Shatterhand

About Shatterhand

Shatterhand (1991) is Natsume's side-scrolling NES action game in which a police officer with cybernetic fists fights a renegade cyborg army, helped by satellite robots built from collected letters.

Shatterhand in Depth

In 2030 a band of military renegades called Metal Command, led by General Gus Grover, is building an army of cyborg soldiers to conquer the world. Steve Hermann, a young police officer from the Bronx, loses both arms in a clash with them and accepts two cybernetic replacements from the Law and Order Regulatory Division, becoming the agent Shatterhand. His main weapons are his fists, which can also punch away enemy bullets. Item containers release coins and Greek letter icons. Coins are spent by crouching on special platforms: 300 for health, 100 for more attack power, which turns his vest from green to brown, and 2,000 for an extra life.

The letters, α and β, can be switched by punching them, though too many punches turn one into a large gold coin. Collecting three summons a robotic satellite that fights beside him and lets him hover by crouching and holding A, with eight possible robots depending on the combination: ααβ fires lasers, for example, while αβα swings a sword. The robot can be destroyed by damage, and a new combination replaces it, but collecting the same combination twice merges Shatterhand with the robot for a short burst of extra power. After an introductory factory stage, Areas B to F can be played in any order before the final Area G opens, and continues are unlimited.

Making Shatterhand

Natsume developed it, and in Japan Angel released it in 1991 as Tokkyū Shirei Solbrain, following the storyline of the live-action superhero series with its own opening sequence. For the Western release by Jaleco, the licence was removed: the story became Steve Hermann's fight against Metal Command, most characters and items were redrawn, and the carnival stage was replaced with an entirely different submarine level. The game follows many established conventions of side-scrolling action but stands out for its coin shops and letter-built robot companions. It received generally favourable reviews from critics.