Gradius Gaiden

[evil_ash_xero]

This reminds me of how dope this game is.

I didn't fully appreciate it when it came out, but I'm into it now. That being said, the fun factor drops immensely if you get killed and lose your upgrades.

This was definitely the peak "pre V" Gradius. And you can take you pick, based on what you like.

[Despatche]

Correct. Gaiden might be the better game, but V isn't a wound in the world or anything. We are blessed to have both.

Gaiden is much more fair to the player about powerups than II or III. It's more like the first game in this sense. This is with the default powerup order by the way, editing it makes things even more comfortable. Gaiden is also one of the few games that gives points for powerups (like the first game).

[Kollision]

what, Gaiden better than 5?

Never!

Gaiden has the bells and whistles that make it a great console game, but it never really struck me as on par with the arcade entries - or the masterpiece that Gradius V is.

iconic Moais, while V lacks

just one of the details that make Gradius V the best of the franchise by a large mile

Moais are overrated and good moai is dead moai

[Shepardus]

Correct. Gaiden might be the better game, but V isn't a wound in the world or anything. We are blessed to have both.

Gaiden is much more fair to the player about powerups than II or III. It's more like the first game in this sense. This is with the default powerup order by the way, editing it makes things even more comfortable. Gaiden is also one of the few games that gives points for powerups (like the first game).

Gradius 1 doesn't give points for picking up powerups - that started in Gradius III, where each powerup was worth 300 points. This was continued in Gokujou Parodius, Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius, and Sexy Parodius (but not Parodius Da!), where they're worth 100 points each. Gaiden does the same.

Recoveries are certainly far more comfortable in Gaiden than in 2 or 3 (or even 1 IMO). Unlike those games there's always plenty of powerup carriers, you're not forced to survive for long stretches with next to no power. Definitely ups the enjoyment factor in my opinion. Powering up is a big part of Gradius and Gaiden lets you do more with that.

I never liked the moai stages much myself, though Gaiden's is pretty tolerable. I am so fed up with III's though, and II's annoyed me when I was playing it.

[Despatche]

Gradius 1 doesn't give points for picking up powerups - that started in Gradius III, where each powerup was worth 300 points. This was continued in Gokujou Parodius, Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius, and Sexy Parodius (but not Parodius Da!), where they're worth 100 points each. Gaiden does the same.

You know what I hate? Ports. I definitely hate ports. FC version of Gradius gives you 500 per. SFC version of III gives you nothing.

The first Gradius is still a better game than any other title before Gaiden, though. That will never not be true.

[EmperorIng]

Maybe I just have the game better memorized, but over time I've come to appreciate Gradius II more and more as a worthy followup to the original. I still think the original is a tighter game, but a lot of the checkpoints that seemed impossible when I first started Gradius II were more approachable as I immersed myself more.

It also helps that I eventually switched my focus to the PCE CD port, which further tightens up and tweaks the game in a positive direction (notably the accuracy of the ripple lasers!) - and I don't feel any shame playing a game that moves forward from an arcade original rather than backward. I still haven't cleared a loop yet, admittedly - but I am close!

[Bloodreign]

To this day, I still prefer Gaiden to V, the game is just beautiful and feels so right. Of course I also like 3 and 4, the ones people tend to not like, but then again I tend to like games that others do not. But to be honest, once I grew my collection, I haven't touched a Gradius game in a long time, nor have I played a Parodius in forever, despite having them all for the Saturn, and most of them for the PS1 and SFC (same with Gradius, have 1-5, Gaiden, and Rebirth, as well as the Gameboy games, and Galaxies).

I grew tired of V after awhile, yet I can always go back to Gaiden for a good time if I ever decide to play one of the damned things again. Puyo Puyo, other puzzlers, and fighting games of the old SNK variety take whatever play time I give my games these days. Own a shade over 1,200 games, with 11 more on the way (ahoy, more Puyo and more Sam Sho on the PS1 on the way, 1 and 2), but have not picked up a shmup since either Shikigami 3, or the Taito Memories collections. The good stuff is just too high.

Of course we likely won't see a new Gradius, Rebirth seemed to be the series last gasp, and with Konami the way they are these days, it's all about pachinko.

[copy-paster]

One minus point about V is that the backwards scrolling on stage 6, and I hate horizontal backwards scrolling that won't allow you to turn your ship direction.

Also the enemies in Gaiden fires you brown bullets. While not really a big problem, can be pain in the ass if you reached organic or final stage.