Hard Cops: Uprising

[Fortinbras]

Contra: Hard Corps on the SEGA Genesis is one of my favorite Contra games. The enormous bosses, branching paths, and epic action sequences made for one of the most thrilling 16-bit experiences back in the day. So imagine my delight when Konami told me it is bringing the spiritual sequel to Contra: Hard Corps to Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network this year. Picture a more anime-styled Contra game with the word "Contra" removed from the title, and you're starting to get a good idea of what Hard Corps: Uprising is. Konami describes it as "homage to legacy Konami run-and-gun platformers," of which Contra is the most famous (although there is also Rush 'N Attack, which is getting a facelift this year, as well). I got to play a bit of Hard Corpse recently and came away excited.

Hard Corps: Uprising stars Colonel Bahamut, who, interestingly enough, was a bad guy in Contra: Hard Corps. For some reason or another he seems to have had a change of heart and is now battling against the aliens he was previously working with. He can be joined by a pal so that players can play cooperatively, both online and off. Unlike the Genesis Hard Corps, where we had four characters to choose from, here we just have two -- although Konami is looking into making additional downloadable characters available.

Gameplay is straight up what you would expect from Contra. You'll be running left to right through eight alien-infested stages blasting everything in your way, collecting familiar power-ups, and riding vehicles. One sequence I saw had Bahamut riding a motorbike while a flying saucer with legs chased after him. The boss of level one is, appropriately, a giant wall much like in the original Contra.

Ein 'Contra'-Game von Arc System Works (BlazBlue) - klasse.

Spoiler

 

[Runzelmeier]

Ein 'Contra'-Game von Arc System Works (BlazBlue) - klasse.

...das sieht wirklich richtig gut aus.
Kommt vielleicht an die alten (=SNES-) Teile heran...
...die PS2-Contras waren nicht so "begeisternd".

 

[Fortinbras]

Mein Gott...das Spiel ist echt Hardcore. Ich komme aktuell selbst im Rising-Mode nicht über Level 6 hinaus.

Und die Gamerscore: Mit Mühe und Not bekomme ich vielleicht 40 von 200 Punkten zusammen.