![]() ![]() ![]() Of course, there is also a great deal of free-to-play nonsense associated with the title. There are also the requisite PvP modes that I don’t really care for and co-op modes that are fun but take too damn long to unlock. There is some variety in level type, including fast-paced auto-scrollers, but I don’t think anybody is going to go gaga over any of the stages here. As for the levels themselves, they’re brief and lack the challenge of the past 2D games. The heroes look fine, if a bit dated, and some of the recreated boss encounters are nice, but they’re stuck in a game with incredibly generic backgrounds. First of all, Contra Returns has some rather bland art direction. There is a stamina meter that will limit how much you play per day, but the game is so damn generous with recharges early on that my phone actually ran out of juice before my stamina meter did.Īs much fun as I’m having with it (which I’ll admit is a decent amount), some big minuses go along with all those pluses. I’m particularly fond of the One-Life Mode, which challenges players to make it as far as they can in a level without getting hit, channeling the days of Contra before everybody leaned about the Konami Code. There is a solid handful of supplemental modes you unlock as you level up your profile, some of which you probably won’t get access to for several days or longer, depending on how much you play. As you should expect by now with free-to-play games, all of your heroes and weapons can be upgraded and promoted with all the shit you collect playing through the campaign and completing challenges.Īnd it’s clear the developers want to keep people playing for a long time. Each character also has two unique attacks and a shared super weapon that can be used once per level. But now, those abilities are also found on dedicated guns you can unlock. Within each level, there are power-ups to unlock like the Spread Shot or Flamethrower, just as you did in the original game. Guns have a cool-down meter that needs to replenish after you’ve exhausted all its bullets, so if you’re quick enough to change out your weapon, you can keep those guns-a-blazing without stopping. Sheena from Contra: Hard Corps and Ray Poward from Contra: Legacy of War are up for grabs, as are original characters like Jean and Code 018, both of whom look like they got lost on their way to the game they’re supposed to be in and just settled on being gacha pulls here.Įach playable character can double jump and equip two guns they can alternate between in battle. Players start with Bill unlocked, but you’ll need to earn Lance, as well as several other characters from the franchise. I’ve more focused on the tight run ’n’ gun gameplay and the fact the franchise featured two sexy, muscular men named Bill and Lance, which together sound like escorts you’d find in the classified section in old issues of Honcho. The story isn’t all that special - aliens, evil soldiers, corrupt scientists - but story has never really been the draw of the series. Like with Mega Man X DiVE, Contra Returns controls quite well, uses auto-aim in addition to a mostly reliable manual aim, and shows a certain level of appreciation for the franchise’s history. The game first debuted about four years ago in China and is just now reaching our shores, bringing with it a level of polish you’d hope for in a game that’s been on the market for this long. ![]() I thought that might be the only free-to-play I give such praise to this year, and yet, here I am less than a month later, having nearly the exact same thoughts about Contra Returns.Ĭontra Returns comes to us from Konami and TiMi Studio Group, the latter of which is also behind the recently released Pokémon Unite. It controls well, the characters all look wonderful, and while it didn’t provide much of a platforming challenge, the game did manage to bring about some joy on my various breaks and lunches. I thought Capcom did a pretty good job of capturing the essence of Mega Man X before shackling it to the features typical of F2P games. Last month, I sat down with Mega Man X DiVE and found myself enjoying the franchise’s transition to the mobile, free-to-play format. I’m getting a pretty powerful sense of déjà vu playing through Contra Returns. ![]()
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