Where would THQ's finances be if it didn't have a good
localization department to find some Japanese goodies that
weren't going to make an American debut if it weren't for
them? You can only release so many WCW wrestling games,
fishing games and licensed GameBoy cartridges to pay the
electric bill before the need for recognition from your
industry peers as an "auteur" of good things kicks in. Not
every game localized by THQ is a big commercial hit at
retail (Jaleco's "Bravo Air Race" and Taito's "RayTracers"
bombed), but the handful of games that become best-sellers
(like their latest RPG hit "The Granstream Saga") help in
complementing the profits from the usual hits and cushion
the blow from the in-house and co-developed games that bomb
(like "K1: The Arena Fighter" and the infamous "Vs.").
And then there's "Ghost in the Shell", a niche product with
strong appeal to fans of videogames and Shirow Musamura's
comic book/motion picture. Although it received decent
critical acclaim, the game failed to get enough attention
in the very competitive Christmas season of 1997 to break
through the pack and become a commercial hit. Which is a
shame because, despite not being for everyone, "GITS" has
the futuristic vehicle-shooter gameplay and the usual bells
and whistles of a third-generation PSX game to warrant a
good strong look. Although not based on the hit anime
motion picture, the game's storyline is faithful to the
successful manga comic book set in Japan and even features
over ten minutes of never-before seen FMV anime cut-scenes
from the makers of the theatrical flick (complete with
less-than-competent American voice-overs). Do you consider
yourself an anime freak and/or a fan of Japanese pop
culture? This game should satisfy your "otaku" thirst.
GAMEPLAY / FUN FACTOR: B
The game was developed by Exact, the makers of the popular
"Jumping Flash!" series that were early pioneers of digital
'go-anywhere 3D' gameplay in the PSX's first generation;
"Ghost in the Shell" plays very similarly to the previous
"JF!" games, but enough new improvements have been added to
the engine to make the third time a charm. You pilot a
Fuchikoma tank, which can shoot rockets and lasers
(upgradable via power-ups) as well as walk/climb/slide into
any surface on the horizon, ala Spiderman. For a little
over fifteen levels, your Fuchikoma must disable mines,
shoot bad guys with flame-throwers and grenade-launchers
and defeat a robotic end-boss at the end of a every level.
Although there are instruction menus at the beginning of
every mission with level objectives, it's safe to assume
that you must shoot everything aiming at your tank and that
moving forward is the best route (although in some smaller
arenas you might have to clear every enemy in order to go
to the location of the final boss, or some variation).
You only have a life-bar that needs to be kept filled, or
its back to the beginning of the level if you die while
playing (which is bound to happen with some of the cheaper
bosses in the end of the levels, particularly the
laser-spewing one in the Sewer level); there are enough
health power-ups to keep your bar filled, but avoiding
enemy fire and taking as little damage as possible is key
to making it fully healthy to the end of the level, where
you'll stand a better chance of defeating the boss. The
radar on the corner of your screen is pretty handy for
detecting enemies ahead of you, and the maneuverability and
dexterity of the Fuchikoma can get you out of many tight
situations. Think of "GITS" as a third-generation
evolution of the gameplay elements of Sega's "Virtual On",
Namco's "Cybersled" and Exact's own "Jumping Flash!" games.
Only drawbacks on the game: it's a 3D-based vehicle-based
shooter, and there are some who just can't get into the
mood of all these 'robotic machines gone haywire' cliches
that are common in Japanese pop culture; it would have been
nice to control any of the characters in the "GITS" series
instead of their vehicles. The analog control is
supported, but it feels just as tight and precise as the
digital pad; there aren't any major advantages to
controlling the Fuchikoma with analog, since most of the
'evasive' maneuvers (slide left/right) rely on the L and R
buttons. Also, the lack of a difficulty option means that
the game is set on a permanent difficulty level, which is
surprisingly easy on some levels and a toughie on others,
with most of the levels falling somewhere in between; also,
some of the enemies regenerate behind you once you've
cleared the level (ala "Turok: Dinosaur Hunter"), which
sabotages the strategy of taking damage going forward
all-guns blazing and then returning for health power-ups.
GRAPHICS / VISUALS: B+
Truly a 'go anywhere' 3D-engine, "Ghost in the Shell"
allows your tank (a nifty-looking nimble marvel that looks
like a red crab with weapons attached to the front and
side) to climb under buildings, on the side of fences, the
roof of warehouses, ANYWHERE you want. Exact, who went
eye-candy crazy as best they could with their early
"Jumping Flash!" games, doesn't disappoint with their
futuristic graphics that feature a speedy 24-30
frames-per-second with minimal foggy pop-up at a
medium-resolution. There are red/blue/green colors
prominently featured on the crazy mech designs and enemy
fire, as well as the ocassional foot soldier with
cool-looking weaponery (check out the little dudes with
flame-throwers); still, most of the colors are of the
monotone and dark variety (grey, brown, black, etc.). Most
of the game takes place in a 'behind the tank' third-person
view, although it will automatically switch to a
first-person view when the tank's back is up against a wall
or solid surface. No complaints from me though, since
they'e both highly-controllable and show you everything you
need to see.
The FMV cinemas are flawless and are as cool-looking and
animated as the well-known movie, not a surprising feat
when you consider that the same Japanese artists that made
the flick also did the cut-scenes (a little over ten
minutes). The PSX has always exceeded Sega's Saturn
ability at displaying and compressing FMV, and "GITS" is no
exception; with no jagged edges and/or lagging frame-rates,
"GITS" cinemas (which can be viewed at any time via an
option in the menu screen) are as good as watching a
quality VHS dub. The aforementioned menu/option screens
feature a cool 'green wireframe' effect (also used for the
level objective screens before entering a new level), which
shows just how fancy the developers can get when the game
demands it: certain levels take place totally in the dark,
and the Fuchikoma will automatically switch to this 'green
wireframe' mode for you to keep playing. Pretty cool
stuff!
MUSIC / SOUND EFFECTS: B
The English dub of the "GITS" FMV cinemas isn't as sharp
and flawless as the movies themselves, featuring
questionable voice talent that seem more concerned with
earning an additional paycheck than in giving these
characters halfway-decent personalities. The rest of the
package, though, is quite a swet deal: movie-quality sound
effects (especially the lasers and the ever-present
metallic sound of your Fuchikoma legs touching every
surface) of the 'computer and button-switching' variety, as
well as atmospheric and futuristic music (that could only
be described as 'futuristic anime' tunes) makes "GITS" a
well-rounded and inmersing package, soundwise. Let's see a
N64 cartridge (other than "Tetrisphere") come up with such
a technically-competent array of futuristic sounds/music.
OVERALL: B
Hopefully Marvel will contact Exact about programming a
cool 32-bit Spiderman game, because when it comes to the
physics of an engine that could recreate 'go anywhere' 3D
environments, "Ghost in the Shell" is a good example of how
far technology has been pushed on the PSX. Anime fans and
hardcore otaku gamers who have given up on getting laid
anytime soon (ahem!) can find this puppy for $30 or less at
most stores; the rest of us can rent it and experience the
goodness of a Japanese licensed product that (almost) lives
up to the premise of the source material. Next THQ game
from Japan: the puzzler "Devil Dice" that has been on the
top-10 Japanese charts for a few weeks. See you then,
"Secret World of Alex Mack" haters (private joke).
