Lucky for me, I have a good grip. So I get plenty of play time with what is sure to be one of my favorite DS games this year.
Gallery: Game Center CX: Arino's Challenge
Posts with tag contra
E308: DS Fanboy enters the Retro Game Challenge
Lucky for me, I have a good grip. So I get plenty of play time with what is sure to be one of my favorite DS games this year.
Continue reading E308: DS Fanboy enters the Retro Game Challenge
Contra prompts military hearings
We usually have to suspend our disbelief when playing video games, but what if such insane situations were based on real events? Take, for example, Contra, a game in which two marines -- two -- must stop the Red Falcon invasion. Without shirts.Running with this idea, popular comic book blogger Chris Sims took it upon himself to record "The Contra Hearings". Not only does this hilarious take on Contra make us realize how ridiculous the game's scenario really is, but these faux hearings also remind us that the series is so awesomely badass. An excerpt:
"SENATOR ARTHUR WEATHERTON (R, NM): With all due respect, Lieutenant, I fail to see how the failure to equip two Marines necessitates a Congressional investigation. Why haven't we heard from the rest of the soldiers involved in the operation?
LT. RIZER: Because Lance and I were the total forces committed to the Red Falcon conflict, Senator.
SEN. WEATHERTON: ... Oh. Carry on.
LT. RIZER: Right. Now, I know that at the time of our deployment, resources were already committed to providing support for the Bionic Commando project, but sending two men to fight an entire army of technologically advanced aliens... I can't imagine that America needed to close the grapple-arm gap that badly. And our equipment was... well, it was sub-par."
In case you didn't know, you can unlock the original NES game (and Super C) in Contra 4 for the DS -- which is perfect in its own right. So, we expect you to man up and buy it while it's on sale.Contra 4 now owning faces for only $20
We understand that there might have been a number of reasons why you haven't picked up Contra 4 yet:- you're not a fan of run-and-gun titles
- you can't handle tough games
- exploding bridges hindered you from getting to a game store
- it's too expensive!
Gallery: Contra 4 DS
See also: DS Fanboy Review: Contra 4
[Via CAG]
DS releases for the week of March 10th
What a week for DS releases! Of course, in the shadow of a certain release on the Wii side of the Nintendo fence, a big week was probably necessary, but that doesn't make it any less exciting. Though there are only three DS titles scheduled for release, each one has something going for it. How often does that happen?- Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates
- Insecticide
- Nanostray 2
Contra 4 sheds six dollars, shirts
Need an extra excuse to pick up 2007's manliest, exploding-est DS game? Amazon has posted a modest markdown for Contra 4, selling the run-and-gun game for a discounted $23.99. Women and men alike will flock to you when they see you're playing such a tough game, smitten with your virility. And, with six extra bucks in your pocket, you could probably take one of them out to dinner. Not to anywhere nice, like Ponderosa, but maybe Burger King.Afraid that all the action will be just too much for you or too difficult? Fear not! There's a little trick you can exploit to steal 99 extra mans. Unfortunately, pulling off the cheat might be harder than the actual game ...
[Via CAG]
Japanese Contra 4 tones down boxart, numbers
Perhaps to distract Japanese gamers from Contra 4's western origins, Konami has replaced the game's cover with art more fitting to the country's sensibilities. Manga-fied and emasculated, our two heroes are mere shadows of the beefy commandos seen on the North American box, the manliest art we've come across since Haggar piledrived a shark.Lance Bean, the former badass on the right, was once pictured hefting up a rocket launcher, sneering at enemy troops while taking aim at their crotches. Now he is shown staying his rifle, a contemplative -- some would even say mournful -- expression on his face.
We've heard rumors of other wussifying changes to the actual game, but we've yet to confirm them:
- Virt's synth-metal soundtrack has been switched out with Air Supply's "All Out of Love" on infinite repeat
- Tapping in the Konami code halves your manhood and causes nearly all of your facial hair to instantly fall off, leaving behind a pencil moustache
- The final boss battle has been replaced with a cutscene in which you shake hands with the alien villain and agree to disagree
Continue reading Japanese Contra 4 tones down boxart, numbers
A DS sequel to Shantae rests in our hands
Remember Shantae? WayForward certainly does -- the Contra 4 developer spent two years producing the delightful Game Boy Color platformer, only to see it die a death at retail, its chances cruelly crushed by the increasing obsolescence of its host platform, as well as the rise of the newly released Game Boy Advance. Boasting an engrossing mix of Metroid-style puzzles and neat visual tricks, the game was an unsung gem that emphatically failed to register on the gaming public's radar.A sequel was planned for the Advance, only for the project to be inexplicably shelved with the game 50% complete, but WayForward hasn't forgotten about the series entirely. With the all-conquering Contra 4 now out on store shelves and begging to be bought, the developer has posted a poll on its site, asking whether or not we'd be interested in purchasing a Shantae follow-up, and what platform we'd like it to appear on.
Hence, we implore all of you to hit the link below and get your vote on. If you're still wavering about giving thirty seconds of your time to one of the best DS-related causes we've heard of in ages, go past the break for footage of the canned GBA title.
Then go and get your vote on.
DS Daily: Your greatest moment
In today's edition of DS Daily, we want you to brag. Brag like your life damn well depended on it. Tell us all about the achievements you're most proud of in your DS gaming career.Have you collected absolutely everything there is to collect for your museum in Animal Crossing: Wild World? Racked up three stars in every cup in Mario Kart DS? Completed all 40 of the challenges in Contra 4's granite-hard Challenge mode? Cast your modesty aside, dear reader, revel in your own gaming greatness, and share the DS-related achievements you're proudest of.
(Note: We're only joking about the Contra one, incidentally -- that's just fricken' humanly impossible. OR IS IT?)
Contra 4's 99-extra-lives cheat doesn't come easy
Has Contra 4's grueling difficulty kept you from even seeing its second stage? The Konami code, while useful, only upgrades your weapons instead of rewarding you with the extra mans you need to die-n-gun your way past enemies and their scattered shots.During the throes of one of his many deaths, GameFAQs poster Empty2002120141 stumbled upon a neat, albeit elaborate, trick for getting 99 free lives in Contra 4. First, you'll need to make sure you currently have zero lives. Next, you have to die at either the exact moment or right after you kill something that pushes your score up high enough to get an extra life. Those who've pulled off the trick suggest trying it with the first level's mini-boss. This should work across all three difficulty modes!
We're not sure if WayForward programmed this as an intentional cheat or if it's actually a game glitch, but it sure sounds helpful (if you can actually execute the maneuver).
[Via GameFAQs]
More Contra 4 footage to nudge you in the right direction
The "right direction" being your nearest games emporium to pick up Contra 4. If you missed the perfect score we awarded to Konami's brilliant shooter earlier today, or just need a little more gentle encouragement, we'd advise watching these videos of the title in action. Both the first and second stages (the latter of which had this writer tied in knots for close to an hour) are featured here in their entirety, including the frankly nasty boss at the end of the Laboratory stage.
Take your ripped physique past the post break for a second video.
Continue reading More Contra 4 footage to nudge you in the right direction
Band's name gives them 30 lives
We don't know what exactly possessed Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start to name themselves after Konami's famous code, but we're sure that it helps people remember their band name. It also helps bloggers looking for any excuse to write about Contra.We expected their music to be mostly chiptunes and 8-bit homages -- or, given the manliness of the Contra series and the Contra 4 website, something in the same vein as Team America's "America, F*** Yeah" (NSFW) -- but their songs lean more towards indie rock. There's a stack of downloadable MP3s available for you to sample at the band's site, and they're actually quite listenable!
We've pasted a music video from one of UUDDLRLRBAS's tracks off their Worst Band Name Ever album past the post break for you. While the song won't make beating Contra/Gradius/Jackal any easier, it's not bad!
Show and Tell: Contra goes with everything
So what do you have to show off? From crafts to cakes to collections ... whatever you've got, if it has a little Nintendo flavor, we want to see it. Just take some pictures (or copy your web album links) and send them to showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.
Contra 4 owns your face even more with its official site
"Dirk thought he was the luckiest alien humanoid around when he saw the job posting: good pay, benefits, free trip to Earth, stand in place, decent aim preferred. In the moments since the shirtless super-commando opened fire, he's begun questioning that decision."
You'll also find five wicked wallpapers, seven video clips for the different weapons, and twenty new screenshots at the site. Contra 4 kicks down the door and guns down your family this November 13th, the same week Super Mario Galaxy hits stores. Make sure to mark that date on your calendar; it's an important one.
Contra movie coming to alternate-universe theaters in 1988
If you haven't clicked the Play button on the video yet, go ahead and take care of that -- whatever we've written underneath the embedded movie cannot even begin to match its excellence. Team Awesome, the same group that put together the fictitious Punch-Out!! trailer for Nintendo's Short Cuts Showcase contest, created this ultra-macho masterpiece as an homage to Contra. The production parodies not only the original NES game, but 80s action films like Predator, Aliens, Rambo: First Blood, and other indisputable classics. Pretty much, if it was rad and from the 80s, then it's somewhere in this trailer.
Rumor: Contra 4 and Ninja Gaiden coming to DS Download Stations?
GoNintendo's "inside guy" is usually spot-on with his scouted information on upcoming Download Station games, but keep in mind that this tally is anything but official. According to the mole's report, this Version 7 update to the in-store wireless stations will feature a total of twelve game demos and five videos, all of which you can see after the post break.Playable demos for Contra 4 and Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword top the gossip, promising to bring run-n-gun shootin' and ninja-of-the-night flippin' to our handhelds soon. Once this update hits, we are going to be on these two titles like gravy on mashed potatoes. Who knows, we might even eat some mashed potatoes with gravy while we play the demo. These are crazy times we live in.
Continue reading Rumor: Contra 4 and Ninja Gaiden coming to DS Download Stations?
