Gradius IV

Gradius IV is the fourth arcade installment in a series of scrolling shooter video games developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo. It was preceded by Gradius III, released in 1989, although spinoffs had been released prior to it such as Gradius Gaiden. This title brings a considerable graphical upgrade, particularly with the use of colored lighting. In addition, there have been several additions and removals to the vaulted weapons system; specifically, the edit mode has been removed and an online ranking system was added.

Released: 4 February 1999
Platforms: Arcade
Genres: Arcade Shoot 'em up Shooter
Developers: Konami
Publishers: Konami
Modes: Multiplayer Single-player
Perspective: Side view
Themes: Action Science fiction
Country: Japan

About

Gradius IV (known as Gradius IV: Fukkatsu in Japan) is the fourth arcade installment in a series of scrolling shooter video games developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo. Released in 1999, it was preceded by Gradius III, although spinoffs had been released prior to it such as Gradius Gaiden. This title brings a considerable graphical upgrade, particularly with the use of colored lighting. In addition, there have been several additions and removals to the vaulted weapons system; specifically, the edit mode has been removed and an online ranking system was added.

›Story

A distant memory....

The doomsday planet Bacterian has long been forgotten and Planet Gradius is enjoying a time of restored peace and prosperity. However their worst nightmare is about to become reality... again.... Suddenly, out of nowhere, a massive attack force appears, overwhelming the Gradius Defense Forces.

Just when things are looking hopeless, a lone fighter screams across the sky. The battle for freedom is joined once more.....

Keywords

shoot 'em up
death
shmup
high score
explosion
upgradeable weapons
collectibles
checkpoints
auto-saving
planet jumping
shoot the core

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The core gameplay of Gradius IV remains relatively unchanged. However, several changes were made on the weapons system in the transition from Gradius III. First of all, the edit mode has been completely eliminated, as are the "Snake Option" (s.option), the "Reduce" shield type, and the seventh powerup category. The seventh powerup category was the one that was labeled "!" and would produce detrimental results, such as reducing the speed or eliminating the weapons of the ship.

In this game there are a total of six configurations, the first four of which are migrated from Gradius II. The two new configurations are as follows:

Development

Gradius IV was the creation of Konami designers Ashida Hiroyuki, known for his work on Gradius II and Detana!! TwinBee, and Yoro Daisuke, who assisted with production of Bishi Bashi Champion. Daisuke felt that the game was his first "important" video game project as it was the first video game he was involved in from the start of production, which he claims made development a difficult endeavor. The team often drew their ideas on a whiteboard, which was used as a reference during work.

Development was pressured as the team wanted to make a Gradius game worthy of having the name "IV"; Yoro recalls that the production staff felt indifferent with many of its mechanics, with some having pride in them and others wishing they had been done differently. Ashida joined the project as director, which was met with a somewhat negative reaction from employees working on it.

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Gradius IV as the second most successful arcade game of March 1999.

Home versions of Gradius IV were mostly positive. In their review for Gradius III & IV, IGN called its graphics colorful and its backgrounds detailed, although said it was "still a bit behind the curve back then". Gamers' Republic agreed, going further to say that the PlayStation 2 port was superior than the arcade version through its vibrant backgrounds, fast-paced gameplay and impressive boss fights. Retro Gamer magazine was much more negative towards the game in their 2007 retrospective, saying that its ugly graphics and "hideously" unfair stage designs made Gradius IV an "utter catastrophe of a game". They stated the PlayStation 2 conversion was slightly improved thanks to its save-state feature, but that overall it was a major disappointment compared to previous Gradius game.