The round laser, the most unusual weapon presented in this game, fires concentric rings of laser origination. This ship has two different kinds of lasers available: round and pulse. Its missile, the spread bomb, is a carry-over from Gradius II. Jade Knight: Eponymously, every weapon this ship has is tinted green, including the options. Receiving the order, four Hyper Space Fighters launched from the mothership to the ' Dark Nebula ', carrying the last hope to save planet Gradius on their wings. The Gradius Army fought gallantly, but the invaders were overpowering, and they destroyed 99% of the Gradius Army.Īt this point, Gradius Army Headquarters decided to launch a desperation attack to the center of the ' Dark Nebula ', which seemed to be the source of the invaders. Soon after the disappearance of the science vessel, the colony planets of Gradius were attacked and ruined by some unknown force. And entry was prohibited by the government. The ' Evil Range ' was never investigated before, because it was known as a dangerous nebula. It began with the disappearance of a science vessel which went to the ' Dark Nebula ' known as ' The Evil Range '. And it looked as if the peace would last forever. The threat of invasion was gone, and peace returned to Gradius. ( Taken from in-game introduction story )ĭuring the ' Third Bacterian War ', planet Gradius defeated the Bacterians by destroying their center of power. The setting is between Gradius III and Gradius IV. This feature is only available in this edition in its series. On the easier difficulties, the more troublesome boss attacks are removed and the number of enemies on-screen is reduced.Īt the near end of the eighth stage starting from the second loop of the game play, a Core Warship is added.Ī player can rearrange the items in the power meter. The difficulty level can also be adjusted from 'easiest' up to 'hardest', for a total of nine difficulty levels including the boss rush. There are two new types of shield: 'Guard', which attaches to the top and bottom of the craft and renders the player immune to physical obstacle collisions and 'Limit', which gives complete invulnerability and lasts for three seconds. These power-ups are permanent until the player is destroyed, even if he switches between the Double and Laser powerups. Missile, Double, and Laser weapons can be additionally powered up one level, a feature from the MSX Gradius games (the powerup bar even resembles the one from the MSX games).

However, the player can select from several ships, each with a unique weapon configuration.

Laser, the Reduce size shield, option types, are all items that have been removed in the transition from Gradius III to this title. Moreover, several changes were made on the weapons system. However, two new ships are made available whose weapon configurations are new to the series. The core gameplay of Gradius Gaiden remains relatively unchanged.

Redump gradius gaiden