Gradius

Manufacturer: Konami
Year: 1985
Class: Wide Release
Genre: Shooter
Type: Videogame

Monitor:

Orientation: Horizontal
Type: Raster: Standard Resolution
CRT: Color

Conversion Class: JAMMA
Number of Simultaneous Players: 1
Maximum number of Players: 2
Gameplay: Alternating
Control Panel Layout: Single Player Ambidextrous
Controls:

Joystick: 8-way
Buttons: 3 [Fire|Bomb|Select Power-Up]

Sound: Amplified Mono (one channel)

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Gradius Description

This is a horizontally scrolling shoot-em-up where the player destroys waves of oncoming enemies.

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Cabinet Information

The cabinet art has a picture of the Vic Viper flying towards a large enemy structure while dodging laser fire.

Game Introduction

This was one of the first games that allowed the player to choose what weapon power-ups were added to the ship.

Game Play

Waves of enemies are destroyed and levels are completed by destroying a guardian. If a whole wave of enemies is destroyed a power orb is released that, when collected, increases an indicator at the bottom of the screen enabling the player to select various power-ups such as bombs, speedup, lasers, and orbitals that mirror the players movements. Game difficulty increases depending on how many power-ups the player has, so sometimes it is advantageous to not power-up your ship too much.

Miscellaneous

This game is known in Europe as Nemesis.

CAPS/VAPS Arcade Census

There are 6,451 members of the Classic Arcade Preservation Society / Video Arcade Preservation Society, 3,703 whom participate in our arcade census project of games owned, wanted, or for sale. Census data currently includes 60,890 machines (3,615 unique titles).

Uncommon - There are 8 known instances of this machine owned by Gradius collectors. Of these, it is a conversion in which game circuit boards (and possibly cabinet graphics) have been placed in (and on) another game cabinet, and 7 of them are only circuit boards which a collector could put into a generic case if desired.

This game ranks a 5 on a scale out of 100 (100 = most commonly seen, 1=least common) in popularity based on census ownership records.

Wanted - No members have added this machine to their wish list. Please note that many collectors are not members or do not list their desires here, and it is likely that a number of collectors might purchase this machine if offered it at the right price. There are 2 VAPS members looking for Gradius board sets.

This game ranks a 5 on a scale out of 100 (100 = most commonly seen, 1=least common) in popularity based on census want list records.

For Sale - There is one VAPS member with an extra Gradius circuit board for sale. VAPS members are totally independent of VAPS and the International Arcade Museum, and we are unable to recommend, endorce, or guarantee any person or company selling games or game parts.

Rarity is NOT necessarily an indication of value. Some common games show up as very rare here because collectors don't want them even though arcade operators might be sitting on tons of them in warehouses, while some fairly scarce games are grabbed by collectors every time they show up.
Additionally, some games made in the last 5 years are still making money for operators and are thus not yet affordable to the typical collector.
In particular, since VAPS started out focusing on videogames, statistics for other types of machines should not (yet) be an indication of scarcity.
For a clue to value, look at absolute numbers of owners and potential owners above, compare a ratio of how many people want this game vs. how many people have this game (0%) and then click on the eBay links to help determine an accurate price range.

Trivia

In Japan, the game spawned a couple of spoofs called Parodius Da! and its sequel Gokujyo Parodius. The games' graphics were made to be "cute" and the enemies were changed to cats, penguins, etc.

eBay Listings

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TODAY'S PICKS FOR:
Gradius

1. Gradius Jamma Arcade Pcb Marquee / Header
Auction ends in: 3 weeks, 6 days
eBay Stores (Fixed Price):
$19.99

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Gradius - Title screen image

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