Details Title:
Platform:
Release Date:
Genre:
Pros:
Cons:Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
Playstation 2
4 March 2004 (JP)
8 November 2004 (US)
6 May 2005 (PAL)
Third Person Shooter
Impressive grahpics, great gameplay, multiplayer mode, training mode.
Controls can be a bit tricky initially, wall-jumping can be a bit frustrating at times.
Review This is a game that's based on the anime series Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, featuring the main characters Motoko Kusanagi and Batou.
In this game, you're initially required to apprehend a military suspect, which then leads you to the Tohoku Autonomous Region, and you soon realise that there's more than meets the eye with this particular case.To say that the graphics are pretty damn impressive is the quickest way to sum up this game's visuals. The cut scenes look impressive aswell, and blend well with the in-game graphics. The characters and enemies all look the way they're supposed to.
The music does suit the cyberpunk-like genre of the series and in this game. The voice acting for the dub is done by the same group of actors that do the TV series and the movie - and their voice acting is good in this game, just like in the series.
The playability of this game can be a bit of a mixed bag. The one thing that will probably catch new players out is the control scheme. You use the analogue sticks to move and control your aim, and the shoulder buttons (L1, etc) are your primary buttons. Fortunately, the game has a training mode to familiarise yourself with all the skills that you'll need for playing this game.
Another fault is the jumping ability in some portions of the game. Most cases, you're required to wall jump your way around. Those that haven't mastered this skill will find themselves getting frustrated fairly quickly.On the plus side, you've pretty much got a few different ways to kill your enemies. There's your guns, each with different degrees of damage, and you can also dispatch your enemies with hand to hand combat. Hacking into enemies is also a pretty cool concept. Once you get the required Unit ID and hacking data, you can hack into certain enemies and kill off other enemy troops without risking your own neck. However, you only have a short time period, meaning enemies must be dispatched quickly. Also, you get the opportunity to take on different characters depending on the mission, each with unique abilities. Motoko is the most the agile, but can't carry the heavy weapons like the rocket launcher; Batou is not as agile as Motoko, but has more physical strength than her, and can also carry weapons that Motoko can't. There's even one mission where you take control of the Tachikoma in a tank vs. tank battle.
Finally, there's also a multiplayer feature in this game, allowing up to four players to blast each other away. What I love about this is that you have a different assortment of characters to choose from, from regular infantry, right up to the Tachikoma and AI Tank.Lastability is decent in single player mode, as once you've finished the game on certain difficulty levels, certain features for single player and multiplayer are unlocked. The multiplayer feature is also pretty good, especially if you have the multitap adapter, allowing for four player mayhem.
While this game doesn't follow any of the show's story lines, this game is still clearly for fans that have watched Ghost in the Shell, and more specifically, the TV series. If you haven't watched Ghost in the Shell, you won't get as much enjoyment out of this, since most of the supporting characters in the series aren't given clear introductions at the beginning of the game. If you have watched the series, give this a shot, while others may want to try it before considering purchase.