Contra (video game)

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Contra
Promotional flyer for the North American market.
Developer(s)	Konami
Publisher(s)	Konami
Release date(s)	Arcade version ^JPN ^NA ^EU 1987 NES version ^JPN February, 1988 ^NA February 2, 1988 ^EU December 28, 1990 Amstrad CPC version ^EU 1988 Commodore 64 version ^EU 1988 ZX Spectrum version ^EU 1988 PC MS-DOS version ^NA 1988 MSX2 version ^JPN 1989
Genre(s)	Run and gun
Mode(s)	Single player, Cooperative
Platform(s)	Arcade, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, NES, PC MS-DOS, MSX2, PC Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360
Input	8-way joystick, 2 buttons
Arcade cabinet	Upright
Arcade CPU(s)	Motorola 6809 (1.5 MHz)
Arcade sound system(s)	Motorola 6809 (2 MHz)
Arcade display	Raster, standard resolution (Used: 224 x 280) vertical orientation

Contra (魂斗羅, kontora^?) 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.

1 Plot
2 Gameplay
3 Ports
4 Legacy
5 Konami Code
6 External links

[edit] Plot

In the future, a meteor strikes Galuga, a fictional island 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 home versions, Bill was renamed as Mad Dog and Lance as Scorpion. The science fiction setting was moved back in time to 1988 in the instruction manuals, and the setting was changed to South America, even though the futuristic presentation of the game stayed exactly the same.

[edit] Gameplay

The first stage of Contra (arcade version).

The player's character is equipped with a semi-automatic rifle 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 eight stages.

[edit] 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.

[edit] 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.

One of the third-person levels (NES version).

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. 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.

[edit] Weapon system

The player begins the game with a simple non-automatic rifle. Special weapon power-ups 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, and respawns with the starting weapon. Each power-up is represented by an icon, 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:

Default Rifle: Semi-automatic weapon that fires a single shot per button press. Also, only four shots may be present on the screen at once.
Machine gun [M]: Converts the rifle into a fully automatic machine gun. It fires in steady bursts of 6.
Spread gun [S]: Change the players weapon into a shotgun style weapon. Two bursts of 5 shots spreading in a 90 degree arc are capable of being on the screen at one time. This weapon is devastating up close.
Laser gun [L]: This weapon will fire a single stream of plasma in a straight line that is 4 times as powerful as a regular shot. Only 1 shot from this gun can be on-screen at once.
Fire Ball [F]: A gun which fires small fireballs in a slow corkscrew pattern. Four fireballs are allowed at one time.
Rapid-fire [R]: Increases the speed of the individual shots.
Ballistic [B]: Will make the player invincible for a few seconds - though he can still lose a life by falling into a pit.
Destroy all: Appearing as a grey falcon, this powerup acts as a super-bomb and will destroy all enemies on screen.

[edit] 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. Konami itself ported the game in 1988 to the NES for a worldwide release and for PC MS-DOS for an American release, and made in 1989 a MSX2 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.

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 benefitted on a horizontal screen, which allowed a wider view of the playing field (the arcade game used a vertical screen instead).

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).

On March 2007, Contra will appear on the Nintendo DS compilation Konami Classic Series: Arcade Hits.

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 Sylvester Stallone in Rambo.

[edit] Differences between arcade and home versions

Screen orientation: The arcade version was designed as a conversion kit; one arcade machine able to use several different ROM sets. Vertical kits sold much better than horizontal kits. Thus, the arcade version was left in vertical orientation, while all console and home versions utilize a horizontal orientation. The vertical orientation does not give the player much time or room to react, and thus increases the difficulty slightly.
Graphics and sound: The arcade version boasts much richer, colorful, and more detailed graphics. The same is true with the sound aspects, as the YM2151 sound chip allowed rich sound.
Third-person levels: The Nintendo versions have longer interior levels.
Waterfall level: In the arcade version, this level is shorter and has a slightly different boss.
Levels 5-8: In the arcade version, there are only five levels. The last level is especially long. Upon conversion to home console, the elements of the last level were expanded to create three levels.
MSX2 levels: The MSX2 version features 11 new levels of which four are third-person levels (as opposed to two), two vertical scrolling cavern levels, two volcano levels, an enemy base and another alien lair. However, the hangar zone from the original is not present.

[edit] Japanese releases

The complete game map, as presented in the Japanese version of Contra.

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.

MSX2 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.

[edit] 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 "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. Contra: Hard Corps for Mega Drive (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.

[edit] Legacy

Main article: Contra series

The arcade version was followed by one sequel: Super Contra, in 1988.

The NES port of Contra was the first of many console-based games. It was followed on the NES by Super Contra – also known as Super C – and Contra Force, including a Game Boy version titled Operation C. The Super NES-based Contra III: The Alien Wars was one of the most highly acclaimed titles for Nintendo's 16-bit console, due to revolutionary graphics including level bosses taking up large parts of the screen and Mode 7-effects never previously seen. Later the Mega Drive got its fill of Contra with Contra: Hard Corps, which is widely considered as one of the best of the series. The Sony PlayStation installments Contra: Legacy of War (also released for Sega Saturn) and C: The Contra Adventure, developed by Hungarian company Appaloosa, are generally considered the most disappointing of the series, being completely in 3D and sporting awkward controls (these games have since been retconned from the storyline). However, the series saw a revival on the PlayStation 2 with the widely praised Contra: Shattered Soldier 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. 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. [1]

[edit] Konami Code

Main article: 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 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.