Let me hear a “Hell Yeah!” if you would like to see the Contra of old! Since Contra Hard Corps and the Alien Wars there has been very little for Contra fans to cheer about. Yet, while this is not the genuine successor to Contra 3: Alien Wars (downloadable on the Nintendo Wii as a Virtual Console game for the Super Nintendo) it is one of the best old-school shooters around…don’t forget that this is 2008 and these kind of games are far and few in between.

Visually, Contra 4 truly evoked a bygone era, with side-scrolling 2D levels, gigantic boss sprites and pseudo-3D bonus missions. Contra veterans will be chuffed to see some recognizable enemies, weapons and levels from previous incarnations in the series – in fact, this feels like one massive nostalgia trip. Not to even mention unlockable comics, bibliographies, sound galleries and…wait for it…PIXEL-PERFECT ports of Contra and Super Contra on the NES. Yup, you even have the option to keep the game at the original aspect ratio or to fit the DS screens which are a tad bit wider that your good old standard TV (Standard TV’s feel so last year!)

Continue reading El33tonline’s review of Contra 4.