Contra: Operation Galuga Review - Screenshot 1 of 5
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)

With Konami seemingly devoid of both in-house developers and any kind of passion to revive their beloved IPs, WayForward, predominately a licence mule during the '00s, is by far the best option for a new Contra entry. Its work on 2007’s brutally hardcore Contra 4 cemented the developer's prowess, allowing the player to grapple hook between the Nintendo DS’s twin screens. Those who stuck with it discovered a worthy tribute to Konami’s iconic series: a strict memoriser full of magnificent setpieces and high-end destruction worthy of the name.

It’s been 16 years too long, and Contra: Operation Galuga has arrived in a markedly different kind of gaming landscape to that of 2007. It’s thanks in part to modern expectations that this new iteration comes with a litany of adjustable content. Where Arcade Mode follows a classic, uncluttered format, Story Mode is filled with cutscenes, in-game communications, and on-screen NPCs that join you sporadically during the action. It isn’t completely necessary and you’ll tire of repeating dialogue interjections as you practice, but, clunky script notwithstanding, it remains a welcome alternative experience. Although Arcade Mode is fat-free and streamlined, and therefore more appealing, we still appreciate having two different ways to tackle the adventure.

Contra: Operation Galuga Review - Screenshot 2 of 5
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)

Easter eggs include unlockable characters with alternate abilities, including two new females and the kiddy-safe Probotector droids that originally appeared in the European versions. Additionally, there are adjustable parameters that make the challenge less intimidating. As well as three difficulty settings, you also get a three-point health bar by default, which is uncommon for the series outside of the Japanese version of Contra: Hard Corps on the Mega Drive.

Additionally, each character earns points through play that can be spent on upgrade perks. Some are restricted to the individual soldier, like Bill Rizer’s incredibly useful invulnerability during a dash, or Lance Bean’s increased jumping height. You can also acquire the ability to keep weaponry after a death, greatly reducing the game’s difficulty. These add-ons ensure Operation Galuga isn’t off-putting to newcomers, although dedicated play time is still required to accrue spendable points.

Even with all of the optional softeners, however, Operation Galuga remains good and tough, exactly as it should be. It demands learning, thought, and resourcefulness in terms of approach and deconstruction. For serious Contra veterans, Hard difficulty with a traditional one-hit-kill fixture, and with perks disabled, is a tantalising call to arms. This delivers the purest, most aggressive callback, and comes expertly tailored.

Contra: Operation Galuga Review - Screenshot 3 of 5
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)

Contra: Operation Galuga is a fantastic game in both conception and execution. Some people don’t like the graphics, but we think they’re appropriately suited. Yes, pixel art always utterly trounces plasticky 3D, but again, there are younger generations to appeal to, and tonally it’s well handled. Arranged on a 2.5D plane, the camera occasionally shifts around new corners and dynamically during certain boss engagements, recalling Contra: Shattered Soldier’s more thrilling moments. Stage arrangements are nigh-on Contra perfection, finely orchestrated for bullet-fuelled chaos, taking advantage of modern hardware in terms of scale and setpieces, and throttling you as early as stage two into a hoverbike rampage through a giant factory. Bosses and mid-bosses are fearsome and unremitting, spitting patterns to test both memory and reflex accordingly, while weaponry is so well-balanced and plentiful that the hallowed Spread Gun isn’t always the best or most reliable option anymore. You can hold two weapons simultaneously and switch between them, and all can be doubled in power, making the homing shot a vicious screen clearer and the Crush missile a devastating force with its new shield property. Weapons can also be detonated in new overload attacks, too, each summoning a different offensive or defensive property, such as firing bombastic barrages or creating temporary forcefields.

In addition, the new double-jump and dash manoeuvres interplay beautifully with the action, opening up all kinds of experimental dimensions. Working harmoniously, it feels absolutely right to hop twice through the air and speed over the heads of enemy grunts while raining down laser-charged death from above. These functions are also perfectly pitched for speedrunning, able to negate scenery and heavy artillery entirely if timed right. Indeed, the first task in the game’s bespoke Challenge Mode is to speed run the first stage.

The components are all in place, from Bill’s macho soundbites to the fluidity and dynamic nature of your movesets and armaments, to the carefully assembled and ever-evolving stage layouts. This really is Contra 101, WayForward nailing both the material and the lofty expectations of its fans.

Contra: Operation Galuga Review - Screenshot 4 of 5
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)

What’s that? You want to know what that elephant is doing in the room? Buckle up.

The game’s Switch demo, released several weeks prior to launch, was poorly received, with a crippled frame rate, freezes, and chronic lag. Even the PC version, while infinitely superior, was full of glitches. We expected the glitches to be fixed because the demo was actually a custom-built entity that combined elements of the first and third stages, but we still encountered legs in the floor, an enemy who disappeared into the floor, and on one occasion no music playing after hitting continue.

Glitches, however, are minor irritants compared to the game’s performance, which on Switch is frankly unacceptable. It pains us greatly to say this, especially considering how good an underlying game there is here, but you may want to seriously think twice about getting this version. The graphics are fine, with textures expectedly losing detail compared to the PC version, but certainly not in a way that’s a dealbreaker. But the frame rate, which is meant to be locked at 30fps, is a mess, and seems to regularly fall below the promised threshold. You’re going to see constant chugs, background scrolling jerks, and borderline freezes. This, in turn, affects the game’s control sensitivity, the severity of its lag seeming to fluctuate depending on the frame rate’s behaviour. Often unfairly slow to respond, it can get you killed, and the game feels much harder to play than the 60fps Steam version because it’s all so janky. Weirdly, there's no consistency with how the frame rate responds, seeming to improve inside stage four's Lab.

Contra: Operation Galuga Review - Screenshot 5 of 5
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)

Visually, while it hurts on the big screen, it still plays better there than in handheld. This is due to the fact that there are times when the camera zooms out so much that everything is too diminutive to properly follow on the Switch's panel. This is immediately obvious on stage two’s hoverbike race where you pilot a tiny Bill Rizer attempting to shoot hoards of miniature roaming overhead guns. It feels confusing and imprecise, elements that are anathema to the Contra experience.

Even at its worst, it's such a good base game that some will be able to push through its issues and have fun with it. But there’s a lot of work involved in this, and with other, far superior versions out there, it’s tough to recommend bothering. It's irritating that you need to play the game in a more careful manner than you would on higher-end systems, since it doesn't function properly if you attack aggressively. Go balls to the wall and the input lag and temperamental frame rate kill its fluidity. Instead, baby-stepping and relying on homing weapons for safety works best from stage three onward. Because of this, it's not the gung-ho experience it should be, and a title we would think twice about before shelling out for physical limited editions.

Conclusion

WayForward has done god’s work in design and execution, and in rekindling the feel of Konami’s blistering run-and-gun IP. It’s all expertly assembled: an adrenaline-fuelled bullet ballet that knows exactly what Contra is and should be, borrowing key elements from the series' back catalogue and elevating the action with an original moveset that feels fresh, fun, and exciting to toy with. It’s this undeniable accomplishment that makes the Switch version somewhat deflating. There’s a great game here, and yes, it is playable, it is fun, and it can be learned. But it’s damaged by so many technical setbacks that one weeps for what should have been. Unity-coded titles on the Switch don’t have a great track record, but WayForward can’t really blame the tools and should have ironed it out considerably. Contra: Operation Galuga stands tall amongst its peers - just not this version. If you’re a serious Contra fan, we’re going to drop something utterly perverse for a Nintendo-focused publication, lay down a suppressing fire, and tell you to head straight over to Steam.

Related Products

Contra: Operation Galuga (Code in Box)
Contra: Operation Galuga (Code in Box)

Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.