Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Basic Skills
Tread cautiously. There's no time limit in "Contra," so move carefully through each level, especially when you don't know or can't remember what lies ahead.
Practice ducking and jumping as a reflex. Later in the game, enemies will come out firing at a moment's notice. It's essential that you're able to get out of the way without panicking.
Make tight, controlled movements. Jumping in the air and shooting downwards, or shooting diagonally and then doubling back to shoot again from the same angle are both good ways of taking down stationary targets before pressing forward into unexplored territory.
Use the spread gun combined with rapid fire when possible. While everyone has their favorite weapons--and the machine gun and laser are no slouches--the spread will give you the most range and protection, which is exactly what you need when lives are in short supply.
Seek the high ground. Keeping the enemies underneath your character will allow you to jump more freely and prevent you from getting surrounded.
Memorize everything. Trial and error is inevitable, so keep practicing and don't give up.
Tips for Stage 1
To get over the exploding bridges, jump onto them from the preceding grassy patch, then immediately jump again while moving forward. Jump forward one more time, and you should be able to run the rest of the way across. Traversing the second bridge allows you to grab the spread gun, but if you miss it, there's another one later in the level.
To defeat the first boss, shoot the soldier on top first, then carefully destroy the wall-mounted guns by jumping and shooting.
Don't get too close to the boss--remember, there's no rush. Once the defenses are down, finish up by destroying the flashing part of the wall.
Tips for Stage 2 and Stage 4
Stay in a ducking position most of the time to avoid gunfire. You'll need to stand or jump to destroy some walls, but don't expose yourself unless it's completely safe.
Move when necessary to avoid grenades. Learn to judge whether the grenade is actually a threat, because it's not always necessary to stand up and run.
Jump over or shoot the rolling objects. They are easily destroyed with special weapons such as the spread gun, saving you the danger of standing up; without these weapons, it's probably best to jump over them and resume ducking.
In the Stage 2 boss room, destroy the outside columns first, then destroy the middle ones to bring out the boss. You can shoot the boss's deadly rings if there's no way to dodge them.
In the Stage 4 boss room, shoot the middle columns first this time (as opposed to the outside columns in the last Base). Otherwise, you'll trigger the boss early, with his minions still shooting at you. Destroy the brown minions in the boss room quickly, because it can be hard to dodge their fire once they start shooting.
Shoot the bubbles that the boss fires, or jump over them, but in either case don't rush to shoot the boss. Wait until its segments align and until there's no immediate danger and fire a few shots at a time.
Tips for Stage 3
Destroy any cannons or stationary soldiers as soon as possible. Things can get hectic in this level, with a steady stream of aliens running about, so the last thing you want is bullets flying your way.
Don't shoot any item boxes until you're close enough to grab what's inside. If you do open a box too early, avoid the temptation of putting yourself in harm's way to reach the contents. Slowly work your way towards the power-up and hope that it doesn't disappear.
Take down the boss's arms first by shooting the red, spiky balls on the end of each arm. Keep moving and maintain some distance from them, since they shoot fast-moving fireballs.
Tips for Stage 5
Be ready to duck from the standing soldiers with gun turrets. They can appear suddenly and they fire quickly.
When you reach the lake, destroy the soldier in the water by jumping towards the next platform--coaxing him out of hiding--and quickly moving back while shooting diagonally downward.
If you don't have a powerful weapon to fight the two spiked vehicles, stand as far back as possible and shoot as fast as you can. One method of firing quickly is to set the controller down, then tap the fire button using alternating fingers.
Tips for Stage 6
Watch for stationary soldiers with gun turrets, as they fire even faster than before.
Be on the lookout for flamethrowers that activate when you draw near. To get around them, coax the flame by jumping close to them, then quickly jump again while the flame recedes.
Jump over the boss's attacks and over the boss himself when necessary, but otherwise stay on the ground and fire a steady stream of bullets.
Tips for Stage 7
Tread very lightly in this level, because walls of spikes often rise from the ground, killing the player that tries to rush forward.
Towards the end of the level, progress through the large trap of alternating spikes until the spike wall emerges, then retreat to safety. Destroy the wall before moving back through the trap.
Ignore the floor cannons that guard the boss structure unless you have powerful weapons. It is too distracting otherwise.
The structure alternates between sending aliens out through the door to the right and letting them in from the left. Destroy the aliens when they exit the door, then run right up to the structure and shoot at the flashing panel above the door. Retreat away from the door when the aliens charge from the left and repeat the process.
Tips for Stage 8
Be on the lookout for two power ups that float by--a Barrier and a Machine Gun--early in the level. They will prove useful when fighting the giant hanging creature that greets visitors to the lair.
Carefully progress through the level, destroying the wall-mounted aliens as they appear. When they create white blobs, shoot them quickly before they gain speed and pursue you.
Before destroying Red Falcon's heart, duck and fire at the bottom two alien pods until they are destroyed.
Run up to the alien heart, aim diagonally upwards at it, and begin firing. Whenever an alien drops down from the pods above, retreat and jump over it, then return to the heart and continue firing.
Rejoice as the heart explodes, then celebrate as your helicopter flies safely away from the exploding Island. You are now a true hardcore gamer.