Contra

Up Up, Down Down, Left Right, Left Right, B A, B A, Select Start… What else is there to say!

Geez, it’s Contra! What more do I have do say? Well, if you don’t know Contra, I’ll explain it. It’s an action thriller full of intense, coming-from-all-sides-and-closing-fast melee and vicious boss fights, which will appeal to any hyena’s combat instincts. While it may seem a tad tame when set to the ’’easy’’ mode, things became super-exciting when the difficulty is jacked-up to maximum (’’hardest’’).

The game also includes other hyena-type aspects, like wading into water and that high-jump. Action takes place either in a classic side (and sometimes vertical) scrolling style, or in 3-D time-limited behind-the-back scenes taking place inside enemy bases. Thankfully, there are only two of these odd scenes, but they aren’t too bad. Overall, the game provides that desperate, intense feel that defines the action genre and gives a good, solid challenge to a gamer’s skills. Hey, it’s Contra.

Now, let’s be frank - the focus of the game was about as far from mooching off of your friend as it could get. The plot was large enough to get you to play, yet dull enough to give the impression that it was an afterthought for another game (probably Castlevania, knowing Konami). Yet somehow this always ended up happening - your friend, the moron who would keep dying because of his slow reflexes (or whatever reason), would keep stealing a life so he could continue on in his self-destructive paths.

This in many ways might have something to do with the Iran contra affair and Communism and sharing and dying, but somehow I doubt that.

Now, the real reason this irked you so is because of the fact that these lives represented money, YOUR money - and your friend was taking it from you, one bit at a time. Eventually, you’d find out that your friend actually had some money left on him, so all of his stealing was simply to make you mad. This is often what caused teen violence in America - stolen Contra lives.

Overall, the game is great. Sure, it’ll guzzle down your time faster than a hangover on a vibrating bed, but it’s quite fun. Without the infamous Konami Code (You should know it by now, folks), the game actually puts a little bit of challenge on you. That, combined with grubby 2nd players, make the challenge decent enough. Good graphics and music, with moderate sound effects backing it, put this game fairly high up in the scores. If you see it, play it - you’ll find it pleasantly better than its Nintendo Port.