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Gradius V
Developer(s)	Treasure G.rev
Publisher(s)	Konami
Designer(s)	Hiroshi Iuchi Atsutomo Nakagawa
Composer(s)	Hitoshi Sakimoto
Series	Gradius
Engine	Intrinsic Alchemy
Native resolution	480i
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Release date(s)	JP July 22, 2004 NA September 14, 2004 EU October 8, 2004
Genre(s)	Shoot 'em up
Mode(s)	Single-player, cooperative
Rating(s)	CERO: All Ages ELSPA: 3+ ESRB: Teen OFLC: G
Media	1 CD-ROM

Gradius V is a Japanese-developed shoot 'em up video game published by Konami for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console in 2004 as part of the Gradius video game series. The game was released in Japan in July 2004, in North America in September 2004, and in PAL regions in October 2004. It was largely developed under contract by the Treasure team responsible for Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga, under supervision of Konami's internal development studio, KCET.

The game is set predominantly in outer space, where players assume control of a fictional spaceship called Vic Viper through a continuously scrolling background depicting the territories of Bacterian—an evil empire which serves as the player's enemy.

Gameplay

Gradius V is set in an interstellar setting against the backdrop of a conflict between the human-inhabited planet Gradius and a self-regenerating entity called Bacterian (also referred to as "Bacterion" in the Instruction Manual)—which in each iteration assembles a massive space armada in an effort to conquer the dominion. The story opens in the year 8010 when a military space station orbiting planet Gradius is subdued by Bacterion forces. As part of a counter-offensive, Vic Viper of the Gradius army engages the assailants in space. With the help of a future-version of himself, Vic Viper fights hordes of Bacterion forces, ultimately obliterating the Bacterion core.^[1]

In Gradius V, players control the Vic Viper—a "super spatial-temporal fighter"—on a mission to destroy the Bacterion Army.^[1] The game can be played with one player or with two players simultaneously—the latter being a first in the main Gradius series.^[2] After players start the game, they will enter a "Select Weapon Array" screen, where they may select the types of power-ups they will use through the course of the game.^[3] There is also an unlockable feature called "Weapon Edit" in which players can access if certain conditions are met. In this mode, they can customize the Vic Viper with various combinations of weapons found in the "Select Weapon Array" screen, from earlier Gradius games, or new weaponry.^[4] Players are able to start the game from the beginning or at any stage that was previously cleared. Players can also play a "Score Attack" mode, where they play the game from the beginning under specific parameters. At the end of "Score Attack" mode, players receive a password which allows them to post their highest achieved score on the Internet.^[5] Finally, players have the option to view the highest local scores, save or load game data using a PlayStation 2 memory card, or to adjust the game's settings, including stereo or monoural sound, difficulty, number of lives available, the number of points required to earn extra lives, the ability to restart from a checkpoint or immediately after being destroyed, or button configuration.^[6]

The game takes place in a 2D scrolling shooter setting, with the Vic Viper contending with formations of enemies and both stationary and moving gun turrets that fire bullets.^[7] Players go through various levels, some consisting of open space and others consisting of maneuvering through close quarters, and defeat large bosses at the end of each level.^[7][8] Should players come into contact with anything on the screen, the Vic Viper explodes, and they lose a life.^[7] In Gradius V, the hit box (the pixels which must be touched by an object to destroy the ship) has been reduced in size to allow players to get through small areas more easily.^[9] Gradius V marks the first time in the series in which players can reappear immediately and resume gameplay. Alternatively, players may also restart at a previously-cleared checkpoint, depending on the game's settings.^[7] If all lives are lost, players have the option to continue and restart the game from where they left off. Players receive extra lives after scoring a certain number of points as indicated in the game's settings,^[10] and players may receive extra continues depending on how much total playing time has been accumulated.^[3]

In this screenshot, the player is confronted by several enemies and uses the multiple control mechanic to direct the ship's weapons.

Throughout the game, players can accumulate various power-up capsules after destroying certain enemies or enemy formations. Collecting a power-up capsule moves a yellow cursor on the power meter at the bottom of the screen. Pressing the "Power-Up" button will award the player the power-up that is highlighted on the power meter. The types of power-ups that can be obtained throughout the course of the game are selected at the "Select Weapon Array" and "Weapon Edit" menus before starting.^[4] The cursor cycles through the following power-ups in order: "Speed Up", "Missile", "Double", "Laser", "Multiple", and "Shield".^[7] With the "Speed Up" power-up, players are able to increase speeds of their ships; with the "Missile" power-up, players can launch air-to-surface missiles to destroy ground targets; and with the "Double" power-up, players can fire an additional gun that fires in another direction other than forward. The "Laser" power-up allows players to fire enemy-piercing lasers, the the "Force Field" power-up gives players three additional hits before being destroyed, and "Multiple" power-up gives players clones (also called "Options") that shadow their movements and mimic their firing.^[11] A new feature in Gradius V gives players the ability to control their "Multiples" with the push of a button, depending on which weaponry was selected before starting the game. By pressing a button, players can freeze their Multiples in place, cause them to rotate around the Vic Viper, control the direction of fire of them, or spread them out above and below the ship.^[9][11]

Development

Gradius V was officially announced on January 16, 2003,^[12] and is a result of the combined efforts of the now defunct Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo and Treasure, a development studio founded by former employees of Konami.^[13] Gradius V marks their first joint project since Treasure's departure from Konami in 1992.^[14]

In the 2006 French documentary film Japon: Histoire Du Shooting Game produced by CanalSat's GameOne channel, senior producer Osamu Kasai explained that because of limited resources, the development duties had to be outsourced. Their choice of potential collaborators would be decided by experience with modern shoot 'em ups and a shared understanding of design practices prevalent at Konami, Kasai concluded that "Treasure was the best choice".^[15]

Gradius V took many shapes and forms during the course of development and the designers proceeded to change aspects of recurring gameplay elements to distinguish the new game from previous efforts. In an interview with producer Yasushi Takano on the promotional DVD Gradius Breakdown, Takano said that he felt the traditional Gradius formula had become stagnant and expressed a desire for a new direction to remain relevant.^[16] He also admitted that some of their early work was not as impressive as it would later become and the game was subsequently delayed and made frequent appearances at trade fairs, including the Electronic Entertainment Expo, prior to its release. Plans were also made to produce a counterpart for video arcades alongside the console version, but it was later canceled because of time constraints.^[16]

Audio

The soundtrack was scored by freelance composer Hitoshi Sakimoto, whose previous video game work included the soundtrack to the tactical role-playing game Final Fantasy Tactics, the arcade shooter Radiant Silvergun and the action/RPG hybrid Vagrant Story. Sakimoto noted in an interview that "It was a great honor for me to able to work on a title like this, but also very stressful" and names the original Gradius as an important source of inspiration on his work.^[17] He also revealed that his clients requested a specific style of music that would be reminiscent of the earlier games, and the score as a result comprises remixes of music used in previous Gradius titles including a number of new, original tracks, in a similar vein.^[17] Synthesized orchestral instruments were used throughout the production of the soundtrack.^[18]

The soundtrack was released separately on CD as Gradius V Soundtracks by Konami's media division on August 18, 2004, and features 22 tracks.^[19]

Bundling

On April 9, 2004, Konami announced that a DVD entitled OPTIONS was being offered to pre-ordering customers in Japan, containing interviews with the development staff, art galleries and a collection of "super play" videos demonstrating the inner workings of the game's levels.^[20] Adding further incentive for customers to purchase the upcoming product, Konami later revealed the availability of The History of Vic Viper—a book indicating inner design, the background, and the roadmap of the Vic Viper ships which was included with all versions of the original Japanese pressing of the game.^[20] An additional DVD with expanded content titled Gradius V Official DVD The Perfect was also released in Japan to be ordered separately or with the game from Konami's online retail store, Konamistyle.^[21]

For the North American release of the game, Konami produced a DVD called Gradius Breakdown as a pre-order bonus.^[22]

Reception

Overall, Gradius V received positive reviews from magazines and websites and amassed a Metacritic rating index of 82, compiled from 46 reviews around the Internet.^[23] Positive response tends to focus on the intricate level design, graphical excellence, and "old school" appeal of the frenetic shoot 'em up gameplay. Most negative criticism highlights the extreme difficulty of the game, as well as what is deemed an over-reliance on such a tried and true gameplay formula, to which G4tv.com said that "While the action is always constant and involving, the lack of variation and the need to be in an exact spot at an exact time is simply not going to strike everyone as fun."^[24]

Notes

• Gradius V Instruction Manual. Konami Digital Entertainment. 2004. SLUS 20712.  

External links

• Japanese website
• North American website

From Wikia Gaming, your source for walkthroughs, games, guides, and more!

Gradius V
Developer(s)	Treasure
Publisher(s)	Konami
Release date	July 22, 2004 (JP) September 14, 2004 (NA) October 8, 2004 (EU)
Genre	Shmup
Mode(s)	Single player, 1-2 players cooperative
Age rating(s)	ESRB: T PEGI: 3+ CERO: Free
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough

Gradius V is a shmup game for the PlayStation 2, and part of the long-running Gradius series.

It was the first official Gradius sequel to be released exclusively on a home console. Treasure Co. Ltd (developers of the classic games Gunstar Heroes, Guardian Heroes, Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga, among others) assisted Konami in Gradius V development. In Japanese first press limited edition, the game included a book indicating inner design, the background, and the roadmap of Vic Viper series (i.e. Vic Viper is the name of a series, rather than a single ship).

A notable feature of Gradius V is the ability to select between different kinds of Option (called Multiples in the American release). There are four types:

• Freeze - follows the Vic Viper and can be made to 'freeze' in their current configuration.
• Directional - follows the Vic Viper and can be made to fire in any direction.
• Spacing - keeps position above or below the Vic Viper and can be pushed away or pulled toward the ship.
• Rotate - follows the Vic Viper and can be made to orbit the ship.

Gradius V also features a simultaneous cooperative two player mode, the second game in the series to do so. The graphics are in fully rendered 3D.

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