Shatterhand

While the core conceit is a guy who punches stuff with robot arms instead of shooting, there’s a surprising amount of Mega Man DNA present here, even beyond the selectable stage system. The enemy designs draw from a similar pool of stationary gunners (including in the iconic upwards three-way orientation), flying popcorn enemy spawners, and larger robots with slow or repetitive movement. While Shatterhand effortlessly shifts between horizontal and vertical scrolling sections, it still uses the breaks between them to shuffle its deck, plucking new obstacles out to throw at the player. The frequent switches in focus and close-quarters combat help highlight more aggressive strategies instead of letting players hang back or charge their weapons.

This works until the player gets one of the many option types, which often have projectiles that completely rip the game apart. Summoning one requires pulling three alpha- and beta-branded tokens from item boxes; the player can punch these tokens to change their symbol and line up the exact option they want. These hover above the main character Steve Hermann and offset to the right or left depending on his direction and movement state. With the option having its own hurtbox and health points, managing its position to avoid damage adds a small bit of flair, but generally the obstacles are not adequately designed around withstanding projectiles, and the player can bulldoze through enemies from a safe position.

Surprisingly, Area D, a filtration plant, has an end-of-stage area that has proper diagonal scrolling as compared to the strict vertical and horizontal areas from prior. Although the spike maze they use it for isn’t the most inspired selection, it doesn’t slow the pace, coming right after a vertical shaft with fans that blow you towards one side or the other. [src]

If you’re working your way through the levels irrespective of these power-ups,¹ the legitimacy of the design still shines through. While Hermann doesn’t have many tools to work with solo, his main grounded attack string transitions into slower, downward hooks that deal significantly more damage, further restraining the player from relying on hit-and-run tactics. Per stage he’s also given a fence/grate climb and the occasional ability to switch gravity in mid-air. While these initially seem like gimmicks, they reappear enough times (especially the former) that the designers can work a wide range of obstacles against them. Hermann must re-jump to move around on the fences, making quick repositioning difficult in response to quick-spawning popcorn enemies, while the gravity changing lets fastened turrets infest the surface area of a room to a higher degree. Both of these opens up multiple lanes for the player to fluidly choose between, and without these, the game would entirely stick to hallways with few auxiliary platforms, only alternating between wide-open outdoor areas and claustrophobic tunnels much like its inspirations. Another interesting wrinkle is that raw damage boosts (lost after too much damage is taken), health refills, and extra lives can be purchased on special platforms throughout each level; the money comes from killing enemies, encouraging the player to engage with them.

If the levels expanded little on this premise, it would tire easily, but thankfully their layouts elevate the simple mechanics. The clear standout, Area F, takes place in the burning ruins of a metropolis, with fire raining from the sky at the start and underground pipes ablaze once you seek shelter. Throughout the stage, soldiers in solo vertical takeoff vehicles pester you, taking many more hits than their compatriots on-foot. This escalates towards an elevator section with a twist: a turret on a rail below you cycles back and forth, clogging up the screen with missiles as you dodge spikes, dripping fire, and a couple more flying assailants along the way. It’s surprisingly modern and effortless in how it layers many different obstacle types to choke out the player. The other levels don’t reach these heights, but they have their own setting changes and gimmick sets, from underwater traversal to laboratory test tubes in your way that release large mutants upon breaking.