Contra: Hard Corps

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NTSC-U NTSC-J PAL
Contra: Hard Corps
System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Nintendo Switch Online
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Konami
Distributor: Majesco Sales (US re-release) Samsung (KR)
Sound driver: Konami/Vampire Killer
Peripherals supported: Six Button Control Pad
Genre: Action
Series: Contra series
Number of players: 1-2
Official in-game languages: 日本語 English Français Deutsch
Release Date RRP Code JP 1994-09-15 ¥9,000 (9,270)9,000e T-95093 US 1994-09 T-95106 US (classics) 199x T-95106 US (re-release) 199x T-95106 US ▼ (Sega Channel) 199x SUBsub EU 1994-11 T-95106-50 DE 1994 DM 129.95129.95 PT 1994 UK 1994-11 £44.9944.99 T-95106-50 AU 1994-11 $109.95109.95 FPRO05SMC KR 199x GM94017JT JP ▼ 2021-10-26 SUBsub US ▼ 2021-10-25 SUBsub EU ▼ 2021-10-26 SUBsub UK ▼ 2021-10-26 SUBsub AU ▼ 2021-10-26 SUBsub

Contra: Hard Corps, known in Japan as Contra: The Hard Corps (魂斗羅 ザ・ハードコア) and in Europe and Australia as Probotector, is a side-scrolling run-and-gun game for the Sega Mega Drive by Konami.

It is one of the only two Contra installments on any Sega console, the other being Contra: Legacy of War. The game is considered one of the hardest games in the Contra franchise in the West, as the hit point system from the Japanese version was removed.

Story

In 2641, 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. Members include male soldier Ray Poward; female soldier Sheena Etranzi; Brad Fang, a wolf-like humanoid; and Browny, a small robot.

Gameplay

The game is a side-scrolling run-and-gun. The objective of each stage is to reach the end, shooting enemies and fighting numerous bosses along the way. Players can choose between one of four unique player characters, which have their own unique weapons. Two players can play simultaneously (but they are not allowed to choose the same character). The second player can join at any time during the game by pressing  START . Bosses are tougher and require more hits to defeat when playing with two-players. The story is advanced through story cutscenes, and some stages present the players with branching paths. A total of six different endings exist (including a hidden spoof ending).

Characters move with or and lie prone with . In two-player games, the screen only scrolls if both players are moving. They jump with and jump off platforms with +. They can slide along the ground with +. The character is invulnerable for the duration of the maneuver; some enemies can also be damaged by sliding through them. Characters grab walls and ceilings automatically and move along them using the D-Pad.

Characters shoot with (which can be held for continuous fire). The character can shoot in any of eight directions by holding the D-Pad while firing. There are two shooting modes, Type I and Type II: Type I allows the character to run and fire at the same time, while Type II fixes the character in place while firing. The shooting mode is switched by pressing + (or , , or when using a Six Button Control Pad). Players can change the shooting mode while the game is paused (with  START ). While using Type II, pressing while holding fires directly downwards; otherwise, pressing while holding fires while lying down. When using Type I, the player cannot fire directly downwards and instead always fires while lying down when holding and together. Weapons can also be fired while jumping.

Characters can now carry up to four different weapons, as well as a supply of bombs. Weapons are cycled through with . Characters are initially armed with a standard machine gun, but additional weapons are obtained from flying capsules. The weapon items are labeled A, B, C, or D, each corresponding to a different weapon depending on the character controlled by the player. The starting weapon is upgraded by collecting an A item. Bombs are held in slot E (and behave the same regardless of which character is selected).

In the Japanese version, characters have a life gauge that allows them to take three hits from enemies before losing a life. The Western releases remove this, so characters lose a life when they are hit one time. A fallen character revives in place with a short period of invulnerability if the player has extra lives remaining. Losing a life costs the equipped weapon (but the player's supply of bombs is untouched). Players earn an extra life at 2,000 points and then every 6,000 points after that. The Japanese version also features unlimited continues, while the Western versions only allow a player to continue five times.

Characters

	Ray Poward
	A male soldier. He is a well rounded character with average height and a versatile arsenal. Slot Weapon Description A Vulcan Laser Rapid-firing laser beams that penetrate barriers. B Crash Fires high-damage shells in a straight line. C Spread A conical spread of five bullets that deal moderate damage. D Homing Fires a barrage of homing missiles.
	Sheena Etranzi
	A female soldier. She is a slightly smaller target than Ray and has a similar selection of weapons. Slot Weapon Description A Genocide Vulcan Rapid-firing bullets that grow larger as they travel further away. B Shower Crash Fires high-damage shells in a downward arc. C Break Laser Fires a long but slow penetrating laser beam that penetrates barriers. D Ax Laser A conical spread of five lasers that home in on targets for moderate damage.
	Brad Fang
	A genetically altered, cyborg werewolf with two cybernetic arms. He has the largest hitbox and the shortest slide. His weapons are very strong but tricky to use effectively, and he is the only character without a homing attack. Slot Weapon Description A Beast Shooter Shoots a stream of large fireballs that ripple up and down. B Power Punch A burst of fireballs in a ring. Very powerful but short-ranged and can only be shot left and right. C Flame Thrower Shoots a jet of flame a medium distance in a line. D Psychic Blaster This weapon is charged by holding the fire button and fired by releasing it. The color of the energy radiating around Fang's weapon indicates the attack: blue shoots a single blue ball, while orange fires a large, fast-moving shockwave across the screen.
	Browny
	A tiny robot. He is the smallest character and has the longest slide. He can hover using his jetpack by holding while airborne, which gives him a short vertical boost before floating down. He has a selection of potent weapons that benefit from his increased mobility. Slot Weapon Description A Victory Laser Rapid-firing, V-shaped energy waves that penetrate barriers. B Gemini Scatter Shoots small explosives that return to Browny like boomerangs. C Electromagnetic Yo-Yo A powerful weapon that swings on a chain like a yo-yo and seeks targets automatically. D Shield Chaser While the fire button is held, a six balls spin around Browny. These balls damage enemies and neutralize projectiles (but disappear after hitting something). When the button is released, the remaining balls shoot off towards an enemy.

Items

	Item Capsule
	Shoot to release an item.
	A
	Equips the character's A weapon, which replaces the standard machine gun.
	B
	Equips the character's B weapon.
	C
	Equips the character's C weapon.
	D
	Equips the character's D weapon.
	Bomb
	Gives the player another bomb. Bombs explode and damage all enemies on the screen. The player can hold multiple bombs at a time.

Stages

At several points in the game, players are given the opportunity to choose between two branching paths, which determines the next stage. These paths converge at certain points, so some of the stages are played regardless of which previous paths were chosen.

	Stage 1
	Players are given a choice at the end: go after Deadeye Joe (go to Stage 2A) or rescue the Research Center (go to Stage 2B).
	Stage 2A
	This stage has the player riding a "Motoroid," a hoverbike that can transform into an ostrich-like walking robot.
	Stage 2B
	Stage 3
	This stage is played on all paths. There is a hidden alien in this stage who offers the players the choice to "make some money in the battle arena": players can choose to "give it a try" (skip the rest of Stage 3 and go to the Hidden Stage) or "forget about it" (finish Stage 3).
	Hidden Stage
	This is a hidden stage that consists of three boss fights (including a parody of Simon Belmont from the Castlevania series, with remixed theme music). If it is completed, the game ends with the secret ending.
	Stage 4
	This stage is played on all paths. Players are given a choice at the end: fight to the end (go to Stage 5AB) or surrender and fight later (go to Stage 5C if previously played Stage 2A or go to Stage 5D if previously played Stage 2B).
	Stage 5AB
	This stage is followed by Stage 6A if the players have previously played Stage 2A or by Stage 6B if the players have previously played Stage 2B.
	Stage 5C
	The game ends after completing this stage.
	Stage 5D
	This stage is followed by Stage 6D.
	Stage 6A
	The game ends after completing this stage.
	Stage 6B
	This stage is followed by Stage 7.
	Stage 6D
	The game ends after completing this stage.
	Stage 7
	Colonel Bahamut offers the players to join forces with him. If the players accept, the game ends with the bad ending (and the players are given the chance to restart the stage if they have continues remaining). Otherwise, players fight the Colonel for one of the good endings.

History

Development

The development team called themselves "TEAM機知GUY" (Team Kichi Guy). This is actually a pun and not present in the Western staff roll. The Japanese "機知"(Kichi) alone translates to "wit", but together with "GUY" is sounds like "きちがい" (Kichigai), a slang word for crazy.

Legacy

The game spawned a series of follow-ups featuring the same characters, including the Appaloosa Interactive-developed sequels, Contra: Legacy of War and C: The Contra Adventure, and the Arc System Works-developed prequel, Hard Corps: Uprising.

Two stages from Contra: Hard Corps would be recycled for the Game Boy Advance release Contra Advance: The Alien Wars EX in 2002.

In 2019, it was re-released as part of Contra: Anniversary Collection for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PCs. It was also included in all versions of the Mega Drive Mini the same year. The game was re-released on Nintendo Switch Online in 2021.

Versions

Like many Contra games released both before and after Hard Corps, the game differs significantly depending on region. In the Japanese version, a three point health bar exists for for each character, where getting hit removes one point and grants a short period of invincibility. Continues are also unlimited, and there are also various cheat codes that were disabled in the other versions such as a stage select and a 70-lives code.

Conversely, the North American release removed the health bar system, meaning a single hit results in death (which is consistent with most games in the series). Continues here are limited to five retries.

In Europe, the game was reskinned as Probotector (not to be confused with the original Probotector on the NES, a reskinned version of the first Contra game), replacing living humans and an anthropomorphic animal with robots or aliens, and consequently replacing Ray, Sheena, and Fang with CX-1, CX-2, and CX-3, respectively. Browny was simply renamed to CX-4. The story was rewritten to remove elements of human betrayal and the alien cell was replaced with the mechanical X-Drive. This version also lacks the health bar and the number of continues have been reduced to three retries.

Aside from the aforementioned changes and an added language select option (which was uncommon for the era), Probotector is the same game as the North American release of Hard Corps. This extends to the game's performance, with no optimisations put in place for PAL systems, resulting in a slower game that only runs at the correct speed on 60 Hz systems.

Localised names

Also known as

Language	Localised Name	English Translation
English	Probotector	Probotector
English (US)	Contra: Hard Corps	Contra: Hard Corps
Japanese	魂斗羅 ザ・ハードコア	Contra: The Hard Corps

Production credits

• Director, Scenario Writer, Graphic Supervisor: N.Nakazato
• Programmers:
  • Main Program: Miyaoka♪Kenji
  • Enemy Program: Takeda☆Takashi, Hamada Hidemi, K.Karasawa
  • Help Man: Kenichiro Horio
• Design Works:
  • Nice Guy: S.Shimamura
  • Bike Man: K.Suzuki
• Sound Works: H.Devi Kobayashi, Akiropito, Miyaoka♪Kenji, Chiru2 Yamane, Gajokai, Nitachigu
• Package Design: S.Kumasaka
• Special Thanks: Yutaka Haruki and all Konami staff
• Producer: Tomikazu Kirita

Source:

In-game credits (US)

Uncredited

• Translation, voice direction: Jeremy Blaustein

Digital manuals

• 

  Mega Drive Mini US manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini EU manual

• 

  Mega Drive Mini JP manual

Magazine articles

Main article: Contra: Hard Corps/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1994-08: "August 1994" (1994-07-08)

Print advert in Game Champ (KR) #1994-10: "xxxx" (199x-xx-xx)

Print advert in Beep! MegaDrive (JP) #1994-10: "October 1994" (1994-09-08)

Print advert in GamePro (US) #64: "November 1994" (1994-xx-xx)
also published in:

• GamePro (US) #66: "January 1995" (199x-xx-xx)

Print advert in Joypad (FR) #36: "Novembre 1994" (1994-1x-xx)

Print advert in GamePro (DE) #1994-12: "Dezember 1994" (1994-11-25)
also published in:

• MAN!AC (DE) #1995-02: "02/95" (1995-01-11)

Print advert in Velikiy Drakon (RU) #60: "xxxx xxxx" (2002-09-05)
also published in:

• Velikiy Drakon (RU) #61: "xxxx xxxx" (2003-02-07)

Artwork

• 

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source

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Based on 0 review

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score 1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) NTSC-U 80 1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) PAL 50 Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J 78 CD Consoles (FR) PAL 60 Cool Gamer (RU) 80 Computer & Video Games (UK) PAL 92 Electronic Games (1992-1995) (US) NTSC-U 75 Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U 73 Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1 (RU) 80 Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 3 (RU) 60 Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J 60 Game Players (US) NTSC-U 92 Game Players (US) 92 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 90 GamePro (DE) PAL 80 GamesMaster (UK) PAL 93 Games World: The Magazine (UK) PAL 89 Game Informer (US) NTSC-U 81 Hobby Consolas (ES) PAL 90 Joypad (FR) PAL 88 Mega (UK) PAL 88 Mega Fun (DE) PAL 87 Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL 94 Next Generation (US) NTSC-U 50 Player One (FR) 89 Play Time (DE) PAL 87 Sega Power (UK) PAL 74 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 74 Sega Mega Drive Review (RU) 90 Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J 84 Todo Sega (ES) 89 Tricks 16 bit (RU) NTSC-U 78 Tricks 16 bit (RU) PAL 74 Video Games (DE) PAL 82 VideoGames (US) NTSC-U 90

	80
Based on 35 reviews

Contra: Hard Corps

Mega Drive, JP
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, US (Classics)
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, US (cardboard) (Majesco Sales)
Cover
Cart Manual PCB PCB back

Mega Drive, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, PT
Manual

Mega Drive, AU
Cover

Mega Drive, KR
Cover
Cart

Technical information

Main article: Contra: Hard Corps/Technical information.

References

Contra games for Sega systems
	Contra: Hard Corps (1994)
	Contra: Legacy of War (1997)