| Contra | |
|---|---|
Packaging illustration for the NES version. The two human characters, Bill and Lance, were drawn by British artist Bob Wakelin, while the background was reused from the original Japanese promotional art. | |
| Developer(s) | Konami |
| Publisher(s) | Konami |
| Designer(s) | Arcade version Koji Hiroshita (director) NES version Shigeharu Umezaki(director) Shinji Kitamoto (director) |
| Composer(s) | Arcade version Kazuki Muraoka NES/Famicom version Hidenori Maezawa Kiyohiro Sada |
| Series | Contra |
| Platform(s) |
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| Release |
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| Genre(s) | Run and gun |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Cabinet | Upright |
| CPU | Hitachi 6309 (12 MHz) |
| Sound | Motorola 6809 (3 MHz) driving a Yamaha YM2151 |
| Display | Raster, standard resolution (Used: 224×280) vertical orientation |
Contra[3] is a run and gunvideo game developed and published by Konami, originally released as a coin-operated arcade game on February 20, 1987.[4] A home version was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988, along with ports for various computer formats, including the MSX2. The home versions were localized in the PAL region as Gryzor on the various computer formats and as Probotector on the NES, released later. Several Contra sequels were produced following the original game.
Contra, distributed as Gryzor in Europe and Oceania, is a 1987 run-and-gun action game developed and published by Konami originally released as a coin-operated arcade game on February 20th, 1987. A home version was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988, along with ports for. Contra Review. This is an accurate emulation of the arcade version of Contra. Unfortunately, you're probably not looking for the arcade version of Contra.
According to the Japanese promotional materials, Contra is set in the distant future of the year 2633 A.D., where the evil Red Falcon Organization have set a base on the fictional Galuga archipelago near New Zealand in a plot to wipe out humanity. Two commandos, Bill Rizer and Lance Bean of the Earth Marine Corp's Contra unit (an elite group of soldiers specializing in guerrilla warfare), are sent to the island to destroy the enemy forces and uncover the true nature of the alien entity controlling them.[5] The promotional materials for the US arcade version downplays the futuristic setting of the game, with the manual for the later NES and home computer versions changing game's setting from the future to the present day and the location from Galuga to the Amazon Jungle.
| Contra fictional chronology |
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Contra employs a variety of playing perspectives, which include a standard side view, a pseudo-3D view (in which the player proceeds by shooting and moving towards the background, in addition to left or right) and a fixed screen format (in which the player has their gun aimed upwards by default). Up to two people can play simultaneously, with one player as Bill (the blond-haired commando with the white tank top and blue bandana), and the other player as Lance (the shirtless dark-haired commando in the red bandanna). The controls consists of an eight-way joystick and two action buttons for shooting (left) and jumping (right). When one of the protagonists jumps, he curls into a somersault instead of doing a conventional jump like in other games. The joystick controls not only the player's movement while walking and jumping, but also his aiming. During side view stages, the player can shoot leftward, rightward or upward while standing, as well as horizontally and diagonally while running. The player can also shoot in any of eight directions, including downwards, while jumping. Pressing the joystick downwards while standing will cause the character to lie down on his stomach, allowing him to avoid enemy fire and shoot low targets. When the jump button is pressed while crouching on a higher platform, the player will drop down to a lower level.
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The player's default weapon is a rifle with unlimited ammunition that can be upgraded into one of four other guns. These can be obtained by destroying the pill box sensors and flying item capsules containing them, or by defeating the red-clad guards in the enemy bases. These consist of a machine gun that fires rapidly when the fire button is held down, a laser gun that shoots a powerful beam, a fireball gun that shoots its rounds in a corkscrew pattern, and a spread gun that shoots five individual bullets in individual directions. There are also two auxiliary power-ups that only appear in certain areas when the player is armed with his default gun: a rapid bullets upgrade that increases the firing speed of the player's shots and a barrier that makes him invulnerable for a limited period. With the exception of the machine gun and the laser gun, each item comes in the form of a Falcon-shaped symbol marked with a letter representing its function (F, S, R, and B).
The arcade version of Contra consists of seven stages (the number of stages and level structures varies in later versions). The first stage is a side-scrolling level where the player is dropped into the jungle and must fend off the enemy's initial line of defense until reaching the entrance of the first base, where he must destroy a large sensor to enter the base. The game switches to a 3D view for the second stage, where the player character must fight his way through a series of passageways inside the base before time runs out (a display at the top of the screen shows the map of the base and the time remaining). The player must destroy a generator at the other side of each passageway in order to deactivate the electric current preventing access. The third stage is set in the core of the base in a fixed screen, where the player must destroy the enemy's defense system in order to expose the final target, a giant eyeball that shoots fireballs. Stages 4 through 6 proceed similarly to the first three stages. Stage 4 is a vertical-scrolling level where the player must jump the way to the top of a waterfall until reaching the entrance of the second base, where the player must destroy a large diamond-shaped sensor guarded by a defense system in order to clear the stage. Stage 5 is another 3D stage set inside another base, while Stage 6 is another boss battle, this time against a pair of heads that split into two images each. The heads can only be damaged when their split images aligned together.
The seventh and final stage returns to the side-scrolling format of the first stage, as the player fights his way through the enemy's final line of defense (which includes a hovercraft, armored trucks, and giant helmeted soldiers) while proceeding through areas such as a snowfield, an energy plant and a hangar, until reaching the alien's lair, where the regular enemy soldiers are replaced with otherworldly creatures. The player must fight a giant alien head that spawns larvae from its mouth before reaching the final target, a heart-like creature that must be destroyed in order to complete the mission.
The player loses a life if their character (Bill or Lance) gets touched by enemy or an enemy bullet, fails to complete a base stage before the time limit, or falls into the bottom of the screen when there's no visible platform. When that happens, he will revert to his default weapon on his next life. After losing all lives, the player can continue by inserting more coins (if necessary) and pressing START, but only up to three times. A second player can join-in anytime, but if one player loses all of their lives, they must wait until the other player loses their lives as well to continue together.
The arcade game was released in three versions. The Japanese and American versions are virtually identical, aside from the Japanese version using kanji characters to spell the game's title. However, the European version, titled Gryzor, only allows two players to play the game alternating rather than simultaneously.
Under license from Konami, Ocean Software produced ports of Contra under the title of Gryzor for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and Amstrad CPC, which were released in Europe in 1988.[6] The Commodore 64 version was released in North America under the Contra title. Ocean's ports were patterned after the original arcade version of the game. An IBM PC version was developed by Banana Development Inc and released in North America. This version was released in Europe under the Gryzor name.[7] The cover illustration of Ocean's Gryzor ports by Bob Wakelin was inspired by different poses of actor Arnold Schwarzenegger from the film Predator.[8] The illustration was later used for the packaging of the NES version, as well as the MSX2 version.
Contra was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America in February 1988. This version was produced in-house by Konami and features several differences from the arcade release in order to better suit the NES's hardware. For example, sprites for effects (like explosions) are shown at 30fps instead of 60fps to work around the sprite limitations of the system. Another game to use this technique is Recca.[9] The Famicom version contains cutscenes, an additional music track, and environment effects which were removed for the NES version.[10]
The game can be played by one or two players, but due to the graphical limitations of the NES, Bill and Lance lost their individualized character designs. Instead, they are both depicted as shirtless commandos distinguished by the colors of their pants (blue pants for the first player and red pants for the second). When one player loses all of their lives, they are given the option to use the other player's stock to keep fighting.
The power-up icons for the Machine Gun and Laser Gun were also changed and are now represented by letter-based falcon symbols (M and L) used by the other weapons. The Rapid Bullets and Barrier power-ups are also more common in this version, since unlike the arcade game the flying item capsules now appear regardless of which weapon the player character currently possesses. The NES version introduces a seventh item that clears the screen of all on-screen enemies when obtained.
The NES version recomposes the 7 stages of the arcade version into 8 stages. Stages 2 and 3 were combined into one stage, resulting in the renumbering of the Waterfall level from Stage 4 to Stage 3, while Stages 5 and 6 were combined into the new Stage 4. The final four stages of the NES version (the Snowfield, Energy Zone, Hangar and Alien Lair) are based on the different areas featured in the arcade version's final stage. The level designs themselves are drastically different from the arcade version too. The two base stages for example (Stage 2 and 4), no longer have their maze-like structures nor is there any time limit involved. The boss of the waterfall stage was also changed from a diamond-shaped sensor to an alien statue.
Contra was one of the early NES games to feature the Konami Code. Inputting the code at the title screen starts the player with thirty lives instead of the usual three. The cheat will be in effect as well when the player runs out of lives and uses a continue to retry a stage.
Contra was released for the Famicom in Japan on February 9, 1988. While the gameplay remains identical to the NES version released around the same month, the Famicom version has a custom-made Multi-Memory Controller that Konami produced called the VRC2 (in contrast to the UNROM board used by its NES counterpart). This allowed for the inclusion of cut-scenes and a few graphical effects that were not possible in the NES version.[10]
The game begins with a prologue sequence explaining the game's backstory, followed by a map of the Galuga archipelago, which is shown at the start of every stage to indicate the player's progress. Cut-scenes are also shown between stages, depicting Bill (or Lance) giving a status report of his current situation to headquarters, and in later stages, shooting his gun towards the screen. The ending sequence is also slightly different and if the player holds the select and start buttons during the credits sequence, a secret message will be displayed after the Konami logo. Other differences include the addition of a sound test mode, added background animations in certain stages (such as windblown palm leaves in Stage 1 and a snowstorm in Stage 5), a different stage clear jingle when the player clears the final stage, and a level select cheat code.
Probotector is a modified version of the NES Contra that was released for the PAL region on December 28, 1990. This version redesigns the human protagonists and some of the enemy characters to give them a robotic appearance.[1][2][11] This was done to circumvent the BPjM's censorship laws in Germany, which prohibits the sales of violent video games to minors. Subsequent Contra games for home consoles followed suit, all being released in the PAL region under the Probotector title and featuring similar modifications. Beginning with Contra: Legacy of War, Konami abandoned the Probotector title and localized most of the further games with minimal changes.
An MSX2 version of Contra was released by Konami exclusively in Japan on May 26, 1989. The MSX2 version greatly differs from the arcade and NES versions. Due to hardware limitations of the MSX2, the game does not scroll but instead uses flip-screens like other MSX2 games such as Metal Gear and Vampire Killer. The game uses the SCC sound chip.[12]
Rather than one-hit kills, there is an energy gauge, which allows Bill Rizer to take more than one shot or hit before losing a life. There are two main power-ups in the MSX2 version, a Falcon-shaped power-up that increases the player's walking and shooting speed, as well as a gun-shaped power-up which allows the player to change their current weapon. After picking up the weapon power-up, the player can choose between the default Normal Gun or four other weapons. The Spread Gun is not featured in this version, replaced by Rear Gun similar to the tailgun in Gradius II, which fires at two directions at the same time.
The MSX2 version Contra is composed of 19 stages. Stages 1 through 6 are drawn directly from the arcade version, whereas Stages 7 through 9 are based on the different areas featured in the final stage of the arcade version in a matter similar to the final four stages of the NES version. Stages 10 through 19 are new to this version and take place primarily in an underground facility underneath the Galuga Archipelago.
Unlike the arcade and NES versions, the MSX2 version is single-player only (Lance Bean does not appear in any form), and has no continuation feature; if a player loses all lives, the game will be immediately over. However, the Game Master II utility cartridge can be used to save progress via its S-RAM backup feature.
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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.
Allgame editor Skyler Miller praised Contra, touting that the game 'became the standard by which future platform shooters would be judged'.[21] Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu gave the Famicom (NES) version of the game a score of 27 out of 40.[22]Computer Gaming World called Contra on the NES 'a truly outstanding action epic' set on a 'scrolling and beautifully drawn playfield'.[24] The MS-DOS version of the game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon No. 142 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in 'The Role of Computers' column.[25]
Contra was voted No. 1 by gaming website IGN as being the 'Toughest Game to Beat'.[26]Nintendo Power ranked it as the seventh best NES game, calling it one of the best multiplayer NES games.[27]GamesRadar ranked it the 10th best NES game ever made, considering it possibly superior to the arcade version.[28]Game Informer also included it in their list of best games ever at number 13. The staff noted that while not revolutionary, it was fun.[29] In 2017, Contra ranked 82nd in 'The Scientifically Proven Best Video Games of All Time', a statistical meta-analysis compiled by Warp Zoned of 44 'top games' lists published between 1995 and 2016.[30]
Contra was followed by Super Contra a year later. It is the only Contra sequel for the arcades developed in-house by Konami. Following the success of the NES adaptations of both, the original and its sequel (which was retitled Super C in its American release), subsequent sequels would be produced specifically for the home console market such as Contra III: The Alien Wars for the Super NES and Contra: Hard Corps for the Genesis, becoming one of Konami's landmark series. As of 2014, the series has 11 installments.
The music from the arcade version of Contra is one of the soundtracks included in the video game album Konami Game Music Vol.4: A Jax, which was released by Alfa Records on May 10, 1988, in CD (catalog no. 28XA-201), cassette (ALC-22922), and vinyl (ALR-22922).
In April 2017, Beijing Starlit Movie and TV Culture announced they were producing a live-action film version of Contra in China. Wei Nan is listed as the screenwriter. The project was scheduled for release on June 6, 2018, but it did not meet that release date.[31]
journal= (help)Thirty years ago a mysterious UFO crashed into the Amazon basin deep among the ruins of an ancient Mayan civilization. Thinking it was just another meteor, no one thought twice about the incident-that is, until now! Strange rumors of frightening events taking place deep in the jungle have reached the Pentagon. Now the top brass knows the aliens have landed, and they've decided to send two members of their elite Special Forces corps deep into the steaming jungle to investigate and destroy the alien forces led by the repulsive Red Falcon. As Lance and Bill, otherwise known as Scorpion and Mad Dog, you're about to begin the adventure of a lifetime!
Go it alone if you choose, but Contra is in a class by itself as a simultaneous two-player adventure. You each get three lives and you can earn extra lives by completing different levels. Or you can use the ultimate Contra tip.
ProTip: To begin with 30 lives in a one-or two-player game do the following: During the title screen press Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, and Start. You may have to try this a couple of times to get it to work.
Once the action starts in this game, it never lets up. Ahead of you lie eight zones of the Red Falcon's defense. At the end of each of the first seven zones of destruction, you'll encounter one of Red Falcon's mammoth Detection Sensors designed to warn the Falcon of your approach. Wipe these sensors out to advance to the next defense zone.
To defend yourself and wipe out the Falcon's forces, you'll have to use your incredible ability to run, jump, and fire with deadly accuracy. Normally you're armed with a standard machine gun, but destroy Flying Capsules and Pill Box Sensors to earn special weapons like the Laser, the Rapid Fire, and the Force Field.
Your adventure begins as you battle hordes of alien soldiers through the jungle alongside of the Amazon River.
Destroy the Sensor at the end of the jungle by first taking out the sniper and the cannon. Next, jump to the ledge where you're out of reach of the gunfire of the sensor, and then blast the guns to smithereens from this safe position.
Next, it's a shoot-out at the first enemy base where you'll have to destroy countless security walls before you can penetrate the base.
If you succeed in storming the base, you and your buddy face a deadly climb up the side of a waterfall while enemy snipers try to pick you off.
Destroy the Detection Sensor at the top of the waterfall by first blasting its tentacles and then positioning yourself as shown in the picture. You can safely blow up its head without being shot.
Another enemy base lies just past the waterfall. Then you'll find yourself running along an eerie snowfield where aliens lob bombs at you from behind trees and giant bulldozers try to run you down.
Beyond the snowfield lies the Energy Zone. Here you'll have to dodge both enemy troops and the blasts of giant lasers that sings you in seconds.
Succeed in unplugging the Energy Zone and you're into the Red Falcon's Hanger Zone. It's the Falcons last line of defense, and it's a deadly one!
For the best success try taking the upper route in this zone.
Finally, you're inside the Falcon's Lair. Horrible enemy aliens, larvae, and guts try to block your path. Make it past this biological mess and it's the final confrontation with the Red Falcon himself.
Konami's Contra is a true classic in every sense of the word. It's got great graphics, great sound, great game-play, and what's more, it's just plain fun. And don't forget to check out Konami's Super C, the sequel to Contra. You haven't lived and died, and lived and died, and lived and died until you've tried Contra!