Contra is a series that I've been a fan of for a while. It's you acting like a badass killing every enemy in your path to save the future. Contra and Super C were great, but masterpieces once you had a friend over and playing together. And it could be said as well for Contra III it had epic boss battles, kickass weapons, balls to the walls difficulty, and awesome co-op.
Contra now got on the Genesis and was titled Contra: Hard Corps. Everything awesome about the whole series got even more awesome. The plot goes on how after Contra III, a team of commandos, The Hard Corps have been recruited to fight off crime and illegal activities. After a hacker hacks into the city security system and reprograms the robots to cause chaos to the city, The Hard Corps have to fight them off.
What I love about this game is how you can have four different characters in the game. Not just one, but four godamn characters. And the controls are really good for the Genesis and barely make any problems for the game There are two options for shooting one of them have you shoot while moving while another one has you shoot in a still position making it easier to kill your foes. Another great part is the multiple endings and paths you can take into the game. For instance, from either picking left or right you can be in a level where you're on foot or on vehicle.
The difficulty on this game is hard, it's maybe not on par say Ninja Gaiden or Ghost N Goblins, but it's hard. And actually in Japan the game got a life gauge which was taken out for the North American release for some odd reason. The difficulty could become easier once you have a friend that is not a noob in gaming.
The graphics in the game are colorful and the backrounds are excellent, it depicts the future very grim and bleak which is what the Contra series has portrayed greatly. The music is a fantastic addition to the Genesis but it's truly not a gaming tune that I'd be humming.
Overall, Contra: Hard Corps is a great addition to the Contra Franchise, it gives you everything you like about Contra. The badass weapons, the awesome two player system, and the difficulty. If you're someone looking for a good challenge in a game I'd recommend Contra: Hard Corps.