Snatcher | |
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Cover of the original PC-8801 version
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Developer(s) | Konami |
Publisher(s) | Konami |
Director(s) |
Hideo Kojima Shinya Inoue (PC Engine) Yoshinori Sasaki (Sega CD) |
Producer(s) | Naoki Matsui (PC-88, MSX2) Akihiko Nagata (PC Engine) Tomikazu Kirita (Sega CD) Yutaka Haruki (Sega CD) |
Designer(s) | Hideo Kojima Yoshihiko Ota Tomiharu Kinoshita |
Programmer(s) | Toshiya Adachi Kenji Shinohara (PC Engine) Masahiko Saito (Sega CD) |
Artist(s) | Satoshi Yoshioka Satoshi Kushibuchi (Sega CD) Keiichiro Toyama (Sega CD) |
Writer(s) | Hideo Kojima |
Composer(s) | Konami Kukeiha Club |
Platform(s) | NEC PC-8801, MSX2, PC Engine (Super CD-ROM²), Sega CD, PlayStation, Sega Saturn |
Release date(s) |
PC-8801:
PlayStation:
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Genre(s) | Graphic adventure game, interactive movie, visual novel |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Aggregate scores | |
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Aggregator | Score |
GameRankings | 85% (5 reviews) |
MobyRank | 87% (19 reviews) |
Review scores | |
Publication | Score |
AllGame | |
CVG | 90% |
EGM | 42 / 50 |
Famitsu | 33 / 40 |
GameFan | 280 / 300 |
GamePro | |
GamesMaster | 90% |
GameSpy | 10 / 10 |
Console Obsession | 9 / 10 |
Entertainment Weekly | A |
Game Players | 80% |
Games World | 92% |
Mean Machines Sega | 85% |
Mega Fun (DE) | 87% |
Next Generation | 3 / 5 |
RPGFan | 95% 97% |
Ultimate Future Games | 85% |
Awards | |
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Publication | Award |
Electronic Gaming Monthly | Best Games of All Time (#69) |
Retro Gamer | Top Ten Mega CD Games |
Snatcher (スナッチャー?, Sunacchā) is a cyberpunk-themed graphic adventure game directed and written by Hideo Kojima and produced by Konami. It was originally released in Japan for the NEC PC-8801 and MSX2 computer platforms in 1988. A CD-ROM-based remake for the PC Engine was released in 1992, which was subsequently localized into English for the Mega CD/Sega CD in 1994 in North America and Europe. The enhanced version was later ported twice more to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn in Japan.
The setting and story of Snatcher are heavily influenced by cyberpunk and science-fiction media, taking place in a large futuristic dystopian city. The story revolves around an investigator named Gillian Seed assigned to investigate a breed of bioroids known as "snatchers", who are killing humans and taking their place in society. Gameplay takes place in a menu-based interface. The player can choose from pre-defined options such as "Look" and "Talk" to interact with the environment and its characters.
Snatcher is widely regarded as groundbreaking for the adventure genre, in that it introduced visual novel characteristics to flesh out a deep back story. Sales outside of Japan were poor due to Sega's waning support for the Sega CD, but the game has gained a cult following. The game has spawned a spin-off role-playing game released in Japan titled SD Snatcher, and a radio drama, SDATCHER.