Ghost in the Shell

Ghost in the Shell is a fun oddity that is basically a third Jumping Flash! [ジャンピングフラッシュ! アロハ男爵ファンキー大作戦の巻] game. Removed from Jumping Flash is the candy-coloured fantasy world and replaced is placing yourself in one of the more popular 1990s anime series.

Some fans of the series might be upset you do not play as Motoko, but an unnamed grunt piloting the sort of ladybug-looking robot of a Fuchikoma. Controls are similar to jumping flash with homing missiles and adding turrets and taking away your ability to hop and bop on enemies. It is arguably replaced with an even more fun mechanic of being able to have the Fuchikoma climb on walls and ceilings leading to a lot of potential sneak attacks. There is something fun about jumping from a ceiling and just landing with cat-like grace on the ground below you. For a 3D game from 1997, the camera is surprisingly responsive and I rarely got really lost on a map.

The game is short with 12 levels and outside a few levels, it is relatively easy. Most enemies won't know what hit them when it comes to a quick rocket-homing missile, but they at least come in a variety of tanks and mechs and do have different behaviours, but you won't see them cause they get crushed so quickly. Bosses also only took me a few tries, but all have a variety of moves and designs that suit the anime series.

The narrative isn't terribly exciting and focuses mostly on the action-oriented elements of the series. There is just enough variety for you to want to keep moving but only a few stages really allow you to come back and experience something new (such as the highway chase fight, which allows for multiple path choices).

If you have a hankering for something from the PS1 era you may have skipped over, this might surprise you. Recommended for fans of Jumping Flash! [ジャンピングフラッシュ! アロハ男爵ファンキー大作戦の巻], Star Fox 64 [スターフォックス64], and Sin & Punishment [罪と罰 ～地球の継承者～].