Space Harrier

G
Sega Game Gear 0 subscribers
Manual

18K plays 1985 #Action#Shooter

Space Harrier is a rail shooter developed by Sega and released in 1985 as an arcade video game. The player navigates surreal landscapes while defeating enemies as a jet-propelled human character. Designed by Yu Suzuki, it was conceived as a realistic military-themed combat flight simulation game, but technical and memory restrictions resulted in Suzuki redesigning it around a fantasy setting. The arcade game is controlled by an analog flight stick while the deluxe arcade cabinet is a cockpit-style linear actuator motion simulator cabinet that pitches and rolls during play, for which it is referred as a taikan (体感) or "body sensation" arcade game in Japan.

It was a commercial success in arcades, becoming one of Japan's top two highest-grossing upright/cockpit arcade games of 1986 (along with Sega's Hang-On). Critically praised for its innovative graphics, gameplay and motion cabinet, Space Harrier is often ranked among Suzuki's best works. It has made several crossover appearances in other Sega titles, and inspired a number of clones and imitators, while Capcom and PlatinumGames director Hideki Kamiya cited it as an inspiration for him entering the video game industry.

From Wikipedia's article Space Harrier, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Keyboard controls

Game GearPlayer 1
D-pad↑↓←→
Button 1Z
Button 2X
StartEnter

Hotkeys

  • 1 Quick save state
  • 2 Quick load state
  • 3 Change save slot

Gamepads are detected when you press a button. Remap any key from the emulator’s Controls menu (gear icon).

Emulator help & troubleshooting

Comments

Live chat

Connecting…

Chatting as a guest · Sign in to use your name
0/300

Keyboard controls

Game GearPlayer 1
D-pad↑↓←→
Button 1Z
Button 2X
StartEnter

Hotkeys

  • 1 Quick save state
  • 2 Quick load state
  • 3 Change save slot

Gamepads are detected when you press a button. Remap any key from the emulator’s Controls menu (gear icon).

Emulator help & troubleshooting

Videos

Go live

Let anyone watch you play, live in their browser. They see your game as you play it.

Press Start Game first.

Space Harrier II Sega Genesis / Mega Drive 12K plays • 1988
Galaga 2 Sega Game Gear 111K plays • 1987
T2: The Arcade Game Sega Game Gear 690K plays • 1991
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf Sega Game Gear 62K plays • 1992
Predator 2 Sega Game Gear 30K plays • 1992
Astro Warrior Sega Master System 57K plays • 1986
After Burner II Sega Genesis / Mega Drive 59K plays • 1987
Fantasy Zone Sega Master System 48K plays • 1986
TransBot Sega Master System 20K plays • 1985
Commando Atari 2600 94K plays • 1985
Rambo: First Blood Part II Sega Master System 47K plays • 1986
Ninja Princess Sega SG-1000 26K plays • 1985
The Ninja Sega Master System 40K plays • 1986
OutRun Sega Game Gear 758K plays • 1986
Fantasy Zone II: The Tears of Opa-Opa Sega Master System 34K plays • 1987
After Burner Sega Master System 62K plays • 1987
Gunstar Heroes Sega Game Gear 63K plays • 1993
Carnival Atari 2600 46K plays • 1982
Golgo 13 Sega SG-1000 16K plays • 1984
Orguss Sega SG-1000 14K plays • 1984

Pixel Verdict

Space HarrierGame Gear

3.5 Good job

Critics 75 · 2 reviews

What the reviews talk about

Key wordseasyoriginalweirddifficultfaithfulcomplex

What the critics said

  • Computer and Video Games called the port "an entirely unpretentious computer game full of weird and wacky nasties".

    — Computer and Video Games

  • Paul Mellerick of Sega Force wrote that the Game Gear version was "amazingly close to the original... the scrolling's the speediest and smoothest ever seen".

    — Sega Force, 1992 (Paul Mellerick)

  • That same year, IGN's Levi Buchanan opined: "Even today, Space Harrier is a sight to behold, a hellzapoppin' explosion of light, color, and imagination".

    — IGN, 2008 (Levi Buchanan)

  • Kotaku named the Space Harrier tribute stage from Bayonetta in their 2013 selection of "the trippiest video game levels".

    — Kotaku, 2013

  • Ed Semrad of The Milwaukee Journal gave the Master System port a 9/10 rating, and Computer Gaming World deemed it "the best arcade shoot-'em-up of the year... as exciting a game as this reviewer has ever played".

    — Computer Gaming World, 1987· about another version

  • Lucas Thomas of IGN rated the 2008 Wii port a 4.5 score out of 10, citing its "poor visuals and poor control" and "dulled" color palette.

    — IGN, 2008 (Lucas Thomas)· about another version

  • Jeff Gerstmann of Giant Bomb, in his review of Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection, criticized the Space Harrier emulation's "numerous audio issues that make it sound completely different from the way the original game sounds".

    — Giant Bomb, 2009 (Jeff Gerstmann)· about another version

From the Reception section of Wikipedia's Space Harrier article, under CC BY-SA 4.0. The words are the critics'; their full reviews are on the publishers' pages.

Scores

  • AllGame 2014 4.5/5 (32X) ; 2.5/5 (PC) ; 4.5/5 (SMS) ; 3/5 (T16) ; 3/5 (Wii)
  • Next Generation 1995 3/5 (32X) (other versions)
  • Crash 1986 77% (ZX) (other versions)
  • Computer and Video Games 1986 Positive (arcade) ; 82% (Amiga) ; 35/40 (CPC) ; 78% (SMS) ; 89% (T16) ; 34/40 (ZX)
  • GamePro 4/5 (32X) (other versions)
  • GameSpy 2008 9/10 (SMS) (other versions)
  • IGN 2008 4.5/10 (Wii) (other versions)
  • Micromanía 1987 8/10 (SMS) (other versions)
  • Sinclair User 1986 Positive (arcade) ; 5/5 (ZX) (other versions)
  • Tilt 1987 16/20 (SMS) (other versions)
  • Your Sinclair 1987 9/10 (ZX) (other versions)
  • Zzap!64 1989 85% (Amiga) (other versions)
  • Computer Gamer 1986 Positive (arcade)
  • Gamest 1986 19/24 (arcade) (other versions)

From the review table of Wikipedia's article. The face takes, first that applies: the Metascore for this platform, GameRankings' archived average, our average of the critics (one number per publication, a panel averaged), one review alone, the players' rating. Critics and players are never mixed.

Players' rating: 80/100 · 22 votes

Full reviews

Face key

  1. 1.00+
  2. 1.540+
  3. 2.050+
  4. 2.560+
  5. 3.068+
  6. 3.575+
  7. 4.080+
  8. 4.585+
  9. 5.090+

5.0 Outstanding! · 4.0 Great job! · 3.0 Good job · 2.0 Could be better · 1.0 Wake me up when it's over · A thumbs-up adds half a point. Our own drawings, in the spirit of the faces GamePro magazine used in the '90s.

Save to...