Famicom Gradius II (1988) previewed by EGM, GamePro, mid 1989. A highly underappreciated game

[parallaxscroll]

The Famicom version of Gradius II fascinated me, because we never got it on the NES in the United States.

We got Life Force, which itself wasn't quite as good as Salamander on the Famicom. The Japanese version had a Konami MM chip (VRC3) that Life Force NES didn't.

And yet, Gradius II on the Famicom had an even more powerful Konami chip, the VRC4, allowing for a significant leap in graphics and audio.
Compared to the earliest Famicom games in 1983, Gradius II looks almost 16-bit. Maybe not technically, but relatively.

I'm happy to provide these mid 1989 previews from EGM and GamePro for Famicom Gradius II which had already been released overseas in 1988.

I threw in a few images, the Konami VRC4 chip, the Gradius II cartridge board and a youtube video.

http://i.imgur.com/NL85Rzn.jpg http://i.imgur.com/q6ukcGT.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/6lC5MJN.jpg

_________________________________________ ^
_________________________________________ http://i.imgur.com/XMS6YuD.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/GljoyUB.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/lPCZRWB.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/3hhW0Yz.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/RG088ip.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/xxOWiJR.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/FlXpfWm.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Il5x3ef.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/j5lrYr3.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/oLIwA1v.jpg


Gradius II Famicom (1988)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KfvX61n9Bk

Salamander Famicom (1987)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIx0zHhx4oc

Life Force NES (1987)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dt-pMJiQTTk

[Niku-Sama]

I might have to pick this up, special chipped games intrigue me

[parallaxscroll]

It's also really fun to play.

[Tanooki]

I've owned it for a few years now, put it easily in the Top 3 maybe Top 5 Famicom games we didn't get released (or were brutally censored.) It's quality right up there with parodius, (jp) castlevania 3, yume penguin monogatari, crisis force, twinbee 3, wai wai world 2 level stuff that's a must play.

[Thrillo]

This game pushes the NES/Famicom hardware to its absolute limits, and has the gameplay to match; it's easily one of my top 3 games on the system. Shame it didn't make it to the US. Did Konami feel it wasn't worth the effort, due to the special mapper it used?

[SparTonberry]

Maybe. They probably would've made cuts to make it fit on a Nintendo mapper, as they did with Contra and LifeForce.
Although aside from NoA giving publishers the five-game quota they supposedly were telling publishers what they could publish with the supposedly "shortage" chips.
I read a rumor on another forum Konami once considered a US release of Bio Miracle Upa but NoA struck it down as "not worth it". (to only get an official western release as a Wii Virtual Console "import" download)

[Az]

Maybe. They probably would've made cuts to make it fit on a Nintendo mapper, as they did with Contra and LifeForce.

So is that why Life Force didn't have as many options at once on the US version? I never knew it was a hardware issue.

[celerystalker]

This is pretty interesting stuff for me. The only version I own and have played is the PCE CD version, which is great, but the steps they took to get this going on Famicom makes me want to play that version.

[parallaxscroll]

This game pushes the NES/Famicom hardware to its absolute limits, and has the gameplay to match; it's easily one of my top 3 games on the system. Shame it didn't make it to the US. Did Konami feel it wasn't worth the effort, due to the special mapper it used?

Yep.

And the leap from NES / Famicom Gradius (1986) to Gradius II Famicom (1988) is so impressive.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trXVLwjne9E


This is pretty interesting stuff for me. The only version I own and have played is the PCE CD version, which is great, but the steps they took to get this going on Famicom makes me want to play that version.

PC-Engine CD Gradius II is on a whole nother level of course. I just bought it for the Wii Virtual Console.

Here are two previews of the PCE CD version.

http://i.imgur.com/zwO0wy2.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/y4dEXxf.jpg


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7JYsswH3Ns&t=7s

[dgdgagdae]

Those magazine articles took me back to playing Retro Game Challenge.

[Tanooki]

The PCE release was my first experience with the Gradius II game so the Famicom one while I do like it feels watered down even though it shouldn't.

[SparTonberry]

EGM also reviewed PCE-CD Gradius II as a "Fact File" suggesting it was at one time planned for a US release. But by 1993 the TG16/Duo was basically dead in America, which is probably why it wasn't released either (until Wii VC).

[parallaxscroll]

EGM also reviewed PCE-CD Gradius II as a "Fact File" suggesting it was at one time planned for a US release. But by 1993 the TG16/Duo was basically dead in America, which is probably why it wasn't released either (until Wii VC).

Yes, you're right, good memory.

I found both the 'Fact File' and one other International Outlook preview where they said Turbo Technologies Inc. would bring PCE CD Gradius II to the U.S.

EGM #45 - April 1993:

http://i.imgur.com/6lZeRT2.jpg

EGM #46 - May 1993:

http://i.imgur.com/i10QhK8.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/TJUwaao.jpg

[lendelin]

Parallaxscroll, thanks so much for posting the scans of the old mags. Wonderful stuff to read, I don't have the Gamepros and EGMs of 1989, only from 1990 on. Great to read about Gradius II, it looks fantastic for a game from 1988. Life Force was one of my earliest experiences on the NES, and you can imagine how frustrating it was hardly used to videogames. Little did I know that shoot-em-ups are a very tough genre! :) Without the Konami code I would have had a hard time finishing it.

Too bad that we didn't get Gradius II. I think there is a collection of Gradius for handhelds, otherwise I guess the only way to get it is the Famicom version. I just played a couple of weeks ago Gradius III and V again, and I had a great time.

The chip development for the NES cartridges were exceptional. If we compare the first generation of games with games released from 1991 to 1994 it is a huge graphical and processing difference.

[SparTonberry]

Too bad that we didn't get Gradius II. I think there is a collection of Gradius for handhelds, otherwise I guess the only way to get it is the Famicom version. I just played a couple of weeks ago Gradius III and V again, and I had a great time.

Yes, Konami made compilations for four shooter franchises for the PSP in Japan (Twinbee, Salamander, Gradius and Parodius), but the Gradius pack was the only one to get western release.
I think I was lucky to get the Salamander collection as I hear that has become high in demand for one of the "extra" games on the disc (since Salamander didn't have as many games as the other series. It was an arcade game otherwise never re-released).

[parallaxscroll]

Parallaxscroll, thanks so much for posting the scans of the old mags. Wonderful stuff to read, I don't have the Gamepros and EGMs of 1989, only from 1990 on. Great to read about Gradius II, it looks fantastic for a game from 1988. Life Force was one of my earliest experiences on the NES, and you can imagine how frustrating it was hardly used to videogames. Little did I know that shoot-em-ups are a very tough genre! :) Without the Konami code I would have had a hard time finishing it.

Too bad that we didn't get Gradius II. I think there is a collection of Gradius for handhelds, otherwise I guess the only way to get it is the Famicom version. I just played a couple of weeks ago Gradius III and V again, and I had a great time.

The chip development for the NES cartridges were exceptional. If we compare the first generation of games with games released from 1991 to 1994 it is a huge graphical and processing difference.

lendelin, you're welcome. For me, it was great to see the GamePro coverage since I had never read that issue as a kid, I started with the one right after it. As for EGM, I remember those issues really well, they were the first two I bought at a grocery store. My first experience with Gradius was at a friend's house in 1987. It seems like a good game, but I was much more impressed with Life Force given the graphics were better and 2 players could play at once.

Gradius Deluxe Pack Plus came out on the Saturn and PS1 in Japan, but it wasn't until Gradius Collection on PSP that we got Gradius II officially, not counting the arcade game which was released here, I believe, as Vulcan Venture.

[lendelin]

SparTonberry and Parallaxscroll, thanks for the heads up about the handhelds! Unfortunately, I'm not into handhelds (I have only ten GBA games) otherwise I'd be all over the PSP collections; but the Japanese Sega Saturn 'Gradius Deluxe Pack' is worth a thought. I might buy it so I have finally Gradius II.

I have for the PS2 the Gradius III and IV compilation, and of course the SNES Gardius III. Is the PS2 Gradius IV faithful to its Japanese release?

Gardius V was one of the absolutely best game experiences I had on the PS2! What a great game! I like this kind of traditional shmups much better than the bullet hell shooters on the Dreamcast or on the Xbox360. Frustrating as it can get sometimes, but you always have a fair chance finishing it! :)

Too bad that there was since Gradius V no new Gradius game. Any word from Konami about a possible new game for this generation???

[parallaxscroll]

Gradius VI was apparently in development for the PS3, but by January 2007 (yes, over ten years ago) the new Gradius game was among a wave of sudden Konami game cancellations.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/01/10/massive-cancellations-from-konami



MASSIVE CANCELLATIONS FROM KONAMI

Gradius and other titles disappear from company's release list.

BY IGN STAFF Konami's support for both the PS3 and Wii appears to have taken a major hit. The release list in the latest issue of Famitsu reveals reveals that a number of next generation titles previously announced by the company are no longer in development.

Here's the full list of cancelled titles.

Gradius Series (PS3)
Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball (PS3)
New Action Game (PS3)
New Role Playing Game (PS3)
New Action Adventure Game 2 (Wii)
Role Playing Game (Wii)


https://www.destructoid.com/konami-cans-gradius-vi-numerous-others-29194.phtml



Konami cans Gradius VI, numerous others

Like a nail through my heart, Konami has closed the lid on several of its PS3 and Wii titles, including -- may God have mercy on their souls -- the PS3 incarnation of its timeless Gradius series, presumably the sixth.


As for this current generation, I don't believe there's been so much as even a rumor of a new Gradius for PS4, or any platform.

[BlastProcessing402]

Compared to the earliest Famicom games in 1983, Gradius II looks almost 16-bit. Maybe not technically, but relatively.

It looks great for 8-bit Nintendo, but the colors (or lack thereof) make it clear that's exactly what you're looking at.

[parallaxscroll]

I have for the PS2 the Gradius III and IV compilation, and of course the SNES Gardius III. Is the PS2 Gradius IV faithful to its Japanese release?



I haven't played the Japanese PS2 version of Gradius 4 : Fukkatsu, only the NA PS2 version. All I can say is that it seems faithful to the arcade version.

The arcade Gradius 4 : Fukkatsu used Konami's 'Hornet' hardware, which used a 3DFX Voodoo 2 Pixel processor with 16MB RAM and a Voodoo 2 Texture processor with 32MB RAM

http://system16.com/hardware.php?id=583&gid=918#918

[parallaxscroll]

There is also an awesome Gradius game that never got released outside Japan at all, Nemesis '90 Kai on the Sharp X68000 computer.

http://i.imgur.com/EQrouYk.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/dBmsa5r.jpg

It was a remake of Gradius 2 aka Nemesis 2 for the MSX (which itself was totally different from Gradius II: GOFER no Yabou aka Vulkan Venture).



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8B4Hkucs10

8-bit MSX version


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfZf8XpF7_o

[lendelin]

Thanks for the information and the youtube videos. I didn't know about these two games or forgot about it - I probably should watch the old 'Gradius Breakdown'-DVD which was released with Gradius V and gave you a nice overview about the Gradius history. :) This was an exceptional bonus - rarely delved a bonus item for a game into the history of a series.

Nemesis 90 looks fantastic and seems to play fantastically. Wish I had that game; and then some gameplayers say collecting doesn't make sense; well, if you have a lot of games you have also a lot of options to play them at one point. :)

[parallaxscroll]

No problem. I'm just enjoying adding stuff to this thread, it's fun :-P

Here's a nice 60fps video of Salamander 2


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtdFmTcydJM

Saturn version (off-screen, not direct capture)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLpW25ShQ_A

2nd part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iv4OO9nFb9E


And finally, something really different.. An unreleased Salamander / Life Force HD remaster for Android devices. Full playthrough, 60fps


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-kV3UZfRcw

I'd really love to play that one someday, maybe via an Android emulator on PC.

[StealthLurker]

I was lucky enough to play Gradius 2 on FC back in the day. A Japanese friend I knew in elementary school had a Famicom and so did I. His uncle sent him a copy of Gradius 2 back when it came out and I got to see and play it at his house. Eventually he let me borrow it :) Then when summer rolled around, I got to go to Asia again with my grandmother and was able to get a copy myself.

The android version of Salamander is actually suprisingly nice and even works on the OUYA console. The quickest way to play it there is with a keyboard with a builtin swipe mouse pad. It also works on the Bluestacks Android Emulator and you can even map the swipes and taps to keyboard buttons which in turn can be mapped to a control pad/joystick via joy2key or keypadder software. Played it quite a bit back when it came out. A shame it didn't get a proper release other than mobile....

It's a lot like the 3D Contra 1 remake for Android and iOS from several years ago which imho is quite good... but you really need to play the arcade version of it (only released in China). The arcade version (which has been tweaked to work on a normal PC, as most arcade games just run on a PC anyway these days) has tweaked controls and a much higher weapon firing rate which really makes the game shine. Also more interesting between level maps and what not vs the mobile version.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASE9zUqf57M

A bit back on topic, some unusual Gradius 2 items I've picked up over the years and some very unusual Gradius 1 stuff for shits n giggles

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g1_zpsbf9ulvq0.jpg~original

An officially licensed Gradius jacket. Ignore the glowing effects and watermarks I made on it for Instagram lol. This jacket was released by Game Glorious Japan a few years ago. I've actually another one (the black version) on the way.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g2_zpsrsva17ca.jpg~original

Gradius the boardgame

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g3_zpsa6rn1hqs.jpg~original

[Graham Mitchell]

I was lucky enough to play Gradius 2 on FC back in the day. A Japanese friend I knew in elementary school had a Famicom and so did I. His uncle sent him a copy of Gradius 2 back when it came out and I got to see and play it at his house. Eventually he let me borrow it :) Then when summer rolled around, I got to go to Asia again with my grandmother and was able to get a copy myself.

The android version of Salamander is actually suprisingly nice and even works on the OUYA console. The quickest way to play it there is with a keyboard with a builtin swipe mouse pad. It also works on the Bluestacks Android Emulator and you can even map the swipes and taps to keyboard buttons which in turn can be mapped to a control pad/joystick via joy2key or keypadder software. Played it quite a bit back when it came out. A shame it didn't get a proper release other than mobile....

It's a lot like the 3D Contra 1 remake for Android and iOS from several years ago which imho is quite good... but you really need to play the arcade version of it (only released in China). The arcade version (which has been tweaked to work on a normal PC, as most arcade games just run on a PC anyway these days) has tweaked controls and a much higher weapon firing rate which really makes the game shine. Also more interesting between level maps and what not vs the mobile version.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASE9zUqf57M

A bit back on topic, some unusual Gradius 2 items I've picked up over the years and some very unusual Gradius 1 stuff for shits n giggles

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g1_zpsbf9ulvq0.jpg~original

An officially licensed Gradius jacket. Ignore the glowing effects and watermarks I made on it for Instagram lol. This jacket was released by Game Glorious Japan a few years ago. I've actually another one (the black version) on the way.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g2_zpsrsva17ca.jpg~original

Gradius the boardgame

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g3_zpsa6rn1hqs.jpg~original
Fuckin' A, that's an awesome collection. I'm a stalwart Gradius fan. I'm quite jealous LOL! That Gradius 2 LP just kills me..

I've got a Vulcan Venture (U.S. Gradius 2) board and while it's amazing to play on a cab, my favorite version is, oddly enough, the Sharp X68000 version, basically because of the MIDI audio. It sounds like an orchestra! And if you've got an RGB monitor it looks pretty sweet in 15Khz mode.

Did Nintendo manufacture ANY of Konami's games with VR chips in the US? It seems like they were all stripped out when the games were brought to the west, including FM audio. That may have been why Gradius 2 didn't come out here. I believe the cihp allows for multidirectional scrolling (correct me if I'm wrong) and without that the game simply wouldn't work.

[SparTonberry]

The only licensed NES game I know of with a third-party mapper was Batman: Return of the Joker with the Sunsoft FME chip. (and probably the two late PAL-exclusives Ufouria and Mr. Gimmick)

Though I have a Castlevania with a Konami PCB (I think Metal Gear also got print variants on both Nintendo and Konami PCBs), though those use a pretty basic mapper like UNROM.

I don't think Gradius II used an FM sound chip, surprisingly. Pretty sure it was VRC2 or VRC4. Those two mappers (including several wiring variations) were Konami's most used that I think didn't have FM capability.

[parallaxscroll]

I was lucky enough to play Gradius 2 on FC back in the day. A Japanese friend I knew in elementary school had a Famicom and so did I. His uncle sent him a copy of Gradius 2 back when it came out and I got to see and play it at his house. Eventually he let me borrow it :) Then when summer rolled around, I got to go to Asia again with my grandmother and was able to get a copy myself.

The android version of Salamander is actually suprisingly nice and even works on the OUYA console. The quickest way to play it there is with a keyboard with a builtin swipe mouse pad. It also works on the Bluestacks Android Emulator and you can even map the swipes and taps to keyboard buttons which in turn can be mapped to a control pad/joystick via joy2key or keypadder software. Played it quite a bit back when it came out. A shame it didn't get a proper release other than mobile....

It's a lot like the 3D Contra 1 remake for Android and iOS from several years ago which imho is quite good... but you really need to play the arcade version of it (only released in China). The arcade version (which has been tweaked to work on a normal PC, as most arcade games just run on a PC anyway these days) has tweaked controls and a much higher weapon firing rate which really makes the game shine. Also more interesting between level maps and what not vs the mobile version.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASE9zUqf57M

A bit back on topic, some unusual Gradius 2 items I've picked up over the years and some very unusual Gradius 1 stuff for shits n giggles

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g1_zpsbf9ulvq0.jpg~original

An officially licensed Gradius jacket. Ignore the glowing effects and watermarks I made on it for Instagram lol. This jacket was released by Game Glorious Japan a few years ago. I've actually another one (the black version) on the way.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g2_zpsrsva17ca.jpg~original

Gradius the boardgame

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/g3_zpsa6rn1hqs.jpg~original

Awesome collection, and thanks for the great post! No doubt it was amazing to play Famicom Gradius II when it was new.

Also, thank you for that info on the android remake of Salamander.

[lendelin]

Parallaxscroll, thanks for posting the video of the remastered Salamander HD. DAMN does this game look and sound great, why oh why doesn't get this thing a physical release on a console? I'd be all over it. It is fantastic.

Stealthlurker, GREAT stuff. Wonderful. I love those jackets!

[Tanooki]

Gradius 2 = VRC4 (NO FM) from the NES wiki:
Overview

PRG ROM size: Up to 256 KiB
PRG ROM bank size: 8 KiB at $A000, and $8000 OR $C000
PRG RAM: none, 2 KiB, or 8 KiB
CHR ROM size: Up to 512 KiB
CHR bank size: 1 KiB
Nametable mirroring: Controlled by mapper
Subject to bus conflicts: No

The Konami VRC4 is almost identical to the VRC2, but with a bit more capabilities, such as the option to swap PRG at $C000 instead of $8000 and an IRQ counter.

They probably could have just re-used some Nintendo mapper to cover the scrolling and the rest (MMC3) but just ditched it, maybe another case of 'oooh it is too hard for Americans' syndrome. Plays fine on a stock NES w/adapter with no loss of fidelity unlike the VRC6 that loses audio on Castlevania 3.


Now I need to find safe APK download sites for Contra and Salamander.

[StealthLurker]

Fuckin' A, that's an awesome collection. I'm a stalwart Gradius fan. I'm quite jealous ! That Gradius 2 LP just kills me..

I've got a Vulcan Venture (U.S. Gradius 2) board and while it's amazing to play on a cab, my favorite version is, oddly enough, the Sharp X68000 version, basically because of the MIDI audio. It sounds like an orchestra! And if you've got an RGB monitor it looks pretty sweet in 15Khz mode.


Thank you sir. Nice! I'd love a Gradius 2 PCB and it's a lot more stable than the Gradius 1 Bubble System. Though I stopped collecting arcade boards because I've had one too many rare ones die on me :( Yeah the x68000 is a fantastic platform for most games (minus R-Type lol). The tri-sync feature of the Sharp CRT monitor is a nice touch too. Too bad not all the games support 15khz mode.

On a side note... speaking of Gradius collectibles, the other day I just won a super rare and elusive Gradius coin! Been after one for years

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v337/jviloria/AAA_gradius/BeFunky%20Collagefhjfg2_zpslyokha9w.jpg~original


Awesome collection, and thanks for the great post! No doubt it was amazing to play Famicom Gradius II when it was new.

Also, thank you for that info on the android remake of Salamander.



Parallaxscroll, thanks for posting the video of the remastered Salamander HD. DAMN does this game look and sound great, why oh why doesn't get this thing a physical release on a console? I'd be all over it. It is fantastic.

Stealthlurker, GREAT stuff. Wonderful. I love those jackets!

Thanks! Yeah it's sad that games like these only get a show on the mobile platform. The Salamander game is quite impressive and could be a nice "standard" game on it's own. Even a steam release would be great. But yeah a physical would be awesome. Maybe even a budget combo on a disc with new Salamander and Contra Evolution haha.



Now I need to find safe APK download sites for Contra and Salamander.

Go for the "PC" version of Contra Evolution. It's a much better experience. The faster firing rate really, really makes a difference along with not having to go through hoops to map to physical controls. It also has more interesting features between levels.

[Graham Mitchell]

Dat Gradius coin! You're killin' me, dude.

[delafro]

Been really enjoying this thread for one of my favorite games- surprised that no one's really mentioned the soundtrack by Motoaki Furukawa, which is downright fantastic.

Here's the PC Engine CD Version (Stay tuned til around 20:55, you can hear the excellent music from the animated intro):


https://youtu.be/UFWybv_9Mwk

And the Famicom version, for comparison (Of course the sound wizards of Konami Kukeiha Club did a great job with it):


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6AsdnSKtws

Also Egg Music has the X68000 version soundtrack available for purchase. It includes the FM, SC-55 MIDI, and MT-32 MIDI+FM versions. In particular the MT-32 MIDI+FM is fantastic, and it's highly recommended to anyone that would be interested:

http://www.amusement-center.com/project/emusic/records/emca0024.html

http://www.amusement-center.com/project/emusic/records/image/album_0024_l.jpg

[fahlim003]

I used to like the Famicom Gradius 2, but that was before I had much exposure with the arcade original. I didn't care for it much afterward, then the FC AC modification came out a few years ago, which surpasses the original port in many respects.


https://youtu.be/jJVRKMEvmOM

[Niku-Sama]

I was about to order this game, plus lagrange point off of one of my favorite importers on ebay since they were both under $30 but then I found out the NES mini was being discontinued and luckily I was able to pick one up today so....

i'll load them to it and try it that way and if I still really like them i'll probably still order them

[Tanooki]

Unless you're shoving like retroarch on there forget that idea. The Nintendo made emulator won't run Lagrange Point, not even sure it would run Gradius II either. I know the VRC4(Castlevania 3) and VRC6 (Lagrange Point) are not supported. I never dug much into what Japanese special mapper work or not with it, but many appear not to, and even the US version of a Sunsoft mapper won't run so Return of the Joker is out.