Contra Anniversary Collection is another successful release under Konami’s Anniversary Collection moniker. It brings the old series back to life and reminds us that Konami really loved gaming back in the day. Hopefully, they can get that old feeling back again and reignite some of the other series that lie underneath their control.
Contra Anniversary Collection
We’re making this summer a trifecta for reviewing anniversary collections from Konami. We’ve seen what they did with their arcade collection, gone through hell and back with their Castlevania collection, and now we’re here at the finale with Contra Anniversary Collection. Third time is indeed a charm, especially when your ‘Konami code’ still works.
Let’s do this.
The Contra Anniversary Collection is in the same style as the previous two collections. You have a combination of games related back to the collection’s title, and they all come in different shapes, sizes, and resolutions. Here’s what you’re getting with the Contra Anniversary Collection:
Contra (1987 & 1988): The original Contra game started in the arcade. It was feisty, it was unforgiving, and at the same time pretty good. Better graphics, thanks in part to dedicated chipsets for the game that handled graphics and whatnot, but with the same type of gameplay helped to foreshadow what was to come a year later on the NES/Famicom platform.
The gameplay design allows you to play as shirtless soldiers that run through a bevy of endless ‘Rush’n Attack’ inspired enemies. Along the way, you collect different types of weapons that only last as long as your life. Who the hell are you fighting, you might ask? Well, you’re fighting aliens from space (thanks, James Cameron) that have an H.R. Giger feel to them.
The action in the original game was endless, the different types of stages (such as a third-person viewpoint) helped to keep the game fresh and engaging. More importantly, even after 31+ years of being out in the wild, the game still has some kick to it. Also, the Konami code still works with it (just the NES version). Three different versions of the same game are kinda repetitive but still neat for a collection.
Super Contra (1988 & 1990): The difference between Super Contra in the arcades in 1988 and the Super C game released on the NES is night and day. Konami was far better off just waiting for the SNES to arrive in 1992 rather than releasing a downgraded version of a gorgeous arcade game. Anyway, Super Contra was relentless in design and unforgiving in how many enemies it threw at you on screen at one time. The gameplay design was built for stealing your quarters, and that didn’t translate too well to an NES game. I commend Konami for the attempt, but once you play the arcade version of Super Contra, it’s tough to accept the NES version.
Contra III: The Alien Wars (1992): Oh, those folks with PAL (Europe) got Super Probotector: Alien Rebels. Us folks in America and Japan got Contra III: the Alien Wars, a much cooler name that didn’t make us feel dirty, with less robotic protagonist.
Contra III, much like Castlevania on the SNES, did its best to demo how cool the modes were in the SNES hardware. The modes being how you can scale the gameplay design and use some really cool effects to make it seem less like a Genesis game. Out of the bunch, the game is far shorter than expected but still fun as hell to play. Much prettier than Super C on the NES.
Contra: Hard Corps (1994): Sega got its own Contra game with Contra: Hard Corps (Probotector in PAL countries — that name is just killing me — as are the robotic protagonist). While limited on aging hardware, the game still packed a punch. The action was fast, intense, and with no mode 7 featured. People didn’t care, though, because by 1994 everyone was thinking optical, so if you didn’t play this, it’s not very surprising. At least you get to in this collection.
Operation C (1991): I get it. It’s cool to see a Gameboy game on a 4K screen (well, semi-cool). The first Contra game to make to a portable, it did its best to bring the same Contra feel (and it succeeded to an extent). Not my favorite of the bunch, but I appreciate what it did to make way for the future of portable gaming. Maybe Konami should consider a mobile version of this for iOS/Android.
Write that down, Konami.
While I don’t personally find this collection as fascinating as the first two, I like that Konami is revisiting some of the best games in its past and treating them proper. The inclusion of two bonus books to bring additional history to the fold is nice. I do appreciate the history lesson in these collections, as they make the purchase far more valuable.
Overall, Contra Anniversary Collection is another successful release under Konami’s Anniversary Collection moniker. It brings the old series back to life and reminds us that Konami really loved gaming back in the day. Hopefully, they can get that old feeling back again and reignite some of the other series that lie underneath their control.
Still keeping my fingers crossed on Snatcher. I’m beginning to think this is a ‘You Can’t Do That on Television’ sorta situation. One can dream.
