Operation C

North American box art.

Operation C, known in Japan as コントラ, Kontora, "Contra", and Probotector in Europe, is a scrolling platform run-and-gun developed by Konami and published by Ultra for the Game Boy and released in 1991. The game acts as a sequel to Super C where a new alien called "Black Viper" is trying to take over Earth.

I never played this game when it was popular. Instead, I saw it on a list of the best Game Boy games and played it in an emulator.

Status

I do not own the game, but I beat it on 2017-08-03.

Review

Overall: 5/10
Best Version: Game Boy

Good

The game has decent graphics and sound.
There is a good amount of variety among the enemies, bosses, and level design.
In the brief time you have, the game presents a tough challenge, even for someone skilled in Contra games.
I really like the new homing gun, and was pleased that they dropped the laser gun.

Bad

With only 5 levels, the game is pretty short.
Some of the music is reused from the NES games without even attempting to remix it.
The final boss (after defeating the guardian) is extremely dull.
The Japanese and European releases didn't give the game a new title.

Ugly

Nothing.

Box Art

The original Japanese art appears to be taken from a still of Schwarzenegger from Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The alien backdrop is good, but the white foreground makes it look more like a flowery border!
This is a nice scene from Area 5. Lots of action and danger really shows what the game is about. This is my favorite art.
The European box shamelessly uses the same art and title as the NES release of Contra, even though the game is entirely different.