only a matter of time to decide who shall win. Gameplay The gameplay is similar to that of Contra III: The Alien Wars, although with simpler moves and nine lives, but not continues (as opposed to most games of this genre). The game's mechanic also features a TGS bar, or "power bar", which must be filled with special time crystals before emptying; otherwise, the player will lose a life each time the bar empties. The TGS bar is a part of the time-traveling device, and must be filled frequently. The bar slowly empties itself and by being hurt by an enemy, so players must literally "run for their lives" and collect as many crystals they can. After scoring a given number of points, players are awarded extra lives. Levels Levels are long and full of enemies and traps; players may find themselves fending off many weak enemies before battling an oversized (albeit weak) sub-boss, only to face an even stronger, bigger level boss. Traps, in turn, are based on the technology available in each age. A common occurrence was to mistake a sub-boss for the level's boss, because both sub-bosses and level bosses always were oversized and strong. Enemies Regular enemies include humans from past ages and Tirmatians; they often appear together. The game also features animals and mythical beings. Sets of traps are scattered all over the game, but are quite simple. Bosses and sub-bosses often take the appearance of oversized mythological figures, always adjusting to the age they appear on. Weapons The player can use several weapons as laser guns, bombs, etc., which are collected as the game progresses. However, the player can lose its weapons after losing a life. It is also possible to use armored vehicles in some levels. Lives Unlike other games, there is no cheat code that extends the number of lives, nor can the player adjust the difficulty level or the number of lives to start with. The game also lacked of continues or a saving mode, forcing the player to restart the game from the first level after running out of lives. After running out of lives, the game ended and a screen appeared announcing Dr. Gilgamesh's fate by ominously declaring "Mission Failure You were never born.... Earth becomes Tirmat II...." (implying that the Tirmatian plan succeeded and that also intervened on Dr. Gilgamesh's life), as he fell into a whirlwind-like vortex.