| The US NES booklet, catalog number NES-GR-USA, is copyrighted 1986 by Konami, Inc., which it names as the owner of the Gradius trademark, with Konami Industry Co. Ltd. owning the Konami trademark; the game is licensed by Nintendo. | cover (PDF p. 1)back cover (PDF p. 16)back cover (PDF p. 16)back cover (PDF p. 16)PDF p. 2, beside the warranty | Manual |
| The NES manual's story: the planet Gradius is under attack from the amoeboid Bacterions, from the sub-space star cluster of Bacterion. The player has launched the prototype hyper-space fighter, the Warp Rattler, and must steal enemy power capsules on the way to the Bacterion superfortress, Xaerous. | PDF p. 4, The StoryPDF p. 4, The StoryPDF p. 4, The StoryPDF p. 4, The Story | Manual |
| The US NES manual and Konami's European MSX booklet call the player's ship the Warp Rattler and the enemy superfortress Xaerous, where the Famicom booklet calls them ビックバイパー (Vic Viper) and ゼロス (Zelos). The MSX booklet also renames the planet Nemesis. | PDF p. 4, How to Play | Manual |
| By the NES manual, one player or two play, two taking turns. The control pad moves the Warp Rattler, Button A fires, Button B takes a power boost and, once missiles, the double-beam cannon or the laser are bought, fires those too, Select picks one or two players on the title screen, and Start pauses and resumes the game. | PDF p. 4, How to PlayPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the ActionPDF p. 5, Controlling the Action | Manual |
| The NES manual says each red enemy power capsule lights the power boost indicators along the bottom of the screen, and Button B takes the lit one. The Option spins off the Sidewinder, a twin with the ship's firepower that follows it, up to two; the force field barrier turns red when it can stop one more attack; and the double-beam cannon and the laser can't be used together. A special blue capsule destroys every enemy on the screen. | PDF p. 6, Power BoostingPDF p. 6, Power BoostingPDF p. 7, OptionPDF p. 7, OptionPDF p. 7, ? (Force Field Barrier)PDF p. 7, notePDF p. 13, Advanced Attack and Defense ManeuversPDF p. 7, OptionPDF p. 7, Option | Manual |
| The NES manual says ways to earn bonus points and perform extraordinary maneuvers are hidden in the program, says Konami would appreciate hearing from players who find them, and gives one hint: a stage can be warped through under certain conditions. | p. 12 (PDF p. 12), Helpful Hintsp. 12 (PDF p. 12), Helpful Hintsp. 12 (PDF p. 12), Helpful Hints | Manual |