Contra

"This game is so hard, that its just awsome"

If there was one genre that many fans of the old 8-Bit Buda remember to be the master's at, it was the shoot em ups. Back in the 80's, we saw tons of these types of games, which, to this day are considered classic to most old school gamers. They were quick, intense games, which still offer up a huge challenge, even by today's standards. Contra was one of these games. To date, it is one of the most beloved shoot em up's ever, created, and, its also one of the most difficult games on any console to date, thus leaving a immortal legacy which set the way for challenging games in the many years to come.

GRAPHICS
Wow, I have never seen such fantastic graphics on the NES. The visuals in this game are top quality and fantastic to look at.

The character sprits in this game look great. They have fluent animation, their detailed and they just seem to fit well in this type of game. Sort of like someone you would expect to see in those old 80's action movies where the hero is a kill crazy psycho, and yet cant seem to get hit.

The backgrounds look great as well. While the outside levels look detailed and gritty, it's the inside levels that really push the systems graphical power. Possibly because these levels use a 3-D perspective play field, which was an amazing graphical accomplishment on the NES, because at no other time had anybody dare to try and perfect it. Adding to the dramatic effect, each building has a 3-D look and feel to them on each outdoor stage, creating an already stellar image to an already graphically stellar game.

SOUND/MUSIC
The sound is contra is pretty good, but it's not fantastic. Each time your character discharges a bullet from his gun, it creates this 8-bit rendition of a real gunshot. The only problem is that enemy guns don't make any sound, unless you count their explosions after being defeated. Also, the explosions are really cool sounding and create the proper atmosphere.

As for the music, the quality sounds great. Most of the time, it doesn't sound like 8-bit music, and more like the next gen SNES. The songs are also great. My favorite is the inside levels because it uses this incredibly powerful hard rock hook to create the best atmosphere for that particular level. The outside levels music is also great stuff, and depending on which stage your on, you get different music that suits the level very well.

GAME PLAY
Contra may be your standard shoot em up at first glance. You run, shoot your gun and watch the bullets plow through the enemies. The problem is that there are tons of enemies and turrets that are blocking your way towards your objective. This is why this game is hard and differs its challenge from the rest of the Contra clones out there. Beating this game takes concentration, skill and luck.

What also makes this game hard you only get three lives and continues to reach the end, granted that you can gain extra lives along they way. Could this game be any tougher? Yes it can. The bosses you face are huge and take a few trial and error runs to beat if you don't know what to do. Plus, these bosses can easily beat you without blinking because you can only get hit once in this game. Plus, even standard enemies can kill you with on shot from their gun, or even if they run into you.

So now what? Your mission almost sounds impossible because Bill and Lance, the heroes in this game, only get a simple machine gun to start with, but never fear, because help is on your side.

Along the way, you can get different power ups that can transform your gun into a wide variety of weapons, but really, the only one that you want is the spread gun. Get it, and it makes the game a whole lot easier. The other guns are OK and offer up different power from each other. It's best to experiment with different guns to see which one you like and how they affect your level. For example, the laser gun as useless in the outside stages, but inside, when you have to destroy these power orbs, this gun takes two shots to blow it up, compared to the spread, which might take double that.

REPLAY VALUE:
This game is tons of fun, and you will probably finding yourself playing it for hours. Even if you put the game down, its addictiveness will drive you in almost instantly.
There is also one secret in this game that will improve your chances of wining, but try to figure it out yourself

Actually the only problem is that after you beat the game, there is nothing else but a second play through of the entire game, only with more enemies. There is nothing to collect or find in this game, so it can get boring after a few weeks.

GET IT OR PASS IT: I would strongly erg you to get this game. It's a classic, its fun, and it might take you ‘back to the past' with nostalgia, just don't play it with the power glove, or frustration will be your punishment.

CONCLUSION: You know what, I just realized that this game is going to be 20 years old this year. Time just fly's by, doesn't it? So while this game might be old now, don't let its age fool you. It's was great back then, and it's even better now.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/04/08, Updated 11/30/09

Game Release: Contra (US, February 1988)