10 Video Games That Tried To Exploit Nostalgia (And Failed)
1. Contra: Rogue Corps
Konami are a shadow of what they used to be. Once a powerful force within the industry, their recent efforts seemed more focused on arcade machines and retroo compilations than serious console games.
We saw it with the lacklustre Metal Gear Survive, the first (and so far only) entry since Hideo Kojima left the company and last year it was Contra’s turn. First appearing back in 1987, the classic run and gun side-scroller series was a staple of the 8 and 16-bit eras and Contra III: The Alien Wars was arguably the franchise peak on SNES.
It was disappointing then to see Konami revive the franchise last year as Contra: Rogue Corps. Ditching the 2D scrolling for a top-down isometric view, it’s came under fire for its departure from series conventions, bad visual design, clunky gameplay and unpolished presentation.
If you’re desperate for a new Contra fix, you’d be better off sticking to the anniversary collection.