Seafoam Islands

Wow! 3 Weekly Purchase Reviews and this one is on time! Each week I’ll be buying a game from Play N’ Trade/Disc Replay or choosing a game from my catalog of unplayed games that I own and writing a short review for it. This week’s game is Contra III: The Alien Wars.

I walked in to Play N Trade with no intention of buying anything until I saw Contra III. I know Konami’s track record on the SNES and I know how awesome the Contra series is so it was an instant buy.

No need for a tutorial. Now hang onto that pipe over the inferno while a plume of flames erupts in front of you.

As I mentioned above Konami’s catalog of SNES games is beyond phenomenal and The Alien Wars is no exception to that rule. Contra III is an outstanding, if not insanely difficult, game that improves on Contra and Super C in pretty much every way. The controls feeling tighter and a little more responsive and the ability to carry 2 guns is a much appreciated addition. Not only does the game offer classic Contra side scrolling action but there are also levels that feature a top down view. While not as satisfying to play, the top down levels are still well done and help the game avoid feeling stale.

Whoever decided to include a boss every 30 seconds...thank you.

If you have a SNES I suggest you seek this one out or if you can’t find it? Try getting Contra 4 for the DS.

4.5/5 Game Review Units