Latest news with #M2
Miami Herald
9 hours ago
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Should You Buy a New Car Before Tariff Price Hikes This Summer?
Auto tariffs have been in effect for a few months, so what's the big deal? So far, car manufacturers have been footing the bill. New car prices haven't gone up significantly yet, thanks to several factors, including dealership lots still holding pre-tariff stocks. But most experts agree this situation won't last forever. It may not even last a few more months, with prices likely to rise once 2026 models hit showrooms this summer. Here's what you need to know before making your next vehicle purchase. The current tariff on imported cars stands at 15-25%, dependent on where manufacturing is based and where their parts are imported from, in addition to the pre-existing 2.5% base tariff. Even cars made in America are hit, since manufacturers still import several parts even if production is in the country. For example, nearly 80% of the vehicles Ford sells in the US are assembled in America, but it still imports about 10% of parts, resulting in high tariff burdens. Right now, car makers are essentially absorbing the cost of tariffs to maintain market share. However, manufacturers can't eat these costs indefinitely, as they are essentially paying the government from their profit margins. Industry experts Cox Automotive predict that new car prices could rise between 4-8% by the end of the year, depending on the manufacturer's tariff liability. The 25% tariff on imported vehicles will apply to nearly 80% of vehicles priced under $30,000. Expect a price increase between $1,200-$5,000 on several models across manufacturers, based on the variety of ever-changing tariff factors. By that metric, the Toyota RAV4, which currently has a starting price of $29,550 could be between $1,182-$2,364 more expensive in the coming months. The average price of new cars is set to go well over $50,000. The tariff impact isn't hitting everyone equally. The brands feeling the most pressure are those heavily reliant on imports from Mexico, Canada, and other countries. Most Affected Manufacturers: General Motors - Roughly 22% of U.S. sales are assembled in Canada and MexicoFord - Just under 15% of sales from Mexico, but with three major plants there exporting 90% of production to the U.S. Volkswagen Group - Over 43% of sales affected by tariffsNissan - Sources about 27% of its U.S. sales from Mexico, making it heavily vulnerableStellantis (Jeep, Dodge, RAM, Chrysler) - About 23% of sales sourced from Mexico; already halted production at Mexico/Canada plantsBMW - The Mexico plant produces the top-selling 3 Series, 2 Series Coupe, and M2, with nearly all output going to the U.S. Moderately Affected: Honda - Sources nearly 13% from MexicoHyundai - About 8% of sales are produced in MexicoToyota - Around 8% of sales are produced in Mexico Least Affected: Brands with significant U.S. manufacturing footprints are in a much better position. These include Toyota and Honda, which have large domestic production facilities and can avoid many of the tariff impacts on their most popular models. All signs point to new car prices going up in the summer of 2025. Industry analysts suggest that the current price stability is temporary, as manufacturers run through existing inventory and absorb costs in the short term. Manufacturers typically make midyear price adjustments over the summer months, even without the looming threat of tariffs. With more price increases expected, we're likely approaching a tipping point, one of no return. If you're in the market for a new car, the window for current pricing is closing soon. While prices will likely increase, the hope is that manufacturers will continue to offer incentives to move cars off lots. If you can wait, you might find better deals on domestically produced alternatives, though pricing on those will also see market correction. If you have your eyes set on a particular model that is affected by tariffs, now might just be the best time to get a good deal on it. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Forbes
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Gradius Origins Producer Interview—Everything You Need To Know
Konami Producer for Gradius Origins, Ryosaku Ueno Konami Gradius Origins released this week and it's pretty fantastic, but you can read my full review to see my more in-depth thoughts. Whether you're a longtime series fan or a casual shoot 'em up player, it's a collection packed full of excellent pew pew and bullet dodging. Hard to complain about that. In order to learn more about the collection's inception, development with studio M2, and long-lasting legacy, I got the chance to send Konami producer Ryosaku Ueno a few questions over email. I decided to round up most of the responses into a single post to cover everything you need to know about Gradius Origins . Gradius Origins is a large collection of over one dozen different variations of several early arcade titles (no home console versions) from the Gradius series and its spin-offs like Life Force and Salamander. In total, there are seven different games includes: Gradius, Gradius II, Gradius III, Salamander, Life Force, Salamander 2 , and Salamander III . 'Since around 2020, we had been considering creating a collection title for GRADIUS alongside existing collections such as Castlevania Anniversary Collection and Contra Anniversary Collection , rather than in Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection ," Konami producer Ryosaku Ueno said in an email. "The idea of creating a GRADIUS collection had been something that several staff members, including myself, had been planning for a long time, and with this year marking the 40th anniversary, we were finally able to realize it.' All of the games included are the arcade versions of the game and most are from the mid-late 80s. However, Salamander III is a brand-new game specifically developed and released exclusively for this collection. 'We decided to create a collection that we ourselves wanted to play," said Ueno. "The GRADIUS series has many titles, so it was impossible to include everything in one collection. Thus, we decided to make a selection. We chose to include the original arcade titles that served as the foundation of the series' Gradius Origins Game Selection Konami Since Gradius has been around for 40 years at this point, there are naturally plenty of games missing from this collection. As Ueno said, it's focused on the arcade origins, it's not intended to be an exhaustive collection of the entire series. 'We considered including GRADIUS IV and the 3D title Solar Assault, but unfortunately had to exclude them due to scheduling and cost constraints,' said Ueno. 'We did begin work on porting GRADIUS IV , but the GRADIUS IV hardware uses Power PC and Voodoo graphics cards, and to perfectly recreate the original gameplay experience—including performance issues—we would have needed to faithfully reproduce the original hardware.' A few standouts that I'd like to personally see included in future collections, if they do more of them, would be Gradius Gaiden, Gradius IV, (both of which were on the PSP collection) , Gradius V , and perhaps the lesser-known GBA-exclusive Gradius Galaxies . "Given the limited resources and time available, achieving this while ensuring a satisfying experience on the Nintendo Switch (which is likely to be the platform with the largest user base for this title) was simply too challenging," said Ueno. As someone who is a huge proponent of appreciating and understand the history of video games and having foundational knowledge in their evolution of the decades, I would consider, at the very lease, the original Gradius to be a must-play game for anyone. Beyond the fact that it's timeless and still extremely fun to this day, it's just a massively important and influential game. In our email correspondence, I asked Ueno what the core identity of Gradius was as a franchise and he listed five specific pillars: 'The innovative system allowing players to choose their own power-ups, using three buttons to play, the advanced graphics at the time, each stage featured different background music and stage concepts which are nearly unprecedented at the time, and the excellent soundtrack.' All of those elements are perfectly preserved here in Gradius Origins and they even went a step further by including developmental drawings and sketches from back in the day. Seeing the handwritten plans for stages and enemy concepts for a franchise this legendary is pretty wild. 'It is certain that this game had a significant influence on later 2D shooters,' said Ueno. 'While it may be arrogant to say that, 'Without GRADIUS ...' there would be nothing, [but] there are numerous works that have inherited the spirit of the GRADIUS series, and they continue to be created even today. This is truly a wonderful thing. It's like the origins of classical music.' "Our primary goal is to faithfully reproduce the original arcade board," said Ueno. 'We have not performed any HD conversion or remastering, such as improving the resolution. This is also M2's stance. We strive to faithfully reproduce the boards that were in operation at the time, and based on that, we add support features unique to the current era.' There is a really delicate balance to strike with these older arcade games. You want the purist that grew up popping quarters into cabinets to be happy since that's the core demographic, but you also want casual fans to be able to have fun without spending dozens of hours memorizing spawn patterns. I think they had the right approach here. "For this release, we focused on providing generous support features that would be enjoyable for casual players from that era as well as those who are experiencing the game for the first time. As with other Shot Trigger titles from M2, it was a common understanding that we would include something like Easy Mode…We also talked about age, declining reflexes, and vision issues, haha. In the end of [the] discussion, we agreed that, 'It's about time GRADIUS , especially GRADIUS III , became more player-friendly.'' With so many options available, it's possible for players of all skill and experiences levels to have a good time. Personally, I'm not an expert at this genre by any means, but I do enjoy the unique thrill they offer—particularly when I don't have to worry about running out of lives. 'There are various features such as Quicksave & Quickload, Rewind, and Invincible Mode, but the standout feature is undoubtedly the Invincible Mode," said Ueno. "In this mode, you cannot make mistakes even if you collide with enemy bullets or terrain, but the number of mistakes you make is still counted. This mode shakes the very foundation of shooting games, but it's surprisingly fun and could serve as a great steppingstone for newcomers to the series to learn the game's appeal. Even seasoned players who have played the series extensively will find it enjoyable and experience something fresh. Another feature that M2 has particularly focused on this time is the Training Mode. This allows players to set parameters such as respawn points, number of laps, and power-up states in advance, and then repeatedly practice specific sections within each stage.' Gradius Origins Screenshot Konami "When creating this collection of original titles, we reluctantly had to exclude GRADIUS IV due to production schedule, porting difficulty, and cost considerations. However, we discussed with M2's Mr. Hori and decided to create a new title, SALAMANDER III , as an additional unique point. Both M2 and I simply wanted to create a new entry in the series, rather than focusing on making a sequel. The reason a new game was added for SALAMANDER , rather than GRADIUS , is because we wanted to minimize scheduling issues, especially as the time needed for tuning the restart points within GRADIUS would have proven too difficult compared to SALAMANDER which respawns instantly. Additionally, the SALAMANDER series aligns better with our current ideal conditions of a playthrough time of approximately 15–20 minutes and six stages." Honestly, they did such a great job of making it looks, feel, and play just like an authentic entry from the 90s that I don't think a casual fan would have any idea this is a new game for this collection unless they read the main menu closely or were previously aware already. To be honest, Salamander III could very well be my personal favorite game in this whole collection if you set aside the nostalgia I've got for the original Gradius. 'The concept for SALAMANDER III is: 'What if M2 had made a sequel to SALAMANDER 2 in the late 1990s?'. Therefore, the system, the graphics, and the music are designed to evoke the atmosphere of that era. The highlights include a sense of familiarity and comfort for those who played the original, and for experienced players, a feeling of 'This is it!' The scenes fans wanted to see appear one after another, and there are also predictable yet satisfying developments and moments that will make you laugh. Various elements from SALAMANDER and SALAMANDER 2 are scattered throughout the game. Like GRADIUS ReBirth , the more knowledgeable you are in the series, the more you'll find little details that make you smile.' Gradius Origins is out now for PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC. You can check out my full review for more details on what I thought, but suffice it to say I think it's fantastic!
Forbes
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Gradius Origins Review: Shoot ‘Em Up Blast From The Past
To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of Gradius, Konami partnered with developer M2 to bring us a massive collection in the form of Gradius Origins covering the core of the series from its arcade roots in the mid-80s all the way to a brand-new spin-off entry with Salamander 3. With over a dozen different game variations across regions and platforms, plus tons of quality of life additions and historical artwork, this is a fantastic collection for hardcore and new fans alike. I can't think of many game franchises that have been around for 40-years like Gradius. That's extremely impressive and is a testament not only to Konami's longevity, but also to the innovation and quality of the franchise specifically. While Gradius is obviously not the first-ever horizontal shoot 'em up to ever grace arcades or home consoles, it's undoubtedly one of the best and it introduced several innovations. Gradius Origins Review—A Timeless Classic Returns For those not aware, the Gradius series is considered to be one of the most important and influential of all shoot 'em up games. Not only were they massively successful in their era across both arcades and home consoles, but they innovated many elements that became staples of the genre like having more control over your power-ups, mixing horizontal and vertical levels together, and just generally being extremely good games. Having more control over your power-ups adds so much strategy and complexity to the game even though it's initially a simple concept. In most other shooters at the time, enemies would drop random capsules that might change your weapon, increase your speed, give you a shield, or something along those lines. But in Gradius, the menu at the bottom of the screen is static. FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder The first capsule you pick up can be used to increase your speed, but if you save it up, you could instead upgrade your weapon or add another orb ship to follow you around and fight alongside you. There's strategy involved here because you can decide the order in which you acquire upgrades, helping add more replayability and variety. Overall, when approaching the games in this collection, it's important to remember all of them were and are designed as arcade games specifically. Meaning, it feels like there are intentional and sudden difficulty spike sprinkled throughout just often enough that you'd have been forced to sink more quarters into the cabinet just to try and clear the game. Or, in other words, the Gradius series is, and continues to be, one of the most brutally difficult game franchises of all-time and that hasn't changed here. Like, the kind of difficulty that will probably make you rage quit more than once. For a collection like this, it isn't really a big deal since you've got infinite coins at the press of a button, but needing to constantly add continues is a bit tedious. That's where the new quality-of-life enhancements come into play. For starters, every game supports rewinding. So if you find yourself backed into a corner and unable to escape without taking a hit and losing a life, you can rewind a few seconds and take a different path. However, rewinding constantly can get really annoying if you catch yourself in an unavoidable loop of mistakes (trust me, it will happen), so the often more enticing option is to play on Easy Mode. Before you scoff at the idea, all that this mode really does is shrink hit boxes and just generally make the game a bit less unforgiving. For a mostly casual fan like myself, this was my preferred way of playing basically every game in the collection. If that's still not enough and you just want to blast your way through the levels without worrying about taking damage, then you can turn on Invincibility. It's actually a great way to play through all the stages nonstop just to get a feel for patterns and spawn points. Definitely recommend giving it a whirl on some of the more hardcore games, like Gradius III. Going a step further, if you don't want to give into the allure of Invincibility mode, rewinding your mistakes, and/or playing on Easy Mode, you don't have to. There is also an entire new training mode for each title designed to help you git gud. I'd definitely recommend playing the individual games in the order in which they're presented at the main menu since it will help you appreciate the evolution of game systems. The different spin-offs and names are mostly irrelevant, since these games are all considered as part of the same continuity and even feature the same ships, enemies, and power-ups in many cases. But if you're really curious about the differences, the Gradius titles are part of the core horizontal shooter series, whereas games like Salamander and Life Force feature a mixture of horizontal and vertical levels, as well as co-op and a different power-up structure. Generally, I consider the Gradius games to be more difficult. Then there's the all-new Salamander III, a game that was conceived to be a 'what if' type of entry, in which the team at M2 developed the game as if it were actually released back in the 1990s as a sequel. That means the pixel art aesthetic, chiptune music, and strict game design constraints are all enforced so it feels, looks, and plays, just as it would have (presumably) back in the day. Also, it's really excellent and as a casual series fan, it's probably in my top 3 of the whole franchise now. It's genuinely that good. Gradius Origins Review—Excellent, But Incomplete There are seven individual games included in the Gradius Origins collection, but across those seven games there are 18 total versions included. As a result, you can play the original JP arcade version of Gradius, jump straight to the NA arcade version (aka Nemesis), or maybe even try out the NA prototype you may have never seen before. Similarly, Gradius II features three different versions of its JP arcade release showing different stages of life during its iteration and development, and so on. Each game has lots of archived developmental materials as well, including official artwork and even sketches of levels and enemy designs. Seeing the origins of one of gaming's most iconic franchises feels really special, particularly the hand-drawn levels. It's wild to think that, over 40 years ago, one of your favorite sections of a video game began with pencil drawings on graph paper but it probably did for many games. Admittedly, there's a lot here, especially for hardcore fans of the series. The full list of individual game versions is as follows: GRADIUS GRADIUS II GRADIUS III SALAMANDER LIFE FORCE SALAMANDER 2 SALAMANDER III As rich and full Gradius Origins is as a package, it's far from complete, which I guess is to be expected with a series that 's been around this long. However, the title of this one has Origins in the name, so it's understandable they'd focus on the arcade roots—even if that does come at the expense of the often superior console versions of some of these games. Maybe it's personal bias, but I really love the NES version of the original Gradius even if it's technically inferior visually. In fact, I still have my physical copy! There are several other notable exceptions as well, such as the JP PlayStation 1 exclusive Gradius Gaiden, Gradius IV, and the beloved PlayStation 2-exclusive Treasure-developed Gradius V. I also have a soft spot for Gradius Galaxies on Game Boy Advance, personally, which blew me away with its visuals and speed back in the day. The fact that Gradius Gaiden and Gradius IV were included on the PSP Gradius Collection makes those omissions a little more obvious and perplexing as well, but perhaps they're planned as updates, DLC, or something like that. Gradius Origins As far as game collections go, Gradius Origins is a real treat. Most of these versions and iterations I'd never had the pleasure (or pain) of trying for myself, so it's been an educational and exhilarating walkthrough arcade shoot 'em up history. Part of me is still disappointed that the excellent NES version of the original Gradius, otherwise known as the first video game to ever feature the iconic Konami Code, didn't make the cut, but hopefully that just means more collections are on the way. The Gradius games are harder than ever here, but the new quality-of-life and accessibility features finally make them feel approachable for someone who may not have the patience to memorize bullet patterns and spawn locations. Whether you're a hardcore fan or a casual enjoyer of the genre, there's plenty to sink your teeth into here. Platform: PlayStation 5 (Reviewed), Xbox Series X|S, Switch, and PC Developer: M2 Publisher: Konami Release Date: August 7, 2025 Price: $39.99 Score: 8/10 Disclosure: A representative on behalf of Konami sent me an early download code for a digital copy of Gradius Origins on PSN for the purposes of this review.
Forbes
7 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Why The Dollar's Reserve Status May Be America's Biggest Liability
The dollar is the global reserve currency. This has long been called the 'exorbitant privilege'. It's considered a huge advantage for the U.S. that the dollar holds this status – or so the story goes. But wait! This sacred cow might not be such a blessing after all. Perhaps the U.S. dollar's 'exorbitant privilege' is actually an exorbitant curse. Firstly, with my tongue firmly in cheek – and with a desire to engage U.S. readers and give them at least a chance to agree with what I'm about to propose – let me point out that the term 'exorbitant privilege' is actually French in origin. That alone might suggest it's not such a brilliant idea after all. Second, consider this: in dollar terms, there are now twice as many Chinese yuan (using M2 as the measure) as there are U.S. dollars. One could say that China has twice the money of the U.S. – which translates to twice the money for four times the people, or half the money per capita compared to Americans. Still, you might wonder: if they have all that liquidity, why don't they want to be the global reserve currency? Let's examine this 'privilege'. Sure, having the global reserve currency allows you to throw your weight around. And yes, you can always print more 'confetti' if you run into a balance-of-payments problem. Printing reserve currency essentially gives you money for nothing – which is nice. But… You also have to export your money to buy stuff. Otherwise, the world must either abandon your currency as the global standard or suffer a liquidity crisis because there's not enough of your money circulating through the system. Here's the rub: exporting money to buy imports requires a persistent balance-of-payments deficit – the very thing former President Trump tried to reverse. Back when the U.S. was running the world after 1946, flush with wealth while Europe was busy destroying itself, this deficit wasn't such a big deal. But as time goes on, and more and more dollars flow out while more and more goods come in, the country starts hollowing itself out. That 'confetti' comes back home in the hands of the folk who sold you stuff, and they use it to buy up your assets. Eventually, all you produce is confetti, and all you own is a printing press. That should sound familiar. A nation that consistently profits from trade has both assets and liabilities on its balance sheet. But a country that constantly prints confetti to fund imports ends up with nothing but liabilities – and a worn-out printing press. Let's look at this chart: It's a 15+ year chart showing how the U.S. dollar has risen 20-25% against the euro and the pound, and nearly doubled against the yen. This dollar strength isn't due to the U.S. running a balanced economy, a responsible government budget, or following sound financial discipline. No – this strength is a byproduct of the dollar's status as the world's reserve currency. That reserve status allows the U.S. to run up enormous debt and massive trade deficits, gradually hollowing out its economy from within. The so-called 'exorbitant privilege' has allowed the U.S. to dissolve into luxury. But – as people like to say these days – it's not sustainable. Woe, thrice woe, if the U.S. loses its global reserve status. So what? Europe doesn't need it. China doesn't want it. Japan isn't asking for it. So what are the actual benefits? So is being the global reserve currency a privilege or a curse? Like all mechanisms, when taken to extremes, what begins as a benefit can become a poison. Given the scale of the U.S.'s deficits, the patient may already be poisoned. The policy of maintaining the dollar's global reserve status may persist, may fade, or may be abandoned. But its role as a channel for economic dissipation is nearing its end, as the sustainability of chronic, rolling deficits is now visibly hitting its limits. Meanwhile, China doesn't want to be the global reserve currency – even though it could be. Their reasoning is simple: they want to keep exporting goods, take your confetti, and turn around and buy up assets in your country. Eventually, they own all the good stuff. If you do this with land, you're called colonial; if you do it with productive assets, you're called rich. As long as the sacred cow of the dollar's global reserve status roams the earth, the U.S. will continue selling off its family silver so its people can fill their double garages with plastic junk – believing this "exorbitant privilege" is a blessing, when in reality, it may be the curse that undoes them.
Metro
04-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Gradius Origins review - shooting the core in Salamander 3
Konami and M2 present a new compilation of classic Gradius titles, which also includes a brand new sequel for one of the best 2D shooter series of the 80s and 90s. For the longest time it seemed as if Konami had given up being a traditional video game publisher, after they pushed out Hideo Kojima and essentially stopped making new titles. The company isn't in trouble, it's just that it makes plenty of money through its casinos, health clubs, and other media, such that the risks of the current video games industry probably don't seem worth the while. However, a decision must've been made a few years ago to start engaging once again, with cautious attempts to bring back everything from Contra to Survival Kids, with remakes and remasters ranging from Metal Gear Solid to Ninja Five-O. Some of their choices seem very strange (why so many new Silent Hill games but only a few remaster collections for Castlevania?) but it's great that they are starting to make an effort again. We didn't expect Gradius to be a priority but given our love for 2D shooters we're very glad to see it get its turn in the spotlight. Especially as this compilation focuses on sister series Salamander – which is our particular favourite – and brings with it an entirely new sequel that's been created by emulation masters M2. The release of a new retro compilation is always a double-edged sword, as it's always guaranteed to come with at least one of two problems, and usually both. Either it misses out lots of notable entries in the franchise, for no obvious reason, or it doesn't include any museum content to explain what the games are and where they sit in a historical context. We're happy to say that Gradius Origins does have some very nice production and concept art for most of the games, showing the initial concepts for the iconic Vic Viper spacecraft and early designs for levels and enemies. Unfortunately though, there's little in the way of descriptions (or, god forbid, a documentary) to help anyone that's not already a fan understand what any of it is or the amount of effort M2 has gone to. Gradius was by no means the first horizontally scrolling 2D shooter but the original entry from 1985 set a new standard for the genre, that has been followed ever since, including by the likes of Darius and R-Type. It coined the term 'shoot the core', in reference to the first mini-boss, and pioneered an unusually versatile power-up system, where you collect tokens as you fight and use them as and when you need to activate specific abilities, from faster speed to missiles or lasers. Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning. You can also pick a set menu of power-ups before you start the game, that you're still able to activate in any order, allowing for a great deal of strategy and flexibility. Each game has a different approach to the same idea but there's only actually three Gradius games in this compilation: the original (aka Nemesis), 1988's Gradius 2 (aka Vulcan Venture), and 1989's Gradius 3. The other four games are all Salamander titles, a spin-off series that begin in 1986, when it was known as Life Force in the US, and until now has only had one mainline sequel, in 1996's Salamander 2. Although the games work in the same basic way as Gradius they're quite distinct, in that they include both horizontal and vertical levels and feature co-op play. Each of the Salamander games also emphasises biological enemies and levels, such that we've always imagined that you're battling vast Lovecraftian monsters in the outer dark. Salamander has a more traditional power-up system than Gradius, but it's more generous when you die, as you restart exactly where you left off and you can pick up the power-ups you just lost. Although just to complicate things, there is the 1987 version of Salamander, which was essentially a director's cut and which was named Life Force even in Japan. It's the only entry to feature a Gradius style power-up system, which is an interesting novelty and one of the highlights of this collection. That version of the game is included as a separate title, but all the other games have multiple versions, including Japanese and international editions, post-launch updates, and even previously unreleased prototype versions. At least one of these, the one for Gradius 3, M2 has recreated from lost assets, including a giant dragon boss that wasn't in any of the official versions. However, these are all only the original arcade versions and there are no console games at all, not even the NES version, which was famously the first ever to feature the Konami code. You do get a modern version of that though, in an impressive array of difficulty modifiers, including save states you can activate at any time, a rewind feature, and an invincible and easy mode for all but Salamander 3. There's also a separate training mode that lets you automatically rewind to practice difficult sections. This is on top of a mountain of additional options that allow you to change how many lives you start with and modify the difficulty – up and down – in excruciatingly minute detail. You can even turn on and off bug fixes, including slowdown that the original arcade hardware was prone to. That's just what you'd expect from developer M2, whose involvement immediately eliminates any question as to the quality of the emulation. They don't often make brand new games, but Salamander 3 makes you wish they did. It limits itself to the technology of what looks like the mid-90s, so it's not a major step beyond any of the other games. In fact, it's arguably less advanced than Salamander 2, which has a lot of pre-rendered graphics (which have aged surprisingly well). Salamander 3 is tightly designed, with a very fast pace to the action, and while there are some stages that are obvious nods to existing ones there are a lot of neat ideas, like the vertical stage where you're shooting your way through asteroids and unearthing buried moai, or one where you're getting pulled in by the gravity of mini-planetoids. Despite the pixel-only graphics, Salamander 3 does take advantage of the increased power of modern consoles, in terms of the amount of enemies on screen at once. It's not quite a bullet hell shooter but it comes close, especially as your own ship has a limited use burst weapon which spews dozens of bullets at 360°. Even the music is good, with some neat chiptune tracks by chibi-tech. As Salamander fans (that sounds weird, but we never liked the name Life Force) this compilation is an unexpected gift but in terms of the core Gradius series there's a lot missing. Even if you accept that it's only arcade versions – which rules out Treasure's excellent Gradius 5, PS1 game Gradius Gaiden, two MSX exclusive titles, and several portable titles – there's no Gradius 4, which was an arcade game. More Trending WiiWare title Gradius ReBirth is also absent, despite it also being developed by M2 and currently being unavailable on any format, so we can only hope that there is at least one more compilation after this. Whether Konami feels Gradius deserves that kind of attention we're not sure but while we accept the 2D shooter genre is a niche one these are all great games, that were highly influential at the time of their original release. But if this is it then we're perfectly satisfied; Salamander 3 is an excellent retro sequel and while we'd love to see a big budget adaptation of the series, with modern gameplay and graphics, that's almost certainly not going to happen. But perhaps that's just as well, as when we interviewed producer Ryosaku Ueno we were impressed by his answer about that possibility, where he compared 2D shooters to classical music, and how it would be absurd to expect it to transition into modern pop songs. We'd still like to see some evolution of the concept but if retro gaming really is akin to classical music, then Gradius and Salamander are the Brandenburg Concertos of the 2D shooter genre. In Short: A loving tribute to Gradius and its spin-off series, with some of M2's best archaeological work and an excellent retro sequel in Salamander 3. Pros: Arcade perfect conversions, with an insane level of customisation options and difficultly aids. Salamander 3 is excellent and the previously unseen prototype versions are an unexpected bonus. Cons: The lack of explanation and context for the museum content is a shame. A lot of missing games from the series. Score: 9/10 Formats: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, and PCPrice: £34.99Publisher: KonamiDeveloper: M2 (originals by Konami)Release Date: 7th August 2025 Age Rating: 7 Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. 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