Super Cyborg (Nintendo Switch)
If you’re a fan of the original 8 bit Contra games this is going to look instantly familiar to you! For the record I’m not the most die hard Contra player. Being from the UK we had the re-skinned version of Contra called Probotector featuring robots instead of soldiers. I never actually own the game but I have fond memories of playing it at friends houses.
The one lasting memory I have was the difficulty and I was instantly reminded of that the moment I played this homage.
Super Cyborg is NO JOKE!!! After starting the game and hitting the game over screen within a minute I was sure I miss selected ‘easy mode’ at the start but, no. This game is brutal!
You can chose between 2 playable characters Cyborg V1 and V2. I’m not sure exactly what the difference is but V2 has shoulder pads so lets go with him. You can then dial in the colours to customise your robot which is a cool touch especially when playing in multiplayer.
Like the Contra series, the game is 2 player local co-op. I noticed on the previously released PC version there was also an option for ‘netplay’ which appears to be missing from the Switch version, at least at launch. For my personal circumstances living in a different country to most of my gaming friends, this would have been very much appreciated and I hope the developer is able to add this at a later date.
You start with 4 lives and once they’re gone, it’s game over. The only quality of life bone you are thrown is you have unlimited continues to start from the beginning of each stage, also allowing you to save your progress to start at that stage next time you play.
The game contains a total of 7 levels, a mix of side scrolling run ’n’ gun action and overhead shooting, culminating in a unique boss battle. The levels have a great variety of environments and enemies making each stage memorable, being long enough to have substance but not so long that it becomes too frustrating to keep restarting from the beginning when you die… which you will do… a lot!!!
Despite the initial moral crushing difficulty, like the original contra games, it’s incredibly additive to play. There are indeed some cheap deaths but the controls are so responsive you never feel it was something you couldn’t have avoided in the future. With some practice and memorisation, I found myself venerating further and further into levels each time until I finally conquered them.
The PC version of the game contains a 40 life code, level select and weapon upgrade cheats, so even if the difficulty bar is a little beyond your reach there may be hope to see all the game has to offer although this very much does feel like a game you will get the most enjoyment out of by practicing and becoming skilled at the game.
If you're a fan of the original Contra games this is an absolute must have. The tight but challenging gameplay, beautiful sprite art and pounding chip tune soundtrack are worthy of the Contra licence, but as Konami seem to have gone completely off the rails these days, consider this an unofficial entry to the series which you get for bargain price of £6.29 at launch because the developer didn’t have to pay Konami the licence fee!