I always thought Shatterhand looked and felt like an indie retro game that tried to immitate games from the NES. But it really is a game from the NES. It was that ahead of its time
7:50 you make a great point here about the visual pixel art design of these games. Games that focused on dark background or grittier asthetics worked better and stand the test of time because they allowed for the characters and enemies to be brighter and not have to rely on a harsh outline to be seen. You can also do a lot more dithering tricks when you're starting from a bright color to a dark color, which allowed for the environment to feel much more textured. It also gave everything a proper sense of cohesion as all the colors would fade to black. The mind can fill in the parts that aren't immediately lit up and you start to associate specific colors with specific elements in the game. Especially since the resolution you're working with is so low. All of this creating both a good looking and satisfying game experience when you can clearly see all the important elements on screen. In contrast when a NES game used a bright background, the character themselves had to be bright too. Which due to the limited pallete of the NES often made things look garish. And the harder outline you had to use to prevent the character from blending into the background made the character feel disconnected from the world. That and you also just have less color expression when you're solely working with bright colors. So multiple elements often had to share the same colors, leading to potential confusion. Just wanted to discuss this since I rarely get the chance to talk about color theory and how it was applied to these older NES games 😂
that’s interesting because I totally disagree! I find NES games with simpler, more vibrant visuals hold up better because they were able to achieve their intended aesthetics with no technical concessions needed. I find games like Hebereke, Gimmick!, or the NES Mega Man games hold up as well as anything else because the simple designs make the sprites feel like more clear representations of the art. Of course both styles look great when executed well, different strokes for different folks
@Johnny-kv1dv it's ironic you mention those games because all of them utilize the color theory I mentioned lmao. It's not about the style of the sprites. Whether they use cartoony or more realistic proportions (i.e megaman vs castlevania). It's much more about how the color is used to create a readable background and readable characters. Regardless of what you do, your going to run into creative limitations, you're making a game on the NES lol. So it's important how you use those colors to achieve what you want. Look at Metal Man's stage from Megaman 2 for example. Megaman is still cartoony, but that stage looks great because the black background allows for you to clearly establish the foreground while also using darker colors (still lighter than pure black) in the back to give the factory feeling more depth (like the reddish gears in the back). And this also allows you to easily tell each stage apart due to their main color used. Most of the stages in Megaman 2 do something similar. And it was actually changed from Megaman 1, where they did have highly saturated backgrounds, but recognized they only made the colors they could in the stage more limited and garish, and corrected it in future titles. I think you need to re-read my original post because it doesn't seem like you disagree with me at all based on the examples you gave haha
Not surprised to see this was released in 91. The gap between early and late NES visuals is insane. It's like the devs were getting too powerful but held it in until they could go all out on 16 bit consoles.
spent this entire video waiting for you to reveal that this was actually an indie game from 2017 or something, what the hell! this looks so good I'm surprised I've never heard anybody talk about it!
Natsume released another title also based on a tokusatsu IP: Choujin Sentai Jetman. They were released at roughly the same time (October and December 1991) but I believe Jetman was developed first as it's basically the blueprint for Shatterhand, having the same general gameplay but definitely not as polished. Still worth checking out for the awesome mech boss battles at the end of each stage and the killer soundtrack, made by the same composer.
@@shoopoop21 Sincere question, have you actually seen the Tengo Projects remakes? Their Wild Guns, Pocky and Rocky, Ninja Warriors Again and Blue Shadow remakes? These are the same guys who did these games on the NES and SNES, going back to polish their games to a mirror sheen, updating them into 2D pixel games that could only be made in modern times, just as slick just as good, looking better than before. If there were ever any remake project I support to be refined ultimate versions instead of sloppy port-jobs, it'd be the Tengo Projects remakes.
Hell yeah. I think if they keep up, this should be up next, right? Hoping it gets the full sequel treatment, since Reshrined and Reborn were pretty different to the original versions.
The only thing I'd caution new players about is in regards to the stage selection. This isn't like Megaman, if you play the stages in alphabetical order, Shatterhand has an actually perfect difficulty curve, not even exaggerating. To the point where I honestly don't know why they let you choose lol maybe to let you practice the tougher later stages without having to play the easier earlier ones?
Natsume is such an underrated developer. I'm currently playing a lot of Ninja Warriors Again (and the Once Again remake) and it feels incredible to this day.
Shatterhand looks really cool. These late-era NES games are such a leap compared to the early stuff - Kirby'a Adventure comes to mind as another one that looks outrageously good and plays much better than many of those 80s titles. One of my favorite things in recent years is Tengo Project, a trio of ancient Natsume devs going back and remaking their old stuff like Pocky & Rocky, Blue Shadow and Wild Guns. It's really amazing what they bring to the table in terms of pixel art and how much they update and add to the games, while still keeping that old school "die/try again" challenge. Many indie games go for retro of course, but they often go for deliberately 8-bit styled graphics, or a kinder challenge - which I sometimes can get behind and sometimes not, but that's not the point. Tengo project moves the visuals and sound forward about as far as you can take the medium while still keeping what was ticking underneath those older games in terms of design. Calling them "remakes" might be selling them short, as some of them feel more like Metroid 1 to Super Metroid if you see what I mean. Their games can get frustrating, and I wouldn't say all of Natsume's old titles are the peak of the SNES or NES or whatever. There's a reason they aren't the most famous developers of the era. But I usually come out of their games feeling great, having had a good time - and always listening to the soundtrack long after the game is finished. Two members of Tengo Prohect worked on the original Shatterhand, an artist and a composer. Now I know how you feel about remakes and I don't wanna start anything lol, but unless there's something weird with the licensing(considering Solbrain) I personally would love to see Shatterhand get that treatment next time.
I played Shatterhand exactly once in my life- on a cruiseship that had a game room set up for kids like me, and I think it was only for like 40 minutes or so before the ship made port. But I STILL remember it to this day, the music, the controls, the I AM PUNCHING ROBOTS AND MAKING THEM EXPLODE AND NOW I HAVE A ROBOT-BUDDY WHO ALSO PUNCHES-factor... without a doubt the most wicked sick NES game I ever played. And I eagerly await whenever Natsume gets around to remaking it.
I'm glad that this game is easier than the OG sidescroll Ninja Gaiden 1 & 2, those two really inviting the impulses to pulling hair violently Though I'm feeling that CRT monitor would make the game look better tbh
Thank you for putting some light on one of the NES' greatest hidden gems! This has been my go-to retro recommendation for folks for years now, so hopefully this gets some more people to experience it.
Shatterhand is easily a top 3 NES game for me, it's so polished it almost feels more like a retro throwback game made today. Gotta love the cover art of someone's dad cheesily posing for the camera too. I'd love to see Natsume revisit it with one of those really good remakes they've been doing the past few years.
Wish more people would give nes games a shot instead of dismissing them as archeic or janky. Theres so many intresting or unique games that are never given a fair shake because theyre not very accessible due to either their difficulty or their lack of communication (albeit most of even the most esoteric nes games are explained well enough in their manuals which no bothers to read)
This looks awesome!! Almost baffling how not more people have talked about this, hopefully this will get added to NSO or get coveres by the AVGN so it's gets more popularity
Easily one of my favorite games on the console. It's incredible. I always tell people about it. I found out about it thanks to a small gaming UA-camr I watched about 15-16 years ago. He was doing a Let's play. It looked so cool I tried it for myself. Love it, love the soundtrack.
One of my favorite NES games! I can't boot up my system without one playthrough of Shatterhand. It's such a timeless experience and it absolutely rips!
This has always been a pretty sweet “little known gem” that I come back to every few years. Only problem I can really point to is that some droids are definitely more equal than others. Though I still enjoy doing micro movements to manage their positioning and the throwing like you say
"Shatterhand" was also one of the working titles proposed for the final Craig Bond film that eventually became "No Time to Die". At the time it was widely mocked, considered to be a reference to someone messy after an attack of the rubs. If this was from 1991 we were less scatty then!
Those late 80s early 90s NES games looked so good. I love how they took advantage of using a dark color pallet to get around the lack of colors. This game looks very much like the NES Sunsoft Batman game
Fuck yeah, Natsume!! Really underrated devs. They really were the best of the best in the NES and the SNES. Really hoping we get a Shatterhand sequel by Tengo Project.
Now I know where Prison City took its inspiration from. This game is indeed manly as hell. It shows that your own fists are your ultimate tools of destruction, and Shatterhand shows it.
Many great games that came out in the end of a game console's cycle go unnoticed. This seem like one of those. Jaleco is gone and Natsume doesn't seem to care about any game that's not farming any more, but I would love a proper remake of this.
Someone is talking about Shatterhand. I almost can't believe it. I never finished it but it's a game I come back to from time to time and play one or two levels
Oh also, please tackle review on Binary Domain compared to modern 3rd person shooter games these days, that game deserves a review from the expertise of yours, the fact that the game flop despite the quality is still a major 7th gen gaming tragedy
Hi, we dont call japanese hero shows *SUPER* hero shows. Sorry but Super Hero term is reserved for the american properties. We just call our heroes, "heroes" please remember this :)
I always thought Shatterhand looked and felt like an indie retro game that tried to immitate games from the NES. But it really is a game from the NES. It was that ahead of its time
Now that you say it i can almost see the Kickstarter page for that classic back to the roots NES type action game that it could be.
That's exactly what I'm thinking looking at it. It looks really good. I'm thinking someone is messing with the time stream at this point.
No joke I assumed that seeing the thumbnail. Never heard of it but the quality immediately stands out.
Another legendary review, makes me wanna play it right now
Oh hey, another based creative. Proud viewer of both TGBS and Bikuribox here, you guys do great work
@@nathanthatoneguy6197 aw heck yeah, thanks
@@bickuribox12 My pleasure
whens that shadow gens review mister.
@@bickuribox12We need a first impressions video for Shadow genrations.
7:50 you make a great point here about the visual pixel art design of these games. Games that focused on dark background or grittier asthetics worked better and stand the test of time because they allowed for the characters and enemies to be brighter and not have to rely on a harsh outline to be seen. You can also do a lot more dithering tricks when you're starting from a bright color to a dark color, which allowed for the environment to feel much more textured. It also gave everything a proper sense of cohesion as all the colors would fade to black. The mind can fill in the parts that aren't immediately lit up and you start to associate specific colors with specific elements in the game. Especially since the resolution you're working with is so low. All of this creating both a good looking and satisfying game experience when you can clearly see all the important elements on screen.
In contrast when a NES game used a bright background, the character themselves had to be bright too. Which due to the limited pallete of the NES often made things look garish. And the harder outline you had to use to prevent the character from blending into the background made the character feel disconnected from the world. That and you also just have less color expression when you're solely working with bright colors. So multiple elements often had to share the same colors, leading to potential confusion.
Just wanted to discuss this since I rarely get the chance to talk about color theory and how it was applied to these older NES games 😂
that’s interesting because I totally disagree! I find NES games with simpler, more vibrant visuals hold up better because they were able to achieve their intended aesthetics with no technical concessions needed. I find games like Hebereke, Gimmick!, or the NES Mega Man games hold up as well as anything else because the simple designs make the sprites feel like more clear representations of the art. Of course both styles look great when executed well, different strokes for different folks
@Johnny-kv1dv it's ironic you mention those games because all of them utilize the color theory I mentioned lmao. It's not about the style of the sprites. Whether they use cartoony or more realistic proportions (i.e megaman vs castlevania). It's much more about how the color is used to create a readable background and readable characters. Regardless of what you do, your going to run into creative limitations, you're making a game on the NES lol. So it's important how you use those colors to achieve what you want.
Look at Metal Man's stage from Megaman 2 for example. Megaman is still cartoony, but that stage looks great because the black background allows for you to clearly establish the foreground while also using darker colors (still lighter than pure black) in the back to give the factory feeling more depth (like the reddish gears in the back). And this also allows you to easily tell each stage apart due to their main color used. Most of the stages in Megaman 2 do something similar. And it was actually changed from Megaman 1, where they did have highly saturated backgrounds, but recognized they only made the colors they could in the stage more limited and garish, and corrected it in future titles.
I think you need to re-read my original post because it doesn't seem like you disagree with me at all based on the examples you gave haha
Not surprised to see this was released in 91. The gap between early and late NES visuals is insane. It's like the devs were getting too powerful but held it in until they could go all out on 16 bit consoles.
spent this entire video waiting for you to reveal that this was actually an indie game from 2017 or something, what the hell! this looks so good I'm surprised I've never heard anybody talk about it!
Shatterhand's attract mode cutscene is one of the coolest damn things in video games. Good coverage on this one.
Natsume released another title also based on a tokusatsu IP: Choujin Sentai Jetman.
They were released at roughly the same time (October and December 1991) but I believe Jetman was developed first as it's basically the blueprint for Shatterhand, having the same general gameplay but definitely not as polished.
Still worth checking out for the awesome mech boss battles at the end of each stage and the killer soundtrack, made by the same composer.
Crossing my fingers when Tengo Project and Natsume Atari announced its reborn, reshrined, and reloaded type of release for this game.
I'm hoping they eventually do one. All of their other remakes have been stellar.
Can we... can we not bring out the monkey's paw for once?
@@shoopoop21 Sincere question, have you actually seen the Tengo Projects remakes? Their Wild Guns, Pocky and Rocky, Ninja Warriors Again and Blue Shadow remakes?
These are the same guys who did these games on the NES and SNES, going back to polish their games to a mirror sheen, updating them into 2D pixel games that could only be made in modern times, just as slick just as good, looking better than before. If there were ever any remake project I support to be refined ultimate versions instead of sloppy port-jobs, it'd be the Tengo Projects remakes.
@@shoopoop21They usually do a good job, some odd changes here and there. But they're great for the most part
Hell yeah. I think if they keep up, this should be up next, right? Hoping it gets the full sequel treatment, since Reshrined and Reborn were pretty different to the original versions.
The only thing I'd caution new players about is in regards to the stage selection. This isn't like Megaman, if you play the stages in alphabetical order, Shatterhand has an actually perfect difficulty curve, not even exaggerating.
To the point where I honestly don't know why they let you choose lol maybe to let you practice the tougher later stages without having to play the easier earlier ones?
Natsume is such an underrated developer. I'm currently playing a lot of Ninja Warriors Again (and the Once Again remake) and it feels incredible to this day.
That game was the best brawler of 2010s IMO and I clock in 3 digit hours of most brawlers
I absolutely love The Ninja Warriors! It's probably my favorite arcade beat em up.
They could rebuild his hands but not his sleeves.
Reminds me of that Batman game on NES🤔
Which I love💪🏻🦇🌌🌇💥👊🏻💥
Thx 4 de rec👍🏻
Same developers.
This game is like nes ninja gaiden but not annoying
I have been the biggest shill for this game since I first learned about it ~a decade ago. Hopefully more people check it out.
Shatterhand looks really cool. These late-era NES games are such a leap compared to the early stuff - Kirby'a Adventure comes to mind as another one that looks outrageously good and plays much better than many of those 80s titles.
One of my favorite things in recent years is Tengo Project, a trio of ancient Natsume devs going back and remaking their old stuff like Pocky & Rocky, Blue Shadow and Wild Guns. It's really amazing what they bring to the table in terms of pixel art and how much they update and add to the games, while still keeping that old school "die/try again" challenge. Many indie games go for retro of course, but they often go for deliberately 8-bit styled graphics, or a kinder challenge - which I sometimes can get behind and sometimes not, but that's not the point. Tengo project moves the visuals and sound forward about as far as you can take the medium while still keeping what was ticking underneath those older games in terms of design. Calling them "remakes" might be selling them short, as some of them feel more like Metroid 1 to Super Metroid if you see what I mean.
Their games can get frustrating, and I wouldn't say all of Natsume's old titles are the peak of the SNES or NES or whatever. There's a reason they aren't the most famous developers of the era. But I usually come out of their games feeling great, having had a good time - and always listening to the soundtrack long after the game is finished. Two members of Tengo Prohect worked on the original Shatterhand, an artist and a composer. Now I know how you feel about remakes and I don't wanna start anything lol, but unless there's something weird with the licensing(considering Solbrain) I personally would love to see Shatterhand get that treatment next time.
Love that they freed him from Japanese ip just to make him bootleg robocop
The Japanese IP show is also basically a Robocop type of beat, so they aren't really off mark. It's called Super Rescue Solbrain.
You know, he reminds me of Sergeant Metallic from Dragon Ball, look him up
So this guy ended up kind of like a Robocop and Terminator fusion geheheh
I played Shatterhand exactly once in my life- on a cruiseship that had a game room set up for kids like me, and I think it was only for like 40 minutes or so before the ship made port. But I STILL remember it to this day, the music, the controls, the I AM PUNCHING ROBOTS AND MAKING THEM EXPLODE AND NOW I HAVE A ROBOT-BUDDY WHO ALSO PUNCHES-factor... without a doubt the most wicked sick NES game I ever played. And I eagerly await whenever Natsume gets around to remaking it.
first time i saw a couple seconds of this game i thought it was SNES. game OWNS.
As a senior gamedev, Shatterhand is one of those games that reminds me why I keep making games. Just a screenshot of it just gives me so much joy.
I'm glad that this game is easier than the OG sidescroll Ninja Gaiden 1 & 2, those two really inviting the impulses to pulling hair violently
Though I'm feeling that CRT monitor would make the game look better tbh
Thank you for putting some light on one of the NES' greatest hidden gems! This has been my go-to retro recommendation for folks for years now, so hopefully this gets some more people to experience it.
It's a great game with beautiful graphics, awesome soundtrack and amazing gameplay! ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Damn this is a delight. I didnt expect an NES game specially one of my fave NES games here.
Shatterhand is easily a top 3 NES game for me, it's so polished it almost feels more like a retro throwback game made today. Gotta love the cover art of someone's dad cheesily posing for the camera too.
I'd love to see Natsume revisit it with one of those really good remakes they've been doing the past few years.
An real underrated gem, this one. The design and polish are fantastic. Amazing what these guys could do with the hardware compared to now.
Wish more people would give nes games a shot instead of dismissing them as archeic or janky. Theres so many intresting or unique games that are never given a fair shake because theyre not very accessible due to either their difficulty or their lack of communication (albeit most of even the most esoteric nes games are explained well enough in their manuals which no bothers to read)
Love the dedication to rendering the video at 4:3! Big proponent!
This looks awesome!! Almost baffling how not more people have talked about this, hopefully this will get added to NSO or get coveres by the AVGN so it's gets more popularity
I finally played this a few years ago and it blew me away. This is the perfect recommendation vid for it.
I will always remember the box art to this game. One of my favs. Our childhoods were amazing!!!
Easily one of my favorite games on the console. It's incredible. I always tell people about it. I found out about it thanks to a small gaming UA-camr I watched about 15-16 years ago. He was doing a Let's play. It looked so cool I tried it for myself. Love it, love the soundtrack.
6:08 you note that enemies infinitely respawn at certain points in Ninja Gaiden for "no reason". There is a reason. It's to force you to keep moving.
One of my favorite NES games! I can't boot up my system without one playthrough of Shatterhand. It's such a timeless experience and it absolutely rips!
Shatterhand has an awesome soundtrack! Stage Select and Area 4 are amazing pieces!
This has always been a pretty sweet “little known gem” that I come back to every few years. Only problem I can really point to is that some droids are definitely more equal than others. Though I still enjoy doing micro movements to manage their positioning and the throwing like you say
Love your channel so much. Please keep doing what you're doing
"Shatterhand" was also one of the working titles proposed for the final Craig Bond film that eventually became "No Time to Die". At the time it was widely mocked, considered to be a reference to someone messy after an attack of the rubs. If this was from 1991 we were less scatty then!
199k subs. I'll just say "congrats on 200k" right now since it'll probably cross over in the time it takes me to watch this video. ;P
Those late 80s early 90s NES games looked so good. I love how they took advantage of using a dark color pallet to get around the lack of colors. This game looks very much like the NES Sunsoft Batman game
The sprites in this game look freaking gorgeous I can't believe this is nes. How come I never heard of it up until now?
idk why but this gives me 'Dynamite Cop!' vibes. Absolutely BANGER Arcade game that went onto the Dreamcast.
Fuck yeah, Natsume!! Really underrated devs. They really were the best of the best in the NES and the SNES. Really hoping we get a Shatterhand sequel by Tengo Project.
Such a stylish release, fantastic memories of Shatterhand.
Ah my god, I rented this on Famicon once and had no idea what it was called because it was in japenese. Thank you for helping me find it!
Now I need a Displaced Gamers video explaining how the robot buddy AI works.
Damn, how did this game go under my radar? Definitely gonna give this a go!
The game looks sick, I'm going to have to try it out!
really suprised that i have never heared about this game, it looks amazing
Now I know where Prison City took its inspiration from. This game is indeed manly as hell. It shows that your own fists are your ultimate tools of destruction, and Shatterhand shows it.
Many great games that came out in the end of a game console's cycle go unnoticed. This seem like one of those. Jaleco is gone and Natsume doesn't seem to care about any game that's not farming any more, but I would love a proper remake of this.
I remember when He11sing920 reviewed this Awesomeness. Man, where does the time go?
The real predecessor to God Hand?
ive _vaguely_ heard rumors that shatterhand is next up to get a remake by tengo project, or at least the door is open for one
This guys sunglasses invented the 90’s
This looks like something my best friend from High School would play lmao.
Someone is talking about Shatterhand. I almost can't believe it. I never finished it but it's a game I come back to from time to time and play one or two levels
Wow, I can't believe I've never heard of this game!
fuck yes shatterhand great pick
Just wait until 2026 when it gets the Natsume Remaster touch like Wild Guns, Ninja Saviors, and Shadow Of The Ninja.
Shatterhand is bonkers! Such a good game!!
The NES has some shockingly sick Beat em ups.
I had Japanese version growing up. It was a cool game.
Finally, the next SH review
What emulator did you use? This CRT filters looks pretty good.
Something about the main character design reminds me of an obscure OVA/manga character called Riding Bean.
Love a good gamer's game
Man, the world will be cool as shit in just six years from now...
You might want to try "Shadow of the Ninja" or "Blue Shadow" in UK. Same developer , released a year earlier.
This really reminds me of "Shadow of the Ninja".
This game looks awesome. You should check out Gravity Circuit, if you haven't already.
This is one of my favorite NES games.
But i prefer the japanese version SolBrain
Natsume's catalogue of games just demonstrates how wrong it was for Konami to make them leave KDE for their own studio.
Oh also, please tackle review on Binary Domain compared to modern 3rd person shooter games these days, that game deserves a review from the expertise of yours, the fact that the game flop despite the quality is still a major 7th gen gaming tragedy
I FUCKING LOVE THIS GAME SO MUCH LIKE HOLY SHIT!!!
Ok but where is your stream of Shadow Generation ? We are waiting sir !
Damn! Never even heard of this game.
looks awesome tbf
Try The guardian legend on the nes too. It isn't as polished as shatterhand but it's a good game.
this game is Gravity Circuit's grandpa
Two vids in one week? You're spoiling us, Charlie
3 uploads in a month? Is tent due for TGB?
I always hated these games. They never clicked and were always hard in a way that didn't feel fair.
This is the reason Shatterhand never clicked for me. The aesthetics and music go hard but the game never felt fully fair to me.
Shatterhand bodies the baki universe
Haha the ending 🤙
Love it!
45 seconds ago is crazy
But is it better than Dragon age the Veilguard?
Cool
I agree
Catch these shatter hands
Super Rescue
Youvshould do God Hand someday. Stop dancing around it.
Робокоп 4.
How you gonna shit on GOW4 and hype this garbage
Hi, we dont call japanese hero shows *SUPER* hero shows. Sorry but Super Hero term is reserved for the american properties. We just call our heroes, "heroes"
please remember this :)
Don’t care
Gay
You playing a NES action game makes me feel like you are getting desperate after finishing all action games on ps2