| Contra (arcade Game) |
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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 Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988. PLOT In the future, a meteor strikes Galuga, a fictional archipelago off the coast of New Zealand , carrying with it a dormant alien life form. In 2633, a terrorist organization known as Red Falcon has emerged from hiding in order to conquer the world. Bill Rizer and Lance Bean travel to the Oceanian island to stop the evil threat. In the early North American localizations, Bill and Lance were given the nicknames Mad Dog and Scorpian respectively. The Science Fiction setting was moved back in time to 1988 according to the instruction manuals, and the setting was changed to South America, even though the futuristic presentation of the game stayed exactly the same. GAMEPLAY The player's character is equipped with a Shotgun with an unlimited amount of ammunition and can jump, move and fire in eight 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 eight 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 inadvertently kill the other player in the process, as the other player would literally have the ground beneath him disappear. Level structure ''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. 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 (In the NES port, Base 1 consists of 5 rooms, and Base 2 consists of 8) . 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. Powerups come in the form of a red soldier who will make repeated short jumps across the screen, from right to left. Upon defeating all of the enemies and gun turrets in any given room, the power-core will eventually fire upon the player until it is destroyed. It is important to note the style of these stages has not yet been duplicated in a later ''Contra'' game, however ''Contra IV'' plans to have similar stages. 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 The main characters begin the game with a simple Shotgun . Special weapon Power-up s can be collected to increase the speed, damage, or size of the main characters' shots. This makes it easier to shoot enemies, but these power-ups are lost every time the player loses a life. The player's character respawns with the starting weapon. Each power-up is represented by an icon that resembles a red Falcon . Most commonly power-ups appear via flying 'balloons', but they also appear in fixed locations as metal boxes emblazoned 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 weapons and power-ups as featured in the original game:
PORTS The original game was ported as ''Gryzor'' to the ZX Spectrum , Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64 by Ocean Software for their release in Europe in 1988, with the Commodore 64 version also being released as ''Contra'' in North America by Konami. Konami itself ported the game in 1988 to the NES for a worldwide release and for PC MS-DOS for a North American release, and made in 1989 a MSX 2 version released only in Japan . The NES 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. The NES version of the game was included as part of the ''Konami Collector's Series: Castlevania & Contra'' released for PC Microsoft Windows in 2002. Since November 8 , 2006, a version of the original Contra is available as an Xbox Live Arcade download for the Xbox 360 , costing 400 Microsoft Points ($5.00). This version of the game was also offered as a free reward through the Xbox Live Rewards program. Gamers could download the game for free if they raised their Gamerscore by 1500 points between March 12 and April 22 , 2007. {Link without Title} Contra also appeared as one of the games in the ''. ''Contra'' and its successors were heavily influenced by the action movies of the time, in particular '' Predator '', '' Rambo '' and '' Aliens ''. The characters depicted on the cover for the North American version of ''Contra'' resemble Arnold Schwarzenegger as Dutch in ''Predator'', and Sonny Landham from Predator as well. Arcade and home versions differences
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 an opening sequence detailing the meaning of the Contra codename and the game's plot. These also included a secret message after the closing credits that served as a Cliffhanger for the next game. In contrast, the North American version had no in-game narrative at all. 2 port]] Konami also released an MSX 2 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 and computer ports were 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 " (known merely as ''Probotector'') was the last Contra to be released under the Probotector label, while the next one in the series, ''Contra: Legacy of War'', became the first one to remain as a Contra game. LEGACY See Also: Contra series 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 started performing live and studio renditions of the song. '' The Minibosses '' as The Advantage too, 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 CHEAT CODE See Also: 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. Then the player would start the game by pressing '''Start''' for one player or '''Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Select, Start''' for two players. ''Contra'' was not the first game to feature this famous code; it was actually the NES/Famicom port of '' Gradius '', despite popular belief. Regardless, ''Contra'' popularized the Konami Code. The code was also used for thirty lives in '' Life Force ''. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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