Contra: Operation Galuga

The best Contra since original... Great game!

Nice run and gun, but way too expensive for such a short game.

tl;dr: This is a 7/10 game. For the most part, it feels like an attempt at evolving the Contra formula we know and love, but instead it adds bloat, a story you're forced to play through to unlock goodies, worse music, worse levels (and honestly, just worse game design as a whole) and mishmashed art. Not recommended because I'd rather just play classic Contra, but this game isn't bad. Starting with the art: The character sprites aren't badly done per se, but they do NOT fit the aesthetic of Contra at all. Bill looks particularly bad here, which is a bummer because his original iteration is one of my favorite blond action hero designs. Lance isn't much better off, but his design is inoffensive at the very least. The 3d models are a bit better and are inoffensive, if a bit bland. One of the unlockable characters also feels extremely out of place contrasted with the rest of the crew - not in terms of art style, but more in regards to the setting. Overall doesn't hurt the game too much. The music is bland and forgettable. Thankfully the devs were awesome enough to include NES Contra's OST, as well as Castlevania and some others, as unlockables. Level design ranges from decent to bad. With the older Contra games, you can tell the devs put a lot of care into some of the encounters, especially early on. In Operation Galuga, I never really got that feeling. Most of the levels are inoffensive, but don't really feel cleverly made unlike Galuga's predecessors. Some of the later levels are outright bad and unfun, though. Part of the problem in the level design seems to stem from your mobility options. You can double jump, and you can dash, both on the ground and in the air. You can climb certain walls. These mobility options sound fun on paper (and they are) but they really drown the level design out, because you can move to basically anywhere you want to be, at any time. Those issues tie in with the bloat I touched on in the opening of this review, as well as the weird game design choices. The devs threw a bunch into this, but in Contra's case, less is more. Double jumping, dashing and overloading your weapons (which destroys your equipped weapon and provides a special effect, such as a barrage of missiles or a personal shield) don't really feel like they add anything to this game. Same with the story, which you unfortunately have to play in order to unlock everything the game has to offer. It's slow, it's boring, and if you try to skip cutscenes, there are sections where almost nothing is happening for minutes at a time, because the levels are designed to accommodate the characters talking to each other. All that said, it's still a fun game. My review doesn't touch on almost any of the good things this game does - if you like Contra, you'll probably like this. But to be frank, I think I'd rather just boot up classic Contra or Operation C regardless.

CONTRA IS BACK, BABY! When I saw this game drop back in 2024 my jaw hit the floor, a new Contra game? a GOOD new Contra game?! this must be a dream! but nope! its real, and it is AWESOME! Operation Galuga is a modern reimagining of the classic Contra games, taking some scenes and inspiration from Contra, Super C and Contra III on SNES and turning it all up to 11 with new crisp HD graphics and a banging soundtrack! plus working remote play multiplayer this time around! this is a fantastic package for lovers of classic sidescrolling run n' gun action! Operation Galuga features some QoL improvements to make the game more accessible to new or casual players, with less difficulty for those who want to see the rest of the game. The game also features upgrades for your weapons so you can use them across stages and more! This is the quality you get, when the people making the game actually care and understand the source material, Operation Galuga is a game made out of passion and it shows, it's fantastic from start to finish, looks modern but plays just like you remember it as a kid, tough enemies, tight combat and platforming, and having an absolute BLAST while doing it! Pick this one up, it's stellar!

Це сучасне відродження гри моєї юності, і нарешті до мене прийшла муза, щоб написати на неї огляд! З перших кроків і надалі впізнається стиль тієї найпершої Contra з приставки Dendy. Дизайн рівнів, ворогів та босів, загорнутий у сучасний стиль і графіку, дарує відчуття — це саме те. Звісно, додані й нові, неочікувані, та водночас приємні несподіванки. Тут немає непотрібного, штучно доданого піксельного трешу, що випалює очі, який мене дратував у кількох сучасних ремейках старих ігор. Усе зроблено й адаптовано під актуальні версії моніторів і геймпадів, з купою налаштувань під особисті потреби. Разом із цим додано декілька режимів гри, також із багатьма налаштуваннями стилю, складності й додаткових умов, серед яких є навіть сюжетна кампанія. Дизайн і механіки ігрових персонажів запозичені, скоріш за все, вже з гри Contra: Hard Corps із приставки SEGA. Цей картридж довгі роки був серед лідерів моєї колекції, і я пройшов його, мабуть сотні разів. Тут кожен персонаж використовує ту ж саму зброю у своєму стилі та має особливі здібності. Також, як нововведення з’явилися нові таланти, які можна екіпірувати перед місіями: як загальні для всіх, так і унікальні для конкретних персонажів. Поєднавши все це, можна з упевненістю сказати, що розробники подарували нам якісну аркаду, в яку можна залипати під настрій знову й знову. І я дуже задоволений, що свого часу придбав цей чудовий шедевр... Respect from Crocodile!

n0t surer why all the h8, this is a fun run and gun, reminds me 0f the days 0f 0ld

Wouldn't recommend it, had constant problems with the controls. The game is incredibly short - roughly 6 hrs - wants you to play on infinite repeat -- and most importantly -- was designed for game controllers, but the controls were buggy and constantly glitched out: It would infinitely repeat the last button pressed, which would cause you to walk off of platforms, fall down cliffs, or jump off ropes / moving platforms. So it was just annoying having to restart zones simply because the controls were glitchy. And to be clear, it wasn't the game controller's fault either: Used a standard XBox controller that was directly attached to the computer via a cable, that was also used to play 100+ hrs of Elden Ring as well as 60-70 hrs Armored Core VI, with absolutely no issues. So there are no problems with the controller. Contra just didn't program their controls well enough, so thumbs down.

Contra made a strong come back from the previous games they made. They finally took this series back too its roots and its better than the originals. Finally you have a life bar which means you don't have to use the konami code to cheat with 30 lives anymore. Also their are unlimited continues unlike the previous versions wihich they limit you to only 3 continues then game over. All the weapons are have been revamped and now have 3 levels of powerup. Gameplay and graphics are also detailed and improved with textures, lighting, and colors. The stage layouts are wider so you can take the low route or high route. A satisfying addition to my arcade cabinet ,Thanks Konami