendo Entertainment System X1 X68000 ZX Spectrum

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Gradius (グラディウス) is a side-scrolling shoot-'em-up game created by Konami and originally released in the arcades in 1985. Its popularity led to the game being ported to numerous consoles and computers, including the PC-8801 mkII SR in 1986 and the PC Engine in 1991. Both NEC versions were released only in Japan, with the latter version receiving a Western release via the Wii U Virtual Console and the PC Engine mini decades later.

Story

The Earth-like planet Gradius is under attack by the evil Bacterian Empire, a race of amoeba-like beings from a sub-space cluster. Gradius is on the brink of extinction due to the fierce attack and has decided to launch its last resort, the hyper-space fighter Vic Viper. The only way to put an end to the battle is to fight to the middle of the enemy's massive base in Zelos and destroy its core.

Gameplay

PC Engine version

Gradius is a side-scrolling shoot-'em-up game in which the player pilots a trans-dimensional spacecraft known as the Vic Viper on a mission to defend the mother planet Gradius from alien invaders. It was a seminal release for the shoot-'em-up genre, and it pioneered a number of features and mechanics that would become hallmarks of the genre, including multiple themed stages, "option" drones that follow the ship and provide support fire, and a novel power-up system for upgrading the ship's weaponry. There are six stages, each preceded by a short space section with waves of easy enemies that can be destroyed to collect power-ups. The game can be played by one player or by two players taking turns.

The Vic Viper can be moved in any direction using the D-Pad. The playfield is taller than the visible area and scrolls vertically when the ship flies near an edge. The ship shoots with Ⅱ. The main weapon can be upgraded to the Double, which adds an upward-angled second stream of fire, or the Laser, which shoots long lasers that pierce through multiple targets. All weapons can neutralize enemy fire. Players can obtain an upgrade that augments the ship's main weapon with missiles, which are dropped when the main weapon is fired. The ship can additionally collect up to four options that follow it and replicate its fire. Options spread out when the ship moves away from them but can be clumped together by moving in alternating directions, giving the player the ability to cover a wide area with them or focus their fire.

There is only one item to collect, which advances the "power meter" by one position. The player can select the desired upgrade when it is highlighted in the power meter by pressing Ⅰ, which resets the meter. Each upgrade can only be selected a certain number of times, after which it is no longer available (though it leaves a blank space that must still be advanced through to reach any upgrades after it). This system allows the player to strategize which upgrades to prioritize, with the most powerful upgrades requiring the most items to unlock.

The ship is destroyed if it takes a single hit from an enemy or collides with terrain. All power-ups are lost when the ship is destroyed. If the player has extra lives remaining, the ship restarts at a predetermined checkpoint, which gives the player an opportunity to collect more power-ups and upgrade the ship again. The game ends if the ship is destroyed and the player has no lives remaining, and there are no continues. Extends are given at 30,000 points and every 80,000 points after that. After finishing the game, it loops from the beginning at a higher difficulty.

Items

Items are dropped by reddish-colored enemies when they are destroyed or when an entire wave of enemies is destroyed.

	Red Power Capsule
	Advances the power meter by one position.
	Blue Power Capsule
	Destroys all on-screen enemies when collected. This item appears after every 15 Red Power Capsules.

Power meter

The power meter contains the following power-ups:

	Speed Up
	Increases the movement speed of the ship, up to 5 levels.
	Missile
	Allows the ship to drop missiles in a downward arc concurrently with its main weapon. Missiles slide along terrain.
	Double
	Adds a second shot to the main weapon that shoots 45 degrees upwards. This selection and the Laser are mutually exclusive.
	Laser
	Changes the main weapon to long, piercing lasers. This selection and the Double are mutually exclusive.
	Option
	Creates an orange orb that follows the ship and replicates its fire (including dropping missiles). The ship can have up to 4 options following it.
	?
	Creates two shields that protect the front of the ship from multiple hits.

Stages

	火山ステージ (Volcano Stage)
	ストーンヘンジステージ (Stonehenge Stage)
	モアイステージ (Moai Stage)
	逆火山ステージ (Reverse Volcano Stage)
	骨のステージ (Bone Stage)
	触手ステージ (Tentacle Stage)
	特殊細胞ステージ (Special Cell Stage)
	ゼロス要基ステージ (Zelos Fortress Stage)

Versions

The PC Engine version is faithful to the arcade original. Its screen size is somewhat smaller than the arcade version, so it introduces slight vertical scrolling on all stages. It includes an extra stage, the Bone Stage, which first appeared in the MSX port of the game.

Production credits

PC Engine version

• Programmer: T.Tokuda, T.Kou
• Graphic Designer: T.Miyoshi, H.Morii, M.Suenaga
• Sound Designer: H.Muraoka
• Producer: A.Nagata
• Special Thanks to: K.Hashimoto, R.Shogaki, M.Fukunaga
• Presented by: Konami

Source:

In-game credits (JP)

File:Gradius PCE Credits.pdf

Digital manuals

• 

  PC Engine mini JP manual

Magazine articles

Main article: Gradius/Magazine articles.

Physical scans

PC-8801 mkII SR version

PC-8801 mkII SR, JP
Cover

PC Engine version

NEC Retro Average
Publication Score Source Computer & Video Games 92 №123, p30-31

	92
Based on 1 review

PC Engine, JP
Cover
Card

Technical information

ROM dump status

System	Hash	Size	Build Date	Source	Comments
✔	CRC32 0517da65 MD5 16fe78b1630a790bee6755e3c850a366 SHA-1 338f62b6d57f30b1850c32f5ae0d8c26c761974b	256kB		Card (JP)
✔	CRC32 a5273cc4 MD5 e4275f5b3de32a19711d8f466e5d12c2 SHA-1 0272c9094df0ee05eb5d6f7289a694a92341e83e	256kB		Wii U Virtual Console (World)

External links

• Gradius on Nintendo eShop (Nintendo 3DS): JP
• Gradius on Nintendo eShop (Wii U): JP, US, UK
• Gradius on Windows Store: JP

References

Sega Retro has more information related to Nemesis

Sega Retro has more information related to Gradius Deluxe Pack

Gradius / Parodius games for NEC systems
Gradius (1986) | Salamander (1991) | Gradius II: Gofer no Yabou (1992)
Parodius Da! Shinwa kara Owarai e (1992)