| Contra (arcade Game) |
Article Index for Contra |
Website Links For Contra |
Information AboutContra (arcade Game) |
is an Arcade Game released in 1987 by the Konami corporation. The player controls a commando who battles waves of enemies including humans, machines, mutants and Aliens to reach his ultimate goal. Much of the game's popularity came from its two-player simultaneous gameplay, which was an uncommon feature in video games at the time of ''Contra'''s release. While successful in the arcades, the game became and remained widely popular and remembered when it was Ported to the Famicom and the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988 . The game has come to be known as the definitive Run And Gun type of Shoot 'em Up , and has established deep connections with Geek Culture . STORYLINE In 1957 , a meteor strikes South America , carrying with it a dormant alien lifeform. Thirty years later in 1987 , the alien known as Red Falcon has emerged from hiding in order to conquer the world. Mad Dog/Bill and Scorpion/Lance travel to the South American island to stop the evil threat. GAMEPLAY See Also: Contra series The player's character is equipped with a semi-automatic Machine Gun with an unlimited amount of ammunition and can jump, move and fire in all four cardinal directions and all four ordinal directions. The protagonists can move and jump simultaneously while firing. Coordination of the character's movement is essential, as a single hit from any enemy, bullet, or other hazard will instantly kill the player's character and also discard the current weapon from the player's inventory. It is not unusual for the screen to be occupied with several enemies and dozens of bullets moving in different directions all at once in the game's five stages. Multiplayer ''Contra'' also features simultaneous two-player cooperative gameplay. Both players occupy the same screen and must coordinate their actions. One player lagging behind can cause problems for his partner, as the screen will not scroll onward. For example, a slow player can be fatal to his partner's attempt to complete a jump over a chasm. In the vertical levels, one player can scroll up far too quickly and inadvertantly kill the other player in the process, as the other player would literally have the ground beneath him disappear. Levels and bosses ''Contra'' has two different types of levels: scrolling and third-person. Furthermore, some of the scrolling levels are vertically oriented, while the majority scroll horizontally. The Video Game Console versions had three additional levels. In the arcade version, the fifth level is an exceptionally long last level. The disparate elements of it were expanded in the console versions to form three additional levels.
Scrolling levels: Behind-the-player levels: The two Base levels take place in interior environments. Gameplay is shown from a behind-the-player third-person perspective, although all the gameplay mechanics are kept intact. Each level is composed of approximately five to six rooms. The goal of each room is to blow up the power-core which eliminates an electric field barrier that prevents the player(s) from proceeding. Initially, only a few enemies or stationary turrets are present. In later rooms gun emplacements must be defeated in order to uncover the room's core. Also '' Arkanoid '' like tubes will roll across the floor in different patterns, causing death to the player. Initial rooms only contain Powerups come in the form of a red soldier who will make repeated short jumps across the screen, from right to left. It is important to note the style of these stages was never duplicated in a later ''Contra'' game. The boss of each of these levels is the same; a six-cored boss that has a swarm of troops and turrets initially followed by an alien creature. Weapon system Special weapon Power-up s can be collected to increase the speed, damage, or size of the player's shots. This can make for an easier time progressing through the game, but the caveat is that these power-ups are lost every time the player loses a life. Each power-up is represented by an icon, a red falcon. Most commonly powerups appear via flying 'baloons', but they also appear in fixed locations as metal boxes emblazened with the same logo. In the arcade version, the Machine Gun and Laser Gun are designed differently. The following is a list of ''Contra'''s power-ups as featured in the original game:
PORTS port]] The original game was ported as ''Gryzor'' to the ZX Spectrum , Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64 by Ocean Software in 1988 . It was also ported by Konami to the NES in 1988 . This version is famed for its use of the Konami Code , and is sometimes wrongfully credited as being the first to use it (the NES version of '' Gradius '' was the actual originator of the code). The gameplay remained generally unchanged from the arcade game. However, most fans consider the NES version to be superior due to its extended length by breaking the arcade's final level into three separate stages. It also benefited on a horizontal screen, which allowed a wider view of the playing field (the arcade game used a vertical screen instead). ''Contra'' and its sucessors were heavily influenced by the action movies of the time, in particular '' Rambo '' and '' Aliens ''. The cover for the North American version of ''Contra'' resembles the cover for '' Predator ''. In the game, the character Bill is also a slightly transformed copy of Arnold Schwarzenegger , and Lance a slightly transformed copy of Sylvester Stallone . Differences between arcade and home versions
Japanese releases In Japan, third-party developers of Famicom games were allowed to use their own custom chips, in addition to the standard ones given by Nintendo. This was in contrast to North America, where only Nintendo's first-party mappers were used. Konami took advantage of this situation by developing the Video Resource Chip (VRC) series of mappers for the Famicom. ''Contra'' made use of the VRC2 chip; its added effects are noticeable in comparison to the American NES version, with the presence of animated backgrounds with palm trees and snowfalls. The Famicom version also included additional cut-scenes between stages; a map displaying the player's progress and extended opening and ending scenes. These included a secret message after the closing credits, which served to narrate the game's storyline to the player. In contrast, the North American version had no in-game narrative at all. port]] Konami also released an MSX2 version of the game in Japan. While this version included several new stages, it has been criticized by fans. People have derided this port for its watered-down gameplay, addition of a health bar, lack of scrolling, limited number of enemies displayed simultaneously on-screen, substandard graphics, and most commonly, the lack of a two-player mode. The level structure of this port is also different from the original. There are many additional levels that are not present in the other version; four 3D view levels instead of two, two vertical scrolling cavern levels, two volcano levels, an enemy base (also with vertical scrolling), and another alien lair. However, the hangar zone from the original is not present. European and Australian releases The early console versions of ''Contra'' (and sequels to the console versions) were released as ''Probotector'' in Europe and Australia. In this version the two main characters (and many enemies) were changed to robots - despite the fact the original arcade version was released uncensored under the ''Gryzor'' title in those territories. One reason may be that Konami was concerned about worry over violent games in Europe; another theory is that they feared Germany's so-called " Bundesprüfstelle ", an institution that watches newly released media to possibly forbid the selling of a game. In the 1980s and 1990s, dozens of games in which people are killed in order to progress (e.g. ''Rambo III''), were added to an index that meant they were not allowed to be advertised or displayed in stores, and they could be only bought on request by people over 18 years old. Relegation to this index would have meant commercial disaster. LEGACY The arcade version was followed by one sequel: '' Super Contra '', in 1988 . The '' and its follow-up '' Neo Contra '' which were both developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo. These titles were much more true to the original ''Contra'' formula. The first level theme in the NES port of ''Contra'' remains one of the most recognizable pieces of video game music ever created. In the early 2000s, several bands starting performing live and studio renditions of the song. '' Minibosses '' covers the song along with several other classic tunes such as the theme from '' Metroid ''. A band has recently formed and started touring called ''Contraband''; two of the members of the band play the NES version of ''Contra'' in a Speed Run fashion, while the other members of the band perform a live rendition of the song. A projector screen showing the gameplay action is superimposed on stage. {Link without Title} KONAMI CODE The famous Konami Code that allows the player to receive 30 lives per continue goes as follows: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A. It is a popular misconception that the code ends with either '''Start''' or '''Select, Start;''' but those buttons only start the game with one or two players after the code has been applied. The '''Select''' is optional and is used to have two players with thirty lives each. This code has become part of gamer culture, and is featured on t-shirts and in various songs, including the bands 8-Bit and YTCracker . The NESkimos also did a song that involved shouting the Contra Code. As listed above, ''Contra'' was not the first game to feature this famous code; it was actually '' Gradius '', despite popular belief. In 8-bit's Rap Tribute to Nintendo games entitled ''Zelda'' the following lines referenced the game: :"Whip in ''Contra''/tear it apart/up up down down left right left right B A and start/" TRIVIA
PACKAGING ARTWORK |
|
|