| Solar Assault | |
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Gameplay screenshot |
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| Developer(s) | Konami |
| Publisher(s) | Konami |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release date(s) | July 1997 |
| Genre(s) | 3D shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Cabinet | Upright, sit-down enclosed cockpit |
| CPU | PowerPC 403GA @ 64 MHz ADSP-21062 (SHARC) @ 36 MHz |
| Sound | 68EC000 @ 16 MHz |
| Display | Raster, horizontal orientation |
Solar Assault (ソーラーアサルトグラディウス sōrā asaruto guradiiusu) is a three-dimensional shoot 'em up released by Konami in 1997. As its title may suggest, the game is a spin-off of the long running Gradius series. This title retains most of the gameplay characteristics of its 2D counterparts including the same enemies, protagonists, the selection bar power-up system and familiar settings. The player takes control of one of three spaceships, battling enemies and bosses in settings like underground tunnels, planet surfaces, and space fields.
The game came in three versions, two wide stand-up arcade cabinet (one Japanese and one American), and a SpeedKing deluxe simulator. The SpeedKing is an enclosed pod which tilts, using pneumatics, according to the action occurring on-screen. The American standard version had its cockpit permanently attached with the game monitor, while on the Japanese version there were separated pieces for each one of them.
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The game play is similar to other 3D shooters like Star Fox, where the player must move both horizontally and vertically. One change from previous Gradius games is that the player now has a health bar; the ship will not immediately destruct upon the slightest shot or collision. The other major gameplay change is the ability to adjust the speed, which is necessary to time the avoidance of certain obstacles and enemies.
There are three ships to choose from:
The original levels of the first Japanese release are the following:
Solar Assault Revised is an updated version of Solar Assault released later in 1997, and introduced a new arcade board that was co-developed by Konami and IBM which allows five boards to be stacked on top of each other, as well as several modifications to the game, like the all-new level "Fierce Blaze". The US version of the game was based on this one, just simply renamed as "Solar Assault".
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