Product Information. Contra: Hard Corps lets you play as one of four different members of the Hard Corps team. Raised in the city slums, Ray Poward is an expert combatant. Sheena Etranzi is a jungle girl especially skilled in guerilla tactics. Brad Fang is part wolf-man, part cyborg, with a Gatling gun grafted onto his left arm. Browny is a robotic intelligence tool who packs a laser.Each character has a standard machine gun, bombs and four possible weapons pick-ups, including Spread, which fires in five directions at once, Shower Crash, which rains down exploding shells, and Gemini Scatter, which returns like a boomerang.
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A page for describing Characters: Contra Hard Corps. Contra Character Index The Team The Hard Corps Antagonists. Advertisement: Sheena.
The available weapons depend on which character you are controlling.Contra: Hard Corps lets you team up with a friend through more than 10 levels, some of which are hidden. The game has a certain degree of nonlinear play in that there are a number of different pathways to take, storylines to follow, and game endings to achieve.
You'll run, jump, slide, climb (on walls and ceilings) and shoot your way through cities, jungles, alien space and other exotic locations. You'll even battle aliens while riding a motorcycle and while perched atop a flying spacecraft. Hardest Contra game EVERthis is hands down the hardest Contra game EVER. I played it for 6 hours straight and only go to the 4th stage. None of the cheats work on this version, so good luck! I ended up playing it on an emulator but still couldn't get past the last boss. Still a really awesome Contra game.Good:+ 4 different characters with different sets of weapons.
Browny the robot is one of the best and Sheena is pretty great too. Ray and Fang are alright, but the other two have the best guns.+ Levels are fun and inventive, lots of robots to fight. At the end of level one, you can choose two different paths which will give you different story endings.Bad:- You can only get up to 3 lives and 5 continues. One hit will kill you just like the other Contra games. The Japanese version supposedly had a life b ar, but the left that out of the American version.- you lose whatever gun you have when you die, but then again same as the other Contra games.- There are sometimes three bosses per level. They can get very tough, but they all have a pattern. A great shooter, the last 16-bit installmentThe Contra series (which began in arcades and gained widespread fame and fortune on the NES) is notorious amongst gamers for its difficulty.
You play a pair of 'Rambo' inspired soldiers gunning for countless faceless enemy soldiers, robots, and H.R. Giger inspired aliens. Most children of the 80's remember the 'Konami Code' to get 30 lives and make the NES game beatable.Granted, people HAVE beaten Contra without cheats, codes or save states (via emulation), but it requires a level of memorization and lightning fast reflexes that most adults (never mind most kids) lack.Moving on to the 16-bit era, Contra III was released on the SNES, where it took advantage of the increased graphics and sound technology as well as having more buttons.The follow up was Contra: Hard Corps on the Genesis. The graphics are comparable to Contra III on the SNES, with slightly smaller characters, fewer colors, and less detail. However the adventure is completely new. This time around there are four selectable characters (two players must choose different characters) with different selections of weapons (the power ups conform to each player's inventory).
The four characters include a man, woman, a wolfman, and a robot (who can hover a bit like Princess Toadstool in Super Mario Bros. 2).Unlike Contra III, you cannot do the 'two fisted spinning attack' with your guns.Like Contra III, you have screen clearing bombs that you can collect (with a different, and I think cooler, special effect when they are used). Again, players die in one hit from attacks (baring special circumstances). Like Contra III, you can press a key to 'stand in place' while aiming (rather than running and aiming as you normally do), and do a 'slide' maneuver that can sometimes save your neck.The 'top down' battles in Contra III (which were like those in NES Super C only with rotation effects that made it a bit more confusing) are replaced with alternate sequences wherein you are riding on hover bikes or running towards the screen being chased by giant monsters (quite exciting, albeit frustrating).The graphics, while great for the Genesis, may strike some as a bit monochromatic. Usually however a grayish or bluish level will be spruced up by the arrival of a brightly colored boss monster that fills most of the screen and is animated in segments (reminiscent of Konami's treatment of such characters in the excellent 'Castlevania Bloodlines').Like the rest of the series, these games have a high level of action, but also frustration, since everything can kill you, and the screen is often filled with enemies, and the bosses are often extremely cheap. To remedy this, since there is no '30 lives code' for the US version, I suggest a game genie for any normal person who wants to enjoy this game and yet retain their sanity!
There are codes out there to give you 25, 60 lives, and a level select.Like other games in the series, there are also 'climbing' sequences in which touching the bottom or edge of the screen instantly kills you (even if there was a safe platform there just a second ago). This is unfair to players, but it is no different than earlier titles, so Contra veterans will be used to it.There is some digitized speech, it is muffled, but understandable.Despite the high level of challenge, this is a great game.Graphics: 8/10 (for the Genesis)Controls: 7/10Sound: 6/10 (mostly explosions, which sound great)Overall: 8/10. Contra on Genesis, you say????'
Hard Corps' was a largely unknown release in the Contra series in its time, due to the fact that it came out very late in the lifespan of the 16-bit era. Now, decades later it has become legendary.Unlike 'Contra Force' and some of the later Contra incarnations, this feels like an actual sequel, perfectly fitting to the matrix of Contra, Super C, and Alien Wars. The gameplay is perfect, like its predecessors, and if you thought the other Contras were difficult, this one is cranked to eleven!!The ludicrous speed of the game, multiple characters with unique attributes, and actual storyline are welcome additions to the series. Otherwise expect more of the exact style and action you love, with graphics that push the Genesis to limits you never knew existed.10/10Verified purchase: Yes Condition: Pre-owned.
The Contra logo as it appears on the title screen of the 1987 arcade game.KonamiPlatform(s), 2,Contra is a video game series produced by composed primarily of. The series debuted in 1987 as a coin-operated arcade game titled, which was followed by the release of in 1988 and several sequels produced for various home platforms.The arcade version of Contra was released in February 1987, a few months after the was made public.
While it is unclear whether the game was deliberately named after the Nicaraguan, the ending theme of the original game was titled ' ( サンディニスタ, Sandinisuta), after the adversaries of the real-life Contras. Contents.Gameplay The majority of the Contra games are side-scrolling where the player takes control of an armed commando who must fight all sorts of extraterrestrial monsters and other kinds of futuristic menaces. In addition to the side-scrolling stages, the original also featured '3D view' levels where the player must move towards the background in order to progress, while subsequent titles, such as and, feature overhead stages as well. Only the -developed installments in the series, and, as well as, deviated from the series' side-scrolling perspective (although C: The Contra Adventure does feature two side-scrolling stages)., while maintaining the side-view perspective of the 2D games, features fully polygonal 3D graphics. Almost every game in the series, with only a few exceptions (such as the version of Contra, C The Contra Adventure or for the, which were single-player only), allows two players to play the game simultaneously.The main power-ups in the series are falcon-shaped letter icons which will replace the player's default weapon with a new one, such as a Laser Gun or a Spread Gun. There are also power-ups that are actually auxiliary items like the Barrier (which provides temporary invincibility) or the Rapid Bullets (which increases the firing speed of the player's current weapon) in the original Contra, as well as weapons such as the Mega Shell in the arcade version of Super Contra and the Bombs in Contra III and, that are used to destroy all on-screen enemies. The original arcade version of Contra used the falcon icons for all of its weapons except the Laser Gun and the Fire Ball weapon, while in the arcade version of Super Contra, no Falcon icons were used.
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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 (previously featured in the NES version of ) 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 Release timeline 19Original games. (, ) 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 essentially identical to the arcade version in terms of content, but has longer stages and 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.
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. (Arcade, NES, DOS, ) Super Contra replaces the 3D view stages from the original with top-view stages similar to those in. Features unique to the arcade version includes upgradeable weapons and the ability to control the character's jumping height. The NES version (retitled Super C for its North American version) has three new stages and a new final boss, but lacks the upgradable weapons from the arcade game. Unlimited Software created DOS and Amiga conversions for the North American market, based on the arcade original.
Operation C is the first Contra game made specifically for a portable platform. Featuring gameplay similar to the NES version of Super C, Operation C also first introduced the 'homing gun' power-up. (, Game Boy, ) The series' first entry for a 16-bit game console, Contra III allows the player's character to climb into walls or railings and carry two weapons that can be switched back and forth, as well as smart bombs that kill all on-screen enemies. Many of the stages and bosses made use of the system's graphic effects, including a bike riding stage that ends in a midair battle with the main character riding missiles. The player is now required to rotate their character in the top-view stages to move along with the scenery. Two heavily modified portable ports were produced; a port for the original Game Boy, simply titled Contra: The Alien Wars; and a later Game Boy Advance port, titled Contra Advance: The Alien Wars EX, which replaced the top view stages with levels from Contra: Hard Corps. (NES) (1992)Contra Force combines the run and gun style of the Contra series with a power-up system similar to.
The game is notable for being the first Contra to feature selectable characters with their unique weapon configurations. Contra Force lacks the alien invaders and futuristic environment of previous installments, as the game centers around an elite task force fighting human terrorists in a present-day setting. The game was actually planned as an unrelated game in Japan as Arc Hound, but was never officially released there, nor in Europe. The first Contra game for a Sega platform. Hard Corps also contains selectable characters with unique weapons and abilities and introduces an in-game storyline with branching paths that alter the ending.
(, ) The first of two Contra titles developed by, as well as the first attempt to convert the Contra gameplay to 3D and the first game in the series to be played in an isometric perspective. It was originally sold with a pair of. It is the first console Contra game to be released in the with no changes. A Japanese release of Legacy of War was planned, but canceled. (PlayStation) The second Contra game developed by Appaloosa.
The gameplay is composed of several side-scrolling and 3D stages, as well as a single overhead stage. It's the only console game in the series to lack a multiplayer mode. C: The Contra Adventure was only released in North America, with no Japanese nor European versions. Features 2D side-scrolling gameplay with fully polygonal 3D graphics. The player now has a fixed weapon configuration, allowing the character to use one of three weapons.
The player can also charge their weapon for a more powerful shot. The game grades the player's performance on each stage and only allows the good ending to those with an above-average rank. (PlayStation 2) Most of the game is played in an isometric perspective, but portions are side-scrolling or overhead-behind. The player can now select their weapon configurations, which includes a weapon that locks onto airborne enemies. Developed by, the gameplay is displayed on two screens and the player's character now has a grappling hook that latches onto railings.
The gameplay system is modeled after Contra III: The Alien Wars, with upgradeable weapons similar to Super Contra. It also features the return of the 3D view 'tunnel' stages from the original Contra. The game has never been released in Europe. (downloadable for ) Developed by M2 and published by for, this 2D side-scrolling game was released in May 2009 in and features Bill Rizer and Genbei Yagyu from Neo Contra fighting off an alien invasion. It features hand-drawn sprite-based visuals, and has two unlockable characters as well as an unlockable 'nightmare mode.'
With the announcement of the closure of the Nintendo Wii Shop Channel in 2018, and discontinued in 2019, this game is no longer available for purchase or re-download. Contra: The War of the Worlds (mobile) A mobile game developed by Konami's Chinese division. In this game the player fights alien intruders on the Moon. (downloadable for, ) The game was developed by and is the first Contra game without the 'Contra' brand name in the title. It became available on Xbox Live Arcade on February 16, 2011, and was released on the PlayStation Network on March 15, 2011. It is a prequel to the original Contra.
The player will play the role of Colonel Bahamut, the main antagonist from Contra: Hard Corps. Although the game was released with only two different characters to choose from (like most Contra games), Konami has released additional characters via DLC. Contra: Evolution (Arcade, ) A remake of the original Contra was released in China on mobile phones (2010), based on an arcade version that would actually be released later (2011) and later ported to systems in 2013. It features updated graphics, new characters to choose from, pay-to-play credits to buy extra lives, and bonus stages. Contra 3D Contra 3D is a pachislot game based on the Contra series and was released in Japan in 2013. Neo Contra (Slot Machine) Neo Contra (Slot Machine) is a Slot Machine game based on Neo Contra and was released in America in 2014. Contra: Return (mobile)A free-to-play mobile game developed by Tencent and Konami and is exclusive to China in 2017.
Its American release date is unknown, at the moment the game is under testing. At the time of the Chinese release, it was nominated for 'Best Sound Design in a Casual/Social Game' and 'Best Music in a Casual/Social Game' at the 16th Annual Game Audio Network Guild Awards.Developed by Toylogic and published by Konami, is a game, taking place years after (1992), for release on September 24, 2019 for,. Re-releases The original arcade versions of Contra and Super Contra were ported to several computer platforms in and during the late 1980s and 1990s.
In North America, the original Contra and Super Contra (as Super C) were ported to. A version of Super C was also released for the. Contra was released for the, and in Europe under the Gryzor title.As became more widespread, the classic Contra games, both arcade and console installments, are being made available in numerous formats such as downloadable game services like the 's and, video game compilations, stand-alone re-releases and even as unlockable games in newer installments. Versions have been produced as well. For more information, see each individual game page.Cancelled games.
Contra Spirits and Super Contra ( and NEC ) (Cancelled). Contra Spirits 64 (Cancelled)Originally announced in early 1997, this Nintendo 64 incarnation of the series was to be developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Osaka, but was later cancelled when the development team disbanded. Contra (Nintendo GameCube) (Cancelled)In 2002, a European division of Konami announced its development, but unwisely kept “everything” from the public. When nothing else turned up beyond this, a response from Konami basically unknown summed up its cancellation.
The Definitive Contra (Nintendo GameCube) (Cancelled). Contra 3DS (Nintendo 3DS) (Cancelled)In other media. Contra is one of the video games featured in the manga titled, by Shigeto Ikehara and Published by Comic BomBom from October 1989 to December 1991. (Family Computer) - during the second intermission, either a video game will appear for Player One to play or a Konami ad will appear featuring a bear shooting the puck into a net mouthing the words 'Nice Shot!' The video game is actually an advertisement for Contra and other Konami games.
(Arcade) - Emperor Demon Gyaba appears as a major alien boss in a stage. (Family Computer, Cell Phone) - although released a month before the Famicom version of Contra, the final boss theme in the game is the same one used in the original Contra. (Family Computer, Wii U VC) - Bill Rizer appears as a playable character among other Konami characters. in the English-language Mega-CD/Sega CD version, two characters masquerading as Bill and Lance appear at a Konami-themed held in the Outer Heaven show pub.
They are replaced by Light and Pastel from the series in the PlayStation and Sega Saturn versions.Protagonists The original Contra, and its initial sequels ( and ) are set in the 27th century, and center around two commandos named Bill Rizer and Lance Bean, who are members of a special guerrilla task force codenamed 'Contra' repeatedly sent to thwart an army of alien invaders seeking to destroy the Earth. Bill Rizer was named 's 17th favourite video game hero, due to his aptitude with saving the world.Some of the Contra games released after Contra III have deviated from this premise, such as Contra Force (which was set in the present day) and Contra: Hard Corps (which featured new heroes following the events of Contra III, as well as a human antagonist).
However, the original Contra protagonist of Bill Rizer would not return in another game until Contra: Shattered Soldier, which brought back Bill Rizer (now a convicted war criminal) to fight against his former partner Lance, who has become a terrorist leader. Also brought back Bill Rizer, however the character in this installment is revealed to be a clone of the original Bill, as the game is set in 4444, almost 1,800 years after Bill's last appearance in Shattered Soldier. Brought back the original team of Bill and Lance by setting itself as a direct sequel to Contra III set before the events of Hard Corps and Shattered Soldier. ReBirth may be set in 2633 (the events of the original Contra took place), or 4444 where the events of Neo Contra took place, implying that it is set either before, during, or sometime after these games, although its continuity is uncertain. Is another prequel set twenty years before the events of the original Contra, which follows Bahamut, who was the villain in Hard Corps, as the protagonist.
However, the developers said he could be a different Bahamut, only sharing the same name.Continuity differences While the original Japanese version of the early Contra games (specifically the original Contra, Super Contra and Operation C), were set in the 27th century (in the years 2633, 2634, and 2635 in that order), the American versions of these games omitted this detail and the instruction manuals for these versions implied that the series was set during the. Contra III: The Alien Wars retains its futuristic setting of 2636 for its American release, but the identities of the two player characters, Bill Rizer and Lance Bean (the heroes from the previous installments), were changed to their descendants 'Jimbo' and 'Sully' in order to retain the continuity of the previous localizations. The American (and European) version of Contra: Shattered Soldier was the first Contra game overseas to follow the same continuity as its Japanese counterpart. 'Mad Dog' and 'Scorpion', originally the nicknames given to Bill and Lance in the NES versions of Contra and Super C, were made into separate characters in Contra 4.The enemy characters of the earlier games were also named differently in the American versions.
Particularly 'Red Falcon', originally the name of the terrorist army that was fought by the main characters in the first game (the Red Falcon Organization), became the name of the actual alien entity leader; thus 'Red Falcon' became the name of the final boss fought at the end of Contra in which you fight both his alien body form and his heart. In Japan, these are intended to be two different entities: Emperor Demon Dragon God Java and Emperor Demon Evil Heart Gomera Mosking, respectively. The final boss of Super Contra (or the third to last boss in the NES Super C) and Contra III; is named Emperor Demon Gyaba in the original Japanese versions. Often mistaken as Red Falcon, his American name is referred to as Jagger Froid in the Super C instruction manual. The American Super C instruction manual also illustrates a common 'running' alien enemy from its final stage as Red Falcon.
The alien entity leader known as Red Falcon does not appear as an enemy in the Super Contra or Super C games. The antagonist of the Game Boy game Operation C, originally a nameless hostile nation seeking to develop alien-based weapons in the Japanese version, was changed to 'Black Viper', another alien invader (the alien cell the player must destroy after thwarting the final security system is presumably Black Viper itself). In, the final boss is actually Black Viper itself, who takes a form similar to Gyaba in the other games.Regional differences Probotector When Konami released the NES version of the original Contra in the ( and ) they modified the game by replacing the original main characters and most of the human enemies with robotic counterparts, retitling the game Probotector (a portmanteau of 'Robot' and 'Protector'), the latter move done probably to avoid any association with the Iran–Contra affair (the reason for which Super Contra's American title was shortened to Super C). The title referred to the two robotic soldiers, RD-008 and RC-011, who replaced Bill and Lance in this version.
This was presumably done due to the German Federal Agency, which prohibited the sale and advertisement of media deemed too violent to children, including 'content which glorifies war'.While the original arcade games, as well as a few computer conversions under the Gryzor title, were released unchanged in Europe, subsequent console installments of the Contra series were released under the Probotector title in Europe. The original Probotector was followed by Probotector II: Return of the Evil Forces for the NES (originally ) and Super Probotector: Alien Rebels for the SNES ( ).
The Contra games for the Game Boy ( and the Game Boy version of Alien Wars) and Mega Drive ( ) were also released as Probotector titles in Europe. The series would revert to the Contra title in Europe beginning with Contra: Legacy of War for the PlayStation, retaining the human characters.
However, Probotector II and Super Probotector were still released for the in Europe and Australia like their original releases, with no 'uncensored' versions available. Although Contra 4 was not released in Europe, the 'Probotector' character appears in the game as a hidden character.Reception By the end of 1996, the Contra series had accumulated combined sales of over 4 million units worldwide. Records / Alfa Records.
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Contra Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2016-04-30. P. 54. IGN staff (January 29, 1999). Retrieved 2008-12-24. 250th issue!:.
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'Contra Legacy of War: The Classics Come to 32-Bits'. October 1996.
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