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caleb_bell's Contra III: The Alien Wars (SNES)
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| [October 18, 2009 11:01:15 PM]
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Game Play: I am a little on edge since I have last played Contra III because the levels have gotten increasingly longer and harder! Rather than scrolling from side-to-side like normally, The levels have switched from time to time to scrolling up and down; this can be a challenge for a 5 year old, who is still developing his hand/eye coordination.
Design:
One of the most important things that I must commend Contra III on, is creativity. From level design, to weapons, and enemies every aspect of the game is very unique.
The levels in the game do not seem repetitive at all, and this is very important when it comes to “run and gun” games. It is very easy to get bored when the only objective seems to breeze through a level and shoot everything in sight, but Contra III provides many environmental obstacles, such as flames, and platforms that make timing and precision very important. There are also a few levels, where the camera angle of the game changes, making the movement and angles change considerably for the player, which makes the player have to adjust their style of playing for these specific levels; because of the sudden change in camera angle ( from side view to over head), the levels appear to be much different; no longer can the player simply jump over enemies, they must become skilled in the art of strafing from side to side to avoid enemy contact.
The conflict aspect of the game, makes Contra very intriguing and addictive to the player; It was very easy for my nephew and I to play the game for 3 hours straight ( any game that can keep a 5 year old interested for 3 hours is quite a game!). With many games, a player can be hit multiple times before it costs them a life, however in Contra one hit and the player is dead! With such little room for error, each move the player makes is important, and because the game is a port from SNES, the ability to save and start from the save point is non-existent to the game. The stress of having to spread 3 lives with 3 continues (9 total lives in all) over the game is quite a rush for the player!
The reward structure in the game is very strict, which has its pros and cons; I am always very appreciative of the rewards I get (extra lives, new rocket launchers), but the limited availability of these rewards, makes me very hungry for their presence. With each life lost (remember one hit and your dead!), the rewards that the player achieved will be lost as well. There is a remarkable weapon, a flame thrower, that makes it very easy for a player without precision to take out numerous enemies along their path, however it seems like once in a blue moon that the flame-thrower is present; there have been many times where there has been an off-screen battle between my nephew and I of who was worthy of getting the flame-thrower this time around. Sometimes the scarcity of the rewards, left me feeling bitter and frustrated towards the game, but somehow I couldn't walk away.
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| [October 18, 2009 11:00:38 PM]
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Summary: Contra III:Alien Wars is a fast-paced, side-scroller where players run and gun through levels. The game is set in the year 2636, where Earth has suffered an alien invasion and must fight back! Originally for Super Nintendo, Contra III was ported to Wii's virtual machine to be downloaded and played.
Game Play: Although Contra III is 17 years old and there are games on the Wii with far better graphics, Contra is perhaps one of the most fun games I have played in a long time. I remember playing the earlier version of Contra on NES and I must say that the series has improved based on the SNES port that I am currently playing; The game runs a lot smoother, a lot more fast paced, and the weapons are a lot more interesting (I love the homing missile launcher!).
Perhaps one of the greatest aspects of the game that I like so far, is the ability to play with a partner. The Contra series, is known for being very fast-paced and difficult, almost to the point of being overbearing for the player. With my little nephew, the game is still a challenge, but I feel a lot more confident because I have someone to watch my back for aggressive aliens that are trying to make me their next victim.
Within 45minutes, we have already fought two bosses, and I must say that they are Gargantuous and quite intimidating! Again, I am gracious for the opportunity to have a partner because fighting a boss that takes up half the screen is quite a challenge for just one person.
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caleb_bell's Contra III: The Alien Wars (SNES)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Sunday 18 October, 2009
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