While Treasure's Ikaruga might have been a difficult game, Gradius V makes it look like a walk through the park. Similar to the NES Contra titles, Gradius V requires some heavy memorization to progress any distance at all. No matter how good you think you are, no matter how much experience you have with 2D shooters, you're bound to utter a few obscenities at your screen during your time with Gradius V.
The gameplay is strictly old-school, but the detailed visuals do a good job of taking advantage of modern console technology. Everything is slickly produced, with explosions, enemies, and environments looking equally impressive. The audio end of things isn't exactly groundbreaking, but the soundtrack does a good job of providing adrenaline-filled accompaniment to a knock-down, drag-out action title. Like most shooters worth the disc they're printed on, Gradius does feature a solid array of sound effects to draw you into the game.
Ultimately, Gradius' strongest points could also be interpreted as its flaws, depending on your viewpoint. The challenge could easily be mistaken for unfair, the trademark powerup system for bad game design. Ultimately, Gradius V is a rock-solid shooter, but it's also a game that was built specifically and lovingly for a niche audience. The GTA generation need not apply.
-George
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