GRADIUS
GAIDEN: Probably
my favourite "serious" Konami
shooter, and one of the few decent PSX
shooting games out there. All the usual
touches, including a nasty Easter Island
Heads level, and bosses that punish you for
putting the pad down too early
(level 6 boss, eh Mike?) Steve Perry www.elbarto.org.uk
Thanks Steve for the scans! Indeed.. here we
have one of the finest Playstation shooters
of
them all, and (alongside the splendid
Castlevania Symphony of the Night) one of
Konami's
most impressive and timeless 32-bit releases.
If you think of Gradius as a classic but
nowadays slightly dated shmup and the PSX as
a underachieving sprite-shifter then think
again, this is a contempory 2d shooter
masterpiece! The pretty FMV intro and
brooding
intense atmospherics immediately immerse you
in what soon becomes clear is the ultimate
Gradius - everything here goes up to 11 by
previous instalments of the series, and it
even
gets one (actually make that several) up on
the newly-released Gradius IV in terms of
playability, lastability and design. The
weaponry is ingenious and varied over a fleet
of 4
different ships to choose (including
stock-favourites the Vic Viper and Lord
British, and two
all-new souped-up gunbirds in the guise of
Jade Knight and Falchion B), and the nine
long
levels varied and for the most part
graphically stunning. Look out for old
favourites
including those pesky Moai heads (who
now have a nasty sting in the tail.. nuff
said!), the
Mothership boss from
the original game now trashed and redundant
on 'Requiem for
Revengers' level, the 'Organic Fortress'
level complete with pulsating intestinal
walls a la
Salamander, and a reprise of the original
Gradius's first level, but now menacingly
self-destructing into the ether as you
progress on through (an incredible effect
that has to
be seen to be believed..). Much more of an
intense all-out blastathon than previous
Gradii,
and with it's near faultless artwork, design
and execution, this is one game that
Playstation-owning shooter fiends should not
fail to be without. Buy it! Mike
Some
tried and trusty ships and a couple of
all-new ones
(Left to Right) VIC VIPER, Lord BRITISH, JADE
KNIGHT, FALCHION B
STAGE ONE - 'BEYOND THE
WHITE STORM'
 
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