40-year-old Arcade classic shoot ‘em up Gradius gets pure ASCII PC remake — you can even save your gaming screenshots as .TXT files

A developer has recreated the classic Gradius arcade game from 1985 using ASCII in a new Steam PC game called Battle for Asciion. The game is entirely text-based, offering a unique gaming experience without sprites or textures. Despite the ASCII graphics, the game maintains the fast-paced action and detailed gameplay of the original. Players can upgrade their ASCII ship and face off against end-of-level bosses across five stages. Additionally, the game offers unique features like saving gameplay screenshots as .TXT files and supports both keyboard and controller inputs.