Gradius V - Revision history

ADR: /* Weapon Edit */

2025-12-30T22:57:42Z

Weapon Edit

ADR at 20:06, 30 December 2025

2025-12-30T20:06:24Z

ADR at 19:07, 30 December 2025

2025-12-30T19:07:56Z

PEG: /* Announcer */

2025-12-21T08:41:49Z

Announcer

PEG: /* Announcer */

2025-12-20T22:16:49Z

Announcer

PEG at 21:55, 20 December 2025

2025-12-20T21:55:27Z

PEG at 04:56, 18 December 2025

2025-12-18T04:56:23Z

PEG at 06:48, 30 November 2025

2025-11-30T06:48:50Z

PEG at 05:12, 27 November 2025

2025-11-27T05:12:15Z

BKR: PEG has been kind enough to confirm the Konami code works in later loops, not just loop 1 as some sites have suggested, and that 20 or 30 hz autofire with the basic laser is very useful on small targets, but is still beaten out by holding the laser button and dealing with the periodic gaps you get with Type 1 and Type 3.

2025-11-24T16:58:44Z

PEG has been kind enough to confirm the Konami code works in later loops, not just loop 1 as some sites have suggested, and that 20 or 30 hz autofire with the basic laser is very useful on small targets, but is still beaten out by holding the laser button and dealing with the periodic gaps you get with Type 1 and Type 3.

@@ Line 185: / Line 185: @@
 * '''Mega Crush:'''
 Instead of a defensive barrier, this allows you to clear the screen of enemies that die in 1 hit as will as clearing all bullets. This appears to have the same effect as the blue items that occasionally appear, except that it can be used freely at any time when your upgrade is on the ? icon. Enemies killed with Mega Crush (or the blue item) will not give score. Losing access to a defensive shield isn't that big of a deal in a game where your hitbox is quite small, but Force Field and Shield are still typically a lot more popular. Potentially very useful, but Force Field is overwhelmingly more popular for soaking accidental hits, and is better for scoring purposes since every enemy killed by Mega Crush will unfortunately not award you points.
 == Hitbox ==

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 Gradius V (グラディウスV) is a horizontal-scrolling shoot-em-up developed by Treasure and G.Rev in 2004.
 == Gameplay Overview ==
@@ Line 317: / Line 319: @@
 | 8+ || You're a living legend
 |}
 [[Category:Horizontal_orientation]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:07, 30 December 2025
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	{{VideoIndex}}		{{VideoIndex}}
		+
		+	[[Category:Horizontal_orientation]]
		+	[[Category:Option_mechanic]]
		+	[[Category:Upgrade_bar_mechanic]]
		+	[[Category:Environmental_hazard_mechanic]]

@@ Line 293: / Line 293: @@
 == Announcer ==
-Gradius V features an announcer that gives your encouragement (or shames you) when you get a game over depending on how many stages you have cleared on 1 credit.  Note: On "Game Start" mode, when you get a game over and continue, it will reset the stages cleared to 0.
+Gradius V features an announcer that gives you encouragement (or shames you) when you get a game over depending on how many stages you have cleared on 1 credit.  Note: On "Game Start" mode, when you get a game over and continue, it will reset the stages cleared to 0.
 {| class="wikitable"

@@ Line 293: / Line 293: @@
 == Announcer ==
-Gradius V features an announcer that gives your encouragement (or shames you) when you get a game over depending on how many stages you have cleared on 1 credit.
+Gradius V features an announcer that gives your encouragement (or shames you) when you get a game over depending on how many stages you have cleared on 1 credit.  Note: On "Game Start" mode, when you get a game over and continue, it will reset the stages cleared to 0.
 {| class="wikitable"
@@ Line 315: / Line 315: @@
 | 7 || Close, but not close enough
 |-
-| 8 || You're a living legend
+| 8+ || You're a living legend
 |}

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:55, 20 December 2025
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	Beacon (Stage 7 Midboss) - Adds additional forward lasers to it's attacks (4 instead of 2).		Beacon (Stage 7 Midboss) - Adds additional forward lasers to it's attacks (4 instead of 2).

		+	== Announcer ==
		+
		+	Gradius V features an announcer that gives your encouragement (or shames you) when you get a game over depending on how many stages you have cleared on 1 credit.
		+
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+	\|-
		+	! Stages Cleared !! Announcer Says
		+	\|-
		+	\| 0 \|\| Come on, we're just getting started
		+	\|-
		+	\| 1 \|\| You need some practice
		+	\|-
		+	\| 2 \|\| Try Again
		+	\|-
		+	\| 3 \|\| Brush up on your skills
		+	\|-
		+	\| 4 \|\| You're just some more space debris
		+	\|-
		+	\| 5 \|\| You lose
		+	\|-
		+	\| 6 \|\| What the hell
		+	\|-
		+	\| 7 \|\| Close, but not close enough
		+	\|-
		+	\| 8 \|\| You're a living legend
		+	\|}

	== Video Replay Index ==		== Video Replay Index ==

@@ Line 135: / Line 135: @@
 * '''E-Laser:'''
-The charge shot of the game. Instead of rapid firing, holding the rapid shot button causes this to charge up. There's no distinct visual indication when it's fully charged except for the little glowing balls getting particularly close together, so it takes a bit of practice to learn to use, but releasing a fully charged shot with all 4 Multiples hitting will generally instantly kill most boss cores. The fully charged shot is also super wide and has some ability to pierce and hit cores even if your aim isn't perfect. This weapon is highly specialized for tearing through bosses and makes bosses hilariously easy, at the cost of stages being far more challenging.
+The charge shot of the game. Instead of rapid firing, holding the rapid shot button causes this to charge up. You will know the weapon is fully charged by observing when the light blue halos around your options stop growing in size.  Also, the little glowing balls at the tip of your options will get particularly close together, forming a single large glowing ball.  It takes about 5 seconds for it to fully charge. Releasing a fully charged shot with all 4 Multiples hitting will generally instantly kill most boss cores. The fully charged shot is also super wide and has some ability to pierce and hit cores even if your aim isn't perfect. This weapon is highly specialized for tearing through bosses and makes bosses hilariously easy, at the cost of stages being far more challenging.
 For stages, you'll need to plan where to fire your charge shots, and what missiles you'll use as those will be your main source of damage while charging. Uncharged shots are quite weak and can't be rapidly fired due even if you tap the button quickly as there's a limit to 1 shot onscreen at a time, making it difficult to clear small enemies. Using this with Spread Bomb limits your coverage but gives you a lot of damage, using this with 2-Way Missile, Photon Torpedo, or Flying Torpedo reduces damage but makes it a bit easier to hit things while charging. A difficult laser type intended for experts, but that pays off massively by trivializing otherwise tricky boss fights.

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:48, 30 November 2025
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	[[File:Hitbox.jpg\|Hitbox Display for Gradius V]]		[[File:Hitbox.jpg\|Hitbox Display for Gradius V]]
		+
		+	== Loops ==
		+	Gradius V has infinite* loops similar to previous games in the series. Loops add additional difficulty including more aggressive enemies, new and more challenging Boss attacks, enemy and barrier revenge bullets, more frequent option hunter appearances.
		+
		+	*- There is some evidence that the game actually has a possible kill screen but it's extremely deep into the game (~270 loops) and only encountered so far via emulator play.
		+
		+	=== Zako Revenge Bullets ===
		+	Zako enemies have a chance to spawn revenge bullets when killed based on the loop you are on:
		+
		+	Loop 2: 33%
		+
		+	Loop 3: 50%
		+
		+	Loop 4+: 100%
		+
		+	=== Large Enemy Revenge Bullets ===
		+	Some larger enemies (Zelos Forces, Monkey Eye, Big Core, etc) and zako spawners will explode in rings of bullets (changes depending on difficulty).
		+
		+	Very Easy, Easy, & Normal difficulty:
		+
		+	Loop 1: No rings
		+
		+	Loop 2: 1 Ring of 16 bullets
		+
		+	Loop 3+: 2 Rings of 16 bullets (32 total)
		+
		+
		+	Hard difficulty:
		+
		+	Loop 1: Alternates between 1 ring of bullets and no rings
		+
		+	Loop 2: Alternates between 2 rings of bullets and 1 ring
		+
		+	Loop 3+: 2 Rings of bullets
		+
		+
		+	Very Hard difficulty:
		+
		+	Loop 1: 1 Rings of bullets
		+
		+	Loop 2+: 2 Rings of bullets
		+
		+	=== Barrier Revenge Bullets ===
		+	These come from destroying the barriers covering a core of a boss (or other large enemies like Big Core on stage 1). They increase based on the following table (when it shows a .5 that means it alternates between two values, ex: 6.5 means 7 bullets for the first barrier then 6 for the next). Loop 8 is where it maxes out for Very Easy, Easy, and Normal. Hard and Very Hard max out a bit earlier and with more bullets.
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+	\|-
		+	! Loop-Stage !! Very Easy !! Easy !! Normal !! Hard !! Very Hard
		+	\|-
		+	\| 1-1\|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 4.5 \|\| 5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 1-6\|\| 0\|\| 0\|\| 4.5\|\| 5\|\| 6.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 2-1\|\| 0\|\| 0\|\| 4.5\|\| 5\|\| 6.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 2-6 \|\| 0\|\| 4.5\|\| 5\|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 3-1 \|\| 0\|\| 4.5 \|\| 5\|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 3-6 \|\| 4.5\|\| 5\|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5\|\| 10
		+	\|-
		+	\| 4-1 \|\| 4.5\|\| 5\|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5\|\| 10
		+	\|-
		+	\| 4-6 \|\| 5\|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5\|\| 10\|\| 12.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 5-1 \|\| 5\|\| 6.5 \|\| 8.5\|\| 10\|\| 12.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 5-6 \|\| 6.5\|\| 8.5\|\| 10 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 6-1 \|\| 6.5 \|\| 8.5 \|\| 10 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 6-6 \|\| 8.5\|\| 10\|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 7-1 \|\| 8.5 \|\| 10 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 7-6\|\| 10\|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 8-1\|\| 10\|\| 12.5 \|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5 \|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 8-6 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5 \|\| 24.5 \|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 9-1\|\| 10 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5\|\| 24.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 9-6\|\| 12.5 \|\| 16.5 \|\| 24.5 \|\| 24.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 10-1\|\| 10 \|\| 12.5\|\| 16.5 \|\| 24.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|-
		+	\| 10-6\|\| 12.5 \|\| 16.5 \|\| 24.5 \|\| 24.5\|\| 24.5
		+	\|}
		+
		+	The barrier revenge bullets from the Stage 5 boss have different behavior, it's either on or off with 4.5 average bullets (never more even on higher loops). It also appears to fire them based on rank and not just loop unlike the other bosses. Ex: You can reach the loop 2 stage 5 boss on Normal with no powerups and it won't fire revenge bullets but if you are fully powered it will.
		+
		+	=== Boss Changes in loop 2+ ===
		+
		+	Big Core Mk 1.2 (Stage 1 Boss) - Adds an additional core and traps you inside.
		+
		+	Big Core Mk IV (Stage 2 Boss) - Adds lasers to it's initial attack, limiting your movement even more.
		+
		+	Covered Core Mk II (Stage 6 Boss) - Adds additional cores (1 additional core for loops 2-6, then 2 additional cores each for loop 7 and 8). At loop 8 it reaches a max of 14 cores. This applies to all difficulties.
		+
		+	Beacon (Stage 7 Midboss) - Adds additional forward lasers to it's attacks (4 instead of 2).
		+

	== Video Replay Index ==		== Video Replay Index ==

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 == Konami Code ==
-A cheat code that appears in many console ports of the Gradius series, usually to give you a much higher life stock than normal. In this game, instead, it's used to immediately powerup your ship to full power. The Konami code in this game works by pausing, then inputting the following: '''Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, (L1, R1) OR (L2, R2).''' This gives you a full set of Multiples, Missiles, a Force Field or Shield, and also a Laser or Double depending on the input you use. Ending the code with L1, R1 gives you Laser, and ending the code with L2, R2 gives you Double.
+A cheat code that appears in many console ports of the Gradius series, usually to give you a much higher life stock than normal. In this game, instead, it's used to immediately powerup your ship to full power. The Konami code in this game works by pausing, then inputting the following: '''Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, (L1, R1) OR (L2, R2).''' This gives you a full set of Multiples, Missiles, a Force Field or Shield or fires off a Mega Crush, a level 1 Speedup (unless you have 1 or more Speedups already), and also a Laser or Double depending on the input you use. Ending the code with L1, R1 gives you Laser, and ending the code with L2, R2 gives you Double.  The number of Konami code uses you start with is based on the difficulty selection: Very Easy=5, Easy=3, Normal=1, Hard & Very Hard=0.  You gain an additional use of the Konami code for each level you beat.  For Hard and Very Hard, you can only gain and use it a single time.
 == Controls ==

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 Gradius V features 3 selectable modes:
-* '''Game Start:''' Uses the difficulty and lives/extends setting you selected under the options, allows for continues and multiplayer, score is saved to the Ranking screen. Every hour of playtime adds 1 credit to your starting stock of credits, until 17 hours of playtime which unlocks Free Play mode.
+* '''Game Start:''' Uses the difficulty and lives/extends setting you selected under the options, allows for continues and multiplayer, score is saved to the Ranking screen. Every hour of playtime adds 1 credit to your starting stock of credits, until 17 hours of playtime which unlocks Free Play mode. Use of the Konami code is allowed in this mode, in any loop.
 Note that when playing multiplayer, you can only have a maximum of 4 Multiples between both players. You could split them up 2 and 2, but it's possible for one player to accidentally collect all 4 and leave the other with none, as least until they die or a Multiple thief appears.
-* '''Stage Select:''' Lets you play any stage on any loop you've accessed. Infinite continues, the game ends when you clear the stage. Unusually, you're forced to start with no powerups whatsoever, but you can pause and input the Konami code so you're not forced to start a late stage with no Multiples whatsoever. Pause, then input the following: '''Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, (L1, R1) OR (L2, R2).''' Ending the code with L1, R1 gives you Laser, and ending the code with L2, R2 gives you Double.
+* '''Stage Select:''' Lets you play any stage on any loop you've accessed. Infinite continues, the game ends when you clear the stage. Unusually, you're forced to start with no powerups whatsoever, but you can pause and input the Konami code so you're not forced to start a late stage with no Multiples whatsoever.
 * '''Score Attack:''' Single player only, uses the default difficulty and lives/extends setting, and does not allow you to use continues. Unusually, scores obtained here '''do not save to the Ranking screen''', and instead you're given a high score screen that includes a code you could input into the Gradius V website to submit your score online.
 The menu can be controlled with either the controller in port 1 or port 2. The port you use determines which player side you're on, with P1 being blue and P2 being red. Other than the colour and what side the score is displayed on, there's no functional difference between P1 side and P2 side.
 There are a total of 8 stages per loop, though the last level is a short, more difficult rehash of level 2 with no boss at the end (which likely explains why the back of the box claims there's only 7 stages!). The game loops infinitely, with the score screen indicating how far you've gotten as [LOOP#]-[STAGE#]. Unlike earlier Gradius games, you respawn immediately if you die by default, unless you turn on the Revival Start option which then causes you to respawn at the last checkpoint you reached.
 == Controls ==
@@ Line 119: / Line 124: @@
 The thin, standard laser all 4 of the preconfigured shot types use. Hold the shot button and it will fire a long, super thin beam that pierces weak enemies. There's a brief delay between shots as it fires, but if using Direction or Rotation Multiples, the ones fired from your Multiples actually fire as a solid, continuous beam, making them a bit more damaging and providing better coverage against small enemies trying to ram into you.
-It's not terribly exciting or effective. The damage is decent, but it's so thin that it's really difficult to use. Arguably the worst of the laser choices, the other three that you can use with Weapon Edit are generally far more effective, especially with Freeze or Spacing Multiples that fire this laser with a gap in between shots. Note that you can actually rapid fire this if you manually tap the shot button, which makes it good at clearing popcorn or shootable bullets as you don't have to worry about the periodic gap in the lasers you get by holding the button. But you'll have to deal with rapidly tapping the button yourself.
+It's not terribly exciting or effective. The damage is decent, but it's so thin that it's really difficult to use. Arguably the worst of the laser choices, the other three that you can use with Weapon Edit are generally far more effective, especially with Freeze or Spacing Multiples that fire this laser with a gap in between shots. Note that you can actually rapid fire this without the aforementioned gaps if you manually tap the shot button, or if you use a controller with external autofire, which makes it good at clearing popcorn or shootable bullets as you don't have to worry about the periodic gap in the lasers you get by holding the button. But you'll have to deal with rapidly tapping the button yourself or you'll need a rapid fire controller to use this, and even with 20 hz or 30 hz autofire the damage is still higher on durable targets (boss cores, the stage 5 asteroids, the stage 6 goo) if you simply hold the button down. If you're using Type 2 Direction or Type 4 Rotation multiples then there's no real reason to tap the laser button rapidly as the solid beams they fire are far more useful.
 * '''Ripple:'''
-Slightly weaker than the standard laser but vastly more effective due to much wider coverage, and multiple shots being able to easily overlap each other even when your Multiples are spread out at a distance. The difference in damage really isn't that significant as combined with Spread Bomb, you can still achieve very fast kills on bosses, and have way more spread to deal with small enemies than you would with the normal laser. The Ripple also becomes wide enough as it travels that it has some unusual piercing properties, where its shots can actually hit the core through enemy armor, making it just generally very useful for anything. Highly recommended and easy to use.
+Slightly weaker than the standard laser but vastly more effective due to much wider coverage, and multiple shots being able to easily overlap each other even when your Multiples are spread out at a distance. The difference in damage really isn't that significant as combined with Spread Bomb, you can still achieve very fast kills on bosses, and have way more spread to deal with small enemies than you would with the normal laser. The Ripple also becomes wide enough as it travels that it has some unusual piercing properties, where its shots can actually hit the core through enemy armor, making it just generally very useful for anything. The slight damage reduction compared to the standard thin laser is well worth Ripple's other advantages, especially if you don't like the gap between shots the standard laser has with Freeze or Spacing Multiples. Highly recommended and easy to use.
 * '''Fire Blaster:'''
-An ultra powerful flamethrower with rather limited horizontal range, this laser option is a bit tricky to use if you're not comfortable with getting close to enemies, but is devastatingly effective if you take the time to practice with it. It's useful with nearly all Multiple types, though Freeze and Spacing are perhaps the most interesting to use it with. Get your Multiples in close, and watch as difficult enemies are ripped apart.
+An ultra powerful flamethrower with rather limited horizontal range, this laser option is a bit tricky to use if you're not comfortable with getting close to enemies, but is devastatingly effective if you take the time to practice with it. It's useful with nearly all Multiple types, though Freeze and Spacing are perhaps the most interesting to use it with. Get your Multiples in close, and watch as difficult enemies are ripped apart. Note that later on in the game, particularly in later loops, large enemies and the walls you need to shoot through in front of boss cores tend to release revenge bullets when destroyed, so you need to be prepared to evade those. But they can be destroyed so quickly and easily that the risk is manageable and well worth the reward. Something like Freeze Multiples work great for mitigating this by allowing you to extend your range as far as your Multiples allow.
-This is unquestionably the top tier weapon against the asteroids in stage 5 and the green goo balls in stage 6, arguably some of the most difficult obstacles in the game. It also instantly clears out the small green orbs in stage 4 that occasionally get fired at you. Seriously, this melts asteroids far quicker and easier than any other laser, so if you're having trouble there, this weapon is highly recommended and it's not too difficult to learn to use it despite its limited horizontal range.
+This is also unquestionably the top tier weapon against the asteroids in stage 5 and the green goo balls in stage 6, arguably some of the most difficult obstacles in the game. It also easily clears out the small green orbs in stage 4 that occasionally get fired at you. Seriously, this melts asteroids far quicker and easier than any other laser, so if you're having trouble there, this weapon is highly recommended and it's not too difficult to learn to use it despite its limited horizontal range.
 * '''E-Laser:'''