Contra Returns is a big, bombastic blast that’s got one foot in the past and one, much larger foot, firmly in the present. It’s got loads of explosions, plenty of massive weapons and you’re going to have a lovely old …
Contra Returns is a big, bombastic blast that’s got one foot in the past and one, much larger foot, firmly in the present. It’s got loads of explosions, plenty of massive weapons and you’re going to have a lovely old time wiping out everything that steps gets in your way. Sure, it might not capture the arcade-edge of the original, but taken on its own merits, it’s a lot of fun.
The game sees you playing a gun-toting action here, taking on levels packed with robots, soldiers, zombies and aliens. There are soft platforming sections as well. You move with a stick on the left of the screen and fire with a button on the right. Press and you’ll fire forwards, but you can drag your thumb around to aim in different directions.
There are special moves as well, and these are different depending on the character you’re playing as. You’ll start off in the story mode, but as you play you’ll unlock different challenges – from a hardcore one-life mode to a variety of different PvP and PvE multiplayer selections.
There might be different goals in the different modes, but the gameplay remains pretty much identical. As you play you’ll level up your characters and unlock new and more powerful guns and equipment. That adds to your firepower level, which tells you whether you’re strong enough to take on certain challenges.
The controls can be a bit slippery, and sometimes you’ll find yourself firing in the wrong direction or ducking when you meant to run. It’s never the end of the world, but it does nudge you out of the flow of the game, and in a blaster like this that can be pretty frustrating.
Contra Returns builds something reasonably strong on its nostalgic foundations, and while it isn’t a patch on the original, who really expected it to be? This is a fist-clenched blaster that’s packed with enough entertainment to keep you pushing through.
Click here to read more reviews of the biggest mobile releases
