A monument. Contra redefines the 8-bit run'n'gun with frantic arcade action, a legendary Konami code, and two-player co-op that remains among the best in video game history.
Your verdict
Category
Action1 player12+
Co-op
Description
Legendary cooperative run-and-gun featuring Bill and Lance battling the Red Falcon army in jungle and base levels. Published by Konami, released in Japan. Bill and Lance in side-scrolling view with spread shot, machine gun and laser, two-player co-op and demanding difficulty. A founding run-and-gun game and absolute Konami masterpiece on Famicom.
Contra review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
A pillar of run-and-gun, Konami's music chains martial themes and heroic melodies of galvanising energy, from the legendary "Jungle" to the final assault. Each level pulses with an intensity that charges the unleashed two-player action. This cult soundtrack, etched in memory, remains inseparable from the Contra legend.
Gameplay
"Masterful"
Blasting through side by side while grabbing weapon power-ups and dodging a torrent of fire lays the foundation for an exhilaratingly fast run-and-gun. The spread gun and the co-op are what made the title a legend. Short but utterly intense, it retains a precise gunplay and a frantic pace that make it a high point of 8-bit action.
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Finger on the trigger, scooping up devastating weapons and sweeping away waves of enemies in a deluge of fire: the action never lets up. With two players, co-op multiplies the intensity and the laughter. Run-and-gun finds here one of its purest expressions, snappy and demanding. An absolute classic that electrifies from the title screen.
Addictiveness
"Engaging"
Difficulty
"Punishing"
Charging through a hail of bullets where the slightest contact kills: this frantic run-and-gun leaves no margin, between crossfire, relentless enemies and towering bosses. Picking the right weapon, memorizing the waves and keeping a cool head make all the difference. Demanding yet perfectly readable, it laid the genre's foundations and remains a cult trial for 8-bit action fans.
The Famicom Konami version, prized for its Japanese title screen and the introductory storyline scenes absent from the US NES 'Contra'. The Japanese cart turns up, but a boxed CIB with intact card sleeve remains a serious Konami collector target, especially since this version keeps the cinematics that the US release trimmed. Japanese pricing climbs in step with the spectacular rise of US sealed copies.
Memorable bosses
A pure, twitchy run-and-gun, the assault on the alien invader peaks on spectacular guardians: armored walls to demolish piece by piece, swarming creatures and a beating extraterrestrial heart. Faced in two-player, these standoffs turn dodging and constant fire into a ballet under fire. Their sheer scale and frantic pace made them a benchmark of 8-bit action.
Is Contra still worth playing in 2026?
Contra on NES remains an absolute monument of 8-bit run and gun. Konami delivers frenetic arcade pacing, a shooting grammar of rare precision and a two-player co-op among the most memorable in gaming history. The legendary thirty-lives code is part of pop culture. Difficulty is brisk, one-hit deaths constant, but memorisation rewards richly. For classic run and gun fans and Konami heritage lovers, still an absolute must today, ideally played in co-op on original hardware.
