Operation C

"Portable Contra! What more do you want? I can think of a few things......"

Im going to say it right now. I LOVE contra. It all started with the original Contra. In the arcades it became pretty popular with its addictive gameplay and fancy graphics. It was followed up by a just about perfect arcade translation on the NES. That was followed up by a sequel on the NES called Super C. They changed the name to Super C instead of Super Contra so people wouldnt associate it with the Iran-Contra scandel. You are probably thinking where im going with this. Well Operation C on the gameboy is basically a portable translation of Super C.
Now for the actual review. If you like Super C you will love this game. Ill just get that out of the way.

Graphics 8/10
The graphics are pretty splendid for the gameboy. The graphics look almost like the NES version of Contra. But of course in black and white. Not much to talk about.

Sound 10/10
The sound is absolutely perfect. An absolute perfect portable translation of the Contra soundtrack. Contra never sounded better on the gameboy.

Gameplay 7/10
The gameplay is what you would expect from a Contra game. You run around a shoot people. I had a few problems with this to prevent it from a perfect 10. Like the original Contra you are going to have some pretty cheap deaths. Not just the cheap deaths you expect. Because of the stiff controls you will have some very cheap deaths. The weapons are pretty nice. You have the spread shot and the machine gun. Welcome additions include the flamethrower and the homing spreadshot. Also if you get the same upgrade twice it will be upgraded. For example if you get 2 triple spreadshots it will turn into a 5x spreadshot. Which brings me to another point I have biff with. They game gives you the spreadshot upgrade too much. Sure it is great and all but we need more variety.

Multiplayer 0/10
The funnest part about Contra is playing 2 player with a friend. But the biggest flaw of this game is the lack of multiplayer. I was severely disappointed. But at least it has a great single player.

Total 7/10

This game is great fun for anyone who is or is not a Contra fan. Despite some major flaws *cough multiplayer cough* Its able to keep me distracted from the teacher while I play gameboy under my desk. Its a great game but overall the flaws keep this game from being a gameboy classic.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/14/08

Game Release: Operation C (US, February 1991)