Public Security Section 9, or "Section 9" for short, stands as the most secretive and covert of Japan's Ministry of Home Affairs' internal groups. It exists as an anti-terrorist force capable of both defensive and offensive actions.  Its members are considered the "best of the best" in their respective fields, each cybernetically augmented for enhanced abilities in stealth, combat, intelligence, and communication.  Basically, these are among the most lethal people on the face of the earth.  Their newest member, you, is also considered among the elite, but due to your rookie status in Section 9, you still feel that you have to prove yourself.  Luckily, a mission has opened up, allowing you to show off your skills to the other members of Section 9, and thus justify your presence there.  Jump into your diminutive spider-like Fuchikoma robot tank and prepare...

What?



"She's hot," I said sarcastically. 

These where likely the first words that popped out of my mouth when gazing upon the front cover of Ghost in the Shell for the original Sony PlayStation.  I hadn't really gotten too much into manga or anime at that point, instead preferring the Shakespearean-esqe drama and plot structure of Two Champions of Shaolin and the unique vocalizations of Sonny Chiba as heard in The Streetfighter.  Mind you, this was late 1997 when I first experienced the game, which puts me as king-nobody at the chain game store in town.  For most other people, the experience would have ended there, but since I worked at a video game store the next step was placing the game into the PlayStation on the counter, the one that normally played only select demos and Legacy of Kain (during off hours)....the employee's PSX, if you will.  The next minute and fifty seconds was confusing to me, yet very exciting as I attempted to reconcile what I was seeing:

1. Robotic spider creature x2 (one small and one large);
2. Anime female(s?) in strange, cyberpunk VR gear;
3. Cheeky humor; and
4. Conflict.

I had a grasp on all of that, just not how it all fit together.  It was almost as if there were two different intro videos that were spliced together; the intro video one has an awesome fight between two spider-robots of different sizes (the Fuchikoma is the small one) and the second, which seems like it might be distantly connected to the first, shows what appears to be Major Kusanagi operating something (the Fuchikoma?) and experiencing pain and pleasure (alternately) whilst wearing cyberpunk interface gear.   This was very strange to reconcile, at least for me, especially since during the first few minutes after pressing "Start" it is clear that the other members of Section 9 cram themselves into the Fuchikoma tanks to operate them, while your's has...  anthropomorphic qualities.


The gameplay, I am happy to report, is nothing short of awesome.  The entire game eschews the abilities of the Section 9 team as featured in the Ghost in the Shell movie in favor of the Fuchikoma tanks, and I couldn't be happier.  Your little Fuchikoma can move and slide around within three dimensions, scaling every object in the level like a.. spider, I guess. It takes a little getting used to, but you'll have it by the first boss (which requires you to climb up the wall to avoid his laser beams).  The view switches between third and first person effortlessly (depending on how close to a wall you are).   So, what's the secret to this early example of near perfect camera management? You don't manage it at all; it simply stays out of your way and lets you play the game.  Revolutionary, huh?  At the same time, it is close enough to block the view of behind your tank, so in tight spots you won't see that there is a wall behind you until your Fuchikoma walks up it backwards.  It takes a few minutes to get used to, but it's not a killer.  After all, the camera does manage to stay behind you.  It's more generally more your own fault when you get too itchy whilst strafing madly around the environments.

There are only three weapons at your disposal: Dual machine guns, lock-on missiles, and limited grenades.  You don't get anything else, but to be honest I never really felt the need for more.  The guns seem a little underpowered, but are usually perfect to deliver a coup de grace on a baddie after you utilize your main weapon--the lock-on missiles.  You can lock onto up to six different baddies (or a single baddie with all six missiles) with the same missile salvo.  Combined with the Fuchikoma's ability to slip and slide around sideways up and down walls and over obstacles, makes for a very full feeling FPS-shooter game (despite the often slow forwards, backwards, and turning movement).  Kind of like a mash-up between Panzer Dragoon and Descent, if you catch my drift.  And if that doesn't wet your excitement whistle, then the game may not be for you. 


As it is, the experience playing the game, while exciting and hairy at times, is very short.  Though I got turned around a few times, and had to restart the six levels many times, I still was able to beat Ghost in the Shell in only two and a half hours.  I put this in the "Saturday afternoon" with enough time left over to hit Popeye's for a two piece and biscuit category.  For fun, I decided to play through the game three times: once on my PSOne (with the LCD screen), once on the PS2 (to see if the smoothing effects of the PS2 had any affect), and once on the ePSXe emulator on PC (for the same reason as the PS2).  For the record, the PSOne combo with 5" LCD looked great, but the screen size was a little difficult to deal with as some of the enemies are a little dinky already without the 5" face-lift the screen gives.  The PS2 smoothing really didn't seem to affect the game, though it did load a bit faster than without Fast Load on.  The PC emulator looks great, but requires you to configure it to do so.  Pick your favorite, says I.  You're a winner any way you do it!

What is this kind of entertainment worth to you?  While I don't remember exactly how much this game ended up costing me that fateful day in late 1997, whatever amount I paid was worth it.  Since this game is far more interesting and unique than the other Ghost in the Shell games, provided you like the franchise, you pretty much can't go wrong.  CIB prices can set you back a cool $28-$54 USD on the old 'bay for the NA game, while loose is around $17 (sometimes less).  However, if you have the ability to play Japanese PSX games, the prices are a bit better.  Any way you can get it, if you are a fan of Panzer Dragoon-style games and don't mind an slightly open environment, then I highly recommend it.  Heck, I can pretty much guarantee that the final boss fight should be enough to grab you, and is worth the price of admission alone.


Thanks for reading!

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