Arcade

Gradius III

In the darkest reaches of infinite space, pure evil lies in wait ... The Dark Forces led by the god of destruction, Bacterian, prepare to launch a massive onslaught against the planet Gradius. Possessing unstoppable power, the Dark Forces threaten to plunge the Universe into total war and complete annihilation.Their invasion force smashes the Gradius defenses, and the surrounding planets soon fall like dominoes. Now Bacterian's evil grasp reaches for the heart of the resistance...planet Gradius itself...To counter the oncoming threat the United Gradius World Forces gather all their fighter craft. Half of them form a defensive net - the other half a strike team. But they are badly outnumbered...

Genre: Shoot-'Em-Up
Year: 1989
Developer: Konami
Publisher: Konami
Players: 2

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P2P Netplay available on compatible cores

Achievements

62 achievements · 1039 total points

Speed Up Activate a speed upgrade.
1 pts
Missile Activate a missile upgrade.
1 pts
Double Activate a double upgrade.
2 pts
Laser Activate a laser upgrade.
2 pts
Option Activate an option upgrade.
3 pts
Shield Activate a shield upgrade.
3 pts
Mega Crush Activate a mega crush.
4 pts
Max Speed Activate the max number of speed upgrades.
3 pts
Max Options Activate the max number of option upgrades.
5 pts
Extra Life Earn an extra life.
5 pts
Extra Lives Earn a second extra life.
5 pts
Lifesaver Amass the max displayable amount of nine extra lives. Must start from the default amount of three lives in the Technical course.
25 pts
Weapon Type A Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Weapon Type A. Weapon types were introduced in Gradius II.
10 pts
Weapon Type B Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Weapon Type B.
10 pts
Weapon Type C Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Weapon Type C.
10 pts
Weapon Type D Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Weapon Type D.
10 pts
Edit Mode Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Edit Mode. This mode was newly introduced in Gradius III.
10 pts
Force-Field Type Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Force Field.
10 pts
Shield Type Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Shield.
10 pts
Free-Shield Type Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Free Shield.
10 pts
Reduce Type Clear two stages in the Beginner or Technical course having selected Reduce (Edit-mode only).
10 pts
Option Hunter I Kill an Option Hunter of Type I.
10 pts
Option Hunter II Kill an Option Hunter of Type II.
10 pts
Option Hunter III Kill an Option Hunter of Type III.
10 pts
Beginner Stage 1 Clear stage one of the first loop in the Beginner course. The rank is lower, and some power-ups are kept on death. This game has no continues.
5 pts
Beginner Stage 2 Clear stage two of the first loop in the Beginner course.
5 pts
Beginner Stage 3 Clear stage three of the first loop in the Beginner course.
10 pts
Technical Stage 1 Clear stage one of the first loop in the Technical course. The rank is higher, and you get access to all stages. This game has no continues.
10 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter I Defeat the boss of stage one in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Technical Stage 2 Clear stage two of the first loop in the Technical course.
10 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter II Defeat the boss of stage two in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Easter Egg: Shmup Remix Kill a special enemy to activate a music change.
5 pts
Technical Stage 3 Clear stage three of the first loop in the Technical course.
10 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter III Defeat the boss of stage three in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Technical Stage 4 Clear stage four of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
Technical Stage 5 Clear stage five of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter V Defeat the boss of stage five in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Technical Stage 6 Clear stage six of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter VI Defeat the boss of stage six in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Technical Stage 7 Clear stage seven of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter VII Defeat the boss of stage seven in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
10 pts
Technical Stage 8 Clear stage eight of the first loop in the Technical course.
50 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter VIII Defeat the boss of stage eight in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
25 pts
Cube Rush Clear the cube rush of stage nine of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
True Cube Rush Clear the cube rush of Technical stage nine of the first loop without loitering in the top fifth or bottom fifth of the screen for more than one second at a time.
100 pts
Technical Stage 9 Clear stage nine of the first loop in the Technical course.
25 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter IX Defeat the boss of stage nine in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
25 pts
Boss Rush Clear the boss rush of stage ten in the Technical course.
25 pts
Max Rank Boss–Hunter X Defeat the mid-boss of stage ten, Dellinger Core, in the Technical course at loop one's max rank of sixteen.
25 pts
Bonus Stage: Gradius Clear the Gradius bonus stage of the first loop on Normal mode.
25 pts
Bonus Stage: Salamander Clear the Salamander bonus stage of the first loop on Normal mode.
25 pts
Gradius III Veteran Clear stage ten of the first loop on Normal mode.
100 pts
Loop 2, Stage 1 Clear stage one of the second loop in the Technical course.
10 pts
Gentleman's Victory Beat the game on Normal mode without having used mega crush.
100 pts
Boss Evader Defeat a boss by running down the boss timer. For stage 10, only the mid-boss qualifies.
10 pts
Max-Rank Boss-Evader Defeat a boss of loop one's max rank of sixteen by running down the boss timer. For stage 10, only the mid-boss qualifies.
10 pts
50K Club Score 50,000 points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
5 pts
100K Club Score 100,000points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
5 pts
200K Club Score 200,000points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
10 pts
300K Club Score 300,000points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
10 pts
400K Club Score 400,000points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
10 pts
500K Club Score 500,000points in the Technical course on the default difficulty.
25 pts

Gradius III leaderboard

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Gradius III frequently asked questions

How do I play Gradius III online with a friend?

Gradius III (Arcade) can be played online with friends using Etera's P2P netplay. Create a room in the launcher and invite your friend, who joins through the invite. Step by step:

Download the Etera launcher for Windows or Linux and create your account.
Ask your friend to do the same and add them to your friends list.
Pick the game in the library and create a netplay room.
Invite your friend: they accept the invite and join the room.
The launcher keeps dependencies on the same version for both players, avoiding desync.

How do I play Gradius III on PC?

Download the Etera launcher (Windows or Linux), find Gradius III in the Arcade library and click to download. The launcher handles the emulator and setup for you.

Does Gradius III netplay lag?

Etera uses a direct P2P connection between players, which usually means low latency. Results depend on each player's internet quality.

Does Gradius III have achievements?

Yes, Gradius III has 62 achievements worth 1039 points. Achievements are counted and saved to your history and the leaderboard for subscribers and during the trial period.

Can I play Gradius III for free?

Yes. Every account gets a 5-day trial with premium features. After that, the free plan allows 3 new games per day and 1 netplay session per day. Premium raises those limits.

Play Gradius III on Etera

Download the launcher for Windows or Linux, find this game in the library and play solo or with friends.