Contra retrospective: Alien Predator vs. Commandos | NES Works

Konami knocks it out of the park yet again with one of the greatest arcade conversions ever to hit the NES: Cooperative platform shooter Contra. It's a rare example of a coin-op title being ported faithfully to NES and somehow improving on the source material despite the move to inferior hardware. With its tight level design, inventive bosses, impressive weapons, and slightly combative cooperative gameplay, Contra is a true NES classic that continues to be a great time more than 30 years later.
Special thanks to Steve Lin of the Video Game History Foundation for letting me photograph his very shiny and crisp Contra box!
Video Works is funded via Patreon ( / gamespite ) - support the show and get access to every episode up to two weeks in advance of its KZbin debut! And be sure to check out the Retronauts podcast (www.retronauts.com), where I (and many others!) tackle a much wider array of classic gaming topics each week.

[@originalsleepyjon]

Contra was a Christmas present I got from my Grandma on Christmas Eve. Needless to say, I snuck the manual into candlelight service that night 😅😅

[@svankensen]

Can confirm. I'm a color coded muscle guy, and they use your shirt as collateral for the assault rifle.

[@JeremyParish]

I assume it's like a bowling alley shoe exchange, yeah?

[@GameplayandTalk]

This game still holds up amazingly well. One of the best games on the NES, in my opinion.

[@Mansini77]

Oh Contra. Some of my friends back in the day preferred Super Mario, others preferred Castlevania or Mega Man. No matter what our tastes, we could all get around Contra. It just nicely struck a chord with all of us.

[@joeyvlo]

0:08 Mr Belvedere! I loved that show when I was a young teen for some reason lol.

[@jasonblalock4429]

What's amazing is that the Contra Anniversary Collection - as well as the other two 'Collections' released around that time - didn't originally include the Japanese ROMs. It took a lot of complaining from the community for them to get patched into the games. But hey, at least they're included now.

[@papanugget2368]

It says a lot about the gaming community that after over 15 years of consuming retro gaming content this was the first time I heard about the origins of the contra name

[@Trainy2]

I still consider Contra a perfect NES game. I can't think of anything I'd change about it

[@DracXBelmont]

I'd make it harder. Maybe some laser sharks. Wall of spikes. The usual.

[@billcook4768]

Add Kirby. All games with Kirby are automatically better.

[@Trainy2]

@@DracXBelmont It's plenty hard if you don't use the Konami code

[@osurpless]

@@billcook4768 That’s what Abobo’s Big Adventure is for. Not only is there a Contra level, but Kirby takes up an interesting role within...

[@BassmintStile]

@@DracXBelmont Well, it does have lasers and it has walls of spikes. Guess all you need to add is sharks.🦈 🔫🦈🔫🦈🔫🦈🔫

[@HybridAngelZero]

As someone who loves playing different regional versions and permutations of games, the Contra Anniversary Collection has been an absolute treat!

[@JGRICH61]

Agree but i still prefer the NA release of Contra over JP

[@HybridAngelZero]

@@JGRICH61 That's totally valid! I just think it's cool to go back to a game you're super familiar with and play it in a new or different way

[@Unquestionable]

Easily one of the best titles of the era and entertaining to pick up and play to this day. The amount of rental time I had with this and Super C was astonishing, the limited budget of a child meant purchase was a near impossibility. Still my dad was always up for some Contra and Punch Out so it was never difficult to convince him whenever we would be getting our general weekend movie rentals.

[@SynopsisGrim]

"...to allow each hero to attack aggressively from a separate angle." Nice!

[@mattb1]

It's time for revenge.

[@luisguillermojg]

I was expecting this reference in the video and wasn't disappointed. Great work Jeremy.

[@svankensen]

@@luisguillermojg Explain? Not getting the reference.

[@luisguillermojg]

@@svankensen They say "Let's attack aggressively" in the intro to Contra III. It's kinda incongruous in context but I love it.

[@megatronbison]

Oh god, hearing that slowed down music in the PAL Probotector makes me both nostalgic and sad for the lower standards we had to put up with.

[@mortenera4423]

If only the games were optimized for PAL...

[@vaguerant]

The upside of the lack of optimization in Probotector is that you can play it on an NTSC console/an emulator running in NTSC mode and have it play just as well as the US version--or even better, after factoring in the improvements made in the PAL version, as long as you don't mind the robot theme. Most PAL conversions are just stuck being bad PAL conversions, but Probotector's zero-effort approach means played correctly, it's still an NTSC, 60 Hz game. Not even Probotector II is so lucky.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

Hang on, there's loads of games that sound better in PAL than in NTSC! Rygar for example. Probotector ain't one of those though.

[@megatronbison]

@@TheSmart-CasualGamer I'm sure there are specific games and don't get me wrong, at the time I didn't know any better about the slower running games & music for a lot of ports but it was a big wakeup call playing the US Contra and Mega Man 2 for instance and hearing the games music at the correct tempo! :)

[@texturem0nkey]

ugh it just made me feel dizzy

[@2dskillz]

Mr. Belvedere! The only Wiki page I have edited

[@MAYOFORCE]

I think everybody forgets that the giant head you destroy at the beginning of the final stage is Red Falcon's head, myself included. It's a good interpretation, but I think Red Falcon being a heart ties well with Gradius' final boss being a brain that similarly can't do anything.

[@Fluoride_Jones]

"Two color-coded muscle guys trade their shirts for assault rifles." :D Only in the '80s, am I right! In all seriousness, I love your wit. These videos are always such a treat and truly give me something to look forward to.

[@elfiebranford9330]

As someone who's never seen Contra's arcade version (more specifically, someone who didn't know it even existed), seeing the comparisons here REALLY does show the difference. Everything about the NES version looks, feels, and sounds so much more superior.

[@RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS77]

Eh don't knock it till you try it. It's really good

[@LycoLoco]

+1, I had no idea that Contra even had an Arcade release! I thought it was always an NES exclusive.

[@todesziege]

The NES version really is a big improvement. The footage shown here doesn't really do the arcade game justice though -- the graphics look very washed out (due to emulation) and they shouldn't.

[@LycoLoco]

Learning about the use of background sprites was an incredible fact. And RC Pro-Am next episode??? I must be in Heaven.

[@thecunninlynguist]

One of the greatest games ever! As a kid, I didn't even know it was an arcade game, nor did I ever see the arcade game in the wild. I always wondered why the Contra 4 was the only way to replay it post NES..until the release of the collections last year. Never get tired of firing the game up for a quick run. Everything about the game is perfect...before knowing about the other uses of the konmai code, we called it the Contra code, lol. The most notable outside use of the code I remember using it for was in the GB turtles game.

[@WarioMCP]

Regarding the static transitions; these have come a long way since their initial introduction and I’m happy with where they are at. The channel number was a nice touch and the sound is not loud and intrusive anymore. Nice work!

[@SeanBarkerNegaScott128]

0:37 RIP your lavalier mic

[@JeremyParish]

Bastard had it coming

[@GeomancerHT]

Something was odd with the audio and I really thought he was doing some kind of (bleeping) with sounds from the Contra games, LOL

[@METR0lD]

I put an insane amount of time into this game as a kid. This and Life Force were *the* co-op multiplayer games at the time.

[@ThomasMHead]

Same! When friends came over, we'd team up on Contra or Life Force. Good times!

[@velarantube]

And Jackal! Rush 'N' Attack and Stinger, too, if your your friend was hardcore...

[@doctorwolfman5221]

I somehow never intellectualized that Konami was all about “legally distinct not quite plagiarism”. Contra, Castlevania, Snatcher, and Metal Gear are all basically a weekend of watching Cannon Films and Hammer Studios, with a dash of William Gibson.

[@karensmith7118]

Don't forget to add Rush-n-Attack and Jackal to that list.

[@velarantube]

@@karensmith7118 Beat me to it! :-)

[@Ginormousaurus]

And Bayou Billy bore a resemblance to Crocodile Dundee.

[@PrekiFromPoland]

Speaking of which, Arumana no Kiseki is a Indiana Jones rip-off.

[@jaretco6423]

And they made some really solid TMNT games. Minus the first one. That one kinda sucks.

[@nightelf5007]

Even though I personally prefer Super C, this is still a classic. I remember 2CC'ing this game with a friend not too long ago...good times.

[@willmistretta]

I love the improved weapons and boss fights in Super C. The only thing I miss is that multi-tier stage design. Compare the two games' jungle areas, for example.

[@steevlan]

Playing games like this, Punch-Out, and Rygar at friends' houses is what got me to want an NES. I ended up getting one and later bought Castlevania based on screenshots from the Official Nintendo Player's Guide. Such an amazing time as a kid. I came to see the Konami logo as a sign of quality during that era and the 16-bit era.

[@luisguillermojg]

I never figured out that the heart in the final level belongs to the same monster from the start of the level. Brilliant.

[@texturem0nkey]

yes it's a bit incongruous as you don't see yourself actually "go inside" the creature, but ahhh.. close enough

[@SameNameDifferentGame]

My favorite game of all-time. Great work, as always.

[@thecunninlynguist]

hell yeah

[@ValkyrieTiara]

I disagree with your opinion, but damned if I don't respect it.

[@thecunninlynguist]

@@ValkyrieTiara which part don't you agree with? It being his favorite game (lol what? How/why would you disagree with someone proclaiming it's their favorite - as opposed to what I said in a comment, where I stated it's one of the greatest games of all time (now that's something you could actually disagree with/argue)) or this not being a great retrospective?

[@ValkyrieTiara]

@@thecunninlynguist When you put it that way it makes me feel really dumb =(

[@thecunninlynguist]

@@ValkyrieTiara lol no worries, friend. Was just curious why you framed your comment in that way. :)

[@chaseman94]

This was the first video game both me and my son played through together all the way to the end and yes I used the Konami code just so he could see the game all the way through. Me personally I can beat this without 30 lives no problem. Sadly my son passed away on Nov.12 , 2020 from liver failure he was 22.

[@coconut4219]

I’m so sorry about that. I hope you are doing well.

[@chaseman94]

@@coconut4219 It's one of the hardest things as a parent I've ever experienced but I and his mom are doing ok. Thank you.

[@coconut4219]

@@chaseman94 Glad to hear that. ^_^

[@SylentEcho]

Super Contra is probably my favourite game ever!

[@scourgebane2015]

Nice work Parish. This game is so good. So, so, so good.

[@tcbvgames]

10:20 To be fair, Contra's arcade "mazes" had a map, which appears in your game footage. If you peeked at the map, you would never make a wrong turn. It was still a bizarre design decision in an arcade shooter, though. Not surprised Konami got rid of it in the NES port, and the sequels.

[@joshuachristian5443]

That game ushered boys into manhood back in the day!

[@absolutezeronow7928]

Really good video on Contra, an NES favorite that I certainly beat a few times using the Konami Code (I was never that good enough a player to make it past the first base using the standard 3 lives). I really ought to get Contra Anniversary Collection since I kinda do want to replay Contra and also give Super C a try. Yup, Konami in the late 1980s was synonymous with great NES games. And RC Pro AM on the next NES Works? Nice.

[@thecunninlynguist]

you should. solid collection. Super C is great too, as is the GB game Operation C.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

I suck at Contra, which I know as Probotector, and I've never beaten the first stage. Hell, I didn't even know it had aliens in it for ages!

[@Ayzklymbr]

↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A Start

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

@@Ayzklymbr I've tried that hundreds of times, but it never seems to work. I don't know if I'm inputting them incorrectly, too quickly, too slowly or in the wrong spot, but it never works.

[@texturem0nkey]

@@TheSmart-CasualGamer I guess some things are just never meant to be

[@sargesmash1]

Great video! One of the greatest games of all time. Also, a note: you definitely want to pick up the "R" power-up, even if you have the spreader. It makes it even more effective, doubling its shot speed.

[@velarantube]

R's make the pea shooter(What we called the default gun) a viable weapon. Laser becomes awesome with this. Get the 'R' for sure.

[@Triknor]

It further screwed up turbo timing, though, assuming you had a turbo button.

[@davidmreyes77]

I didn’t discover Contra in the arcade until long after playing the NES version so I was confused. I liked the arcade graphics but the nes gameplay was what preferred.

[@ilikeme1234]

Contra is, in my opinion, hands down the perfect NES game. I’ve been waiting for you to do this review... for a while lol

[@malkneil]

Keep up the good work Parish. Despite the fact that I'm an NES nerd I still learn something in every one of your vids. That nugget about them tracing Arnold in two different stills from Predator is crazy. I mean I knew those games were loosely inspired by aliens/Arnold but didn't know to what degree. Guess Konami's other outfit, Ultra used the same stenciling prowess to juxtapose Kyle Reese from T1 onto the Metal Gear box art.

[@JeremyParish]

I highly recommend this piece from HG101, it’s a great read: www.hardcoregaming101.net/tracing/tracing.htm

[@PrekiFromPoland]

Why this article isn't moved onto the new site is beyond me.

[@NJRoadfan]

Many memories of playing this game at parties. It was THE two player game to have for the NES. Life Force/Salamander was a close 2nd, but space shmups never really had the macho vibe that Contra has. Years later, learning about the Iran Contra Affair in history class, almost the entire class knew the name from the game, but nothing about the event it was named after!

[@stevenglowacki8576]

History? Wouldn't that really have been current events? I (born 1981) remember in my base US history classes in HS we only really got to Vietnam even if the book went all the way through to Clinton.

[@NJRoadfan]

@@stevenglowacki8576 about the same age, so yes we did go into the 80s. They divided US history to two years in my school. First class was "US History to 1945" and the second class was "Contemporary America"

[@stevenglowacki8576]

@@NJRoadfan That's a completely different focus than what my school did. We spent an entire year on European and eventually specifically English history leading up to the Revolution, and only one year on actual US history. It seems a bit strange to me to spend an entire year on things that your parents and grandparents would have direct knowledge of.

[@stevenglowacki8576]

I remember the Konami code showing up in the most recent Hardy Boys book "Attack of the Video Game Villains" when I was kid. It wasn't called that, but it was the same thing - a massive cheat code, and it was fairly central to the plot.

[@CircsC]

You are pulling me through this pandemic

[@NYCJoeBlack]

Super C and Contra III: The Alien Wars are two of my all-time favorite Contra games. I do like Contra Rebirth, Contra, and Contra 4. Here’s hoping Contra 5 gets a release on the Nintendo Switch!

[@velarantube]

Contra 5 for Switch! Hell Yah! From your lips(keys/screen? :-)) to the Gaming Gods' ears(sense organs?)! In the meantime, try Blazing Chrome if you haven't already. Very Contra vibe.(with some Metal Slug influence) It's bad as all hell!

[@NYCJoeBlack]

@@velarantube - “organs” 😂 😂 😂 I don’t know sales wise how Contra 4 did, but I know that Wayforward was responsible for the game. I hope the team that created Contra III: The Alien Wars makes Contra 5 if Wayforward cannot. Didn’t Konami make Contra Rebirth? I wasn’t a fan of the art style, but I’ve grown to love it. The particle & special effects in that game was great.

[@NYCJoeBlack]

@@velarantube - Thanks for the advice, although I own Blazing Chrome. My friend put me on to it and I believe I either ordered it from Limited Run Games or I got it from Best Buy; can’t remember.

[@velarantube]

@@NYCJoeBlack Guessing the sales numbers on 4, Hardcorps: Uprising, and Rebirth weren't satisfactory to *them*, or we wouldn't've been punished by the recent 'Contra' title. I'd hoped 4 would put the series back on track... :-( Konami *published* Contra Rebirth for certain. Developed, not so sure. It was the odd one out in that series, what with Castlevania Rebirth being a colorized Castlevania: The Adventure and Gradius Rebirth a patchwork of previous Gradius titles(stages from here, weapons from there, bosses from the other..). Likely, a 3rd party did it. I thought the Rebirth games were simply getting the name of the series back out there rather than serious efforts, honestly. All three were OK at best, imo. Pretty sure the III Team is either retired by now or has left Konami. I don't think they make anything in-house anymore. Even Metal Gear(One of the only few franchises they seemed to care about somewhat recently) is outsourced, I believe. Hopefully Joymasher(the Blazing Chrome people) will have a huge hit, and they'll bear the torch!

[@NYCJoeBlack]

@@velarantube - Hopefully or maybe Wayforward can hey the license again for a second attempt in the form of Contra 5 and maybe they can finally include four co-op play in the story mode that they quietly pulled from Contra 4. I still have the poster that features all four players.

[@rodneylives]

One more thing to say about Japanese Famicom Contra--it''s even harder! If you fall into the water in that first level *good luck* jumping out of it.

[@roguerifter9724]

I'll always have a soft spot for the Contra games even if I prefer the Metal Slug series as a whole and Sunset Riders over most individual Contra games. I spent a lot of time playing Contra with friends and family when I was young and Super C was the last game I played with dad before he died many years later.

[@willmistretta]

It's amazing what a difference things like smaller sprites, a more graceful jump animation, and a switch to a 4:3 aspect ratio can collectively make.

[@mortenera4423]

I played Contra (Or Gryzor in Europe) on my father's old computer, and...it was crap, but I loved it anyway. Back in 2004 I found a copy of the NES version for cheap, and I bought it right away. Once inserted the cartridge, I was surprised. "What the hell? This isn't Gryzor" I said to myself, but I loved it more and more while playing

[@Choralone422]

Going back to the greatness that Contra on the NES was makes me sad since Konami now is just a shell of the innovative developer they were back in those days!

[@kushviper]

Great video! You know you can use the “R” rapid fire power-up in combination with the other power-ups to shoot them faster? I see you kept passing them up in your footage.

[@JeremyParish]

Yes, I am aware

[@LorenHelgeson]

Yeah, I see many people avoid it. "I don't want to lose my spread shot."

[@joko49perez]

Awesome video as expected. So nice to see you finally got to this one :)

[@Ginormousaurus]

How many video games were inspired by the Alien movies? Besides Contra, there was also Metroid, Xenophobe, R-Type, Alien Syndrome, Alien Crush, Mega Turrican, etc.

[@velarantube]

And, of course, Konami's excellent 1990 arcade game: Aliens!

[@CaptainRufus]

One of the all time greats. I've completed the arcade and nes versions multiple times and without the code. Or even rapid fire. A shame all the later titles seem to remove the base levels for way lamer top down segments. Or become boss rush titles. Or both. Konami did it nearly perfect out of the gate.

[@spacemammoth3334]

I didn't play the arcade version until it hit XBLA (a friend and I raced to see who could get that 1 credit clear achievement first) and I was struck by the differences. Even the waterfall boss is more interesting in the NES version, which was surprising. For people who have trouble with the arcade mazes, the game has a map at the top of them. It directs you which way to go with no issues.

[@Jordan3DS]

Contra and Super C are two of those games that are just so much fun to try to master, to the point that you can go from a bumbling fool to achieving a run without losing a single life thanks to how much of the game design is focused on memorization.

[@jonothanthrace1530]

At first when I saw the Predator footage had no title in the flag I thought that was a camo joke

[@MrTableDesk]

Holy crap, that dodge at around 8:43 was legendary!

[@franccoeurguy4735]

NES Contra is in my top 5 best games of all time

[@LorenHelgeson]

I've always been a huge fan of this one. Many a Friday night was spent back in 1990 with my best friend running and gunning through this game. Frankly, I'm also not much of a fan of the arcade version. It's graphics look too busy by comparison.

[@MattHall]

Great video!

[@ValkyrieTiara]

Really good episode this time around. A couple minor audio gaffes aside, overall the quality was top notch. Crisp, lean script covering a great game with enough background info and footnotes to keep things interesting. I didn't even realize it was a fifteen minute video until it was over, seriously felt like less than ten. I really liked this one!

[@JeremyParish]

Glad to hear it didn't suck as much as usual

[@ValkyrieTiara]

@@JeremyParish lol I dont think I've ever seen a "Works" episode I would describe as "sucks" and I'm pretty sure I've seen all of them. I enjoy all your work, I just particularly enjoyed this one!

[@Larry]

Konami's laziness to blanket release Probotector across Europe, rather than just Germany always irked me, more so as the artwork for Contra actually came from Ocean's home computer port of the game in the UK which itself was totally uncensored.

[@JeremyParish]

I've always had the impression Konami was hardly alone in that regard. It seems like the fragmentary nature of the European market-lots of languages and laws to adapt to for relatively small populations vs. the U.S. or Japan-meant that a lot of non-European companies just tweaked things for the most restrictive market on the continent (usually Germany) and said, "good enough."

[@svankensen]

Love to see my game history buffs have a chat.

[@sovrinn16]

@@JeremyParish Almost certainly the case. Japanese companies and Nintendo in general had very little interest in the European market in the 80's, I think for understandable reasons you mention here. It wasn't at all uncommon for them to nope out at the slightest resistance. So I guess it's actually nice that Konami even bothered localizing Contra, as that was not remotely a slam-dunk to even happen.

[@Vekstar]

Weird when this video came out. Great video as always.

[@Kawa-oneechan]

Great video all 'round and I laughed at the Macek bit. There's just one thing that irks me: the Code does not include the final start, in neither Contra nor Gradius.

[@JeremyParish]

How are you supposed to use the code if you don't press Start? It just loops to the attract mode and dumps the code inputs.

[@karensmith7118]

The code really should *not* include the Start press. In Gradius, the code displays power-ups upon the "A" press. In Contra, after entering the code the player can decide 1P or 2P mode before starting. Interestingly enough, in Life Force, the Konami code is seen to operate exactly similar to Contra. This is in fact incorrect. The code is shortened to just Up Up Down Down B A. You can press the Left Right Left Right but it is unused.

[@velarantube]

@@karensmith7118 Whaaat! I just played Life Force recently, and it was still in my NES, so I just tried this to goggle at it! I was totally unaware... All my friends bitd would have loved to know this! They had trouble inputting the code quickly/accurately enough.(Well, me too, actually; after my experience w/the Code on Contra, I like never[extremely rarely, I guess] used it or other 'cheat' codes, so I was similarly clumsy and useless helping them try to enter it!) :-D They(me as well!) might've managed this shorter version w/out so many do-overs! Thanx for posting this! It is an interesting bit of info. Tho it oddly feels like 'cheating' to put in the 'cheat code' that way! :-)

[@emmettturner9452]

14:28 "While the NES version of Contra was bizarrely inaccessible for years outside of an unlockable bonus feature in Contra 4, a Nintendo DS exclusive game..." Strange, because I bought a copy of Konami Collector's Series: Castlevania & Contra (5-game collection) at Toys R Us four years before the Nintendo DS even launched. I got a second copy at Big Lots for $9 a few years later. Still have it. It was PC CD-ROM software with emulated versions of the NES games. I also got a Hudson and Capcom games packaged in the same oddly-shaped PC CD-ROM game boxes, like Dino Crisis 2 and a Bomberman Collection that includes Bomberman '94. Still have all of them. :) Konami was easily the most well-represented in my stack with everything from Whiteout to Metal Gear Solid 2, which was the first PC DVD-ROM exclusive game title I recall from back then.

[@JeremyParish]

Right. That collection was released in 2002 and didn't stay in print terribly long. Between that release and last year's Contra collection, 17 years later, Contra 4 was the only other place the NES game appeared for purchase for a long time.

[@hemangchauhan2864]

Contra was the definition of "videogames" for the longest time. Still remember seeing the new-model NES in my neighbour's (In India, we had clone NESs) and the original cartridge. For some reason, I can't find Contra III or Hard Corps as "fun" as the OG.

[@velarantube]

Yeah, man! And it still is! Only Super C was its equal! III, Hard Corps., or hell, even 4 just can't stack up to the awesomeness of the first two. Operation C had potential, tho.(lack of co-op takes it down, sadly.) I seem to remember the regional clone being the 'Pegasus'.(without checking.) Read about it, the Samurai, Comboy, and others in a Hardcore Gaming 101 post some years back. -Just looked- :-/ Totally wrong, your Famiclone was a Samurai, Terminator, 'Sega 8-bit' or perhaps another creatively named knock-off! This 8-bit market is still around in the Southern U.S. Pre-quarantine pandemic(January perhaps, memory isn't what it used to be.. :-)), a co-worker got a collection of NES games in a unit shaped like a N64 controller! Blazing Chrome is a modern contender for Contra spiritual successor. Hope you've given it a shot. It rocks!

[@texturem0nkey]

I agree with you. The follow up games were exciting, and in their day they were more compelling, but as the years have passed I find myself only going back to the first NES version really, as it just hits all the marks without a need for all the extra applesauce. Looks great, sounds great, plays great, perfect balance.

[@PrekiFromPoland]

Contra III and Hard Corps are fun but in a different way. The OG Contra is accessible to nearly everyone, it's not as hard as everyone says, but III and Hard Corps *will* brutalize every single newcomer in the first stage, only for them to discover that it's just the beginning and even more sick challenges lie ahead. This might be a turn-off for many.

[@TevorTheThird]

Jeremy lowkey explains the last boss and simultaneously blew my mind while making me feel dumb. It's a Phoenix DOWN, of course!

[@alex_-yz9to]

I found funny how the European NES port is actually an UPGRADE to the european version of the Arcade game, because for some reason the European GRYZOR is turn based 2 player

[@Technosphile]

Contra NES Works? It must be Christmas.

[@perpetualgrimace]

Oh thaaat's why the named the sequel Super C. Always thought that was odd.

[@velarantube]

Didn't know that myself until years later. Dropping the 'ontra' part was puzzling as hell to me and my friends as kids. The Super part was kinda weird, too. Why not Contra II/2? In college, a guy I was in (Cobol I? :-/)class with explained the 'Super' of the title meant it was *Super*ior to the original.(As awesome as the OG game was, this was plausible.) He couldn't satisfactorily explain the shortening of the main title of the game, tho... :-D

[@DanielBurapavong]

I remember when you played that theme for the guy who wrote it. Epic moment.

[@MrTableDesk]

Lol, was that Mr.Belvadere?

[@JeremyParish]

Always

[@predatorminutepodcast1570]

The final stage in Contra III, during the wall-climb boss fight, cribs from the Predator track "The Girl's Escape."

[@BubblegumCrash332]

1988 the year Young Guns came out in theaters. God im old

[@arcadianlhadattshirotsughW33Z]

PALS... (dirty steve is best character)

[@BubblegumCrash332]

@@arcadianlhadattshirotsughW33Z he literally was done dirty. He was shot and left in the muddy puddle.

[@arcadianlhadattshirotsughW33Z]

@@BubblegumCrash332 YOU GUYZ YOU GUYZ!!!!... ashes ta ashes dirt ta dirt...

[@BubblegumCrash332]

@@arcadianlhadattshirotsughW33Z what was it he saw a giant rabbit I think?

[@arcadianlhadattshirotsughW33Z]

@@BubblegumCrash332 fuck if i know... they dont show anything, and their voices are all sfx'ed out... i just remember docs poem and dirts screams... but i do love that his peyote come down medicine is booze and a turkey leg...dirty nyquil...

[@milkcarton6654]

The best game NES at the time of release. Everybody wanted that game. I didn't get the game but my cousin had it so it was borrowed many times. Oh and, i watched my brother at the time play this game through without dying. I saw it with my own eyes. I even asked him for confirmation a couple of years ago cause that many years later i thought...maybe i misremember this stuff? But no, he did it. The thing is while it seemed like a accomplishment at the time, we didn'T feel like it was something super special either... In the decades since i realised that me, my brother and the couple of friends we had then, were pretty much elite level NES gamers.... just because we were children who spent the majority of their spare time playing NES. We were good without knowing it having not many people to measure our skills against (i come from a very small town). Even though personally i would rank myself as the worst player of our little group. But still if i saw my childhood self play NES today, i'm pretty sure i'D wonder if i am still the same person.

[@zeromancer-x]

Before I even watched this video, it earned a thumbs up. This is one I have long been waiting for.

[@RottenPopReviews]

Always loved this game and considered it an Alien game for so long 😂

[@caviar_dreamz]

It’s a shame more people haven’t tried Contra 4 because of the platform it’s on. It’s probably one of the best co-op games on the DS and the sprite work is excellent.

[@mortenera4423]

A Contra game on 3DS would've made wonders

[@velarantube]

Other than the co-op part, everything you said applies to Operation C as well. :-( Glad it made it into the Contra Classics Collection. Hopefully, 4 will get a similar treatment soon.

[@PrekiFromPoland]

The dual screen is confusing, I remember playing Contra 4 for the first time and I got killed like an idiot on the first stage because I failed to notice a single bullet going from the upper screen. Still a fun game that references previous entries a lot.

[@masterrserch3971]

Ha! I was just playing this (and Super C) with my younger cousin who never played these before. It's so funny how he can rip thru modern games in a couple of days, but he was terrible at this more simple game, its ACTUAL difficulty notwithstanding

[@bassboi2001]

I used to hit the barriers just to hear his screaming 🤣🤣🤣

[@massivepileup]

I don't remember the bases in Arcade Contra being mazes, there's only one way you can actually move as indicated by the map above, the other is a wall. Contra had the alternative name Gryzor on some versions, any idea what's up with that?

[@megatronbison]

I believe this was due to the sensitivity of the "Contra" name outside of the USA which Jeremy mentions in the video. I think the ZX Spectrum port went by Gryzor in the UK at the very least - it had the humanoid characters/levels so no need to name it Probotector, but I suppose they thought 'Contra' was poor taste and needed changed all the same. From what I also remember the first level boss was defenceless too- you just walked up and shot the weak point. Strange!

[@masterrserch3971]

Also, 2:36 The vicious Hot Dog Monster!!!

[@robertlauncher]

I like Super C on NES more, but both are some of the best on the console. The fact I didn’t grow up with them and still enjoy the butt kickings they give me is a testament to how phenomenally designed they are. Also some of the best hit detection I’ve experienced in an NES game. A far cry from, just an example, Capcom’s early Mega Man games where things just cause damage because eh, they were close enough I guess.(I like Mega Man but the classics are far from flawless)

[@JeremyParish]

Personally, I’d say the original Mega Man is the only one with egregiously bad hit detection. The sequels aren’t nearly so bad. Imagine trying to get through Metal Man’s screw worm section in MM2 with MM1 hit detection…

[@robertlauncher]

@@JeremyParish Metal Man’s stage does have those spike chains that hit you even when the gap should be wide enough to run under. The series isn’t rotten with it, I agree, and seeing as 2 was a passion project and 3 was rushed, it’s amazing they came out mostly polished, but playing the Wily Wars remakes causes me to notice the NES versions’ awkward moments more.

[@7thangelad586]

What code do I frantically put in at the beginning to make these videos last longer..?

[@conspiracydawg]

But there's no guesswork involved in the bases in the arcade. There's a clear opening on one side, and a visible wall on the other. The arrows signify that you have to actually walk to the sides to get to the next room. Also, for you, the reader, the arcade version is definitely the more challenging of the two; when you change aiming angles, it gradually changes between the 8 main angles, being less rigid and instantaneous, so you kind of have to anticipate before aiming. It's overall a looser game, and definitely worth playing for Contra fans.

[@mortenera4423]

I played the arcade Contra on my PS4, it was much more difficult than I thought. But after a while I mastered the game

[@conspiracydawg]

@@mortenera4423 I played it on DS with the Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits. It had DS Wireless play, letting the second DS be used as a controller, so you could stand the first DS on its side to get a vertical screen, and still control it (with negligible latency, so it was fine.)

[@ouchiewowow]

LETS ATTACK AGGRESSIVELY

[@karensmith7118]

ITS TIME FOR REVENGE

[@rabiroden]

It's a shame the game's visual flair had to be cut down so much for the western release, especially for such a would-be big hit. Most of the kids who played it back then will never know. But on the other hand, games like Jackal and Blades of Steel were super beefed up when they were brought over, so it evens out.

[@apocalypticminister1369]

AWESOME show!!!😎

[@funforalgernon]

Contra is perfect.

[@Firestorm2900]

Is the next one Captain Skyhawk? I loved playing that I when I was a kid, although I do admit it my have been too ambitious.

[@actuallytheguy8395]

I'll take the arcade version anyday. The bases were NOT mazes. You can only go one way. The opening is either on the right or left. I think I ruined 2 controllers raging on the home version. Proud to say I beat it well before we heard about the code. I loved giving my buddy a hard time because he needed the code to beat it. The home version made me yell f bombs at Easter, it's such an evil bastard.

[@chaseman94]

I'm surprised there never was Contra movie with both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone cast as the lead characters.

[@silentfanatic]

Love how totally nonplussed Maezawa is here.

[@JeremyParish]

I’m not sure that’s the word I would use to describe his reaction.

[@silentfanatic]

@@JeremyParish Just looked it up and apparently the "unfazed" version of the word is strictly American. Never knew it could mean the opposite. Learn something new every day.

[@stanleyteriaca2184]

Wondering when we get the garden episode of Lum No Wedding Bell.

[@JeremyParish]

When a patron requests it

[@absolutezeronow7928]

Jeremy can rest assured that I am not going to request that even though it would be very amusing to see him recount the history of Urusei Yatsura.

[@stanleyteriaca2184]

@@absolutezeronow7928 He will probably mention it when he gets to the SNES game "Street Cimbat" and "Ranma 1/2 Hard Battle". Beyond that...nope.

[@mindcrome]

If you beat this game without the code or using the nes max you have my respect.

[@downinla4076]

First game I used the Konami code. Still couldn’t beat the game :-(

[@velarantube]

Same here. Hilariously, a friend owned Gradius(and struggled mightily with it) before he bought Contra, as neither of us would know the Code could be used for it until like a year later, when I bought the Official Nintendo Players' Guide! He was so mad he didn't try the 30 life trick with Gradius, he now puts in(if possible) the Code and all known variants in *all* the games he tries! |-) The Energy Zone chewed me and my buds up so much, we used the Code even tho we normally were against 'cheats'.(Like Ghosts N' Goblins Stage Select or SMB continues, etc...) The help didn't matter too much.(partly crappy teamwork, honestly...) Took several weeks with 30 lives to finally do it. Upside was, after that much practice, we could finally beat it with default lives from then on!

[@BenCol]

_Soul Battle: Silk_ is undeniably an NES classic, though I’d say the sequel _Soul Battle: Velvet_ is the better entry. _Soul Battle: Cotton_ was fine, but it was all downhill from there - we don’t mention _Soul Battle: Wool._

[@jasonblalock4429]

On the other hand, Soul Battle: Panorama Cotton was the crossover we didn't know we needed until it happened.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

Polyester Heart Conflict was the best spin-off though, agreed?

[@coris3436]

Best game on Nintendo

[@osurpless]

And of course, there is “contra”ry information to the NTSC re-edit, with an OST track being named “Sandista”. As that very much a reference to the politics of the 1980s, it’s odd that such isn’t just an retranslation for the American market...

[@landeny65]

Can’t even throw Contra Force a bone here, eh? 🍖

[@JeremyParish]

You mean Arc Hound?

[@SECONDQUEST]

Love you dogg

[@GenteelCretin]

Could someone clue me in on the Carl Masek(?) reference at 3:11? A cursory Google search didn't provide any context.

[@JeremyParish]

Try "Carl Macek."

[@absolutezeronow7928]

Macross was shown. It was one of 3 anime that was used for the English reworking known as Robotech. Macek was responsible for the dub.

[@ThomasMHead]

@@JeremyParish I appreciated that reference! 👍

[@GenteelCretin]

Thanks, fam.

[@Ginormousaurus]

@@absolutezeronow7928 It's interesting how Robotech was edited together from three unrelated anime series, and yet it still managed to tell a more coherent story than Disney's Star Wars sequel trilogy.

[@froedlmetallmann4643]

Probotector > Contra

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

Agreed. Robots make everything better.