CONTRA tudo e CONTRA todos.

Esse daqui é um dos clássicos do POLYSTATION (Aquele clone do NES que era igualzinho o PS1). Contra é um game frenético com uma IA que envelheceu muito bem (Em certos levels você enfrenta uma chuva de inimigos que ataca de todos os ângulos possíveis. Fora isso os chefes de cada fase tem um padrão diferente e alguns você só consegue vencer na tentativa e erro mesmo).

O jogo ainda surpreende trazendo fases em "3D" que, principalmente para época, funcionam perfeitamente no game.

Esse jogo é tipo um "shmup" sem navinha.

PRÓS:
- IA desafiadora.
- Modo Co-op local.

CONTRAS:
- Algumas fases só são superadas na tentativa e erro.

Ah, Contra. A classic NES game that I've heard countless times, either via people mentioning its legacy, or the great soundtrack, or just how fun it is...

As for me? I barely have any experience with the Contra series. I'm more of a Castlevania dude, if you catch my drift. But I had been interested in Contra here and there, and with the Anniversary Collection, I decided to try out the NES original.

The gameplay is, honestly, very sound. You can aim in multiple directions, you can duck and shoot, your jumps feel nice, the stages have a nice variety of environments, the bosses are challenging, but fair, and so on.

I do think that aiming in multiple directions is a bit awkward though, since you're going to end up walking forward or backward when doing it. This was a similar problem that I suffered in Metroid Samus Returns, but considering Contra is a much faster-paced game, where you constantly have to pay attention... yeah, things got funky.

Additionally, I had problems with the depth perception in the two 3D stages of the game, Stages 2 and 4. It was difficult to know when exactly the hitboxes of bullets and other obstacles were going to come to the part where my character was, and it got annoying.

Besides that, while the game was pretty hard, I found the challenge fun! What also helps is that this game is not too long, and is paced nicely.
Also, the soundtrack is a banger! Definitely a classic!

All in all, while it has its issues, I can see why people like this game so much.
It's very neat!

Back before Contra became... whatever the hell Rouge Corps was supposed to be, it was one of the greatest franchises from Konami, and you only have to look at the original game to see how it was kicking ass from the start. It's a simple game about menly men shooting up an alien armada, but it was executed extremely well, and still holds up exponentially to this day.

The story is enough to get you pumped and ready to fight, the graphics are still very appealing nowadays, the music is catchy and iconic of course, the control is solid and extremely responsive, the gameplay is fast, frantic, and addicting in all the right ways, not to mention being varied as well, with multiple level types throughout where you will be walking forwards sometimes, most of the weapons are really fun to use, the bosses are tough and satisfying to take on, and it ends on a solid note.

If I had a complaint, I could say the level design could've been done a little better, but it doesn't bother be as much as other games. I wouldn't say it's my favorite game in the series, and I don't absolutely adore it, but it is pretty solid all around.

Overall, it is a fantastic start to a fantastic franchise, and definitely the definitive port of the original game.

Game #44

What a great game, obviously going in with the bias of playing this game back in 89 when I was just a kid but man Contra is just sick.
The ability to shoot in almost every direction was a game changer for the NES, While I'm not gonna say I'm 100% sure this was the first to do it, it definitely was the one that popularized it. jumping over every enemy bullet like I'm in an action movie, ducking to the ground to destroy those harder foes, and getting those sweet power ups to see the bullets fly. This is by far the most fun I had as a child, and booting it up in 2023 was no different.

So, this is closer to what I was talking about when I talked about playing Contra before. I had played this a little at some point before and I remember it surprising me a bit because I had thought Super C was it's own game and not a sequel.

I really don't have a lot to say about this game because it very much is the Arcade version all over again, except I believe this plays waaaay better and is closer in line to how the Contra games would play from here on out. I really enjoyed playing this, the music was great, the gameplay was really good if not a bit challenging in spots. Glad I finally got to play this one.

Finished replaying Contra.
It has been quite a while since i last played this game so i decided to replay it. My opinion is still pretty much the same, the game is simple but it is still pretty good and difficult. You go trough a bunch of levels shooting men with various different guns that can be acquired during the level. The graphics are pretty good (smb 2 take notes) and the bosses are alright i guess other than punch out NES games don't really have the greatest boss fights. The controls and music are still pretty good and the game took me a short amount of time. Overall Contra still holds up to this day in my opinion and i am quite excited to check out the other games in the franchise because this is the only contra game i have played.
7/10

I distinctly remember playing this game quite a bit when I was a kid. Whether I ever finished it or not back then remains a mystery, because the final stage with the H.R. Giger looking alien looked so familiar, but the actual ending wasn't ringing a bell. If I did in fact finish this back then, then it only stands to reason I've gotten worse at video games, because there is no way in hell that I would have finished this right now without the blessed Konami Code.

Funny enough, I did not realize that the 30 lives cheat remains in effect even after selecting continue. I just assumed you went back to the regular 3 lives upon losing the initial 30. So there I was, reloading save states like an idiot and cursing this game under my breath. Some of the enemy spawns in this game with the graphical pop-in and relentless hordes are just near impossible to avoid at times. I guess that's NES era difficulty for ya. That said, this game would have rated much lower for me if I didn't learn the truth about said Konami Code, which essentially gives you 120 lives to complete its 8 eclectic stages, which I feel is plenty unless you are actively just trying to brute force the game and rush it.

It's a pretty decent game, with the core run-and-gun gameplay being satisfying enough, though it's nothing particularly special. It makes me curious to try the co-op (again?), though. I can't really remember if I ever played co-op with my dad or something, but regardless, it seems to make for a chaotic and fun time with a friend.

The most polished version of Contra is the Famicom port, which differs from its American counterpart in several ways. The presence of Konami's multi-memory controller VRC2 allows the Japanese version to mobilise its ROM more effectively: cinematics punctuate the title and some levels display more visual effects. After the release of several major games – Green Beret (1985) or Castlevania (1986) –, which solidified the expertise of the in-house team, Contra stood out as the synthesis of the run-and-gun.

The player takes on the role of Bill in the distant future, who must free the Galuga archipelago from the Red Falcon, an organisation of aliens and brainwashed humans. The title is composed of eight different levels, with various environments. The majority of them take place in a horizontal scrolling mode and the player must reach the end of the level to face a boss. On the way, it is possible to find eagle insignias, that allow to modify Bill's weaponry. Contra stands out from the games of this era because of the high flexibility of its protagonist's moveset. If it is possible to shoot in all eight directions, the player can also crouch while continuing to shoot, thus avoiding a large part of the projectiles. Only the jump is a bit confusing, as it is not possible to control its height: it can cause issues in some of the more projectile-heavy sequences. Those controls allow the player to advance in a very proactive way, and the game seems to encourage this approach. Indeed, the difficulty is quite high and it is not uncommon for the screen to be cluttered with enemies: death is always very likely and it is only by knowing the location of the turrets that the progression becomes easier. Contra is thus difficult right from the start, but the game becomes even more challenging in the later stages, especially with the appearance of the machine gunners. The timing of their gunfire is quite tricky, especially when they appear in conjunction with other enemies.

However, Contra still manages to be enjoyable, precisely because the ability to lay down on the floor is so effective, once the general layout of the level is known. If Bill is equipped with a proper weapon, the game strikes a fairly clever balance in its difficulty. It succeeds in minimising the frustration that repeated deaths can cause. The variety of environments, along with their unique bosses, also helps to keep the player entertained. Some may regret the stages with a perspective camera, as they turn out to be messier, but they also provide variety without ever becoming too long. These passages also reinforce a certain claustrophic quality, underlining the influence of Alien (1979). It is generally a feeling of dynamism that emanates from the title and that constitutes its strength, compared to the other NES titles - too long, too repetitive, too soporific.

It's hard to say more about this game or to put into words the fluidity that emanates from it, as it is simply very enjoyable to play. The design choices put Contra in the category of fairly difficult NES games, but without turning it into an insurmountable monster. The infamous Konami Code also makes for a more relaxed approach to the playthrough, although this is entirely dispensable. There was no real doubt about the success of Contra, which is why its sequel Super Contra (1988) was released the same year, adding new gimmicks and borrowing design ideas from other games. This prestige, on Nintendo's consoles, has never been compromised.

This is still one of the best examples of a perfect difficulty curve. Once you get good at it, you can pretty much beat it every time, even after not playing it in years, but it never stops being exciting.

I still think Super C is bigger and better, but there's nothing as consistently great as the first Contra.

PD: The stage 4 boss is stupidly creative. I've never had another boss purposely make me cross my eyes in such a disorienting fasion.

one of my favorite gaming memories is playing this on the morning i spent the night at my old friends house. he had told me about contra being a shooter against aliens i was left thinking it was your standard shmup but no, playing on an authentic NES (mind you we were in like 4th grade so this was so fucking cool) with a very wide TV blew my mind by how fun this game was. sadly i had to go home like 10 minutes after that but man that short moment in my life is strong and special enough to hold in my withering brain throughout all this time

Contra is a game I have no shame in admitting is too damn hard for me. In true NES fashion, it stretches its length by being brutal, but the games of this era that excel despite their difficulty do so by making the loop of dying and repeating levels feel good. In short, everything I said in my review of Castlevania applies to some extent here, though I think the run and gun gameplay lands with me just a little less than the whippin and jumpin of Castlevania. It is, nonetheless, one of the better games on the NES and still makes for a great time if you can find a friend to play with.

Boss battles are especially noteworthy. It's impressive what they were able to get away with given the limitations of the hardware. Controls are very responsible, simple, and give good feedback. Tying the whole thing together are some pretty sharp looking levels (especially the alien queen's lair) and an incredibly soundtrack that sticks with you long after playing. I'm also a sicko and the behind-the-back fortress levels are probably my favorite in the entire game. Medical science could learn a lot by examining my brain.

My only gripe is that the more chaotic nature of the game and frenzies of bullets makes it harder to learn the rhythm of a level, but I'll concede this may very well be a "me" thing. It's also far from my favorite in the series, which just so happens to not even be on Nintendo hardware, but... we'll get there.

Sometimes iteration is a positive for series, but sometimes it never got better than the start. While technically a remade port of the arcade release, the important thing is that the first Contra still utilizes its mechanics the best. All of the weapons have different applications you have to pick between on the fly, there's a genuine focus on platforming and the game has a near-perfect difficulty curve. Later run 'n' guns, especially the Contra series itself, would end up focusing on set-pieces more and more with time and had you wandering flat terrain just shooting right primarily, but not the original. If you want a near perfect encapsulation of challenging and fair design (in spite of its brutality) this is the way to go.

Retro Yearly List #14 [1988: Contra]

Instant classic. This was one of the most popular games featured in those "famiclones", which were very well known in South America, with "100 games in 1"cartridges.
I played this a lot but never get past Waterfall level tho, time to correct this.

Contra 1 is pretty solid and offers a complete experience, the controls are one of the most responsive of games from that time, and even modern games, running, ducking and shooting are satisfying things to do here.

The graphics are good enough for NES, even though they are "nerfed" in US version, I've played the Japanese one instead, which has some additional stuff like animated palm trees and snowstorms. There are also cutscenes at the start and between stages, which were also cut off on US release, sadly.

Difficulty is... well, hard. Not a nightmare, but requires some training to master the game, fortunately, I was able to beat this without the Konami code and not using continues after some tries within 3 days (not straight).

The music is nice and catchy, although they forgot to make the level 7 music so they put the level 1's instead, but nothing that breaks the immersion. Enemies are also a little bit repetitive, with tons of them coming by at random moments and sometimes in places that does not make sense.

The bosses are ok, but difficulty scalability is broken, the Door one is the easiest on the game and it appears among the last levels, the Base2 boss in other hand, is a true pain, on just level 3, even harder than the final boss, which has medium difficulty.

The weapons are also unbalanced, with most of them being useless, and just one alone capable of change the pace of the entire game, Spread Gun is basically the "select difficulty" of the game, once you keep it, you will play the game on easy mode, but with a level of challenge to keep it with you without taking damage, if you do, back to hell mode.

The series started with a massive potential to improvement in the future, but still has extremely solid experience.

Run ‘n Gun-a-thon — Part 1

I love platformers and action games, so it’s weird that I haven’t actually played many entries in the genre that combines the two. Time to fix that. To kick off this marathon, I will be starting with the game that started it all: the original Contra.

The Contra series, and run ‘n guns in general, are notorious for their difficulty. Even easy run ‘n guns tend to be hard to get into. That’s why I recommend playing something like Cuphead before playing Contra. In the latter, you die in one hit and only get three continues of three lives to conquer eight progressively difficult levels. Extra lives can be earned at specific score targets, but they won’t be earned so easily. Without save states or the Konami code, you can only afford to die 12-15 times before it’s game over.

Contra doesn’t beat you to the ground when you lose, it kicks you down a well. Oh, you got hit? Die and lose your upgrades! Used a continue? Better start from the beginning of the level! Lost all of your continues? Start the whole game over! However, the level design is fair. Enemy attack patterns are so simple you can deduce them in a second. This is important since there’s a lot of on-the-fly decision-making as to where to jump and what weapon is best for the occasion. You are also rewarded for handicapping yourself in the current situation if you know an upcoming scenario will be much easier as a result. The laser gun, for example, initially seems like a worse option than the default rifle because most enemies die so quickly anyway, but it makes short work of bosses and security walls if utilized properly. You can plan a strategy prior to a level since weapons always drop in the same locations, but be ready to improvise when something inevitably goes wrong.

If I had to criticize anything about Contra, it would be the two security base levels employing a pseudo-3D perspective. They didn’t bother me too much, but the lack of platforming and less-than-stellar depth perception made them less fun than the side-scroller levels. I also think the spiked walls in level 7 are a throwaway mechanic. They’re only good for catching first-time players, after which they will never pose a serious threat and will slow the player down by a few seconds. It’s a jarring pace-breaker for a game so eager to throw you in the action.

Other than those nitpicks, Contra is a good time. When you know what you’re doing, the game can be demolished in an hour. Understandable considering it was originally an arcade release and I’d rather have that than something that greatly overstays its welcome.

There are, arguably, two Contras for the NES. Which isn't to say that there's Contra and "everyone is a robot in europe" Probotector, though that is true.

There are, arguably, three Contras for the NE- well, do we count the famicom edition, with its moving backgrounds, easier difficulty, and ACTUAL PLOT IN BETWEEN LEVELS (this is the version I played)?

There are, arguably, four Contras for the NES. Well, three, but there are two ways to play them.

There are, arguably, six Contras for the NES. The ones where you play a pure, unfiltered, challenge, with a harsh limit on lives and continues as you dodge pixel sized bullets and use every strategy you can think of to stave off death, and the ones where you enter the Konami code and treat this stuff like it's a console port of a Metal Slug, where you can freely die over and over, knowing that it would take a LOT of mistakes to put you down for good.

It's a meaningful change to the game, one that I think can completely alter your perception of the challenges contained within, seeing stuff that should be challenging reflex checks as cheap deaths, because you aren't valuing your life enough. I played it both ways, and honestly they're both good, valid ways to enjoy Contra, because it is simply that good a game that it can accommodate both modes of play.

The power-ups are great in this. Yes, the laser is stupid, basically just a skill check for people who hammer the shoot button, the flame shot is... unremarkable? and the machine gun and spread shot are ridiculous in how good they are (and invincibility is what it is), but what's notable is how none of them feel like a nerf, and can be made to work with the right strategy.

Bosses are amazing. Often stationary target-shooting exercises, they still test your shooting skills and dodging abilities quite well, and as the game descends (literally) into more surreal and alien environments the bosses also become a visual treat. Why not rip off Aliens? Aliens is awesome. Good choice, Contra developers.

Normal enemies are varied and enjoyable, all looking like different flavours of American football players, or otherwise being out of sight throwing grenades from trees or the like. Their teensy tiny bullets really test your eyesight as you desperately try not to die and lose your god damn spread shot again.

The game feel is amazing. Every little noise is great, and your weaponry feels meaty as it blips away at enemies. The jumping is spectacular, even when you're leaping foolishly into enemy fire.

Easily a top 10 NES game of all time, an-oh shit, there's two player as well, isn't there!

There are, arguably, 12 versions of Contra for the NES. And they're all great.

É muito mais simples do que parece, e falo no melhor sentido possível!! Quando se entende o que cada fase e trechinho do jogo precisa e exige de você, tudo se encaixa naturalmente e com a performance necessária você supera todos os desafios. Ainda é um jogo de decoreba, mas sabe ser consciente dentro disso e se ajuda pela curta duração, também se mostrando surpreendentemente bem construído. Vale a pena superar o medo que colocam sobre ele e se aventurar nele


(Na dúvida mete um Konami code e seja feliz)

Anyone who says this game isn't good is just plain wrong. Anyone who says this game is better than Super C...is also just plain wrong. While it's definitely inferior to it's NES sequel, this is still a classic game, and a blast in multiplayer.

First of all, let's get the most insignificant part out of the way. The story. Contra has zero story. That is, if you don't have the manual. (Edit: Apparently, the Japanese version has things such as cutscenes, a map in between levels, numerous graphic changes, etc. You can see them all here)). Even then, it's a few paragraphs, that's it. But genuinely, who in their right mind would play Contra, fuckin' CONTRA for the story? It's a game about buff men with guns who kill a bunch of aliens. Need I say more?

Next is the music. Contra easily has an inferior soundtrack to it's sequel, in my opinion. But I can see why many people would disagree. Contra is a much more popular game, and much more people have nostalgic thoughts of it. Inferior, though, does NOT mean bad. Far from it. This still has one of the coolest soundtracks on the system. The title theme is hype, Jungle is iconic and awesome, Base is headbanging, Waterfall is slapping, Snow Field is just plain cool, Energy Zone is energetic and exciting, Alien's Lair is foreboding and atmospheric, yet gritty, and the Credits theme is truly rewarding after a game like that.

Onto the difficulty. It's no surprise to anyone that Contra is a hard game. When people say "Nintendo Hard", this is what they mean. And yet, unlike many NES games, Contra is at a very good difficulty level. Despite so many deaths, so much trial-and-error, it doesn't feel unfair. There are exceptions, as always. But it really does have a well designed difficulty level, which thankfully carried over to Super C.

And finally, the big one. GAMEPLAY. This is what you play Contra for. For the normal levels, the controls are tight. Jumps are sometimes stretched fairly far, but it's no Castlevania: The Adventure. But what good are good controls if the stages aren't designed around those good controls?(cough cough scv4 i meant uh anyways) But fear not, this is no problem. The controls are designed around the stages and vice versa. On the topic of stages, they are very well designed. Let's take the first stage as an example. In the first stage, better guns like Spread Shot(our lord and saviour) and Machine Gun are on top paths, after the bridges. If you play better, you will get the better guns. If you fall off the bridges, you will get guns like Fireball(coming from Super C as I played that first, it's such a "look how they massacred my boy" despite the fact that this iteration came first) and Laser. It's not just the first stage that has this type of game design, it's recurring, most of the game is designed in this way. Now, for the hallway stages, these are much different. There are only two in the game, and these are stage 2 and 4. Honestly, I question the decision to put them both close to the start, but I digress. These stages...are weird. They take a lot of getting used to, mostly because of the odd angle. But I assume these types of stages worked much better in the arcades; I can see how it would be difficult to move something over to a much weaker console. These are the games' "gimmick stages", the counterpart to Super C's top down stages. And...if I'm being brutally honest, which of course I am: these stages are kind of lame. The top down stages are streets ahead of the hallway stages. It's certainly one thing I think they could have improved if it was kept in the sequel, but I'm glad it was swapped in favor of the top down stages.

Phew. That was a long one. All I'm trying to say is this:
Contra is a great game. Unfortunately, because of my history with playing its sequel first, I can only see it as an inferior game to Super C. But it's still an awesome game with great stages, slappin' music, and amazing gameplay.