Taking its influence from games like Arkanoid, Breakout and any other block breaking games you care to think of, the opening section of Shatter imbues the game with more character than you’d expect from a title like this. The player’s robotic bat is confined within a small box along with countless other droids, all of them mundanely bouncing a ball against a power node in some unknown, repetitive task. When an anomaly sets the bat free, literally shattering the screen (complete with Wall·E type scream), both the bat and the player begin an incredible voyage of freedom and discovery.
Through ten separate zones, each consisting of seven stages, the aim is to clear the screen of blocks using the ball before you can progress. Naturally, breaking the blocks raises your score as well as releasing power-ups and score multipliers, but it also releases blue fragments. These can be collected to temporarily power up the shield or the Storm Shard ability – a few seconds of rapid fire which obliterates everything in its path. So far this probably sounds like little more than familiar territory, but from here on Shatter begins to stamp its own mark on things.
As well as the challenge presented by flipping gameplay between a horizontal and vertical layout, or changing the shape of the play arena between square and circular shapes, the trigger buttons provide an after-touch effect. The bat is able to suck objects towards it or blow them away; offering a degree of control which lets the player alter the path of the ball long after it has been fired. Once they’ve mastered this ability, it’s possible to perform some pretty impressive shots, helped by the guide marker which shows where the ball will strike.
The suck and blow features not only effect the projectile but other items on the screen such as fragments and even the blocks themselves. While it’s obviously in the players best interests to suck in as many fragments as possible, this will also cause blocks to fly towards the bat. In later levels this doesn’t mean just single blocks but literally whole sections of the level. These cause momentary panic as they break away and come hurtling down the screen, threatening to ruin the player’s chances of success.
If you don’t have enough energy or aren’t quick enough in deploying the shield, being struck won’t actually kill you, but it will stun the bat long enough that the ball might sail off the screen or you miss those valuable fragments. Alternatively, if hitting blocks is proving to be a problem, clever use of the sucking ability can drag them off the screen, although this doesn’t provide any shards. It’s this heavily embedded risk-reward style, coupled with the clever placement of blocks within the levels, that means Shatter becomes addictive and very, very satisfying. Objects having the ability to collide with one another and later stages having their own gravitational pull, means the player has to adapt as the game ratchets up the level of challenge.
Boss encounters also occur after every seventh stage, blocking the progress to the next area. These require a bit of lateral thinking and a steadier aim than the usual stages, and along with the bonus stages offer a little bit of a change of pace.
It’s arguable that some may find Shatter too easy. The game is certainly challenging but the more hardcore player may find themselves sailing through it. This is missing the point of the title somewhat, since the online leaderboards are what offer the most satisfaction. Climbing your way to the top amongst your friends (or even the world rankings if you take it that serious) is half the fun.
Where Shatter firmly plants itself into the modern generation is with its crisp, colourful HD visuals and truly wonderful soundtrack. Developed in tandem with the game, it features a truly eclectic mix of sounds ranging from Electro to Glam Rock and good old fashioned video game influences. Overall it sounds like something that wouldn’t be amiss on an album release from Daft Punk, with every tune feeling like the perfect accompaniment to its respective stage. Such is its strength that it’s been released for download separately and there’s no doubt that many players will want to make the purchase once it grows on them.
Unlike the mechanics of their game, Shatter neither sucks nor blows. With it, Sidhe Interactive has managed to surpass the original concepts behind the game and put a fresh, modern spin on it. This is something that Taito in particular should take note of, given that their recent XBLA release, Arkanoid Live!, was a torrid affair. Shatter’s gameplay, style and alluring price (currently £4.97) make it an essential PSN purchase.
