Classic Shoot-Em-Up Gradius Comes to Modern Platforms in Gradius Origins

Konami recently revealed that classic shmup Gradius is coming to PC and major consoles on Aug. 7, 2025, as part of a digital collection of seven related games with 18 different regional versions. Physical versions are also currently available via pre-order and are made by Limited Run.

Gradius Origins includes the title game plus its two sequels, Life Force (a North American retitle of Salamandar), Salamander I, II and III. Part three is a brand new game exclusive to this collection.

“The collection also introduces Salamander III, a new entry to the franchise in over 15 years. Salamander III’s storyline takes place after the events of the Salamander Wars that played out in Salamander (1986),” Konami said in an official press release. 

“Staying true to the 1990s aesthetics of GRADIUS titles, Salamander III features 2D sprites and backgrounds as players traverse different stages using power-ups from the Salamander series.”

Shoot-Em-Up Action

Gradius was first released in 1986 on Famicom (NES in North America and Europe) in Japan. It then appeared in arcades across the world, but retitled as Nemesis. The original Gradius is also well-known for introducing the iconic Konami cheat code.

Pausing the game and pressing up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start on the controller gave players the full set of power-ups, except speed and lasers. The Konami code was used in so many games after that it became virtually a staple.

Gradius II came out in 1988 and followed the same basic principle of moving from left to right, collecting power-ups, and blasting weird alien bad guys. It did, however, improve on the original’s graphics and sound.

Gradius III is also included in Gradius Origins but, surprisingly, the other sequel, Gradius Gaiden, does not. Although this hit arcades, a port for US consoles was abandoned. Gradius IV and V also don’t appear in this collection, although they were originally released on PlayStation.

Old Games With New Tricks

Whether gamers want to play one of the included Gradius games or the Salamander spin-offs, Konami has added modern features common to this kind of reissue. That is, competitive online leaderboards, rewind abilities, quick save/load functions, reduced hit detection (effectively making the games easier), plus a lot more.