Gradius III
System: SNES
Release Date: August 23rd, 1991
Developer: Konami
Publisher: Konami
Genre: Shoot ‘em Up
Blast away at everything in your path once again in Gradius III! Bacterion was defeated the last time you came blob to ship with it. But it’s been centuries and the threat is back. You, a model Gradian citizen, know all about the history of the fights with Bacterion and though you prefer peace, it’s time for war… Hop into the $100 zillion Modulated Artillery Exalter and fight through 10 stages. Hopefully you have lots of skill and plenty of luck (or even a Konami code or two). Can you save the galaxy again?
You begin by choosing your powerup layout. There are four options of combinations of missile type, double gun, and laser. If you don’t care for any of these, you can edit your own layout, which allows you to choose how your options behave, your shield type, and your special ability. During gameplay, you capture orange power boost pods that move your selection bar on the bottom of the screen. I find it very difficult to get anything done without at least one speed up, preferably more. Then you can pick up missiles or choose which weapon you want to power up to. Options are incredibly important and you can have up to four of them flying with you. Be careful for the enemy that can steal them away, because that sucks.
Levels require an intense amount of memorization. If you don’t know where the enemies are coming from, you are going to die over and over again. This is one of those games that expects you have nothing else to play for months at a time, which could very well have been true back in 1991. I’m not even going to pretend I played without time travel. I gave it the old college try for the first few levels, but realized I’d never reach the later levels without cheating.
Many stages are very similar to the original Gradius. You fly to the right and shoot whatever enemies come on screen. The opening of the level has a gauntlet of baddies that you can kill to powerup. Then you enter the level proper and things get more difficult. There are enemies everywhere shooting at you from every angle. There are also environmental hazards you need to watch out for. Slowdown and flickering can be atrocious, though the slowdown is probably helpful in the end by giving you a bit more reaction time.
The end of each level has a boss that requires some precise attacks and projectile avoidance. Some of them are flanked by destroyable enemies, but others shield their weak spots, making your life more difficult. There’s another Moai head level, which is very similar to the original game. Getting through each stage require Herculean patience. Oh god, a boss gauntlet… That’s not even cool. At least the final battle against Bacterion is super easy in comparison to everything else.
Graphics: 2.0
It’s easy to have too much stuff on screen at once and cause a massive amount of slow down. The actual sprites don’t feel like a 16-bit upgrade outside the bosses.
Sound: 3.5
The music is pretty rocking and the shooting is subdued, which is ideal.
Gameplay: 2.0
Being able to choose your potential power ups is cool, but good luck staying alive long enough to enjoy them.
Difficulty: 1.5
Losing your powerups is just too punishing and you have a limited number of continues, so good luck getting through without cheating.
Fun Factor: 2.0
I had fun for the first couple levels, then got frustrated and decided that time travel would increase my enjoyment.
Overall Rating: 2.2
Gradius III earns a C+. This doesn’t feel like a huge upgrade over other titles in the series and I can’t say I’m stoked about it, but it’s decent.