Yet
another of the MSX Gradius series, Salamander again offers some
new little treats to fans of other console versions of the game.
To understand gameplay, just read any other Gradius/Nemesis review.
I'm just going to comment on what makes Salamander different.
Collecting
15 E-tanks gains you another weapon, and I've survived to get Hawkwind
missiles, Meteo laser, Screw laser, then Homing missiles. Salamander
is hands down the most difficult of the MSX groupings. As of the
time writing this, I am only on level two......am I losing shmuposity
in my old age? The music in Salamander is almost exactly as I remember
it on other consoles, and the only drawbacks in this one are the
rough difficulty (also the starting points are few and far between,
like R-Type), and the speed-up options do very little for you.....about
three speed-ups are needed for a decent engine change, and five
or six is comfortable for me when the usual Gradius amount is three.
Sally
does offer four options instead of the usual MSX two, and simultaneous
dual player gameplay! If you are not yet sick of the Gradius series
(pronounced Gra-dee-ous, as shown on Gaiden, however I refuse to
believe that and still call it Grad-e-ous) be sure to give this
a try.
Salamander
- Konami
