The original Contra on NES is easily one of the most beloved games in the library. So much that it overshadows what I think is a slightly superior sequel in Super C. The base games are identical in terms of gameplay, but Super C throws a little more at you with its robust challenge and established mini bosses provides. Even the music sounds, if I were to coin a term, beefier.

This time around, the Konami Code (Right, Left, Down, Up, A, B, Select, then Start on Player 2 controller) doesn't grant you 30 lives, but 10.

The sub stages from the first game, third person shooting segments, are gone in favor of overhead action levels that closer resemble Ikari Warriors. By the time you get to the Jungle (stage 3), the ante picks up considerably and it gets relentless quick.

FIRST RULE OF CONTRA: GET SPREAD SHOT

SECOND RULE OF CONTRA: KEEP SPREAD SHOT

I've always wondered why despite the positive reception, Super C had, it's not even talked about in the same light as its predecessor. Perhaps it's because it bears many resemblances to the first game that it's a venture all too familiar. This was the 80's, so at a time where the idea behind a video game sequels had little in the way of standards to meet and supercede. Super Mario Bros. 2 came out this same year and it seemed world's different from the previous game (because I mentioned SMB2, I am now obligated as a retro game guy to tell you that the Super Mario Bros 2 we received in the United States was a reskinned Doki Doki Panic. It may as well mandatory at this point). 

Maybe it's more nostalgia than viewing Super C as an inferior game. More memories seem to be attached to the first one and that alone can weave it deeper into the fabric of game history. Later Contra games like Alien War and Shattered Soldier on the PS2 have a little more to call their own than Super C, so it's met with more reverence. Super C is a little slept on, but it's still a very good Contra game. It's like remembering the best song from your favorite band, then trying to decide what the second best could be.