icons were used. Contra: Shattered Soldier and Neo Contra both deviate from this tradition by having set weapon configurations instead. Most of the Contra games have the player begin the game with only a set number of lives (three in most console games). If the player gets hit once, they will lose a life along with any weapon they currently possess in some games. Because of this, the Contra series is notorious for being extremely difficult. Even in the original arcade versions, most of the games only give limited chances to continue before forcing the player to start all over. Extra lives are usually obtained in most games when the player reaches certain scores. The NES version of the original Contra used the Konami Code (previously featured in the NES version of Gradius) to start the game with thirty lives instead of the usual three. Most of the subsequent console games in the series only featured these extra lives codes in their Japanese releases, such as Contra Spirits (the Japanese version of Contra III) and Contra: Hard Corps. Games Main games Contra (Arcade, NES, MSX2, DOS, C64, CPC, ZX) (1987) Contra is the first game in the series. Many of the series' conventions such as power-ups, two-player cooperative gameplay and the character's light mobility (including somersaults) were already present in this game. The game is composed of traditional side-view stages that scroll either vertically or horizontally, as well as "3D view" stages in which the player moves towards the backgrounds. The NES version is different from the arcade version and has longer stages and numerous other modifications. In Japan, the Famicom version uses the VRC2 chip, which allowed for additional background animation and cut-scenes not included in its North American and European NES counterparts. An MSX2 version was also produced that is drastically different from the other two versions, made by Konami staff members, but not by the original team who made the original Arcade. Several computer versions were done outside Japan, by Ocean in Europe for the C64, CPC and ZX, and by Banana Software in North America for DOS based PCs. Super Contra (Arcade, NES, DOS, Amiga) (1987) Super Contra replaces the 3D view stages from the original with top-view stages similar to those in Commando or Ikari Warriors. Features unique to the arcade version includes upgradable weapons and the ability to control the character's jumping height. The