Konami follows up the solid Gradius V with Neo Contra and shows it can stumble … badly. Not only does this game feature the oddest control scheme choice for any overhead-shooter game I’ve ever seen, but it is also obscenely short.
The gamer plays as either Bill Rizer or Jaguar as they battle the Contra forces – one of which actually looks like a beagle that some got dressed up in military garb for one of those stupid dog photos. The minimal “story” is completely without merit and was probably written on the back of a napkin over lunch. Of course Contra has always been about putting out a ton of lead to kill just as many of the Contra’s sub-human cohorts as possible in the shortest amount of time and defeat their end bosses. It needs no story.
At the beginning of the game the player is given a choice of weapon loads. These loads consist of two standard weapons that shoot on the same height as the player and one “lock-on” weapon that allows the player to engage enemies that are not at the same level he is. While this may throw some players, I found it nice to get my full weapon load up front and not have to collect them along the way.
What really griped me beyond all reason in Neo Contra was the control scheme. The view is overhead for the vast majority of the game. Eugene Jarvis showed gamers the perfect way to control an overhead-view, run-and-gun game back in 1982 with Robotron: 2084: two sticks – one for moving, one for shooting. But did Konami use that configuration? NO! They had to reach back to Berzerk’s, one-stick control scheme and then tack on a bunch of button presses to achieve what could have been done just by using both of the Dual Shock’s analog sticks.
The basic controls are the left analog stick for character movement and fire direction, the square button to fire the selected standard weapon, the triangle button to use the one lock-on weapon, the X button to evade/dash, and the R1 or L1 to change between the two standard weapons. Then we get to the movement and directional lock buttons. L2 allows the player to lock his weapon firing in one direction so he can, for example, move forward while shooting behind him. Of course the player must actually shoot/move in a direction before the lock in that direction can be activated. The R2 button stops the player’s character like a sitting duck but allows him to shoot all around him without moving in the direction he is shooting.
Would it have been so hard to do this instead? The left stick moves the player in all directions. The right stick shoots the selected standard weapon in the desired direction. R1 uses the lock-on weapon. L1 performs the dash/evade. R2 or L2 selects between the two standard weapons. With these simple changes, the whole control process for this game would be greatly streamlined by eliminating the need for three buttons and only adding the second analog stick. Even in the extremely rare instances that the action goes into shooter-on-rails mode, my proposed control scheme would work fine. I think most players would agree with me.
The actual action of the game is pretty frenetic and there are some cool boss characters to fight, though tainted mushrooms and some bad dreams must have been involved in their design. But there was another issue I had not counted on. I started playing and had finally gotten past my disgust with the control scheme to have a little fun with the complete carnage I was laying down when the credits started to roll. It gave me quite a start. I’m betting a better player could easily finish the game in under an hour. And though there are things to unlock and a two-player mode to play with a friend, I don’t think many players are going to be playing through this game more than a couple of times. Considering the $39.99 price tag and length of the game, I really don’t see the value.
Graphics and audio are really nothing special either. Graphics are colorful enough and the animation is smooth, but they are just nowhere near what is currently state of the art for the PS2. Audio is only okay with serviceable sound tracks to accompany battle and sound effects that would have been great on the PS1.
So, why not give this game a 1/5 and move on? The game does offer some fun, old-school shooting moments, and there are certainly few enough of those left in the video gaming world. Though Neo Contra is a seriously flawed game, it evokes a gaming experience of yesteryear that still holds a great deal of appeal. If you really must have all the Contra games, wait a little while for this one to hit the bargain bin. You won’t have a long wait.
© 2004 GameShark.com
