When Konami released the Contra games (Probotector in Europe) on the NES and SNES, people stopped and took notice. They were platforming shoot 'em-ups, and they were rock hard. With plenty of guns and plenty of enemies to use them on, they were challenging games and they featured some of the biggest and most fearsome bosses to grace home consoles of the time. Now, after skipping a generation, it appears that Contra could be making its way onto the GameCube, with a port of the recent PS2 outing, Contra: Shattered Soldiers penciled in for 2003.

Unlike many other franchises that have survived from the 8 and 16-bit days, Konami have decided to keep Contra close to its roots, and it remains a 2D game. Quite a bold move in these days where the look of the game is often considered more important than it's substance, and Konami rarely let down in the substance department.

What's remarkable about Contra: Shattered Soldiers is that it still sticks with the old format of the only difference in difficulty level being the number of continues you are allowed to use. Though you have infinite continues on 'Easy' mode, you only see a proper ending if you take on the 'Normal' setting, and 'Hard', that's for the experts! No, there's no saving your game every step of the way here, trying again every time you lose a life. You have to learn to beat this game with the skills you develop. It's very old-school, and though retro gamers will rejoice at having to play a game properly again, those new to gaming, post-Playstation, may find it frustrating having to start again every time you run out of continues.

Like Contra titles before it, Shattered Soldiers is essentially a 2D scrolling shooter, with occasional changes when the game takes on forward-scrolling view, or puts you in a vehicle in forced side-scrolling sections. All the time you're facing waves of enemies, and learning their movement patterns will be vital to progress in the game. In fact, it's here that the biggest evolution in the title occurs. In earlier games in the series you could blast away at the enemies, grabbing weapon upgrades as you go to enable you to blast some more, now the upgrades are gone, you have to think more tactically. You have three different weapons, each with alternate firing modes, machinegun, flame-thrower and grenade launcher. Choosing the right weapon for the enemies you face will make things a little easier.

The game also throws in platforming elements for you to contend with, so whilst taking out screens full of enemies you'll have to make sure you don't fall into a bottomless pit. Your platforming skills are put to the test most during boss battles, where you'll have to dodge varying attacks before launching your own attack on the boss's weak points.

It seems so odd to see a game like this on a next generation console; essentially it's a 2D shoot 'em-up, with no save points. But somehow it's much more than the sum of its parts, the tactical thinking required by the intelligent enemy patterns will soon remind you that you're no longer 1994, and it does look stunning. The one thing it does bring from gaming's glorious past is a ridiculously difficult challenge, a game that you will only beat through persistence and gaining skill.

Certainly not one for the weak-minded gamer, it's good to have a classic coming back to a Nintendo home console, perhaps even better than before.