Source: IGN

A classic of arcade shooting is being revived in a big way for the PSP. Retailers in Japan report that Konami will bring five Gradius titles to the PSP as part of one content-packed collection. Titled Gradius Portable, the single UMD disk will include Gradius I, II, III, IV and Gradius Gaiden.

Konami isn't going the quick route with the collection. Players will be able to chose from a number of options, setting the size of their ship, turning slowdown on and off, and zooming up the action to fill the screen. Gradius I and II are even being given an option to expand the play map for full screen play without stretching things out.

A new save/load system will make it into the game, allowing you to save directly from the pause screen whenever you like. You can then continue play from your point of saving with your health and power up conditions in tact. The save file remains once you've continued play, allowing you to retry from the save point to your heart's content.

Konami is also filling the game with enough gallery content to please all Gradius fans. Movies from Gradius Deluxe Pack (PlayStation), Gradius III & IV (PS2) and Gradius Gaiden (PlayStation) will be included in a movie gallery, with the footage recompressed from their original master copies, ensuring the highest quality. A sound gallery will feature music from all titles.

This awesome collection is set for Japanese release on 2/9 at the price of a standard PSP game. With so much value in one package, we have a feeling the game would pass any approval requirements thrown at it by Sony America, so a US release sounds like a definite possibility.