Year: 1987 Platform: Arcade, NES, C64 If there's one video game that sums up the '80s as a whole, it has to be Contra. Unashamedly big and dumb, Contra was nonetheless the go-to game for fans of running and gunning for years after release, primarily thanks to the brotastic two-player co-op. About as gung-ho as a video game can get, Contra pitted the player (and possibly a friend) against the evil Red Falcon Organisation, based deep in the wild regions of New Zealand. At the time, there wasn't much in the way of co-operative experiences, and Contra capitalised on that beautifully, all driven by one of the best soundtracks in video game history.
