Contra III – The Alien Wars

Contra III – The Alien Wars is a 1992 run-and-gun video game developed and published by Konami for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The alien invaders from previous installments launch a full-scale assault against Earth. I have played this game for many hours over the years to learn its severe difficulty curve. You take control of Bill Rizer and Lance Bean to stop Red Falcon. The North American manual originally named these heroes Jimbo and Sully. You battle your way through six extremely difficult stages.

🛸 Dual-Wielding Combat System

In this release, you can carry two weapons at the exact same time. You swap between them instantly by pressing a button. If you die, you only lose the weapon you were actively holding. Your secondary weapon stays safe in your inventory. I highly recommend stockpiling a heavy-hitting weapon for boss encounters.

Available Weapon Upgrades

• Spread Gun: Shoots five bullets simultaneously in a wide cone.
• Crush Missiles: Fires blue explosives for massive short-range damage.
• Laser: Unleashes a highly destructive, continuous beam during overhead levels.
• Homing Gun: Discharges orange tracking missiles that hunt nearby targets.
• Flamethrower: Projects a continuous wall of fire.

🏍️ Over-the-Top Stage Design

The developers rejected the standard layouts of older side-scrollers. You play through four traditional horizontal stages and two top-down areas.

Mode 7 Overhead Areas

The second and fifth stages utilize a top-down perspective. These specific levels take full advantage of the Super Nintendo Mode 7 hardware. You rotate your entire screen to aim your weapons using the shoulder buttons. You must destroy specific target pods to summon the boss. You also have the option to pick your landing point at the start of these levels.

Action Set Pieces

During the side-scrolling sections, you ride a futuristic motorcycle. You also climb walls, swing from pipes, and jump across flying missiles in mid-air.

🌍 Global Game Changes

Konami altered this title significantly for European audiences. You can view the major changes in the table below.

🕹️ How to Play on EmulatorJS

Keyboard Setup

• Arrow Keys: Move your character or aim your weapon.
• Z: Jump over obstacles (SNES B button).
• X: Fire your weapon (SNES Y button).
• A: Swap weapons (SNES X button).
• S: Use a bomb (SNES A button).
• Enter: Pause your progress.
• Shift: Choose menu options.
• Q / W: Rotate the screen during top-down stages (SNES L and R buttons).

Mobile Touch Screen

• D-Pad: Tap the directional arrows to move or aim.
• Action Buttons: Tap the right-side virtual buttons to shoot, jump, bomb, and swap weapons.
• Start & Select: Tap the tiny center icons to pause or navigate menus.
• Shoulder Buttons: Tap L and R to rotate your view in the overhead stages.