Gradius Gaiden

Nearly anyone who's owned an NES at one point or another in their life (or a Super NES, for that matter) has heard of Konami's classic shooter Gradius. Well now, six years since the last edition (Gradius 3 for the Super NES), the company is back with an all- new version for the PlayStation--Gradius Gaiden.

Gradius Gaiden is the first game in the series to feature two-player simultaneous play. There are four ships to choose from (Vic Viper, Lord British. Jade Knight and Falchion Beta), each with its own unique special weapons and missiles. After choosing your ship, you choose from one of four different Barrier units (Shield, Guard, Force Field or Limit), and then it's off to battle through the game's nine absolutely gorgeous stages. Each weapon can now be powered up twice, for extra power, and you can even edit your Gauge if you want to rearrange the order in which your ship's power-ups become available.

Like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Gradius Gaiden is a fantastic update to a classic series, and fortunately, also like Castlevania, the chances of it reaching the U.S. are very good. In fact, just before we went to press, Konami announced that both Gradius Gaiden and the recently released Salamander Deluxe Pack would be coming to the States in one package this December. Woo-hoo!