Gradius, Soldier Blade, Dungeon Explorer now available in VC

Get your jet packs, pilot suits, and dungeon maps ready. You just might find yourself purchasing some new games by the day’s end. Blasting into the Virtual Consoletoday – 9 a.m., Pacific – are three new titles lined up for Wii gamers.

It’s a jam-packed list of action games. You’ve got a side-scrolling space shooter from the console eras of yore, an assault fighter shooter in the “Star Soldier” tradition, and an action-RPG multiplayer that has you searching for the Ora Stone. Check out the list:

• Gradius – NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points
• Soldier Blade – TurboGrafx 16, 600, 1 player, Wii Points
• Dungeon Explorer – TurboGrafx 16, 1-5 players, 600 Wii Points

Some of you still remember the “up-up, down-down” trick for Gradius, right? Gotta love it. Personally, I’d purchase the side-scrolling shooter for the sole reason of being able to flex my muscle memory into punching the ubiquitous Nintendo code. Besides, if you don’t get the code down pat, the game’s still well worth playing over and over again, even after all these years.

Although not as famous as Gradius, Soldier Blade is still a welcome addition to the VC family. It’ll be some strategic item-grabbing and power-up charging for this mission, as with the roll-out of new features like the “Gunbody” option and “Burst Out” system.

As for Dungeon Explorer, we’re glad Hudson finally pulled it together. After the game going MIA (in some regions), we’re now going to get some 5-player fun. Better brush up on your character type decisions. It’s time to check if, after all these years, you’re still a Fighter, Thief, Elf, Bard, Knome, Warlock, Witch, or Bishop.

Get your jet packs, pilot suits, and dungeon maps ready. You just might find yourself purchasing some new games by the day’s end. Blasting into the Virtual Consoletoday – 9 a.m., Pacific – are three new titles lined up for Wii gamers.

It’s a jam-packed list of action games. You’ve got a side-scrolling space shooter from the console eras of yore, an assault fighter shooter in the “Star Soldier” tradition, and an action-RPG multiplayer that has you searching for the Ora Stone. Check out the list:

• Gradius – NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points
• Soldier Blade – TurboGrafx 16, 600, 1 player, Wii Points
• Dungeon Explorer – TurboGrafx 16, 1-5 players, 600 Wii Points

Some of you still remember the “up-up, down-down” trick for Gradius, right? Gotta love it. Personally, I’d purchase the side-scrolling shooter for the sole reason of being able to flex my muscle memory into punching the ubiquitous Nintendo code. Besides, if you don’t get the code down pat, the game’s still well worth playing over and over again, even after all these years.

Although not as famous as Gradius, Soldier Blade is still a welcome addition to the VC family. It’ll be some strategic item-grabbing and power-up charging for this mission, as with the roll-out of new features like the “Gunbody” option and “Burst Out” system.

As for Dungeon Explorer, we’re glad Hudson finally pulled it together. After the game going MIA (in some regions), we’re now going to get some 5-player fun. Better brush up on your character type decisions. It’s time to check if, after all these years, you’re still a Fighter, Thief, Elf, Bard, Knome, Warlock, Witch, or Bishop.