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«©NCSX» The Gradius franchise returns to the gaming fold under the auspices of Treasure (Yes, they of Bangaioh and Ikaruga fame) who collaborated with Konami's KCET studio to produce the latest Gradius. Soar through glistening levels and swoop, stutter, and shoot into the heart of an alien empire scattered across the cosmos. Swooping and shooting in a shmup are routine actions but stuttering is an acquired skill. When the screen is filled with buckshot and little leeway is available for movement, one must turn to stuttering where mini steps are taken through mobile minefields of oncoming fire. Those who falter in their stutter-steps generally submit to the reaper. Our test run through the game this morning was brief but from what we've seen, the difficulty level is moderate to slightly difficult. The screen can fill up with debris and shots fairly quickly from all directions. We found ourselves stuttering. The overall pace is brisk and once the action gets hot, there's little quarter or respite given. The weapon systems in G5 are familiar but Treasure adds some new firing options - Freeze Option, Direction Option, Spacing Option, Rotate Option to the weapon array. The new options provide a highly versatile firing mechanism to Gradius where swaths of screen may be covered once sufficiently powered up. A simultaneous 2-player option doubles the fun. Every copy of the first production of Gradius V includes a 28-page "Vic Viper" booklet which chronicles the development of the Gradius series with regards to the Vic Viper ship, its weapon systems and other interesting history. View the back cover and screenshots.
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