It's because of all that flash that makes the game SO entertaining.
User Rating: 10 | Contra: Shattered Soldier PS2
Sometimes, gameplay isn't necessary to make a good game. I know plenty of them that sport excellent gameplay which is the highlight, with some scripted sequences that end up being memorable moments. Contra: Shattered Soldier completely disengages from that theory and becomes a game built almost completely out of scripted sequences. People argue and say this new Contra's gameplay is all about knowing exactly where everything is. Absolutely true. But while this may be seen as a failure by those Ninja Gaiden loving freaks, it works in Shattered Soldier. The ENTIRE game is chock full of memorable moments. Sure, you've seen it before and there's no reason to do it again, but when every scene is completely unique and mind-numbingly cool in some sort of way, you can't help but go back. Graphics wise, some of the best on the PS2. Being a 2D scroller shooter in a 3D world, Shattered Soldier offers a great deal of weird, abstract, yet beautifully artistic visuals, even for a hard-boiled action game. The audio matches this prowess as well; even though everything you hear mostly takes place on screen, every sound is unique in a way and satisfying to hear. This game breathes unique air in a world polluted by repetitive games, cheap spinoffs, and overused gameplay elements. Contra does this by breathing in all the memorable moments from other games and jamming it all in into one gigantic shootout. Being so bizarre that one of the bosses is an alien imitation of a human reproductive system, Shattered Soldier would truly be mind-shattering to any soldier should he be involved in this game.
