Contra 4 for Nintendo DS Reviews by Gamers

When I was a kid, I played contra on the NES like it was a religion. It was without a doubt my favorite game. After the series went 3-d it took a dive for the worse. Now that Contra 4 is out do we finally have another good game or a bad one? Here's my thoughts

Pros-
- This game is every bit old school contra. In fact a lot of the level design pays tribute to the old ones such as Contra, Super C and Alien Wars on the SNES.
- Game is packed with extras. From a challenge mode to box art and even the original Contra and Super C for the NES. Every contra fan can appreciate that.
- The graphics are very stylized and fit well into the contra universe. Also the game works very well with the duel screens.
- The laser is actually useful.
- The game is seriously challenging. It is no pushover.

Cons -
- Game is HARD. While a challenge is a nice thing, sometimes it can be overwhelming even on the normal difficulty
- Sometimes it can be easy to loose track of enemy fire when it passes from the top to the bottom (or vise versa ) screens.
- Sometimes you just don't have a way to prevent yourself from dying. Gunfire can sometimes trap you.
- Your directional fire is very limited, can be hard to hit enemies sometimes.

Really contra is a love or hate game. It is very tough and casual players probably wont get much out of it. But if your a contra fan there is no reason you should not have this for your DS. It is that simple. I definately suggest a rental

Its just as hard as the classic and i love it. :]

Contra 4 Review

Once upon a time there was a boy who decided to rent Contra 4 from GameFly to review for the magazine he worked for. Upon getting it, he was eager to try this legendary game. He had heard how tough this game was, but thought it couldn't possibly be as hard as Trauma Center. "I'll start on easy then work my way up, I'll fly through easy in an hour or two," he thought. Well, that hour turned into two hours and the first level was finally beaten. "Holy mother fing sit" he said. "This game is tough." For a week this boy battled through easy, experiencing the thrilling feeling of blasting aliens. 20 hours total, and no win, and he needed to send the game back to get all the reviews done. So yes, there you have it, this boy only got to the last level of Easy mode and decided to review it. That boy, as many of you have probably guessed by now, is me.
Contra 4 is without a doubt the absolute toughest game on the DS. If you like repeating levels, mastering controls, and slowly becoming a true contra (contra is german for super soldier or something..) then this game is for you. Contra 4 revolves around an alien threat once again coming back to Earth. As four heroes, and more unlockable ones, you battle through the game, all the same besides their sprite. It's a run and gun, common back in the NES days, heck this is so retro its in. It throws in some surprise though. Unlike most types of these games, it changes it up a bit. In some levels, you will have a true third person shooter like element. What really is different is the guns. Upgrades are received to the gun to help you beat the aliens faster. You also have a different amount of life depending on difficulty. So, as you advance in toughness, not only does the game get longer (Easy has less levels than Normal and Hard modes), the lives get more limited and the weapon upgrades get weaker. This is one great game.
For the full review visit (www)freewebs(com)/nsider- mag in 08.

I was looking forward to playing this title for quite a while before it was finally sent my way. I knew I would be playing a game notorious for it's difficulty. And yes, the game is difficult. But I feel it was held back by some of the nostalgic choices made by the developers.

Single hit kills, level restarts and limited continues hampered the experience. Video games have evolved to the point where I hate having to play the first level over and over and over again. A save feature may not increase play time, but would have increased the fun factor.

i have played this game and all the other contra games and i cant beat any of them on level one! why did the developers take the 30 lives code away from us?? everyone loves that code and remembers it! why? because that was back when contra was fun!! i cant beat level 2 out of 9 levels! i am just going to use action replay because this game SUCKS!! the graphics are bad for a ds game. its repetetive and is stupid! the only way any one was able to beat it without cheats was to manouver and calculate every thing that would happen! does that sound like fun to you??? i didnt think so!

I bought a DS (but returned it after a couple days) and this was one of the first games I played. I could not believe how simple and original NES-like the graphics are. There is nothing "DS" about this game. They say the DS is an N64 equivalent but this game really looks like it's at least 10 years old. If it wasn't for the namesake this game would only get half the good the reviews that it does. This game is a shining example of why I exchanged my DS for a PSP.

Great game but it was even more frustrating then I remember on the NES! The control's were sticky and the camera was annoying at time's
Also where is the code for up,up,down.down.left,right left,right B-A Start? that code gave you 100 lives! If it is in this game I would like to know how to do it seriously lol. Also they should've left the original Contra in this game come on Konami! Lame.. So I give this game an 8 out of 10!

this game was decent. it was fun gameplay, almost identical to metal slug. however the game is ruined by the fact that it does not have the ability to save. and in addition it is very diffocult. the first one time i played it i only got to level 3, then i had to restart it all over again and i got to level 5. at this point i did not want to do levels 1 2 or 3 again so i had no choice but to turn the game in. I was severely disapointed, if you have played contra before you probably knew this but i guess im a newbie and i was unwarned. Beware of the monotony of redoing levels before you buy this game!

It played a little weird for me. I guess it has just been a while since I have played a side scroller, but the controls were very responsive, although I kept having a hard time shooting down.. but overall a very enjoyable game.

Contra 4 will make you throw your DS, punch your walls, kick your dog, and bring a smile to your face all at once.
This game is not for those people who get angry when they throw an interception in Madden or lose a race in Mario Kart. This game will make you pay for not being fast enough or hesitating at any given time.
Contra 4 doesn't look gorgeous but it isn't a bad looking game either. The explosions are fun to watch (don't watch for too long or you'll be dead)and the environments are varied. The real fun is in the gameplay.
Difficult has been the operative word to describe Contra 4 and with good reason. This game is beyond difficult. Be prepared for many restarts and do-overs.
To give an example, you'll feel so close to the end of a level at one point and still have six lives...great! Well within fifteen minutes those lives are gone and you need to restart all over again.
This game is much like brick breaker, it's fun to play at any given time but takes nearly forever to perfect...good luck.

If you look at my title it says Fun at First and Boss Fights eeeeeee....... When I mean fun at first I mean its only fun for a day or 3. I got bored of it in 3 days. This game is really fun and it doesent involve the stylus that much. the controls are quite simple and let me say that this was my 1st time playing contra. The boss fights get really stressful when you dont know what to do. But when you start to think about it you shall defeat the level. Anyways the game is really fun they could have used the stylus more and added in more stuff like upgrading guns and a more choice of characters and making up the names for them. So I give this game a 4/5

The same Contra from way back. I never played it then. I did like the version from 1990, for the NES. But this is the original arcade game.

After so many years I'm happy to finally be able to play a game that truly resembles the old contra games. It's challenging, 2-d and it's action pack much like contra III was back in the SNES. It also fully uses the 2 screens something that most games on the DS rarely use which is nice to see. Although the 2 screens can get confusing at first beacuse its difficult to judge the bullets and soldiers crossing between the screens you get use to it after a while. I recommened this game to anybody that enjoy the contra games back in the late 80's and early 90's this game really does justice to the legacy that was contra back then.

I've always enjoyed the Contra games but I expected this one to be a new experience and It wasn't. You will shoot through the same locales that you have in previous titles and fire the same weapons (some enhanced). You better make sure to keep good weapons safe because the default rifle sucks compared to anything else and almost makes some scenarios a lot harder. The 3D elements felt like they were crowbarred in and cheap especially in the tunnel levels. With that said it's still old school fun and if you are a die hard fan you will probably have a lot of fun while experiencing some deja vu. The use of both screens doesn't help or hurt things it's just a different aspect ratio. It does enough to be a Contra game but nothing to evolve the franchise. A lot of 2D shooters have learned from Contra too bad Contra couldn't do the same.

have fun standing on rocket thrusters :p

I must this game is freaking awesome. I love contra in 2d. If are new to contra you will be frustrated when you start off because you will die a lot. This game brings back what hard mode really means, HARD. The replay value of this game is great. You can this game forever if you wanted. They use both screens. If you hardcore player or contra fan you must buy this game.

Gameplay: 9/10 (VERY HARD)

Design/Style: 8/10

Replay Value: 8/10

Graphics: 7/10

TOTAL: 8/10

For those who played back in the day this is a good game. There is a very good use of both screens, but in the end it's a side scrolling shooter.