User Rating: 6.4 | Contra: Hard Spirits GBA
Let's get one thing out of the way: Contra III for the SNES is one of my all-time favorite games on any system. So, why the low score for the GBA rehash? Let's just say that while Contra Advance does a decent job of recreating the look of the SNES classic, unbalanced additions and frustrating shortcuts have changed the whole way the game plays, and it's not an improvement. Graphically, Contra Advance is a pixel-perfect rendition of the SNES classic, and an improvement over the Genesis title Hard Corps, from which Contra Advance draws two of its levels. All the huge bosses, all the fire, all the vehicles, and all the explosions are represented in fine form. It's amazing to see how well the graphics have held up over the past decade. Unfortunately, that's the only aspect in which Contra Advance meets expectations. So, with the good out of the way, let's talk about the bad. The gameplay of Contra Advance, while still your typical run and gun, has been significantly watered down in terms of options. Gone is the excellent two-weapon system from the SNES classic. Instead, you now only have one weapon to choose from at any given time. This creates two problems. One, the weapon power-ups still often come in groups of two, and often when you're leaping from place to place; in the original, both would be stocked for your use. Now, if you pick up the wrong one, you have often already missed your opportunity to nab the other one. Also, when you perish, instead of having your other powered-up weapon as a backup, you're stuck with the old gun. Also, the ability to do the jump/spin dual-weapon attack is gone, and it is sorely missed. Furthermore, the bomb is gone, with nothing to replace it. This was an incredibly useful weapon, and one of the coolest things about the original. Without it, something is missing. What I don't miss are the two overhead Mode 7 levels from the original, which have been replaced in Contra Advance by two levels from Contra: Hard Corps. These levels are solid, but the level bosses are unspectacular, certainly not on par with the amazing boss battle fought hanging from missiles. And now: the ugly. Contra Advance sounds terrible. Sure, the sound effects have made the transition, but the amazing score of the original has been tinnied down to bloops and bleeps not becoming of a GBA title. All the tense music, all the careful orchestration of the original is completely lost. It's like trying to pass off a MIDI as an MP3. All in all, Contra Advance is a sore disappointment. Fans of the original would do well to stick with their SNES version... this portable version is a mockery of the original classic. 
