Gradius collection for PSP

K-J N. · Post by **K-J N.** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:59 am

http://www.rakuten.co.jp/edigi-game/407 ... 978/662082

Ports of Gradius 1, 2, 3, 4 and Gaiden
Movie and sound galleries (inluding X68000 version)

Nice.

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:32 am

For those who can't read Japanese:

-Direct ports of arcade Gradius 1 to 4 plus Gradius Gaiden from PS1.
-Newly added widescreen mode
-Save/Load mode
-Movie gallary included FMVs from Gradius Delxue Pack, Gradius Gaiden and Gradius III & IV.
-Music gallary: All tracks from the 5 games PLUS the X68000 versions of Gradius 1 and 2.

I don't have a PSP, but man it won't be long for me to get one.

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:52 am

MY HEAD A SPLODE.

Post by **Ghegs** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:57 am

Need for PSP rising.

That said, I do have all of those games in other formats (Gradii I and II for PCE, III and & IV for PS2, Gaiden for PS1) so it's not a must-have purchase for me...but the widescreen mode, if it works like it should and doesn't just stretch the image, sounds sexy.

sethsez · Post by **sethsez** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 12:14 pm

I'll buy a PSP for this.

*waits for someone to complain about it for some reason*

bVork · Post by **bVork** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 12:29 pm

<Recap>The graphics will not be true low-res! What's the point of a port if it doesn't properly reproduce the arcade graphics exactly?</Recap>

Sorry, sorry... was the first thing I thought of.

Anyway, hopefully it turns out well. While it would be nice to see it get a north american release, the PSP is thankfully region-free. I'll definitely be owning this compilation one way or another.

Four months until the release isn't so bad, especially in these days of games being announced well over a year before their release.

Post by **Ghegs** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 12:51 pm

sethsez wrote: *waits for someone to complain about it for some reason*

Well, my post included a comment that could be taken as criticism.

The games are just ports of old stuff, after all. While I personally don't have any problems with that, a completely new and original Gradius game for PSP would be even better.

Oh! And why won't they include Life Force(s) and Salamanders? And the mobile-phone ones that at least look cool (Neo and Neo Imperial)?

Grr, Ghegs smash. And so forth.

captain ahar · Post by **captain ahar** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 1:58 pm

bal sagoth pretty much summed up my feelings on this. but ghegs is still right, cmon konami, salamander.

edit: they should have put '90 kai on it as well.

anyway, this game is so mine i'm playing it right now, and i don't own a psp.

--edit: jeez i'm a whiny bitch...

Post by **Icarus** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 2:01 pm

Mmmmm, Gaiden on the go. That alone would make me buy a PSP.
Although I'd rather wait until the quality of the ports are confirmed first (no R-Type 3 GBA plz).

Sly Cherry Chunks · Post by **Sly Cherry Chunks** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 2:10 pm

I bought a chipped PS1 and Gradius Gaiden not two weeks ago - and now they go and release a region free version. Bloody typical.

I'm still happy though

Thunder Force · Post by **Thunder Force** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 3:46 pm

Ghegs wrote:the widescreen mode, if it works like it should and doesn't just stretch the image, sounds sexy.

Allegedly it will be a proper wide mode, but only available in Gradius I & II, not the other ones according to some sources. Time will tell.

This is one heck of a Gradius collection, either way.

And a perfect way for new fans of Gradius V to catch up on some history.

Xexyz · Post by **Xexyz** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 3:47 pm

Bah, I had a feeling I'd start to develop an interest in owning a PSP sooner or later... looks like it's sooner!

Sly Cherry Chunks · Post by **Sly Cherry Chunks** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 4:04 pm

This source is reliable, right?

Only asking.

JBC · Post by **JBC** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 5:16 pm

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

AHH!

That's it. That's all i've got to say.

elbarto · Post by **elbarto** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 5:59 pm

I'll definitely be grabbing this (even though I have them on other formats already..

)

I'd love to see remakes/updates of MSX Gradius II and Gofer No Yabou on one of these packs at some point, but it'll probably never happen.

As for a new widescreen PSP Gradius game, I'm sure its only a matter of time

neojma · Post by **neojma** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 7:00 pm

Wow. Nice collection indeed. Of course, I've got all of the games already. But still... nice.

For some reason I think there's a significant chance this will stay in Japan. Seems like of any shooter release, this would go over well in the US with Gradius's name recognition. But I dunno... Seems like prime "bad decision not to port" material. Maybe I'll be wrong, we did get Gradius V in a timely manner. But who cares, it's region free! Besides, I'll buy the Japanese one anyway to boost the sales for that version. You know those are the sales figures Konami really looks at when deciding whether to release another shooter. The American shooter market is already a lost cause, I want to make sure that at least in Japan the genre doesn't die out...

Now we need a Darius compilation. I'd love to see Darius 1, 2, Gaiden, and G on one UMD.

Ataru · Post by **Ataru** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 7:43 pm

DROOOOOOOOL!!!!!

so far my main use for my PSP has been to play Gradius I on a Turbografx16 emulator.

of course, the advantage there is save states... wonder how/if they'll accomodate the stop/start nature of portable gaming.

I'd love to see the original games in original state included, but also a version of Gradius III with the difficulty balance made a little more sane, so unbelievably hard....

professor ganson · Post by **professor ganson** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 7:59 pm

captain ahar wrote:bal sagoth pretty much summed up my feelings on this. but ghegs is still right, cmon konami, salamander.

edit: they should have put '90 kai on it as well.

anyway, this game is so mine i'm playing it right now, and i don't own a psp.

--edit: jeez i'm a whiny bitch...

Couldn't have said it better. Ghegs is right, and yet this game is mine and I don't own a PSP. Here's hoping for a PSP price drop simultaneous with release of this incredible collection! And I wish there were some way to guarantee a non-broken screen-- am I asking for too much?

UnscathedFlyingObject · Wed Nov 02, 2005 8:39 pm

Ahhh this might put the 'ole Gradius Gaiden Player (PSX, duh) to rest, and then, I'll be among the cool kids 'cause I have a PSP.

Edit: Contra comp please please pleeeaaaseeeee! Contra 3+Hard Corps =

.

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:11 pm

You guys can order it @ Play-Asia now.

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-9f-70-135r.html

Post by **BulletMagnet** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:22 pm

I certainly hope this is well-programmed...if memory serves, though, Konami's ports of stuff are usually pretty good, so I hope this one follows that pattern. In any event, I own all of the games on there and have no plans to get a PSP, so I'll just root from a distance, heh heh.

Thunder Force · Post by **Thunder Force** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:30 pm

Ataru wrote:my main use for my PSP has been to play Gradius I on a Turbografx16 emulator. of course, the advantage there is save states... wonder how/if they'll accomodate the stop/start nature of portable gaming

Apparently this is the feature they will use...

game-science.com wrote:A new Save option will be included [in Gradius Portable for PSP] where players can pause the game and save anywhere, and upon loading will spawn from the nearest restart point.

Neon · Post by **Neon** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:53 pm

sethsez wrote:I'll buy a PSP for this.

*waits for someone to complain about it for some reason*

Just a bit of an odd reason to get one is all. All this shit is available for JPS2 already.

Then of course there's the portability issue, but there are better portable games already out...this is only crappy Gradius, after all.

But hey, it's your money.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 10:56 pm

Refresh my memory...is there ANY WAY to send to av of the psp to a proper tv set up? Not to say this isn't panty-wetting anyway, but the whole thing that has stopped me from buying into the psp is lack of a 'psp-player'.

Perhaps the PS3 will have one?

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:02 pm

CMoon wrote:Refresh my memory...is there ANY WAY to send to av of the psp to a proper tv set up? Not to say this isn't panty-wetting anyway, but the whole thing that has stopped me from buying into the psp is lack of a 'psp-player'.

Perhaps the PS3 will have one?

The last time I checked, PS3 is going to have this feature. I may be wrong though.

oxtsu · Post by **oxtsu** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:23 pm

Neon wrote:
sethsez wrote:I'll buy a PSP for this.

*waits for someone to complain about it for some reason* :P
Just a bit of an odd reason to get one is all. All this shit is available for JPS2 already.

Then of course there's the portability issue, but there are better portable games already out...this is only crappy Gradius, after all.

But hey, it's your money.

This is really obnoxious coming from the dude who just made a MegamanX collection PS2 hype thread.

It makes sense when someone likes the games and wants an all-in-one package on the PSP, superior/other versions be damned.

snap monkey · Post by **snap monkey** » Wed Nov 02, 2005 11:54 pm

oxtsu wrote:This is really obnoxious coming from the dude who just made a MegamanX collection PS2 hype thread.

It makes sense when someone likes the games and wants an all-in-one package on the PSP, superior/other versions be damned.

Respect.

Bloodreign · Post by **Bloodreign** » Thu Nov 03, 2005 1:08 am

At first I was skeptical of this, now I'm not, this makes the PSP look more and more inviting, too bad I can't afford one right now.

Too bad PS 2 wouldn't see this as well, even if I have Gradius 3 and 4 already.

Neon · Post by **Neon** » Thu Nov 03, 2005 5:55 am

This is really obnoxious coming from the dude who just made a MegamanX collection PS2 hype thread.

This may sound fanboyish, but...arrange soundtracks of Capcom music. Also X1 is a great game and now you won't need a Super Nintendo to play it.

Anyways, if people who already own a PSP want to buy it, all well and good, I just don't see why nonexclusive games are getting everyone in a frenzy.

Dylan1CC · Post by **Dylan1CC** » Thu Nov 03, 2005 6:04 am

FINALLY, we get a shooter compilation that includes more than 2 titles. 5 games and I haven't even played the acclaimed Gaiden yet. This is the best news I have read in a long time as a shmup fan. Those are some nice extras too.

And hey, maybe that UMD with R-TYPE 1,2,3, Leo and Delta we'd like isn't such a tall hope after all?

III would especially look beautiful on the PSP's screen.

EDIT: More details from IGN:

http://psp.ign.com/articles/663/663700p1.html

Gradius Portable Set For PSP
Konami brings dream collection to the small wide screen with a host of features.
by Anoop Gantayat
November 2, 2005 - A classic of arcade shooting is being revived in a big way for the PSP. Retailers in Japan report that Konami will bring five Gradius titles to the PSP as part of one content-packed collection. Titled Gradius Portable, the single UMD disk will include Gradius I, II, III, IV and Gradius Gaiden.

Konami isn't going the quick route with the collection. Players will be able to chose from a number of options, setting the size of their ship (ha, Ok....), turning slowdown on and off, and zooming up the action to fill the screen. Gradius I and II are even being given an option to expand the play map for full screen play without stretching things out.
A new save/load system will make it into the game, allowing you to save directly from the pause screen whenever you like. You can then continue play from your point of saving with your health and power up conditions in tact. The save file remains once you've continued play, allowing you to retry from the save point to your heart's content.

Konami is also filling the game with enough gallery content to please all Gradius fans. Movies from Gradius Deluxe Pack (PlayStation), Gradius III & IV (PS2) and Gradius Gaiden (PlayStation) will be included in a movie gallery, with the footage recompressed from their original master copies, ensuring the highest quality. A sound gallery will feature music from all titles.

This awesome collection is set for Japanese release on 2/9 at the price of a standard PSP game. With so much value in one package, we have a feeling the game would pass any approval requirements thrown at it by Sony America, so a US release sounds like a definite possibility.