Shatter (video game)
Encyclopedia
Shatter is a video game developed
and published
by Sidhe Interactive
for the PlayStation 3
via the PlayStation Store
, and for the PC via Steam and onlive
. Shatter is a reimagining of the classic block-breaking Arkanoid
gameplay mechanic, with the addition of physics forces "Suck" and "Blow" to give the player control of the ball and other physics-enabled objects.
On March 15, 2010, Shatter was released on the PC through Steam. The new release includes extra modes. The 8-bit influenced soundtrack for Shatter was composed by the electronic musician Module
, and has been featured in its own right by the Bandcamp
independent music website.
, the latter from which it borrows many features. The game area consists of a paddle, a ball and field of blocks. To clear a level, the player must destroy all of the blocks. In Shatter, this is most commonly done by guiding the ball into them but blocks can also be destroyed using the Shard Storm power-up, by hitting the blocks with the paddle itself, or by sucking in fragments with the shield enabled to create "ricochet" bullets.
As well as using the paddle to strike the ball, the player can also suck objects towards it or blow objects away. When a block is broken, it releases a number of shards which the players should collect in order to charge their Shard Storm bar. This can be done more efficiently by using the suck function to pull shards towards the paddle. The player collects these shards using the paddle. The suck and blow functions also affect the balls trajectory so can be used to more accurately guide the ball to specific targets. Some blocks also react to the in-game physics and will move towards or away from the paddle as the suck and blow actions are used. The player can activate a shield around the paddle which will destroy blocks on contact however, this also drains power from the Shard Storm meter. If a block hits the paddle when the shield is not activated the player loses control of the paddle for a few moments.
Some blocks contain power-ups. All power-ups in the game are positive and trigger functions such as doubling the number of shards on the screen, making the ball more easily maneuverable or give the player an extra life. The player collects these power ups by catching them with the paddle.
Players can also release multiple balls into the arena at once. While this allows the player to collect points and clear the stage more quickly, it also makes the game more difficult.
for the PlayStation 3 version and 84 for the PC version. It was nominated by 1UP.com
as one of the most innovative games at E3 2009. 1UP.com later scored the game B in their review calling it "a fine interpretation of the old brick-breaker style" and praising the introduction of new and interesting gameplay mechanics to classic brick-breaker game genre. However reviewer Ray Barnholt did criticise the game's length saying that it could be completed in a couple of days. Game Freaks 365 noted the similarities to Breakout, but claims that it "deserves a more respectful title than clone," giving it an 8.7 out of 10.
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
and published
Video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....
by Sidhe Interactive
Sidhe Interactive
Sidhe is a game development studio based in Wellington, New Zealand.Sidhe is an officially licensed developer for Microsoft , Sony Computer Entertainment Europe , and Nintendo of America . It is also a co-founding member of the New Zealand Game Developers Association...
for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
via the PlayStation Store
PlayStation Store
The PlayStation Store is an online virtual market available to users of Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable game consoles via the PlayStation Network. The Store offers a range of downloadable content both for purchase and available free of charge. Available content includes full games,...
, and for the PC via Steam and onlive
OnLive
OnLive is a cloud gaming platform: the games are synchronized, rendered, and stored on remote servers and delivered via the Internet.The service is available using the OnLive Game System, PCs running Microsoft Windows and Intel-based Macs with OS X 10.5.8 or later...
. Shatter is a reimagining of the classic block-breaking Arkanoid
Arkanoid
is an arcade game developed by Taito in 1986. It is based upon Atari's Breakout games of the 1970s. The title refers to a doomed "mothership" from which the player's ship, the Vaus, escapes.-Overview:...
gameplay mechanic, with the addition of physics forces "Suck" and "Blow" to give the player control of the ball and other physics-enabled objects.
On March 15, 2010, Shatter was released on the PC through Steam. The new release includes extra modes. The 8-bit influenced soundtrack for Shatter was composed by the electronic musician Module
Module (Musician)
Module was created in 2003 by Award Winning Wellington-based New Zealand Multi-instrumentalist/Producer Jeramiah Ross. He performs and records a variety of musical styles from electro, downtempo, ambient, classical and synthesizer-based compositions, taking full advantage of the advances in modern...
, and has been featured in its own right by the Bandcamp
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is an online music store, as well as a platform for artist promotion, that caters mainly for independent artists. Artists on Bandcamp have a customizable microsite with the albums they upload. All tracks can be played for free on the website and some artists offer free music downloads...
independent music website.
Gameplay
Gameplay is based around that of other block-breaking games such as Breakout, Arkanoid and Ricochet InfinityRicochet Infinity
Ricochet Infinity is the fourth installment in the Ricochet video game series by Reflexive Entertainment. As its preceding titles Ricochet Xtreme , Ricochet Lost Worlds and Ricochet Lost Worlds: Recharged , it is a Breakout clone. As in Atari's Breakout game, the purpose of each level is to...
, the latter from which it borrows many features. The game area consists of a paddle, a ball and field of blocks. To clear a level, the player must destroy all of the blocks. In Shatter, this is most commonly done by guiding the ball into them but blocks can also be destroyed using the Shard Storm power-up, by hitting the blocks with the paddle itself, or by sucking in fragments with the shield enabled to create "ricochet" bullets.
Some blocks contain power-ups. All power-ups in the game are positive and trigger functions such as doubling the number of shards on the screen, making the ball more easily maneuverable or give the player an extra life. The player collects these power ups by catching them with the paddle.
Players can also release multiple balls into the arena at once. While this allows the player to collect points and clear the stage more quickly, it also makes the game more difficult.
Reception
Shatter received favorable critical reviews with a metascore of 86 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
for the PlayStation 3 version and 84 for the PC version. It was nominated by 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
as one of the most innovative games at E3 2009. 1UP.com later scored the game B in their review calling it "a fine interpretation of the old brick-breaker style" and praising the introduction of new and interesting gameplay mechanics to classic brick-breaker game genre. However reviewer Ray Barnholt did criticise the game's length saying that it could be completed in a couple of days. Game Freaks 365 noted the similarities to Breakout, but claims that it "deserves a more respectful title than clone," giving it an 8.7 out of 10.