: The famous Konami Code —which debuted in the home version of Gradius —was stripped out of the VS. version to prevent players from gaining free power-ups in a commercial arcade setting. The Arcade Archives Treatment
Released in 1986 on Nintendo’s hardware, VS. GRADIUS represents an unusual full circle in development. Most arcade games of the era were ported down to home consoles; however, because the VS. System was built on NES architecture, Konami essentially took their refined NES home port and sent it back to the arcades. Key differences in this version include: Arcade Archives VS GRADIUS [01004EC00E634000][v...
: It retains the home version’s cap of two "Options" (multiples) and lacks the arcade's vertical scrolling in the second and third levels. : The famous Konami Code —which debuted in
: Unlike the NES version, which ends after stage seven, VS. GRADIUS continues indefinitely to encourage high-score competition and quarter-feeding. GRADIUS represents an unusual full circle in development