Natsume barely makes their own titles now (they’re best known as the publisher for the Harvest Moon series) but back when they did they were actually quite inventive. Shatterhand often pops up on ‘hidden gem’ lists but to be honest I had never heard of it before. I guess when a video game console has a huge software library some classics are sure to fall between the cracks. Apparently I’m not the only one because cartridges are a little rare in modern times. I figured it would be worth a try, but this is one of the many NES titles that has never seen a re-release and so I was forced to pay a little more than I had expected. After a single play from start to finish I now see that it was money well spent. Shatterhand definitely could have competed with other similar action titles, but alas it was released too late into the system’s life span.
It always irks me a little when a game obviously has a story line, but the introduction sequence doesn’t give any explanation. That’s the case here, but it’s pretty easy to piece together. You play as a soldier attempting to bring down an evil organization. The twist here is that you have metallic arms. Shatterhand at its core is a traditional side scrolling action game. Your basic abilities consist only of running, jumping and punching. This means that the focus is on close quarters combat, but it works well enough because your character has a decent reach. You start in an introductory stage, but after completion you can choose the order in which you want to tackle the next five stages. You don’t gain new abilities by defeating boss characters ala Mega Man so it’s totally up to you. Each level has you punching your way through an army of henchmen with a boss character waiting at the end. The structure of this game is pretty standard, but Shatterhand brings some interesting concepts to the table that really make it stand out from the pack.
First of all there are no healing items in this game. When you need to refill your life bar you must stand on specific platforms (which indicate their cost) scattered in each stage and spend coins to recover. These are dropped by enemies and hidden in boxes. It’s a pretty interesting concept in my opinion. In addition you’ll find no traditional power-ups in this game. Some of these aforementioned special platforms instead increase your attack power (indicated by a change in color of your character’s jacket) but this is only temporary. What’s really cool is the fact that certain boxes hide alpha and beta icons. Collecting all three grants you a robot helper that follows you around and attacks as you do, but they too take damage from enemies and after enduring a specific number of hits are destroyed. The weapon your helper is equipped with depends on the arrangement of alpha and beta icons you collected with eight different possible outcomes. Your robot can throw grenades, shoot lasers, use a sword, attack with fire, and more. You’re given total choice as to which icons you pick up because punching them switches it to the other. You can only have one robot helper at a time (they switch out when you get a new one) but this is a minor complaint.
Shatterhand is a tough game, but in the best way possible. Often times action games from this era suffer from repetition, but that’s definitely not the case here. Your character can interact with a few different elements of the environment, but only in specific levels. For instance, some stages feature mesh nets in the background that you can cling on to by holding the up button on the directional pad. Enemy placement makes this tough because while you can still attack there’s no way to change directions unless you jump and grab on again. It makes for some interesting scenarios, and if you pay attention it can be used to your advantage. In addition some of the stages feature gravity manipulation. It’s either reversed through sections of the level, or switches every time you jump. The developers came up with some truly unique obstacles based on this idea, and I was really impressed by it. The other stages are generally more traditional, but require some intricate platforming. The difficulty is never unfair, but it’s definitely challenging.
The game is also extremely pretty. The backgrounds feature more details than any NES game should which includes animation and changes in lighting. Each level has its own distinct look, but there’s a universal style that’s very unique. The protagonist animates fluidly and is one of the best looking NES sprites that I’ve seen. The enemies are generally more static, but many of the designs are neat which makes it tough to nitpick. The best graphical effect takes place on the stage select screen. An enlarged version of your character is depicted, and his clothes blow in the wind. It’s one of the most impressive effects I’ve seen on the platform. There’s less flicker and slowdown in your typical 8-bit title which is quite the accomplishment considering how much is going on here. The music is pretty standard, but it’s all well composed and conveys the earlier mentioned style nicely. It’s all very fitting, but not particularly memorable.
On paper Shatterhand may seem like a standard 2D action game. While the unique elements I’ve discussed may sound small and dismiss-able they make all the difference here. It’s a shame that this was released so late in the lifespan of the original Nintendo. I’m sure that had more gamers played Shatterhand it would be held in the same repute as all of the highly renowned classics on the platform.
