Gaming / Action Games / Contra 4 for DS

Contra 4, the newest Contra game in the long running franchise. The Contra series is known to be one of the hardest platforming series ever made, and this game is no exception. It will take a significant amount of skill and patience to clear this game, even on the easy difficulty setting. The storyline is very small: aliens have invaded Earth, and it is up to you (and a friend if playing cooperatively) to get rid of them. This game feels very classic and retro; the graphics are simplistic (but good), the gameplay is easy to learn, but, again, it is very difficult. Even on the first level on easy, enemies are everywhere, always shooting at you. This game leans heavily on memorizing enemy patterns, and timing your movements right to destroy them without being destroyed yourself. One feature that makes this game difficult is the life system: If you take one hit from any weapon, or even if you touch an enemy, you die. On easy mode, the game starts you out with 10 lives and 3 continues. That means, if you get shot 10 times, you'll have to start off at the beginning of the level. On normal you start off with 5 lives, and on hard you start off with 3 lives. Normal and hard also bump up the difficulty; there are more enemies, and the enemies are faster, and have better aim. Luckily, you get a wide array of weapons to dispatch them with; in the entire game, there are around 6 to 7 different weapons. The game is also quite long; there are 9 stages in total, although on easy mode, you can only play up to level 7. After you beat the main game, there are also many sub-levels you can try, and these will unlock more characters for use in the main game. If the game is too difficult, you can offset some of that difficulty by playing with a friend; the game supports wireless multiplayer, but not online multiplayer. Overall this is a great game, but it is very difficult.