

There is also a new maneuver: a slide that damages enemies while rendering you immune to hits for its duration. With no difficulty settings, the characters’ functional differences are the primary determinant of difficulty. You play as the selected character until the end of the game or until a Game Over. You have 4 new characters to select from at the start of the game: Ray, Sheena, Browny and Fang, each with their own unique set of guns. Simultaneous 2-player mode is retained, but carries over the increased boss longevity from Contra III. The fast-paced action is complemented by techno, electronic synth style soundtrack. As such, it is notoriously difficult, especially the North American and PAL versions ( see Regional Differences). Indeed, Contra: Hard Corps is predominantly a fast-paced boss rush, with occasional run-n-gun sequences. The run-n-gun aspect is greatly toned down in favor of greatly increasing the number of boss battles and other sequences.

This game takes the core gameplay of Contra III: The Alien Wars and modifies, as well as expands upon it. Contra: Hard Corps is Konami’s follow-up to Contra III: The Alien Wars, although it was designed with the intention of being a spin-off of the series.
