In a time where beat’em-ups and sport games reign supreme, space shooters never receives any props. During the 8-bit era, equality was shared amongst several gaming genres. And we’re sure somewhere in your NES collection lies Konami’s Gradius. This horizontal shooter was an upgrade from the traditional space shooters of its time, incorporating a new style of upgradable weaponry and a sick spaceship carrier with a kick-ass name: The Vic Viper.
“Shoot the Core” was the saying constantly preached. Battling through swarms of enemies onscreen and creating strategies on which upgradable weapons are best fit for each level is just a small portion of the game’s fun factor. The intense boss battles made you launch your NES controller at your screen and the soundtrack was ahead of the NES class.
Gradius’ influence on the space-shooter genre is one of enormous relevance. The team behind Konami’s classic is the same team that brought us all the 8-bit Contra, TMNT and Castlevania titles. How can you go wrong here? Oh yea, we forgot, this was the first game to introduce the legendary Konami code. Yea, you know which code we’re talking about.
