Play Contra on GB Online

Konami released Contra for the Game Boy in 1990, bringing the run and gun action of the arcade and NES to a portable screen. It arrived during a time when many developers were still figuring out how to translate console experiences to the handheld's limitations, making its ambitious scope notable.

You control a lone soldier fighting through alien-infested jungles and bases, shooting everything that moves. The main goal is to survive each side-scrolling stage and defeat the boss waiting at the end. You pick up different weapons, like the spread shot or laser, which completely change your firing pattern and strategy. The pacing is relentless; enemies pour in from all sides, and the screen scrolls forward constantly, pushing you into danger. It feels like a tense, chaotic scramble where one mistake often means starting over.