Gradius II

Gradius II Gofer no Yabō
Developer(s)	Konami
Publisher(s)	Konami
Designer(s)	Hiroyasu Machiguchi
Platform(s)	Arcade, Famicom, PC Engine, Sharp X68000, Virtual Console
Release	TurboGrafx-CD JPN March 24, 1988 EU May 1988 Virtual Console NA October 20, 2008
Genre(s)	Horizontal scrolling shooter
Mode(s)	Single player
Arcade system	Konami Twin 16

Gradius II (グラディウスⅡ GOFERの野望, Guradiusu Tsū Gofā no Yabō, lit. "Gradius II: The Ambition of Gofer") is a horizontally-scrolling shooter published by Konami in 1988 for video arcades.

Gradius II never saw availability in North America until the release of Gradius Collection for the PlayStation Portable, instead, the Life Force conversion of Salamander was marketed as the sequel to Gradius.

The arcade version of Gradius II was released in Europe as Vulcan Venture.

Plot

The player returns as the role of the pilot of the Vic Viper spaceship to battle the second onslaughts of the Bacterion Empire, under the new leadership of Gofer, the giant head.

Gameplay

Gradius II has kept the gameplay from the original game, but infused it with enhancements brought from the spin-off, Salamander, and the Japanese arcade release of Life Force. This is primarily evident in two of the weapons configurations that are selectable.

Another first in the series was the inclusion of the "boss rush" (also known as "boss parade" or "boss alley"), levels designed entirely with only boss confrontations.

Weapons

Gradius II retains the selection bar from Gradius, but now the player can choose between four different weapon configurations and progressions. All schemes have speed-up and multiples (Options), but have differing 'Missile', 'Double' (laser), and 'Laser' weapons. The player can have at most four multiples. Choosing another multiple after four will make the four multiples to move around the spacecraft until they encounter an obstacle and stop revolving. Additionally, there are also two types of shielding to choose from: shield and forcefield. The shield option adds more durability, but only for the front of the Vic Viper, while the forcefield adds protection for the entire spacecraft, albeit only against three hits.

Ports

The game was first ported to the Nintendo Family Computer in 1988. It was never released in North America. The game also features a mapper chip which enhanced some of the game's graphics and sounds.

The game was then ported in 1992 to the PC Engine Super CD system. The graphics remained unaltered and one additional stage was added that is similar to the temple stage in the NES version of Life Force and the first stage of Gradius III. Additionally a sound test was added.

The MSX1 version of Gradius 2 (released as Nemesis 2 in the European market) was an original sequel produced specifically for the platform and unrelated to the arcade version. A port of the arcade version of Gradius II was later released under the title of Gofer no Yabō Episode II (ゴーファーの野望 エピソードII, Gōfā no Yabō Episōdo Tsū, "Gofer's Ambition: Episode II") in Japan, or Nemesis III: Eve of Destruction in Europe. The MSX1 version of Gradius 2 would later be remade as Nemesis '90 for the X68000 with improved graphics.

Gradius II was later re-released in the Japanese exclusive Gradius Deluxe Pack for the Sony PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Microsoft Windows in 1996, and for the first time a worldwide release on the Gradius Collection for the Sony PSP.

The game was re released on the Wii's Virtual Console service in North America on October 20, 2008.

External links

• Review and guide of Gradius II
• Gradius II at the Killer List of Videogames