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Ghost in the Shell
North American Box Art
Developer(s)	Exact
Series	Ghost in the Shell
Platform(s)	PlayStation
Genre(s)	Action, third-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player

Ghost in the Shell (攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL, Kōkaku Kidōtai Gōsuto In Za Sheru, lit. "Mobile Armored Riot Police Ghost in the Shell") is a cyberpunk video game developed by Exact for the PlayStation. It was inspired by the original manga by Masamune Shirow in its style, environments and characters. The game was released in Japan in July 1997 and localized for a North American release in October 1997. The European release was in July 1998.

The plot revolves around a nameless male rookie member of Public Security Section 9 and his efforts to stop a group of terrorists known as the Human Liberation Front. The game had received mainly positive reviews for its graphics, animation, and music, including its unusual wall-climbing mechanics with some negative targeting its tedious gameplay and low difficulty.

Gameplay

The player controls a robotic think tank known as Fuchikoma. Players can control the Fuchikoma jump, thrust forward, strave, climb walls, and hang from ceilings. Both first and third person cameras are available. Night vision is also available to allow players find enemies in dark areas. The camera adjusts position when scaling walls and ceilings for easy maneuvering and switches from first and third person depending on the environment.

Fuchikoma can use two types of weapons: Machine-guns and Bombs. Players have unlimited ammunition for machine-guns however bombs must be found throughout missions and can only obtain 3 at a time.

Plot

Players assume the role of a nameless male rookie member of Public Security Section 9 who pilots a Fuchikoma tank. The terrorist organization, Human Liberation Front, claims responsibility for blowing up the Megatech corporation building and Section 9 must resolve the situation. After Section 9 conducts an assault on a warehouse in the bay area, Aramaki announces that they have identified a mercenary known as Zebra 27. Section 9 discovers that someone at the Energy Ministry, named Sawamura, has been in contact with Zebra 27 and has ties to the Megatech corporation. While conducting the raid on the enemy base, the nuclear reactor begins to overload and Motoko attempts to stop it, issuing Batou and the player to proceed to the final area. The final scenes come to a free-fall battle off the top of the building as they player plummets towards the ground. At the end of the game the plot becomes clear, Sawamura had attempted to collect bribes from Megatech and Zebra 27 wanted to take over the nuclear reactor to extort money from Sawamura. At the end, Motoko declares the entire ordeal a training mission for Section 9.

Cast list

Development

The game was in development for one and a half years. Ghost in the Shell was designed and targeted to a mature audicence; the inability to play as Motoko was deliberate to prevent the game appearing to be kids' character-based game. Don Nauert, T*HQ's producer for the English localization of the game, said that aside from dubbing and changing the button configuration, the game was not modified or censored. Kan Ho, producer from Kodansha, acknowledged that Shirow was the main designer of the characters and mechs for the game. The story and character design was provided by Masamune Shirow. At Production I.G., Hiroyuki Kitakubo directed the animation and did the storyboards and Toshihiro Kawamoto was animation supervisor and the in-game character designer. Production I.G had adopted a full digital coloring technique for the video game considered to be groundbreaking in the industry. The difference in the scenes when compared to the Ghost in the Shell film stemmed from this difference and the new director.

Release

The Japanese release of the game was on July 17, 1997. On the day of its release, a special launch party was held at the Yebisu Garden Hall. The Megatech Body Night event featured music artists of the video game such as Takkyu Ishino, Joey Beltram, Mijk Van Dijk, and See Gee gen performing live. All who bought tickets also received a 3D papercraft kit of the Fuchikoma. A Japanese Demo Disc for the PlayStation was also released.

A special demo disc was released for the game in the first edition of Official US PlayStation Magazine, which featured the game on its cover. The North American release date was on October 31, 1997. The European release date was on July 1, 1998.

Related media

An artbook titled Ghost in the Shell Official Art Book (攻殻機動隊 OFFICIAL ART BOOK, Kōkaku Kidōtai OFFICIAL ART BOOK) was released by Kodansha on July 4, 1997. It contains scenes used in the video game, concept designs, along with commentary. Two guidebooks were released. The first one is titled, Ghost in the Shell Basic File (攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL 上巻 ベーシックファイル, Kōkaku kidōtai gōsuto in za sheru jōkan bēshikku fairu, literally "Mobile Armored Riot Police Ghost in the Shell First Volume: Basic File") and was released by Kodansha on July 17, 1997. The second one is titled Ghost in the Shell Master File (攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL 下巻 マスターファイル, Kōkaku kidōtai gōsuto in za sheru gekan masutā fairu, literally "Mobile Armored Riot Police Ghost in the Shell Final Volume: Master File") and was released by Kodansha on August 29, 1997. A video titled Making of Game Ghost in the Shell All of Digital Animation Video (MAKING OF GAME 攻殻機動隊デジタルアニメーションのすべて ビデオ) featuring interviews on the entire staff of the game. It was released on April 22, 1998 on VHS/Laserdisc and on April 25, 1998 on DVD.

Soundtracks

A series of soundtrack album for the video game titled, Ghost in the Shell: Megatech Body were released on July 17, 1997, by Sony Music Entertainment Japan in several versions. The album was produced by Takkyū Ishino and the tracks were composed by various artists. The first version titled Ghost in the Shell: Megatech Body CD. is the standard single disc version and the second being a limited version titled Ghost in the Shell: Megatech Body CD., Ltd. containing an additional second disc and a poster. There is also a limited 2-disc Vinyl LP edition titled Megatech Vinyl Ltd. and a second Vinyl promotional Picture disc titled Megatech Body. Picture Vinyl., Ltd.. The soundtracks were named after the fictional cybernetic body manufacturer in the Ghost in the Shell series.

Track listing

Reception

Ghost in the Shell has received mainly positive reviews, gaining an aggregate rating of 78.50% at GameRankings. Famitsu gave it score of 76.50. Joe Fiedler of GameSpot gave the game a 7.3 out of 10. Fiedler said the game's controls are "simple, and most people will take to them like a fish to water" and also praised the animation sequences. Adam Douglas of IGN gave the game a 8.0 out of 10, stating, "the game mimics its manga counterpart well, and the techno music, including tracks from artists like Derrick May and Hardfloor, is superb," but adding that "the levels aren't incredibly difficult, and don't really encourage replay." Mark Skorupa of Gamezilla gave it a 81 praising it for its unique mechanics and graphics. PlayStation Magazine gave it a score of 7/10. Jason Faul of Game Vortex praised the game's graphics and easy control. Full-on Ferret of GamePro criticized the game's quality stating, "The game graphics, particularly the buildings and enemies, lackluster at best. The sound effects are bland, and there are no power-ups to be found. Put that all together and you get a very generic video game." Next Generation magazine gave it three stars out of five criticized the game for being tedious, however recognizing that it is still an enjoyable game. Computer & Video Games magazine gave it 3 out of 5 and gave similar criticism relating to its repetitiveness stating, "It was too repetitive to become anything more than a good game." Gameinformer listed the game as one of the Best Anime and Manga-Based Games to release in English.

The video game also received praise for being able to break away from other games adapted from movies and being original despite being based upon the manga and movie.

Notes

1. The eight voice actors listed on the English credits of the game do not specify roles. For the accuracy of this list, secondary sources are used to verify the respective roles due to the ambiguity of the credits.

References

1. "Ghost in the Shell Preview". GameFan Magazine (September 1997): 34.
2. ^ Ghost in the Shell. Computer & Video Games Magazine. August 1998 Issue, Page 59.
3. "Ghost in the Shell Preview". GameFan Magazine (September 1997): 35.
4. ^ Ghost in the Shell (Video Game) (CD). Sony Computer Entertainment / Exact. 1997.
5. ^ "STAFF & CAST". Production I.G. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
6. ^ "Official US Playstation Magazine". 1 (1). 1997: 108–114. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
7. ^ "Ghost in the Shell". Production I.G. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
8. ^ "Megatech Body Night". Sony Music Entertainment Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved April 21, 2013.
9. Ghost in the Shell Playstation Demo Disc (PAPX-90020) (CD). Playstation.
10. US PlayStation Magazine - Volume 1 Issue 1, October 1997
11. "Ghost in the Shell". Gamespot. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
12. Nicholson, Gray (1 July 1998). "Ghost in the Shell". Now Gamer. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
13. "攻殻機動隊 OFFICIAL ART BOOK" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2012-11-29.
14. "攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL 上巻　ベーシックファイル" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2012-11-29.
15. "攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL 下巻　マスターファイル" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2012-11-29.
16. "MAKING OF GAME 攻殻機動隊デジタルアニメーションのすべて　ビデオ" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2012-11-29.
17. "MAKING OF GAME 攻殻機動隊GHOST IN THE SHELL デジタルアニメー ションのすべて【DVD未発売】" (in Japanese). Buyuru. Retrieved 2013-04-19.
18. "Ghost in the Shell Megatech Body CD". Sony Music Entertainment Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved October 25, 2012.
19. "Ghost in the Shell for PlayStation". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 16, 2012.
20. "攻殻機動隊 GHOST IN THE SHELL". Famitsu. Retrieved November 30, 2012.
21. Fiedler, Joe (December 10, 1997). "Ghost in the Shell Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
22. Douglas, Adam (December 1, 1997). "Ghost in the Shell". IGN. News Corporation. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
23. Skorupa, Mark. "Ghost in the Shell (PSX)". Gamezilla. Archived from the original on May 23, 2003. Retrieved November 30, 2012. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; February 6, 2002 suggested (help)
24. Playstation Magazine Vol.33
25. Faul, Jason. "Ghost in the Shell". GameVortex Communications. Playstation Illustrated. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
26. Full-on Ferret. "Ghost in the Shell". GamePro Magazine (November 1997): 150.
27. "Ghost in the Shell". Next Generation Magazine (November 1997).
28. "The Best Manga And Anime-based Games". Gameinformer. Retrieved 2013-07-06.
29. Joliet (IL). Sun-Times News Group (1998.). "'GHOST IN THE SHELL' ESCAPES MOVIE CURSE". The Herald News. Retrieved 2013-04-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• Official site (Japanese)
• Ghost In The Shell at MobyGames
• Ghost in the Shell at GameStats

v t e Masamune Shirow's Ghost in the Shell
Media	Manga 1995 film Video game Innocence 2017 live-action film Stand Alone Complex Episodes Music PS2 game PSP game Solid State Society First Assault SAC_2045 Episodes Arise Episodes "Anata o Tamotsu Mono" The New Movie
Universe	Characters Motoko Kusanagi Batou Togusa Tachikoma Public Security Section 9
Related	Mamoru Oshii Kenji Kamiyama Production I.G Intron Depot 1 Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn "King of My Castle"
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Category

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• Cyberpunk video games
• Ghost in the Shell
• PlayStation games
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