Hideo Kojima's "Snatcher" (PC-88 Paradise) and the Sega CD, TurboGrafX, PS1, Saturn, MSX2 versions

[@BasementBrothers]

A very big thanks to Bowl of Lentils for lending his voice for the Kojima quotes in this video, and also for helping me find the quotes. Definitely subscribe to his channel if you haven't already! www.youtube.com/@bowloflentils

[@bowloflentils]

It was really fun recording the quotes! Happy I was able to contribute to one of your videos.

[@NoelComiX]

He did a great Falcom video

[@BasementBrothers]

Indeed he did. Also his videos "Arcturus: The Korean RPG that Inspired Trails in the Sky" and "The Other Mystery House" are criminally under-viewed.

[@DopeyDragonz]

I actually found his channel through your channel I believe. I watched many of your videos and his started getting recommended to me.

[@fmsyntheses]

Thanks for recommending the channel, it's extremely relevant to my interests.

[@ytmhcubed]

This is the show I didn't know I needed.

[@skidooshlayman12]

Fans: Can we get a sequel? Konami: No, but we can make several versions of the original game.

[@tobormax]

My thoughts exactly! It is so weird that they would make updates and re-release the game so many times but never green light a sequel. I guess Mr. Kojima could make his own spiritual successor now. Maybe there is a future for Sna...I mean "Legally Distinct Grabbing Man"

[@user-a5Bw9de]

While I won't call it a sequel, there is SD Snatcher for MSX2 (21:23). There are minor tweaks in several points of the story, with absolute overhaul for aesthetics and the system, but it actually ties most of the loose ends that the original made it cliffhanging. (I'm not sure if any revelation in the SD applies to the original scenario that Hideo Kojima had in mind, but at least it is conclusive.)

[@Neethan3247]

Actually, I wouldn't mind a physical North American rerelease of Snatcher.

[@subtledemisefox]

Weird how Metal Gear is the only Kojima game to get a sequel, let alone become an entire series.

[@oboropro]

zone of the Enders got a sequel ​@@subtledemisefox

[@pragmax]

Fun fact: the music that plays during the "metal gear MkII" reveal is more or less the "Theme of Tara" from Metal Gear (released a year prior to Snatcher). It's clearly done here to make the scene feel ominous, right before the cute size of the thing cuts right through the tension.

[@SegaCDUniverse]

I hooked up my system in my loft above my bedroom as a teenager or twenty something. Played it on a crt and loved every minute of it

[@budsunny]

Bought the Sega cd version of this game right when it came out. Still my favorite game of all time after all these years later. An absolute masterpiece.

[@KingofCrusher]

I found it a few years after its release and holy shit it blew my mind, Sega CD was so under-appreciated back in the 90's.

[@SuperSupersoda]

Quick plug for Bowl of Lentils. If you haven't watched his video on the early history of Falcom, it's God-tier and one of the definitive and most oft-cited sources on the subject.

[@carlcouture1023]

Growing up in the US and not knowing about the PC-88 version at all, it's still pretty buckwild to me that this game was originally for an 8 bit PC that couldn't display more than 8 colors at a time. I'm so used to the voiced dialogue and impressive animation that it feels like a title that was meant for CD-ROM all along. And yet, hearing that the game feels rather robust and not like an overly compromised, unfinished product just makes it seem that much cooler.

[@CptJistuce]

In a way, it was a prototype for the CD dream of the 90s. Snatcher is the embodiment of the interactive movie concept. The limitations of the hardware probably make it actually a better game than if it had been created after the multimedia revolution. Even if this hypothetical future-Snatcher wound up more like Under A Killing Moon than Dragon's Lair.

[@Johnnybomb1]

Nothing particularly impressive about it. It's basically just a visual novel, of which hundreds existed during the mid 80s for Japanese PC systems.

[@fmsyntheses]

That's some sweet disk-drive chunking.

[@BasementBrothers]

I haven't played it but probably should some day. The original is for the MSX Turbo R which presents some problems for me.... It's also one of the few weird titles like Fray where the PC-98 version is also bi-compatible with the PC88VA.

[@DQSpider]

"When I saw Jesus I knew I had to develop Snatcher" do tell....

[@lancelnce]

Amem

[@gaminggoddess85]

Jesus: Kyofu no Bio Monster. I've only seen the butchered NES version with a very stilted translation patch but it seemed coolish.

[@braillynn]

@@lancelnce😂

[@JohnnyUndaunted]

Very well-researched video on Snatcher, but there's a few things I feel that you guys left out. 2:44 - Team Metalslave, the name of the game's development team, was actually led by Naoki Matsui, a developer at Konami who was involved with many MSX titles, most notably the Gradius/Nemesis games on that platform and was the project leader for the PC-8801 and MSX2 version of Snatcher. Metalslave was also the name of Naoki Matsui's own in-house rock band and due to his love for heavy metal and hard rock, the MSX Gradius are filled with references to various bands and musicians (such as the two main characters in Gradius 2 being named James Burton and Emperor Lars Hammett after the founding members of Metallica). Incidentally, Metalslave is also the name of the final boss ship in the MSX version of Salamander. Matsui, along with Ryohei Shogaki, was one of Kojima's mentors when he was starting out and helped encouraged to continue his career during the development of the original Metal Gear when most of his other co-workers were not giving the benefit of the doubt (Kojima goes into detail about this in the MGS3: Shedding booklet included in the MGS3 Extreme Box set). Incidentally, one of Matsui's later games, Speed King (an arcade game later ported to the PS1), is set in Neo Kobe City in the year 2045 (three years after Snatcher in the Japanese canon). 1:48 - Tomiharu Kinoshita was more than just the character designer of Snatcher. He actually storyboarded the original PC-8801 version with Kojima and drew almost all the original art that ended up being digitally scanned to make up the artwork for the game and he later would the same with Policenauts on the PC-9821. He wasn't as involved in the later console versions of Snatcher and thus some of the new artwork in those versions are a bit off as a result, but he still provided all the new pieces of promotional illustrations for those versions, as well as the new design for Elijah Madnar in the Sega CD version. Kinoshita actually has a Twitter account under the username @PortIsland1987, where he is pretty candid about the development of both Snatcher and Policenauts, and even goes into detail about the cancelled PC-8801 sequel, which was apparently much closer to SD Snatcher than the later CD-ROM versions (there's a few bits of storyboards in the liner notes for the PC-88 soundtrack album). Finally, as for the redbook music tracks in the console versions, while most of it were newly-recorded for the PC Engine version and then published in the Snatcher Zoom Tracks album, there are some reused tracks from an early album titled Snatcher Perfect Selection. I think they even used one track for the interview featured in the Snatcher Pilot Disk for the PC Engine.

[@RetroSegaDev]

I've watched this video SO many times for inspiration 😅 thank you for such an amazing historical insight into Snatcher.

[@James-cf2mr]

I saw the thumbnail and title, and then who this is from. I came over to just give you a thumbs up. I will be looking forward to watching this later; I don't have time do so now. You guys are amazing. I always enjoy PC-88 Paradise and PC-98 Paradise (and the Neo Geo videos). If you ever want to do MSX Paradise, please go ahead!!

[@Nocturn3]

This was a huge treat since I'm a huge fan of Snatcher! Excellent job covering the ports and giving an huge overview of the OG release!

[@shkeni]

Pressure of Tension is one of my favorite game tracks ever, and to me the MSX2 version is the definitive one. Love this game. Hope you can make a video about Policenauts too.

[@kalinda619]

Love the discussion of old Japanese key mappings and other cultural things!

[@GranMaese]

11:58 - 12:48 LOL! That was comedy gold... Yet another reason of why I love this channel so much.

[@AshleyRiot]

My favorite game from the 1980s. Captures early Cyberpunk real well and the Sega CD soundtrack is perfection. Would love to also see Policenauts on this show!

[@Unquestionable]

While I've only ever played the Sega CD version what feels like a lifetime ago I still absolutely adore it and would love for any excuse to revisit it. Kojima's talent at taking the best parts of a genre and making them into a captivating gaming experience has made me a life long fan.

[@AkasagiPhan]

Snatcher is a game that has a special place in my heart. I have watched a lot of reviews about it but this one is the only one that mentions the quirks of the PC-88 version compared to later releases. Nice video as usual 👍

[@zed-xr4353]

The PC88 had so many cool games. Thanks for another great episode.

[@ochsUkko]

"I want to make a game that will make you want to sacrifice other things in your life to spend time with it" Great quote. Maybe it didn't apply to all of Kojima's later titles (things are never easy in practice), but it's a pretty solid mentality for making a beautiful game. : ) It was great elaborating on the PC88 version! Definitely hard to play, what with allowing a lot of trial-and-error instead of limiting your choices only to what is left to do, but I agree about the darker atmosphere. Maybe early PC and console games tended to build atmosphere and leave more to the player's imagination exactly because of hardware limitations (little use of BG music, fewer colours and coarse blipping sounds). Sometimes less is more.

[@DopeyDragonz]

New Basements Brothers? Time to drop everything I'm doing.

[@CircleOfTheSeptagram]

Look how messy that kanji is in that resolution. I couldn't imagine trying to navigate that. Thanks for the vid!

[@theivace9705]

It's been about 10 years since I played Sega CD Snatcher and it is still a top game for. Always love to learn more about the nuances of each version.

[@sorenpx]

Hands down the most memorable Sega CD game for me and it's not even close. It's a shame the game didn't sell better in the US. Maybe we also would've gotten Policenauts if it had.

[@TheSocialGamer]

Fantastic watch... The way you review games is much like a story instead of a stiff read script. Thank You....!

[@keijijohnson9754]

3:26 - Wait WHAT?! Okay, the fact that they had that version start off on the day before I ended up being born just made this game even more personal to me there.😁

[@ViskasVelniop]

That was amazing, thanks so much for your work. Also you should do tour vids where you go to remote village bars in japan and give commentary similar to your pc88 vids. Discuss history or video game tales over brew or whiskey with patrons. That would be sweet

[@stephenhutchison676]

Amazing how you even show how the game uses an antiquated method for inputting text, and how this impacts gameplay. No other channel offers these kinds of details.

[@LiquidSevens]

awesome video! i had a great time with this game (Sega CD version), glad to see some coverage of all the other versions too. i was caught off-guard by the keyboard chaos section and i honestly nearly laughed myself to death for the entire duration

[@cube2fox]

The pixel art of the original Snatcher looks awesome.

[@JimJamMS]

I FUCKING LOVE SNATCHER

[@tidq]

Mr Jakes is my #1 source on KZbin for PC-88 reviews featuring clips from Jingle All the Way.

[@braikingboss9137]

I've been following your channel for a while now. But just recently started actually watching it. I gotta say I'm in love with your content, keep it up.🎉🎉🎉

[@mudpie.creator]

Thank you for your hard work in this video. I'm from the 80's and I loved the physical concept art from this game. Buying softwares on Steam will never beat the smell of a new game box! +1sub!

[@BeanMonsterr]

So glad to see this one covered! So nostalgic...

[@James_Baggott]

As a lifelong diehard fan of Snatcher, I really enjoyed this video, thanks!

[@oodo2908]

Awesome video. I didn't think I'd find such a wonderful Snatcher review so recent.

[@MuJoNeSs]

What a masterclass of a retro gaming video. Thank you. Very entertaining!

[@Vanessinha91Pucca]

These old games has such atmosphere, im yet to find a single modern game that it come close in this aspect.

[@desktorp]

Great job on the video. Looking back at all the times I had an opportunity to play Snatcher, but didn't, it does bring me a certain amount of regret, as it wouldn't be the same experience to try it for the first time today. There is a certain mindset when we're younger that I think most of us lose with age-- the games I played during my formative years are etched in to my memory and no matter what I could try today, nothing new would hit me with that kind of intensity. I had a JVC X'Eye as my SegaCD and remember once at Funcoland, trying to decide between buying used copies of Vay or Snatcher, because they were about the same price.. I ultimately chose Vay (because I foolishly imagined it would be on par with Lunar) and it was the wrong choice. Went back later and Snatcher was gone.

[@BasementBrothers]

Pottle! Oh god! Pottle! This was also my first experience ever seriously playing Snatcher, and I enjoyed it. So, you're never too old! I love discovering the games from the 80's and 90's I missed out on.

[@gaminggoddess85]

As someone who also had Vay as a kid... yeah you definitely beansed the choice there dude. I'm sure it was a fine RPG _originally_ but Working Designs had a habit of insanely overtuning the difficulty in their localizations, like increasing the MP to cast spells by 150% to 1000% and making weapons more expensive and also a lot weaker. I want to play a version without all that stupidity (and also in a language I can understand).

[@desktorp]

@@gaminggoddess85 Yes, great point.. however, what sticks in my head the most wasn't the insane difficulty, but how forgettable the whole thing was. I didn't finish the game, but I did play it enough that I should remember more than I do. I remember 1 or 2 bits of the story, but I couldn't tell you anything about the characters. To be totally honest, I never finished Lunar 2 either, because of how they made the enemy difficulty scale with the character levels. I developed a habit from Lunar 1 of doing early grinding sessions to make Alex totally overpowered. (I gain several levels at the very beginning, while he's still alone in his green peasant outfit) Tried to do the same thing in Lunar 2 and got stuck on the fight with Borgan. I thought "I just need to gain some more levels" did some hard grinding, came back and the fight went even worse. Most attempts I wouldn't even get to do anything.. he'd just wipe me out with his first or second attack. I also just didn't like it as much as the first game. Never tried the Japanese version to see if it's any easier, but yeah.. then I'd have to muddle my way through with minimal understanding of the text.

[@TonyGearSolid]

The start of the fan translation scene in the mid-late 90s was a wild ride, I remember a game magazine mentioning the Metal Gear 2 fan translation in a write up about MGS2 rumors and even provided a web address in the article with the patched rom and emulator. It really was the golden era of discovering an entire new world of games you never knew existed. I know this doesn't have much to do with your video, so I apologize if my comment comes off as completely irrelevant.😅

[@LiquidSevens]

this era was well before my time... so learning that MG2's fan translation was made in the 90s was a complete shocker to me. it's one of the oldest translations i've ever stumbled upon. learning that SD Snatcher's translation is even older stunned me too. i'm glad that early kojima games were highly desired by western gamers before MGS was even released - if it wasn't for that shared interest, i would never have discovered MSX forums and the like. reading what remains of those websites has led me to discover gems (and gaming history) i'd never have discovered otherwise

[@crithitjace]

Wow, Kamen Rider Black RX was at the club chilling with a Xenomorph, Dr. Zaius, and Kanegon from Ultraman.

[@linklindlink]

Tried to watch to fall asleep as it's so soothing, Kept me up cause it's too interesting.

[@Eugenes84]

Amazing game. I hope more people discover Snatcher and Policenauts.

[@zeliardforty-two4692]

Always interesting seeing the original of such a classic! One day I might actually find a way to play this, so thank you for the no spoilers review! And yes, I will be back for your next review 😊

[@RaymondKarlVeasey75]

The Only Version I Ever Played Was The Sega CD. I Have Very Fond Memories Of This Game. Awesome Video!

[@JimLeonard]

This was really fantastic, very well explained. I'd always wondered about the original and how it compares to the ports. Outstanding work!

[@MrCanon]

This was really fantastic to watch. Thanks for your hard work. 👍

[@RICHUNCLEPENNYBAGS77]

After all these years this video finally got me to play through Snatcher. Albeit on the PlayStation.

[@simondaniel4028]

Awesome vid. Watched nonstop. Played this maybe 15 years back and remember the whole thing. I bought this, in box w/ manual, at a used game store for 2.50USD [price sticker on the spine]. Lost it, and my Sega CDX (yeah, CDX, lol) in a flood.

[@goomba008]

Thanks for this detailed look. I played the MSX version because I wanted to try the original game without the extra scenario of the Sega-CD, and there isn't an english translation for the PC-88 version. But oh gawd, the loading between screens in the MSX version is MUCH slower than the PC-88. It was a fun and interesting game, but very painful to play

[@NoelComiX]

My fav. Part of Sunday afternoon, new basement bros.!

[@IkeSan]

Awesome video as always and more with how Japan computers used to type their characters.

[@daisukegori2112]

Your videos are true quality.

[@arvinrunstein5707]

Your intro scared my cat lol

[@Monhamd1000]

Snatcher is pretty underrated in every version!

[@MrZakuRetro]

I need some day play this game, thanks to make remember this with your great video.

[@pseudopulk3478]

Watching a full playthrough of Snatcher at night were the best 6 hours of my life

[@demounit]

snatcher is one of my all time favourite games. ive only ever played the sega cd version though.

[@gaspump]

I had toyed with this game for a few minutes a decade ago... this video inspired me to actually play it and finish it over the course of 3 very enjoyable nights. Some of the requirements to move on are on par with the worst of the PC point'n'clicks but I had a really good time.

[@BasementBrothers]

I can't disagree. Some of it is a little more ambiguous than it needs to be, especially for such a well-known widely played game. Thanks for watching.

[@blufudgecrispyrice8528]

Love the Bowl of Lentils collab!

[@MaximilienNoal]

Snatcher is amazing on the Mega CD. ❤

[@GeminiJay654]

Phenomenal work per usual!!

[@thebigpicture4372]

Fantastic. Liked and Subscribed. I love that Snatcher music.

[@henrickrw]

My respects to you and the Japanese language. Own this on Sega CD. It's a pitty they didn't translate the 3DO version. I'm so happy I could get the ps1 translated version of Policenauts which is another Masterpiece

[@BasementBrothers]

3DO has Policenauts, but not Snatcher... :(

[@henrickrw]

@@BasementBrothers Correct. I mixed up there

[@astrades2601]

As always great video. I didn't played Snatcher or any Kojima's games and cyberpunk isn't exactly my favorite genre, but there is my thought to try it sometime. It seems that it's legendary game for many players who played it.

[@duckywenselcomedy]

Excellent Review and Overview! Thank you!

[@lancelnce]

I've never heard of this game, sounds pretty good

[@falsebaroness]

Friggin' sweet video, fellas.

[@Wyrdwad]

That was way more informative than I was even expecting! I own and have completed SD Snatcher, but have never actually played OG Snatcher in any form -- and SD Snatcher is not a particular favorite of mine, as I find many of the gameplay systems in place to be extremely questionable (the battle system is really fun and novel at first, but gets REALLY old REALLY fast, and enemies randomly side-stepping your shots never fails to make me yell profanities at my screen since ALL IT EVER ACCOMPLISHES is just wasting your time!). Nonetheless, I've always found the story, atmosphere, characters, and world of Snatcher to be really intriguing, so I can't help but think of the game somewhat fondly despite its issues -- and I've been curious about the OG version for a long time. This video definitely told me everything I think I need to know about it, and made me more interested than ever in getting my hands on some copy or another to check out at some point. ...As an aside, I caught that brief flash of Stone of Agni in there, too! That's a game I've been VERY intrigued by for a bit now, as I love the real-time gameplay and general structure of it. Guessing by the fact that you showed it that it's in your PC-88 collection? I'd love to see a video on that one at some point for sure!

[@cristianguanziroli3648]

Thanks for another awesome review! But im thinking that SD Snatcher needs his own video, not just a mention. And yes, it was the first game ever patched to another language.

[@dbzeh6837]

Amazing episode.

[@pierceprzybyla1275]

This is by far one of my favorite games of all time

[@vidarlystadjohansen9829]

Great channel

[@Interference22]

"When I saw Jesus I was convinced that I had to develop Snatcher for the PC-8801." That's definitely ending up on a "Hideo Kojima Out of Context" Twitter account.

[@MCHH-ml2qq]

Definitely going to save this video, actually attempted emulating this on a PC88 emulator years ago but don't fully understand Japanese so couldn't get past the disk swap screen (didn't realize thats what it was asking for) and just picked up a repro of the sega cd version instead.

[@Co_dD]

Wow, very nice review. Didn't know this version. I played the MegaCD back in the day, and fall in love with it. Later I played the Cobra - the space adventure on MegaCD but wasn't at the same level. Many years after that, I tried to play SD snatcher on a MSX emulator but didn't like it at all that kind of game. Recently I played the awesome Policenauts translation and get very disapointed with the story. The only game that get me hooked again was Rise of the Dragon for SegaCD, a couple of years after as an import. Snatcher was the game that get me hooked for a whole weekend spending 14 hours in two days, I was young and needed help from the translation dictonary. I played many times more and once I spend some time putting names from credits in the Junkers computer, and get some glitch the story advances but no one talks only moving the eyes and dont appears text in the dialogues, getting stuck at the far end when the Dr. Elijah ends. Love your channel, specially your NeoGeo reviews and the quality of the in the old days. Would be nice to see something like Dead of the Brain 1 & 2, looked nice but I can`t do japanese. Please apologize my english.

[@BasementBrothers]

Coincidentally, I was just looking at my copy of Dead of the Brain 1 a second a go and thinking about it. If I made a video now it would have to be just the first one, not 1&2 since I don't have the second for PC-98.

[@Co_dD]

@@BasementBrothers Dunno nothing about this game, but long ago when they released 1&2 as the last pcengineCD game, I was very intrigued because remembered a lot to the Sega Snatcher. You have a really good taste for japan imports, always interesting.

[@drusiform]

the kana input sequence killed me

[@christiansnyder8761]

I remember trying to play Metal Gear circa 1990 and just not getting the nuance of "stealth". Part of that is just the port to NES. Anyway, I picked up MGS 8 years later and got hooked. That was definitely a game that met Kojima's want for people to get fully engrossed in a game. I had heard of Santcher around then and thought of it as a Manga BladeCenter, but this sound like so much more. Thanks!

[@Choops6969]

this is great thank you.

[@royb5820]

This was delicious. Excellent work.

[@Vulpas]

10:37 hilarious editing lol

[@popixel]

I would love to see an updated version of snatcher. I see updated, but even what I have in my mind was still white deeded compared to what the new today.

[@Conan_the_Based]

19:30 - Ah, yes. The precursor to the MGS3 opening sequence where nearly every role was "Hideo Kojima"

[@clessili]

Jean Jack Gibson doesn't have a middle name. "Jean-Jacques" is a fairly popular (although very old-sounding nowadays) first name in France. Kojima might have gotten the name from singer Jean-Jacques Goldman.

[@Michael_Geyre]

Thanks for your video I have completed all snatcher versions long ago, just being curious but also, I wanted to see their adaptations of metal gear transformed into various consoles during ending scenes

[@pinowsky]

I’ve been fumbling around in TaoBao lately hesitating whether to buy a copy of Snatcher for the Sega Saturn. Now I know it’s not great, but perhaps it’s worth it for the manual, idk. Anyways, awesome video. This time I got to thank “the algorithm”.

[@samghost13]

That Game needs a Remake! I really liked it! At the moment i play it on my Phone with AMD Link Thank you for showing some Love for Snatcher

[@madson-web]

Oh boy here we go!

[@fordesponja]

This was one of the killer apps on the Mega CD. I remember reading about it in magazines back in the day but when I finally had a second hand Mega CD in 97 I couldn't find a copy. I had to burn an iso to play it years later.

[@yeahsamweller8671]

Looking at that mini sega cd is so cute!!!

[@mr.pavone9719]

I played the Sega CD version and given the point & click nature of the game, I feel any cuts they made were worth it.

[@elnico135]

I love your videos 💚

[@ungabungus01]

That quote by Kojima about making a game you'd sacrifice your time to play is damn hilarious considering death stranding is the polar opposite of that mentality LMAO

[@piercebros]

Good one

[@ncnuggets]

He also once said he would never make a metal gear with hack and slash style beat em up a few years prior to releasing MG Rising.

[@lostglaceon9274]

​@@ncnuggets ...I mean, he didn't make the MGR:R we got, so his point still stands.

[@ncnuggets]

@@lostglaceon9274 he was acting supervision. I would post the definition of supervision but I think you get it.

[@lostglaceon9274]

@@ncnuggets He was incredibly uninvolved in terms of the actual game itself. Kojima isn't often in charge of spinoffs in a director or writer role, but that _especially_ applies to Revengeance.

[@quarkbent9165]

I always found it strange that this 'all important task force' has two active officers... well, one...

[@gaminggoddess85]

I feel like at some point the boss says there's other Junkers besides Gillian and Jean but maybe I'm wrong.

[@AncientElectronics]

I like how it's kind of an unwritten rule of KZbin that if you have quotes in a video you can't read them yourself. They must be read by another KZbinr that makes content in roughly the same genre.

[@jimmelton5846]

Good video and a great game.

[@rebalblazinghard]

we need a ps5/etc port from the sega cd version.

[@Fervillamen2]

" A gun can solved any problem"

[@Rubycon99]

It's crazy how expensive the Sega CD version has gotten. It went for around $80 when I got it in 2005, and that seemed a little pricey. I thought I made a nice little profit when I sold it for $120 in 2010. I needed some extra cash, and I could always just buy it again someday, right? Well, let's just say I'm glad Sega CD doesn't have any copy protection.