A return to form but no online play included


The latest in the line of Contra titles takes things back to the tried and true glory days of the franchise with 2D run and gun action. It is essentially a reboot of the franchise rather than a straight remake of the first game.


Simple yet clean title screen greets the player upon booting up with some nice artwork over a flaming background. When choosing a character you get character portraits in the same style as the title screen which look very nice. Graphic options are limited to resolution only which is a little disappointing. The How to play section is a basic menu of options that you can scroll through and have text descriptions of the different weapons and gameplay mechanics. Could have given the player something a little more interactive and let them try out the weapons or mechanics themselves but it does the job still. No option for online play is a headscratcher too considering the last 2D Contra spinoff had had it.

Another issue is that they were clearly working with a limited budget as the story mode cutscenes are mostly just text boxes that appear below with character portraits and voiceovers playing. Don't expect to see many cinematic cutscenes playing throughout. The camera might zoom in or out at times during cutscenes and very rarely change perspective to make things look more dynamic. Shame as the game uses 3D models and could have made use of them here with cinematic camera angles.


Graphics are adequate in my opinion. I would have preferred pixel art as I think it plays more to the strengths of Wayforward but the game is not ugly. I've heard some compare the graphics to PS2 games but anyone that thinks that obviously hasn't looked at PS2 graphics for a long time or has never played a PS2 game in their lives. It's still far from a great looking game but the graphics do an adequate job.


Sound effects of the weapons sound great and makes firing them all the more satisfying. The voiceovers in the game give the characters some personality but you can turn them off in the options if they grate on you which is nice. Music has this orchestral-style to it which doesn't really suit the subject matter in my opinion. There is a vastly superior retro soundtrack that can be unlocked in the perk shop which sounds fantastic though. However you can only play that soundtrack in Arcade or Challenge modes. Story mode you are stuck with the original. When booting up the game I found that I had unlocked OSTs for Castlevania, Contra and Konami Arcade Classics for having those games in my collection which was nice. Similar to how Snake would read you memory card back in MGS and talk about the games you had saves of back in the day.


The game features 2-player local co-op in Story mode and up to 4-player local co-op in Arcade mode.

There are multiple characters to choose from other than Bill and Lance. Some you will have to purchase from the Perk Shop using credits earned from gameplay. For European fans that grew up with the early games there are unlockable Probotectors to play as so let the nostalgia run wild.

You have all the same weapons that you have seen before:



They can be levelled up again if you pick up a second weapon pickup of the same type. Some weapons may behave differently in the hands of certain characters so experiment with them. You can choose to have a life meter to allow you to take multiple hits before losing a life or you can opt for one-hit kills like in most of the old games. New to this game is the option to shoot 360 degrees instead of using the standard 8-way shooting the series is known for. You can choose between 360 degrees and 8-way although you will have to use the analogue stick when using a controller as the d-pad can only register 8 directions. The new option does make the game easier but still works.

New to the game is the Overload mechanic which lets you sacrifice your weapon for a powerful attack. Different weapons have different Overload effects so experiment with each and different characters might have different overloads with the same weapon. You can also summon a weapon pod manually if you defeat enough enemies.

The Story mode is the essentially the same game you are used to but with story segments scattered throughout. The issue with this isn't that the story is bad (it's not good mind), but that it does slow down the flow of things.

You start the Story mode playing as Bill/Lance and other characters become available as you progress. Even after completion you can only play specific characters on specific stages. Some characters will have abilities specific to only them and weapons may behave differently in the hands of different characters.

The Arcade mode is basically the same as Story mode but without the story segments that most Contra fans will be familiar with. Also all characters are available to play on any level (assuming you have unlocked them). This is the mode I expect most players will be playing the most. Also you can play this mode with alternate soundtracks if desired.

The Perk Shop is where you will be able to unlock some new characters, abilities and more using Contra coins earned by playing the game. Each character can equip up to 2 perks which can make the game easier if desired. The Perk Shop is similar to the shop you would find in Uprising Mode in HCU.

There is a Challenge mode similar to Contra 4 which lets you take on bite-sized challenges in various levels. It can be things like reach the goal without firing your weapon, speedrun the level, beat the boss without dying etc. It can be quite a fun mode to play around with if you don't feel like running through the main game whilst also sharpening your skills. There is no reward for completing them all.


No online multiplayer is extremely disappointing. Hard Corps Uprising came out years ago and had online play and at a lower price point so this is a step backwards. Wayforward have been asked in AMAs and in their Discord but always seem to skirt the question. A datamine shows that online was at the very least considered at one point but there has been no official mention of it so I wouldn't expect it in a patch down the line. Would be nice of them to address it though.

Speaking of patches I did encounter some bugs like my characters legs being sunk partway through the floor and when I died on the last boss and continued my character was nowhere to be seen (but could be heard) and I was unable to move until they finally appeared after a few minutes. Hopefully these bugs will be addressed.

Lastly the price is very high for a low-budget game like this. I think $25 would have been a fair price. Not that it isn't a fun game because it is but because you expect more from your games for $40 these days. For comparison Cuphead, an extremely successful modern run & gun launched at half the price of this game and even if you include the price of the DLC it is still cheaper than this and a more polished product. This is consistent with Konami's practices though as they did a similar thing with Bomberman.

It's fun for veterans and accessible to newcomers so I hope it does well. The lack of online play is a slap in the face in 2024 so I'd say get it on sale unless you are a hardcore fan.