History VisualNovel / Snatcher

* UpdatedRerelease: Since the original [=PC-88=] and [=MSX2=] versions released in 1988 were ObviousBeta[=s=], Kojima and his team saw fit to remake the game four years later as a CD-ROM title for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]], adding not only the originally planned ending, but also improved graphics and voice acting. The PC Engine version was released as ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. The later Sega CD localization and PS/Saturn re-releases are based on this version.

* OffModel: There's a subtle, but notable visual oversight in the console versions of ''Snatcher'' that wasn't present in the original 8-bit home computer releases. Upon discovering [[spoiler:Cunningham]]'s decaying corpse [[spoiler:in Queens Hospital's morgue]], the 8-bit versions show the skull with almost all of its teeth removed. [[TruthInTelevision Removing teeth post-mortem is a common real-life way of making it harder to identify a body,]] and fits right in with the Snatchers' MO. However, in the 16- and 32-bit versions, [[spoiler:Cunningham]]'s teeth are all still present. Metal Gear still comments on how the bodies in the morgue can't be identified via their teeth in the console versions, seemingly emphasizing the blooper, but he then {{Hand Wave}}s the graphical error by stating that the teeth have been "deliberately misaligned" in order to prevent identification.

* PeekABangs: Isabella Velvet.

Fifty years later, sophisticated bioroid robots, colloquially known as "Snatchers," begin appearing in the artificial island city of [[NewNeoCity Neo Kobe]] off the [[UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} Japanese coast]]. One by one, [[KillerRobot these beings start killing off the city's population,]] and with the help of their advanced artificial skin, are able to seamlessly [[KillAndReplace replace their victims]] in society at large. Nobody knows exactly where Snatchers come from or what they ultimately seek to accomplish. However, a man named Gillian Seed, who is an amnesiac discovered in Siberia by the Russian military three years before the story begins, is convinced that his past is somehow linked to the Snatchers. [[DesperatelySeekingAPurposeInLife With his marriage in crisis and his memories all but vanished,]] Gillian arrives in Neo Kobe City in December 2047[[note]]''née'' 2042[[/note]] to put a stop to the Snatcher menace, learn the truth behind their invasion, and hopefully, uncover his ''own'' past as well.

''[[caption-width-right:350:All controversy begins with [[ParanoiaFuel DOUBT]].]]''

'''''Snatcher''''' is an adventure game written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It uses a menu-driven interface similar to other Japanese adventure games, with ocassional shooting sequences that uses a 3x3 grid (originally designed for aiming with a numeral keypad). First released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988, these two early versions were text-only and ended the story at Act 2, [[SequelHook which was intended to set up a sequel that never got made]]. Instead, Konami ended up remaking the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version redrew the game's visuals to better suit the console's specifications, and added voice acting to certain key scenes in the story, with the game's soundtrack being composed of a mix of chip-generated and redbook music. It also adds a third act that concludes the story set up by the previous two acts, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

* OffModel: There's a subtle, but notable visual oversight in the console versions of ''Snatcher'' that wasn't present in the original 8-bit home computer releases. Upon discovering [[spoiler:Cunningham]]'s decaying corpse [[spoiler:in Queens Hospital's morgue]], the 8-bit versions show the skull with almost all of its teeth removed. [[TruthInTelevision Removing teeth post-mortem is a common real-life way of making it harder to identify a body,]] and fits right in with the Snatchers' MO. However, in the 16- and 32-bit versions, [[spoiler:Cunningham]]'s teeth are all still present. Metal Gear still comments on how the bodies in the morgue can't be identified via their teeth in the console versions, seemingly emphasizing the blooper, but he then HandWave{{s}} the graphical error by stating that the teeth have been "deliberately misaligned" in order to prevent identification.

* ScareChord: Two different ones can be heard throughout the game. Happens during jumpscares and plot twists.

* SeanConneryIsAboutToShootYou: [[spoiler:The original home computer versions from 1988 end with a shot of Gillian aiming and shooting his gun towards the screen.]]

* SettingUpdate: All the dates in the Sega CD were moved five years ahead from the Japanese version. Thus, the date of the Catastrophe was moved from June 6, 1991 to 1996 (allowing the translation to shoehorn a [[NumberOfTheBeast 666]] reference,) while the actual year the game takes place was changed from 2042 to 2047. This was because the English version was made in 1994, three years after the date when the Catastrophe took place in the Japanese version.

* LighterAndSofter: Played straight in the form of ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'', an RPG remake of ''Snatcher'' done in ''[[SuperDeformed chibi]]" style and released exclusively for the UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 in 1990.

* MasterOfDisguise: Subverted and then lampshaded. [[spoiler:Napoleon]] is ''almost'' one of these, but ultimately just wants to amuse himself. [[spoiler:Besides being a JUNKER informant, he works nights as the doorman at Outer Heaven while wearing a werewolf mask. His outgoing videophone message features a picture of himself wearing said mask, so he's clearly not ''that'' interested in hiding his identity. That, combined with his distinctive sneezing both in and out of disguise, makes it easy for Gillian to figure out that Napoleon was Outer Heaven's doorman all along. (The game helps telegraph all this in advance, when Napoleon shows up for his second meeting with Gillian in a Santa outfit, armed with packs of promotional freebie tissues.)]]

** [[spoiler:The original 8-bit computer versions have one more of these; lost during the transition to consoles. When Gillian boots up Jean-Jack's PC to load the floppy disk, the game gives the player the option to "crash" the machine. Choosing this option will result in an authentic-looking game over screen, which stings harder in the 8-bit versions because these versions offer no continues. If the player waits about 30 seconds, Metal will tell Gillian that he gets another chance, and the game resumes.]]

** [[spoiler:This is gently telegraphed early in the game by an optional event in Gillian's apartment. If the player examines the framed photo on the living room shelf, it turns out to be a shot of (a very young) Jamie, at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Gillian is bewildered by the picture (even though he's in his own apartment), and Metal presumes it's a doctored image.]]

* CrusadingWidower: [[spoiler:Jean]] is out to avenge his wife, who was slain by the Snatchers.

'''''Snatcher''''' is an adventure game written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It uses a menu-driven interface similar to other Japanese adventure games, with ocassional shooting sequences that uses a 3x3 grid (originally designed for aiming with a numeral keypad). First released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988, these two early versions were text-only and ended the story at Act 2, [[SequelHook which was intended to set up a sequel that never got made]]. Instead, Konami ended up remaking the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version redrew the game's visuals to better suit the console's specifications, and added voice acting to certain key scenes in the series, with the game's soundtrack being composed of a mix of chip-generated and redbook music. It also adds a third act that concludes the story set up by the previous two acts, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: [[spoiler:Elijah Modnar]]'s younger design was redone for the Sega CD version by Tomiharu Kinoshita, as it was felt that the design used for the PC Engine version was a bit too unremarkable looking. [[spoiler:This does create a minor continuity issue during the flashbacks, where young Elijah still resembles his elderly self in the Japanese versions. In the Sega CD version, the resemblance is mostly gone.]]

* AdvertisedExtra: Isabella Velvet is one of the few characters outside the JUNKER crew to get a bio in the manual. Despite this, she's a OneSceneWonder who isn't even a voiced character in the console versions.

'''''Snatcher''''' is an adventure game written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It uses a menu-driven interface similar to other Japanese adventure games, with ocassional shooting sequences that uses a 3x3 grid (originally designed for aiming with a numeral keypad). First released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988, these two early versions were text-only and ended the story on a SequelHook at the end of Act 2, which was intended to lead to a sequel that never got made. Konami would instead remake the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version redrew the game's visuals to better suit the console's specifications, and added voice acting to certain key scenes in the series, with the game's soundtrack being composed of a mix of chip-generated and redbook music. It also adds a third act that concludes the story set up by the previous two acts, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

'''''Snatcher''''' is an adventure game written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It uses a menu-driven interface similar to other Japanese adventure games, with ocassional shooting sequences that uses a 3x3 grid (originally designed for the numeral keypad in mind). First released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988, these two early versions were text-only and ended the story on a SequelHook at the end of Act 2, which was intended to lead to a sequel that never got made. Konami would instead remake the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version redrew the game's visuals to better suit the console's specifications, and added voice acting to certain key scenes in the series, with the game's soundtrack being composed of a mix of chip-generated and redbook music. It also adds a third act that concludes the story set up by the previous two acts, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

'''''Snatcher''''' is a adventure game written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It uses a menu-driven interface similar to other Japanese adventure games, with ocassional shooting sequences that uses a 3x3 grid (originally designed for the numeral keypad in mind). First released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988, these two early versions were text-only and ended the story on a SequelHook at the end of Act 2, which was intended to lead to a sequel that never got made. Konami would instead remake the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version redrew the game's visuals to better suit the console's specifications, and added voice acting to certain key scenes in the series, with the game's soundtrack being composed of a mix of chip-generated and redbook music. It also adds a third act that concludes the story set up by the previous two acts, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

'''''Snatcher''''' is a groundbreaking visual novel written and directed by Creator/HideoKojima early in his career, set in a CyberPunk universe (with clear ''Film/BladeRunner'' overtones), and with all of the quirkiness Kojima eventually became known for. It includes more than a couple ShoutOut[=s=] to other Creator/{{Konami}} games and the ''Franchise/MetalGear'' series. The game was first released in UsefulNotes/{{Japan}} for the UsefulNotes/PC88 and UsefulNotes/{{MSX}}2 computer platforms in 1988. These first two releases ended the story on a SequelHook at the end of Act 2, but no sequel was actually made. Instead, Konami remade the game as an RPG for the [=MSX2=] titled ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'' in [=1990=], which depicted the characters in a [[SuperDeformed chibi]] art-style, but also concluded the story in its own manner. Kojima would later revisit the original ''Snatcher'' in 1992, with a remake for the [[UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] Super CD-ROM[[superscript:2]] add-on titled ''Snatcher [=CD-ROMantic=]''. This version updated the graphics to 16-bit standards, and added CD-quality music and voice acting to certain scenes. It also finally concluded the story with the added Act 3, which drew some of its plot elements from ''SD Snatcher'''s extended ending.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: [[spoiler:Elijah Modnar]]'s younger design was redone for the Sega CD version by Tomiharu Kinoshita, as it was felt that the design used for the PC Engine version was a bit too unremarkable looking.
** [[spoiler:This does create a minor continuity issue during the flashbacks, where young Elijah still resembles his elderly self in the Japanese versions. In the Sega CD version, the resemblance is mostly gone.]]

* OffModel: There's a subtle, but notable visual oversight in the console versions of ''Snatcher'' that wasn't present in the original 8-bit home computer releases. [[spoiler:Upon discovering Cunningham's decaying corpse in Queens Hospital's morgue, the 8-bit versions show the skull with almost all of its teeth removed. [[TruthInTelevision Removing teeth post-mortem is a common real-life way of making it harder to identify a body,]] and fits right in with the Snatchers' MO. However, in the 16- and 32-bit versions, Cunningham's teeth are all still present.]]
** [[spoiler:Metal Gear still comments on how the bodies in the morgue can't be identified via their teeth in the console versions, seemingly emphasizing the blooper, but he then HandWave{{s}} the graphical error by stating that the teeth have been "deliberately misaligned" in order to prevent identification.]]

* OlderThanTheyLook: [[spoiler:Taken UpToEleven as one of the major bombshells of the plot. If you do the numbers, Gillian is actually 79 years old, and Jamie is 77.[[note]]The actual dates, per the Japanese versions of the game: Gillian and Jamie are "estimated" to be 31 and 29 during the game's events in December 2042. They were recovered three years earlier in 2039, when they would have been "estimated" to be 28 and 26. We learn that their recovery happened immediately following several decades of cryogenic stasis, which began in 1991 after the Catastrophe and would have left their apparent ages untouched. Therefore, their true ages can be calculated by taking their ages in 1991 (28 and 26) and adding 48 years of stasis (1991 to 2039), plus three more years of time before the game itself begins. (Move all these dates forward by five years for the Sega CD version.)[[/note]] Both of them have spent the majority of their lives in cryogenic stasis, and therefore still look like thirty-somethings. This is revealed by Metal at the start of Act 3, and expounded upon by Elijah Modnar later in the Act. Therefore, this means that Gillian and Jamie were born in 1963 and 1965, respectively (or 1968 and 1970 in the Sega CD version). Elijah spent only ten years in stasis, and the difference is plainly obvious.]]

%%* NiceHat: Harry's red cap.

** After [[spoiler:Random sets off his explosives in an effort to destroy Chin Shu Oh and his Snatchers in Queens Hospital,]] Gillian and Metal end up being stuck inside a dark air duct. When Metal turns on his searchlight, it shows Gillian in a awkward pose with a frustrated expression and his legs sticking out in the earlier versions. This shot was cut completely removed from the Sega CD version and in the later 32-bit versions it was replaced by a new shot of [[spoiler:disembodied bioroid head that flew by them as a result of the explosion.]]

* HairColorDissonance: Katrina's hair color is [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair blue]] in the game, even though it's listed as "dark brown" in the ''Snatcher Pilot Disk'' and colored that way in most official illustrations while Lisa Nielsen (a witness in Act 1) is described as being raven-haired by Metal, despite her hair being green in-game.

* TheCameo: Played with, as said cameos are Outer Heaven customers in cosplay. The PC-8801, [=MSX=2] and PC Engine versions featured various lawyer-baiting sci-fi movie cameos, while the later console versions played it more safe with Konami characters.

* TheCameo: Played with, as said cameos are Outer Heaven customers in cosplay. The [=MSX2=] and PC-8801 versions featured various lawyer-baiting sci-fi movie cameos, while the later CD-based versions played it more safe with Konami characters.

%%* TheGreatPoliticsMessUp: The game predicts the destruction of the Soviet Union by an airborne biological weapon in 1991 in the Japanese version and 1996 in the English version. Never mind the fact that the Soviet Union was dissolved by the time the English version was released in 1994. (The original [=PC88=] version was released three years before the Union's collapse.)

* HandWave: Despite the game's verbosity, especially for its era, the actual ''mechanics'' of a "snatch" are never fully explained. In fairness, these details would have no bearing on the plot, but it's still surprising considering how intricate the storyline becomes by the end. Is the target abducted, and then killed at [[spoiler:Queens Hospital, the location of their morgue]]? Are they always abducted in public? We learn that [[spoiler:Outer Heaven]] is a popular location for snatching, but how does this work? An abduction from such a place is plausible, but certainly not an outright murder on the spot? How exactly are targets murdered? [[spoiler:(Snatchers not only have SuperStrength, they can also shoot [[BreathWeapon lasers out of their mouths.]])]] Who brings the bodies back to [[spoiler:Queens Hospital's morgue]]? (The target's own Snatcher?) Although certain presumptions can be made, these questions are all technically left unanswered by the game's end.

* DudeNotFunny: Judging by her outgoing videophone message, Jamie has one ''wicked'' sense of humor.