Contra: Hard Corps has significant differences between the Japanese, American, and European versions. In the Japanese version the characters all have a lifebar, and can be hit three times. This version also has unlimited continues unlike the American and European (PAL) version.

Contents Availability Flying CapsuleIn most of the classic titles, weapons can be found by shooting Flying Capsules (also known as Power-Up Capsule, Weapon Wings or Flying Item Pod). These are small blimps often bearing the insignia which travel from one end of the screen to the other in a wave-like pattern.Flying Capsules only appear at determined locations on the map and always carry the same power-up within them. Once shot, the weapon contained will spring out from the blimp for the player to collect. Care must be taken when shooting one or the weapon could end up falling inside a pit or land on a section of the map where it could become mandatory to pick it up, forcing the player to change their current weapon. The Machine Gun ( M), also known as Heavy Machinegun, is usually the first available power-up in most games. It is similar to the default in terms of damage, but it is fully automatic and shoots faster, allowing the player to keep the fire button held instead of tapping it.When fully upgraded, it is the most powerful gun in the arcade version of.

In, it can be upgraded allowing the gun to fire two bullets at a time, which in conjunction to its increased firing speed and ability to fire without stopping makes for one of the most devastating weapons in the game (arguably almost as powerful as a fully upgraded ).In, the Machine Gun replaces the Rifle as the default weapon (although the instruction booklet for the game still calls it a 'Rifle'). This arrangement is carried forward to almost all of the sequels. There are exceptions, however, such as if a character uses a sword as a primary weapon instead. The Spread Gun ( S), also known as Spread, Spread Shot, Spray Gun or Shotgun, is a power-up that enables to shoot in three to five different directions at the same time and in a spreading manner. It is semi automatic, but starting from it became capable of fully automatic fire (although still slower compared to the ). Since many projectiles usually hit the target at once, it can be considered to relatively deal high damage. Up-close firing results in multiple hits in a single shot, a desired quality when handling bosses.

When used this way, the Spread Gun may end up dealing as much damage as the; however, hardware limitations in the first games often prevented the Spread Gun from continuously firing up to five rounds on each shot, and would start to fire three rounds if fired too fast; as such, it is often preferred to shoot in a measured manner in situations that require covering a wider area.The Spread Gun is often regarded as the best weapon in most games it appears in due to its wider range of shots and ability to provide better cover and offense perimeter against enemies. It is available in almost every game in the series (the port of being a noticeable exception).Throughout the series, the weapon has also been given some enhancements; for example, introduced a spread ground torpedo, while introduced a self-forging grenade which produces shrapnel that bounces along the surface until exploding when coming in contact with an enemy. The Laser ( L), also known as Laser Gun, fires a long laser beam which inflicts high damage upon impact. It is considered to be one of the most powerful weapons in the games it appears in.

However, the Laser was not very popular in the due to being limited to a slow rate of fire. In addition, if a successive beam was fired, the first one would disappear, making this weapon incapable of shooting consecutively in a rapid manner. In spite of this, a skilled player could make the best of it due to its destructive power. This was revamped in later games, giving its shots a higher rate of fire and a faster speed to the rays, as well as removing the handicap of the first shot disappearing when firing another one.The Laser in the port of was remarkably weaker than its arcade counterpart. This downgrade in power was also present in the arcade version of.Laser guns in later games also sport additional properties, such as homing capabilities or shooting in a specific direction. Introduced a satellite laser in which the laser is fired from an orbiting satellite. The Flame Thrower ( F), also known as Fire Gun, Fire Ball or simply Flame, as its name implies, is a powerful weapon that either shoots fireballs or a constant stream of flames.In the original, this weapon shoots slow moving fireballs that trace circles as they travel forward.

Due to the uncommon way it operates, it was arguably one of the least popular weapons in that game. In, however, the weapon operates in a completely different way: it fires one large fireball that breaks off into eight smaller fireballs when it strikes a target. Charging the weapon will produce a large fireball that breaks into even more fireballs. This appearance carried on to.introduced yet another way this weapon operates; instead of launching fireballs, the weapon now fires a long stream of flames, making it a true 'flamethrower' by name. The neverhood game. The flame deals continuous damage to any enemy it comes in contact with and is also capable of destroying certain projectiles, acting as a shield if used right.

The player is able to freely move the flame around by wiggling the directional pad in any direction, which makes this the only weapon capable of covering certain angles the other weapons cannot. Since then, this behavior of the weapon has been retained in most following titles. The Homing Gun ( H), also known as Homing Shot, Homing Missiles or Hunter, fires rockets that home in on enemies, eliminating the need to aim.

It first appeared in and later in, slowly also becoming a staple in the series. The damage of the projectiles is usually low in order to compensate this weapon's high versatility.The player is advised not to get overconfident assuming the projectiles will do all the work, though, as in some games they tend to miss their targets frequently or remain occupied seeking other enemies instead of the ones that are currently posing a greater threat to the player. Furthermore, in some games there is a limit of the number of projectiles that can be onscreen at a time, potentially leaving the player vulnerable while all of them are seeking other targets.Variations of the Homing Gun exist, including a homing chopper in which the projectiles are powered by a propeller. The Crush Gun ( C), also known as Crush or Crash, are blue missiles that deal high damage but suffer from short range, so they are hard to use in levels that include lots of long range engagements. When upgraded in, the projectiles travel a longer distance.Once it hits an object or reaches a certain distance, the missile will detonate and the ensuing explosion will remain in place for a short time, dealing additional damage which in conjunction can potentially amount for a heavily destructive attack.