Salamander III announced for Gradius Origins for Switch [by M2] - Coming August 7, 2025

[davyK]

Physical Switch version dropped on my mat yesterday courtesy of play-asia.

Lovely M2 job as per usual. Just had a quick play through most of the main variations. Maybe it's just me but G2 felt faster then the Saturn Deluxe pack (which I play on CRT) but it's been so long since I played that version....that's unlikely. Will boot it up for comparison.

Just reminds me (yet again) how great these old games are. G1 and G2 in particular are just so entertaining. G2 looks gorgeous too.

[Ms. Tea]

I wasn't aware, what makes the PS1 ones superior? The Saturn ones are a lot cheaper than the price you posted.

I don't know if there's anything else, but IIRC the PS1 supports the arcade versions' native resolution. The Saturn's VDP can't go below 320 pixels wide, so it needs to run them pillarboxed.

Edit: here's an old 2013 thread about it viewtopic.php?t=48007

[Sweatlord_STG]

https://youtu.be/Va0Qy9Oou_M?si=hY-RS-r6gNqfrKqB

Mark does not mention any performance issues of the PC version, which means there are none.
We were wrong all along.

There's a particular irony in him going off on M2 as "having blind spots in their own games" because they used "cryptic glyphs" instead of the letter power ups from Salamander II in Salamander III...while somehow not realizing those are just the power up symbols from the original Salamander.

Which leads into the other thing, he started going on about how "it's too bad" and they should have sold Gradius I separately for first timers but "unfortunately" they didn't because they're not as savvy at marketing as he is. How does he not realize these games already exist a la carte through Arcade Archives? I know all the different changes to the power up systems across Salamander/Life Force/Life Force JP from jumping between the three in the AA Salamander release that's been out on PS4 for nine years now.

Ngl I like some of his stuff and I like how he criticizes the industry and certain trends and all that, sometimes he has good analysis etc but something like what you just pointed out regarding Salamander (I haven't watched the video yet), that's exactly the kind of stuff that makes me roll my eyes way too often when I watch him. He has proven to me countless times that there is simply a ton of stuff he doesn't know. Which would be ok if he wasn't so ignorant. He's just another one of those N64 kids I guess, and he can't even leave that behind him (thinks Goldeneye holds up lol etc).
There is a lot of stuff he never knew so everytime I noticed it, I thought "why do you make videos about things you don't know much about?". Then at best he gets a guest for that episode, so then you get to hear their random opinion on the subject.
One of the funniest things to me was when he went to Mikado Spain and then said it took him a while to get used to playing on CRT because there are all those blank lines going through the bullets LOL. Like was he just born in the 2000s or idk?! I thought he was really into STGs and arcade stuff but he never even plays on CRT? Considering how highly he thinks of his own opinions, he really doesn't know much.
It's also funny to me how his first upload on his channel was that scrubby 1-ALL of DDP with no chains, and a Metal Slug 1cc. So those two uploads were seemingly supposed to be the foundation and future justification for anything that would follow, like "whatever I say, my opinions are always valid because I beat Metal Slug and DDP! Which means I understood what good game design is all about!"
Also I find it funny how he wants to be so elitist but then he doesn't even play the games the way they are meant to be played (1-ALL DDP but no chains lol). Makes me think then why don't you play something else in the first place, like a more old school STG, at least you're doing it right then if you just shoot and dodge.
He is just another entitled narcissist who loves to hear himself talking.

[StrzxgvNuvWvfld]

Are there any reasons to play those Deluxe Packs now that this M2 collection is out?

Being able to play them on a CRT.

This was my reason until very, very recently, but Gradius 1 + 2 arcade cores are now in Mister (and Salamander has been there for a while), so those are my new go-to on a CRT. Obviously doesn't apply to Salamander 2 (and I wouldn't expect it anytime soon)

[davyK]

I wasn't aware, what makes the PS1 ones superior? The Saturn ones are a lot cheaper than the price you posted.

I don't know if there's anything else, but IIRC the PS1 supports the arcade versions' native resolution. The Saturn's VDP can't go below 320 pixels wide, so it needs to run them pillarboxed.

Edit: here's an old 2013 thread about it viewtopic.php?t=48007

There's an Arcade and Saturn setting for screen size in the settings - arcade is wider but not sure if it's arcade accurate.

Just checked G2 on Saturn again and it feels just the same as the new compilation. Made me appreciate my 4:3 CRT going back to it.

[Sweatlord_STG]

Made me appreciate my 4:3 CRT going back to it.

There is just something about playing on CRT that nothing could ever replace.

[AGermanArtist]

Interesting you should say that. When I play an upscaled emulation of a game I used to play, I've often thought it's how I remember it looking on a CRT on original h/ware back when the game was new. If I connected a PS2/GC to my 4K TV running the same game it would look like dogshit.

[Johnpv]

https://youtu.be/Va0Qy9Oou_M?si=hY-RS-r6gNqfrKqB

Mark does not mention any performance issues of the PC version, which means there are none.
We were wrong all along.

There's a particular irony in him going off on M2 as "having blind spots in their own games" because they used "cryptic glyphs" instead of the letter power ups from Salamander II in Salamander III...while somehow not realizing those are just the power up symbols from the original Salamander.

Which leads into the other thing, he started going on about how "it's too bad" and they should have sold Gradius I separately for first timers but "unfortunately" they didn't because they're not as savvy at marketing as he is. How does he not realize these games already exist a la carte through Arcade Archives? I know all the different changes to the power up systems across Salamander/Life Force/Life Force JP from jumping between the three in the AA Salamander release that's been out on PS4 for nine years now.

It's because his head is so far up his own ass, it makes it really difficult to see Arcade Archives.

[Sweatlord_STG]

https://youtu.be/Va0Qy9Oou_M?si=hY-RS-r6gNqfrKqB

Mark does not mention any performance issues of the PC version, which means there are none.
We were wrong all along.

There's a particular irony in him going off on M2 as "having blind spots in their own games" because they used "cryptic glyphs" instead of the letter power ups from Salamander II in Salamander III...while somehow not realizing those are just the power up symbols from the original Salamander.

Which leads into the other thing, he started going on about how "it's too bad" and they should have sold Gradius I separately for first timers but "unfortunately" they didn't because they're not as savvy at marketing as he is. How does he not realize these games already exist a la carte through Arcade Archives? I know all the different changes to the power up systems across Salamander/Life Force/Life Force JP from jumping between the three in the AA Salamander release that's been out on PS4 for nine years now.

It's because his head is so far up his own ass, it makes it really difficult to see Arcade Archives.

LOL once he made this one video where he wanted to raise awareness of people getting raped at fighting game events. He said if we ever attend a fighting game event and we see someone's getting raped, we should report it immediately. I thought it was kinda funny.

[Ms. Tea]

There's an Arcade and Saturn setting for screen size in the settings - arcade is wider but not sure if it's arcade accurate.

Just checked G2 on Saturn again and it feels just the same as the new compilation. Made me appreciate my 4:3 CRT going back to it.

The "Full Size" setting displays extra content on the left and right; fills the screen, but at the wrong aspect ratio compared to the original board and the PS1 version. "Arcade" is an unstretched mode with pillarboxing, and "Arcade Zoom" is stretched out to fill the screen horizontally. Looks a little rough in motion since they couldn't do any interpolation on the Saturn.

It's not awful - I actually think the "Full Size" setting is pretty nice on Sexy Parodius. But it'd be nice if it could just render it exactly the same as the arcade version.

Arcade (note the black bars on left and right):



Full Size:



Arcade Zoom:

[Bassa-Bassa]

There's even more to it.

[LordHypnos]

Could you not just adjust the screen geometry to overscan the pillarboxing on a CRT? I guess most consumer television sets don't have geometry controls, but if using a PC monitor/arcade monitor/broadcasting monitor.

[Sweatlord_STG]

Looks a little rough in motion

I don't get this whole thing. I fucking love both the Gradius and the Salamander Pack on the Saturn. I only played both of them (and all games featured) recently for quite a bit. It couldn't get any better. I love these games, I love the Saturn, I love my CRTs - These 32-Bit ports are peak.

[Ms. Tea]

There's even more to it.

Oh nice, thank you for the extra context! This is really good to know.

Looks a little rough in motion

I don't get this whole thing. I fucking love both the Gradius and the Salamander Pack on the Saturn. I only played both of them (and all games featured) recently for quite a bit. It couldn't get any better. I love these games, I love the Saturn, I love my CRTs - These 32-Bit ports are peak.

To be clear I just meant the "Arcade Zoom" option, where the resizing they're doing gives it a really annoying shimmer. It'd be a little better on a CRT but still not great. Arcade and Full Screen are both fine.

[Sweatlord_STG]

There's even more to it.

Oh nice, thank you for the extra context! This is really good to know.

Looks a little rough in motion

I don't get this whole thing. I fucking love both the Gradius and the Salamander Pack on the Saturn. I only played both of them (and all games featured) recently for quite a bit. It couldn't get any better. I love these games, I love the Saturn, I love my CRTs - These 32-Bit ports are peak.

To be clear I just meant the "Arcade Zoom" option, where the resizing they're doing gives it a really annoying shimmer. It'd be a little better on a CRT but still not great. Arcade and Full Screen are both fine.

Oh yeah sorry I agree

[Sloppy_J]

https://youtu.be/Va0Qy9Oou_M?si=hY-RS-r6gNqfrKqB

Mark does not mention any performance issues of the PC version, which means there are none.
We were wrong all along.

There's a particular irony in him going off on M2 as "having blind spots in their own games" because they used "cryptic glyphs" instead of the letter power ups from Salamander II in Salamander III...while somehow not realizing those are just the power up symbols from the original Salamander.

Which leads into the other thing, he started going on about how "it's too bad" and they should have sold Gradius I separately for first timers but "unfortunately" they didn't because they're not as savvy at marketing as he is. How does he not realize these games already exist a la carte through Arcade Archives? I know all the different changes to the power up systems across Salamander/Life Force/Life Force JP from jumping between the three in the AA Salamander release that's been out on PS4 for nine years now.

Ngl I like some of his stuff and I like how he criticizes the industry and certain trends and all that, sometimes he has good analysis etc but something like what you just pointed out regarding Salamander (I haven't watched the video yet), that's exactly the kind of stuff that makes me roll my eyes way too often when I watch him. He has proven to me countless times that there is simply a ton of stuff he doesn't know. Which would be ok if he wasn't so ignorant. He's just another one of those N64 kids I guess, and he can't even leave that behind him (thinks Goldeneye holds up lol etc).
There is a lot of stuff he never knew so everytime I noticed it, I thought "why do you make videos about things you don't know much about?". Then at best he gets a guest for that episode, so then you get to hear their random opinion on the subject.
One of the funniest things to me was when he went to Mikado Spain and then said it took him a while to get used to playing on CRT because there are all those blank lines going through the bullets LOL. Like was he just born in the 2000s or idk?! I thought he was really into STGs and arcade stuff but he never even plays on CRT? Considering how highly he thinks of his own opinions, he really doesn't know much.
It's also funny to me how his first upload on his channel was that scrubby 1-ALL of DDP with no chains, and a Metal Slug 1cc. So those two uploads were seemingly supposed to be the foundation and future justification for anything that would follow, like "whatever I say, my opinions are always valid because I beat Metal Slug and DDP! Which means I understood what good game design is all about!"
Also I find it funny how he wants to be so elitist but then he doesn't even play the games the way they are meant to be played (1-ALL DDP but no chains lol). Makes me think then why don't you play something else in the first place, like a more old school STG, at least you're doing it right then if you just shoot and dodge.
He is just another entitled narcissist who loves to hear himself talking.

I think he has some great takes on the decline of game design and he is right about the negative effects that the decline of the arcade has had on gaming as whole.
He's a Nintendo kid so he grew up playing absolute pish like Smash Bros, Star Fox, etc so he doesn't have arcade roots which is perhaps why he focuses on 1CCs rather than scoring but not all of us could grow up with the joy of Sega / access to decent arcades, right?
I appreciate the work he puts in and he generally has interesting opinions and analysis even though he relies too much on save states and loves that Touhou crap.

[Light1000]

I guess most consumer television sets don't have geometry controls, but if using a PC monitor/arcade monitor/broadcasting monitor.

What do you mean? Nearly every consumer CRT I've ever used has geometry controls, except maybe the tiny cheapo 9" / 13" sets. Probably not nearly as advanced as something like a PC monitor, but they do have horizontal and vertical size control.

[Sengoku Strider]

Ngl I like some of his stuff and I like how he criticizes the industry and certain trends and all that, sometimes he has good analysis etc

Sure, I've liked plenty of his stuff in the past, I don't have any kind of hate-on for him. I haven't followed much since he moved away from shmups and just thought this was kind of a weak episode.

One of the funniest things to me was when he went to Mikado Spain and then said it took him a while to get used to playing on CRT because there are all those blank lines going through the bullets LOL. Like was he just born in the 2000s or idk?! I thought he was really into STGs and arcade stuff but he never even plays on CRT?

Given that his visual gimmick has him speaking on a cast-off CRT somewhere in Idaho, yes, I think he knows. He does own one, but he plays most everything on MAME.

[Sweatlord_STG]

I guess most consumer television sets don't have geometry controls, but if using a PC monitor/arcade monitor/broadcasting monitor.

What do you mean? Nearly every consumer CRT I've ever used has geometry controls, except maybe the tiny cheapo 9" / 13" sets. Probably not nearly as advanced as something like a PC monitor, but they do have horizontal and vertical size control.

Do you guys mean the option that allows you to make the displayed image bigger and smaller, both horizontally and vertically?
If so, if you ask me, I would tell you that consumer CRT TVs never have it. The only CRTs that do have it are PVMs/BVMs by NEC, Sony, etc, arcade cabs, and old PC CRT monitors.

[Light1000]

Do you guys mean the option that allows you to make the displayed image bigger and smaller, both horizontally and vertically?
If so, if you ask me, I would tell you that consumer CRT TVs never have it. The only CRTs that do have it are PVMs/BVMs by NEC, Sony, etc, arcade cabs, and old PC CRT monitors.

Yes.
I assume you've never opened the service menu on any of your TVs?
There are also some sets who have size/offset options as potentiometers on the inside.

[Sweatlord_STG]

Do you guys mean the option that allows you to make the displayed image bigger and smaller, both horizontally and vertically?
If so, if you ask me, I would tell you that consumer CRT TVs never have it. The only CRTs that do have it are PVMs/BVMs by NEC, Sony, etc, arcade cabs, and old PC CRT monitors.

Yes.
I assume you've never opened the service menu on any of your TVs?
There are also some sets who have size/offset options as potentiometers on the inside.

Ehr. Apparently not, if you're saying they all have this option too I never needed it I think. I know there is a slight overscan with old consoles but also those systems, and their games, were made with that in mind. For instance, when I played Super Mario Bros 3 on an emulator for the first time, I thought there was something wrong with the right side of the picture. But it's normal and part of the game, it's just that I never saw it before, because the overscan hides it, so to say, just as intended by the makers of the game.

Wait. Is the service menu like a secret hidden menu?

[Bassa-Bassa]

You can make the picture wider trying to hide the black borders and restore the original aspect ratio with lots of TV sets, but in the case of SAT G1 and G2 it's likely a bit too much to hide and you can expect some picture distortion in the process which hardly can be fixed with other settings.

[StrzxgvNuvWvfld]

I guess most consumer television sets don't have geometry controls, but if using a PC monitor/arcade monitor/broadcasting monitor.

What do you mean? Nearly every consumer CRT I've ever used has geometry controls, except maybe the tiny cheapo 9" / 13" sets. Probably not nearly as advanced as something like a PC monitor, but they do have horizontal and vertical size control.

Do you guys mean the option that allows you to make the displayed image bigger and smaller, both horizontally and vertically?
If so, if you ask me, I would tell you that consumer CRT TVs never have it. The only CRTs that do have it are PVMs/BVMs by NEC, Sony, etc, arcade cabs, and old PC CRT monitors.

Both consumer CRTs I own have it, though it is hidden away in the service menu. Get a universal remote with macros and you can access it with one button press. It's no more difficult than changing the contrast.

[Light1000]

Wait. Is the service menu like a secret hidden menu?

Yeah. The typical way it works is that you need to input a code with the remote and then turn the TV on to access the menu. Individual instructions are covered in the service manuals for each TV. (PDFs are up online nowadays)

[Sweatlord_STG]

OK that's very good to know, thanks.

[Bassa-Bassa]

Get a universal remote with macros and you can access it with one button press.

Now that's something I never thought. Can you recommend one for late CRT Sony sets?

[MJR]

The service menus are usually hidden for reason on CRT tv’s. Adjusting the image there has nothing to do with normal consumer menus, you have to know what you are doing or you will distort the image. I fooled around on my trinitron years ago by following advice on this forum, and managed to distort the image. I eventually got it back but not completely, and I never had the time and energy to really study how it should be done. So I would advice against it unless you are ready to do your homework first- find the documentation and figure out what it means and how the bloody thing works.

[Bassa-Bassa]

Note down the current values on the service menus, restore them when needed. No actual danger there.

Using a CRT TV for PCBs (or emulation of PCBs) sooner or later will force you to modify geometry for 240 lines or above.

[EmperorIng]

Finally installed this the other night.
God I hate stage 4 in salamander. Just a confusing mess.