Contra: Hard Corps is a side-scrolling run and gun-style shoot-'em-up video game released by Konami for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive in 1994. It is part of the Contra series and serves as a follow-up to Contra III: The Alien Wars.
Plot
Set five years after the events of Contra III: The Alien Wars, an elite team of commandos called the "Unified Military Special Mobile Task Force K-X", also known as the "Contra Hard Corps", has been assembled to combat the rapid spread of crime and illegal activities following the war. When an unknown hacker infiltrates the city's security system and reprograms a group of unmanned robots to cause havoc, the Hard Corps are deployed to handle the situation.[2][3] As the game progresses, the player will uncover a plot involving Colonel Bahamut, a former war hero, who seeks to overthrow the Government by developing new types of weapon using a stolen alien cell.
Gameplay
Ray and Sheena confronts the "Maximum Jumbo", a giant robot sub-boss in Stage 1
Contra: Hard Corps follows the same gameplay as its predecessors. The objective is to walk through the end of each stage, shoot at every enemy that gets in the way, and fight the boss awaiting at the end. Unlike previous Contra games, such as Contra III, which featured overhead segments in addition to the regular side-view stages, all the stages in Hard Corps use the standard side-view perspective. Another difference is the player can now choose between one of four unique player characters. Like in previous Contra games, up to two players can play simultaneously, but they're not allowed to choose the same character.
The controls are similar to Contra III, but has been adapted to work with the Genesis' three-button controller. The three buttons are used for shooting, jumping, and switching between weapons. While firing their gun, the player can switch between two shooting styles: one which allows for movement while shooting, and another that keeps the character still, allowing only to change their aim. The player can also jump down from certain platforms, as well as move on walls and ceilings like in Contra III. A new ability added to the game is a sliding technique performed by holding the direction-pad diagonally downwards while pressing the jump button. The character will be invulnerable while sliding and can even harm certain enemies. When controlling Browny, the player can also hover in the air by pressing the jump again during mid-air.
The multiple weapon system from Contra III has been revamped. The player can now carry up to four different weapons, as well as a supply of bombs. Like in previous games, weapons are obtained from flying capsule pods. This time the weapon items are now labeled "A", "B", "C", and "D", which will vary depending on the character controlled by the player. Each player begins with a standard semi-automatic machine gun, which will be replaced by the character's A-type weapon whenever it's picked. When the player loses a life, their current weapon will be lost. Unlike Contra III, the player's supply of bombs will remain the same when a life is lost.