Reviewed: October 8, 2004
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Konami
Developer
Konami TYO
Released: September 14, 2004
Genre: Shooter
Players: 2
ESRB: Teen
8
10
7
9
8.9
Supported Features:
Not many games can boast a legacy that goes back nearly two decades, but it’s taken 18 years and numerous sequels to get the Gradius franchise updated for a next-gen console. Gradius V is the latest old-school shooter to grace the PS2 with its presence, and anyone who is at all familiar with the earlier games will already know what to expect…or do you?
The good news is that not much has changed in the hardcore formula that has been a part of the Gradius series or any other classic shooter since the genre was founded. Whether you are playing Silpheed or R-Type Final on the PS2 or games like Einhander or Philosoma on the PS One, arcade shooters are all about memorization, instinctive reflexes, and a lot of patience.
Gradius V is no different as you battle through wave after wave of enemy ships, and a sea of pixel-wide bullets coming from every direction possible. There is no health or life bar to worry about. If you touch a wall or get hit with a missile or bullet you are dead. It’s that simple, and that hard. So start stretching your fingers, lube up your controller, put on your shades, and get ready for one wild and blindingly gorgeous ride.
Gradius V features a unique ship selection system that allows you to pick one of several ships when you start the game. Each type of ship has a pre-determined sequence of power-ups for the weapons system, many of which can be “stacked”. While it’s entirely possible to win any level with any ship configuration, you will most certainly find that some setups work better than others.
The way it works is this. As you travel across the screen blasting countless waves of enemies you will be able to fly through (and collect) power-ups. Power-ups are released whenever you destroy a complete incoming enemy formation or sometimes there will just be a red icon floating around. Each time you collect one of these power-ups the weapon select indicator at the bottom of the screen advances one notch to the right.
The first notch is usually reserved for a Speed-Up that will increase the maneuverability of your ship while the remaining slots are filled with rockets, bombs, guided missiles, lasers, or other formidable weapons. You can activate the highlighted weapon whenever you wish or take a chance and try to collect more red icons to advance to the higher weapons. Activated weapons are removed from the menu, and you can effectively “stack” multiple weapon types creating a lethal fighting machine that unleashes destruction in all directions.
The most powerful of power-ups is the Multiple. Veterans of the series might know these better as “Options”. The Multiple is basically an extra weapons platform and you can collect up to four of them for your ship. There are four types of Multiples that give you some flexibility in creating the ultimate fighting machine. Using the R1 button you can freeze, rotate, or change the spacing or direction of the multiple to create unique patterns of fire. It’s actually a sophisticated system that takes a bit of getting used to before you can hope to finish all seven levels in Gradius V.
Despite the complexity of the weapons system, the game is surprisingly simple and easy to play. Note, I said “play” and not “win”. You really only use two buttons and the left stick which may take a few gamers off guard, but hardcore shooter veterans will know that is all you need for a great shooter.
There are only seven levels in Gradius V, each being about 15-minutes in actual length. The first four levels are pretty standard and have a nice progression of difficulty, but by the time you hit level five things get downright nasty. You’ll need to have a good collection of Multiples and some killer reflexes to survive complex asteroid fields and worse.
I wasn’t kidding earlier when I said you need sunglasses to play this game. Gradius V is like a front row seat at the best fireworks and laser light show in the universe. I would have never dreamed that the PS2 could crank out graphics like this. Admittedly, the gameplay is 2D, so there is some extra horsepower to go around, but the ships are modeled in 3D allowing for some unique perspective changes. Plus, the sheer amount of detail and multiple levels of parallax scrolling give this game just as much depth as any 3D title you might play.
The backgrounds are works of art that you might find hanging on the walls of NASA. Huge beautiful planets will dominate the screen, star fields, nebulae, and asteroids all come together to create some stunning backdrops for the most intense firefights you have ever seen.
Enemy ships range from small to medium to large and when the bosses make their appearance they often exceed the boundaries of the screen. Everything in Gradius V is bigger, better, faster and more deadly than ever and it all slips by at silky smooth framerates that never falter no matter how much is going on.
The Gradius V soundtrack is exactly what you would expect for a shooter. It’s that heavy rock and techno beat that pays tribute to every shooter that has come before it and it fits the intensity of the gameplay perfectly.
There are several pieces of spoken dialogue in the form of radio communications. Thankfully, these are subtitled since the default music and sound mix overwhelms any chance of hearing the dialogue.
Sound effects are fantastic and nearly as overpowering as the visuals. Between the lasers, rockets, missiles, and endless explosions, I was surprised at how well the sound designers were able to keep everything distinct. Everything overlays just right, so you can hear each individual sound and yet they blend together in a harmony of destruction, almost a soundtrack unto itself that at times dominates the music.
Assuming it was possible to win Gradius V on your first pass it would be about a 4-5 hours game. But make no mistake about it, you will not finish this game your first time through. You’ll be lucky to get past the first boss on your first set of lives. Gradius is all about playing the levels over and over until you master them, then playing and replaying the entire game to get the best high score possible. Unlike most games these days where you play once and put it on the shelf, Gradius V hearkens back to the old coin-op days where you pumped quarter after quarter into the machine to keep going.
Then we have the two-player cooperative mode, a first for the Gradius franchise where you and a friend can now take on the enemy armada together. Having two ships certainly doesn’t make the action any less intense. There are plenty of targets for everyone, but at least you can now share the experience and the frustration with a friend.
And if you are looking to make a name for yourself, post your scores on the National High Score list and see how you stack up against other Gradius V players.
While arcade shooters are not exactly dominating the market right now the PS2 does have the luxury of having the largest selection of them to choose from. And while previous games like Silpheed and R-Type Final are both excellent games, there is something about the style and the legacy associated with the Gradius franchise that makes Gradius V a force to be reckoned with.
Make no mistake, this is a hardcore game for hardcore gamers, so if you are up to the task, buckle up and sit back for the biggest and best shooter to hit the PS2 this year.