Contra 4

"Great game -- this is what Contra should be all about!"

Contra 4 proves that 2D gaming is as fun as it ever was, and can still deliver intense, fast-paced action. Contra is the ideal series for demonstrating this point, since it just never really worked in 3D. It's the quintessential 2D action-platformer.

With that in mind, it's not necessarily surprising that another 2D Contra was made, after so many 3D failures. What is surprising is that it's amazingly good. Instead of lazily copying Contra III, which would be the easy way out, the designers follow the blueprint of the 1987 original. This is good. I always thought that Contra III was a really over-rated game, with way too many cheap boss fights and not enough platforming. Contra 4 sets that right. There are five solid platforming stages here -- down from six in Contra and Super C, but up from three in Contra III.

More than that, each platforming stage features the kind of varied level design that made the original game stand out. The dual-screen nature of the DS is perfect for that. The very first level has multiple paths on different points of elevation. You can run along the top or bottom screen, and switching screens is easier than ever, thanks to the new grappling hook move. Of course, the game often switches between horizontal and vertical scrolling, and the dual screens are perfect for accentuating the distinction between the two.

Even Super C, the NES sequel to Contra, was getting kind of lazy. In that game, there was usually only one way to advance. But Contra 4 has detailed layers of platforms, which really gives you a choice in how you proceed through the stage. There is also much less emphasis on endless minibosses. Stages 1 and 2 have no minibosses at all; stages 4 and 7 have two (but in each case, only one miniboss really slows down the game), and stage 9 only has one. Remember that the last stage of Contra III forced you to go through five boss fights in a row. To say nothing of Hard Corps for the Genesis, ugh.

If the game has a drawback, it's that almost all the ideas are drawn from the earlier games. The first two stages take you through the jungle and up a waterfall, just like in the original Contra, and the bosses are modified versions of bosses from the original game. Stage 3 puts you against one of those holographic bosses from stage 4 of Contra, whereas Stage 6 brings back Robo-Corpse from Contra III.

Also, there are many gimmicky stages. Contra 4 brings back the 3D sections of the original Contra, this time in real 3D. But this time, there are three such stages instead of two. That is a little too much. In particular, Stage 6 is really easy, so it's basically superfluous. Also, Stage 5 is the obligatory hoverbike level, taken from Contra III. So that makes four gimmicky levels, as opposed to five run-and-gun levels. Fortunately, the hoverbike level is at least better here than in Contra III, with fewer annoying minibosses and a completely new boss fight.

The power-ups are also taken directly from Contra III, except the flamethrower is changed back to the style of the original Contra. In Contra 4, however, the power-ups are given to you in weak forms. When you pick up a spread shot, it only fires three shots at a time rather than five. To get the full five-shot version, you need to find another spread power-up and stack it on top of your current one. This makes the game even more unforgiving when you lose a life, since you'll need to find two power-ups to get your powerful weapon back. (Fortunately, you can hold an extra weapon in reserve, like in Contra III.) However, the full versions of the power-ups are pretty impressive -- the crush gun now reaches all the way across the screen, and the upgraded laser fires a huge shot at a tremendously fast rate (much faster than the regular laser) when you hold down the Y button.

Even the music is largely remixed from the old games. But hey, I like the old music. The opening bars to the theme of stage 1 from the original Contra constitute one of the best pieces of gaming music ever, and if you play Contra 4 on hard mode, the jungle stage is set to the original jungle theme. The graphics, on the other hand, are vastly improved. I actually like them much more than the graphics of Contra III, though that may be because the game has a bigger variety of settings (like the jungle and waterfall in addition to the ruined city and alien hive).

The stages are pretty long, which can be tiring. Fortunately, the game is actually pretty forgiving as far as lives go. You get five lives and five continues on Normal mode, not three. Also, there are checkpoints in the levels, like in Contra III, so if you lose all your lives close to the end, you can restart around the midpoint.

I should mention that the gap between the two screens functions as a "blind spot." That is, stuff doesn't automatically scroll from one screen to the other, it first travels through the gap where you can't see it. On one hand, this lets you aim more easily from one screen to another. But it also makes it possible for you to get hit with a bullet that you didn't see coming. I personally got accustomed to this fairly quickly, so I don't think it really hurts the game. It's probably better than the alternative. But maybe some people might find it aggravating.

Even aside from the blind spot issue, the game is hard. You will die many times on every stage before you get the hang of it. The game even revels in its difficulty -- the manual tells you, "If you get hit, you die. Sorry, but that's the way things go." But at the same time, it's not as brutal as the critics say. I really had to laugh at some of the professional reviews of this game, where critics complained that even Easy mode was too hard. I beat the game on Normal mode, and I assure you, I'm not any kind of gaming master. It took me many tries, but I made more progress every time, so I wasn't really that frustrated. I thought that was supposed to be part of the appeal of video games.

There are many unlockable extras. When you beat the game once on any difficulty, you unlock Challenge Mode, which presents you with 40 different scenarios set in parts of the game's action stages. For instance, you might be asked to get through the first third of Stage 4 without firing a single shot. The game does slightly modify the stages to make it possible to complete the challenges, so this is difficult but not impossible. For every four challenges you complete, you can unlock a new reward. The best rewards are the original Contra and Super C, but there's some other fun stuff like an interview with the game director.

Basically, this is what Contra should be all about. The great thing about the 1987 original was the brilliant level design, the excellent music, and the fast-paced action. Contra 4 delivers all of those things. In terms of quality, I'd put it just below the original, but just above Super C. It is difficult, but it isn't quite as unforgiving as the NES games. Honestly, this is exactly what I would have wanted from a new Contra game. If you've ever enjoyed a Contra game, you should get it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/19/09

Game Release: Contra 4 (US, 11/13/07)