Cognition Dissemination: Hey, Maybe the New Contra Game Could Be Good

Let’s be honest here: Contra: Rogue Corps didn’t look great from the first impression it left during the E3 2019 reveal. It’s a new Contra game from Konami containing a focus on overhead levels, with platforming segments from the traditional 2D run and gun levels mixed in. The mixture of the two instantly didn’t sit well with anyone who wanted a game more akin to the classic titles, given how long it’s been since the last game. It’s also visually displeasing, and no familiar characters from previous installments will return among the main cast.

The use of “We’re Not Gonna Take It” in the trailer didn’t help matters, a song that doesn’t fit Contra’s themes in the least.

But part of me doesn’t want to hate on this game, and thinks the concept is intriguing. This is due to who’s involved with the project, and how long it’s been since the last game. There are longtime series veterans working on Rogue Corps. This didn’t seem like the case upon the reveal, since it initially reeked of a project farmed out to a team with little knowledge of the series, as a way for Konami to cash in on whatever remaining money could be made from the Contra brand.

The development team is being helmed by Nobuya Nakazato, who’s been directing and producing Contra games since Contra III: The Alien Wars and Contra: Hard Corps on Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis, respectively. He was also integral in the production of Contra: Shattered Soldier and Neo Contra on PlayStation 2, and worked on several Castlevania games over the years — including Symphony of the Night. He’s remarkably still at Konami after 31 years, where he got his start working on The Adventures of Bayou Billy, so the company hasn’t driven every good creative type out of its headquarters.

It’s also notable that this game’s development involves internal Konami talent at all. This isn’t to say they don’t make any non-mobile games within the company anymore, as previously shown through Super Bomberman R — which had assistance from HexaDrive. (Hyper Sports R is notably missing in action.) This will be the first Contra game involving an internal Konami team in 15 years, specifically since the aforementioned Neo Contra in 2004. The only games made after that title were Contra 4, Contra ReBirth, and Hard Corps: Uprising, developed by WayForward, M2, and Arc System Works, respectively.

Interestingly, though perhaps unsurprisingly, Rogue Corps looks like it will take after Neo Contra in terms of style, which previously featured a hybrid of overhead and traditional run and gun gameplay. It was also one of the most divisive games in the series, though wasn’t outright bad like the PSOne titles. This game will take place in the aftermath of the Alien Wars in Damned City, and will star four new characters with their own skills. There’s Kaiser, a soldier reassembled after suffering severe injuries during the Alien Wars, Ms Harakiri, a woman who fused with an alien to survive, Hungry Beast, a scientist who had his brain transplanted into a cybernetic giant panda, and Gentleman, a vulgar Brain Bug raised by humans. They’re assisted by an Aero Captain named Lily Panzer, the narrator in the trailer.

The game will have a single-player campaign that Konami is promising will be robust. But it wouldn’t be a Contra title without several multiplayer modes, like local and online co-op modes, which will feature adjusted enemy behaviors and fighting conditions to accommodate the two of them. The game will also have a player vs. player, but details on this aren’t being provided just yet. Contra titles have a history of being more enjoyable to play through with a partner, but this was especially the case with Neo Contra. That logic could apply here too.

Looking at the game, it couldn’t be clearer that Konami is giving this a shoestring budget. Close-ups on the character models and especially the environments are not flattering. It’s a testament to how little the company cares about funding the development of core-aimed games, which makes it easy to be concerned about the main game’s quality. It’s also not like the company can’t afford it. But I’m rooting for it to turn out well despite the odds.

We won’t have to wait long to find out if it’s good. Rogue Corps will release on September 26th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC, a mere three months from now. In the meantime, the Contra Anniversary Collection recently released, which includes the sprite-based games released between the 80s and mid-90s with good emulation from M2.

P.S. Even if this game turns out well, indie game Blazing Chrome deserves your attention if you enjoy Contra. This game takes more after the 2D sprite-based titles, and includes run and gun and auto-scrolling levels. There’s a little Metal Slug mixed in the Contra inspiration, mainly through how characters can use close-range melee attacks. In a timely announcement for this post, the game’s July 11th release date was announced just today for PS4, XB1, Switch, and PC.