Silhouette Mirage is a 2D side-scrolling run and gun game developed by Treasure, originally developed for the Sega Saturn and released exclusively in Japan in 1997. A Playstation version with gameplay changes was then released in 1998, and that version received an English translation by Working Designs which was released in North America in 2000.
Gameplay[]
The player controls Shyna Nera Shyna, a character with a robust set of moves on top of a diverse arsenal. She can jump multiple times in the air as well as run up slopes, walls and ceilings. Shyna can also grab enemies up close and pummel them, causing them to drop credits (the game's currency) if they hold any. She can then throw them in a variety of directions, though this deals no damage.
To damage enemies, Shyna can access a variety of ranged weapons through the use of seven different power-ups called Parasites. These change the weapon she uses as well as her Parasite Bomb attack, which is very powerful but costly. Parasites can be purchased from the various shops throughout the game, and they come in six power levels, with higher levels appearing in the shops in later stages at higher prices.
The standout mechanic of Silhouette Mirage is in its name: there are two attributes enemies can have, Silhouette or Mirage. Attacks from one attribute can harm the other, while attacks that hit the same attribute will instead drain the target's spirit, which is what they use to attack. Shyna harnesses both attributes in a specific way: she is either Silhouette or Mirage depending on whether she is facing to the left or the right. This is easily telegraphed in the color of her outfit, blue being Silhouette and red being Mirage. This requires the player to position themselves in a way where they can hit enemies from the correct side to damage them. It is possible to check which attribute each enemy is and plan accordingly by using Gehena, an aid system built into Shyna. Some enemies don't have an attribute, causing them to be labeled as "normal" by Gehena. These enemies may require more complicated methods to defeat them. If push comes to shove, Shyna also has a reflector which projects outward when used; attacks that match its attribute will be reflected, causing them to deal damage to any enemies they hit. She can also swap the attribute that each of her sides correlate to, at the cost of some spirit.
Enemy attacks are also influenced by their user's attribute, which in turn affects Shyna if she is hit by them. If Shyna is hit by an attack opposite to her current attribute, she takes physical damage, and if hit by an attack that matches her attribute, her spirit is drained. These values are represented by two meters at the top left of the screen, which each cap at 300. As Shyna's spirit runs out, her attacks become weaker and her reflector smaller. If her physical strength hits 0, she is defeated, prompting the player to either use a continue or quit the game. Items that can restore these meters are available for purchase at the shops.
Plot[]
The plot revolves around Shyna Nera Shyna, the Messenger of Justice whose goal is to save the world by restoring Edo, meaning she'll restore the world to its point before it was destroyed. Shyna originally resides within a shelter in the Shamain region, which is far away from her destination. Her journey is spent traversing different areas to reach Edo, while encountering many foes who are ordered to stop her.
There are multiple endings that have two deciding factors. The first is whether Shyna defeats Zohar in the time limit during their last fight, and the second is whether Shyna chooses to leave or restore Edo.
SPOILERS
Choosing to save Edo after this results in a fight with Armageddon, a human who was experimented on before the world was destroyed, now desiring revenge. It is revealed that Hal and Megido are the two halves of Armageddon's being. Once Armageddon is defeated, the world is restored to how it was before, with only Shyna surviving as a being invisible to the world.
Choosing to leave Edo causes Megido to appear and kill Hal, wanting to usurp him. Shyna then fights him, as well as a mutated form of him. Once he is defeated, Shyna decides to restore the world herself, regardless of how long it will take.
If Shyna doesn't beat Zohar in the time limit, Hal will simply kill Zohar himself as he believes they're worthless to him. Instead, he will summon Serah to fight Shyna. Once Serah is defeated and Shyna chooses to restore Edo, Geluve will appear, killing Megido and then Hal. Once she is defeated, the restoration of Edo doesn't commence, so Shyna decides to restore the world herself.
NA Manual version[]
In the year 2000, the computer system known as "Edo" initiated an attack upon all living entities that came to be called "Armageddon." The Edo system was able to start a molecular change in the attributes that make up every living cell, causing genetic mutations. During this tragedy, the inhabitants of this world were separated into two classes: Silhouette and Mirage.
There were outbreaks of violence between the Silhouettes and the Mirages in every town almost immediately. During this chaotic time, two mysterious figures rose to take control of the Silhouettes and the Mirages.
Hal's brilliant military genius allowed him to quickly seize control of the Mirages' world. His focus was on building his empire, so he commissioned "Guardian Angels" to attack anyone that was a threat to him.
Megido seized the rulership of the Silhouettes. His wild and violent nature was a perfect fit with the behaviour of his subjects.
The "Messenger of Justice," Shyna Nera Shyna, remained in a dormant state during the failure of the Edo system.
Shyna is one of the few living creatures that still have both the attributes of Silhouette and Mirage. This allows her the special ability of being able to exist in the two worlds effortlessly.
After the catastrophe, Shyna was awakened from suspension and called to a mission. However, during her suspension period, parts of her memory were erased. She has forgotten some of her special combat skills, and perhaps most troubling of all, she has lost the location of the Edo system.
Shyna must travel through the worlds of Silhouette and Mirage in order to find the temperamental Edo system and repair it before the Silhouettes and the Mirages destroy her and the world she was designed to save.
Time is short, and the Edo system grows more unstable by the second. Will you have the skills and the reflexes to guide Shyna to her destiny?
Characters[]
- Shyna Nera Shyna: The protagonist and Messenger of Justice.
- Gehena: A computer program built into Shyna to aid her.
- Hal: The main antagonist who is always out to stop Shyna.
- Megido: Hal's brother and a minor antagonist, who actually wants Shyna to succeed.
- Bug: A villain turned ally; he helps Shyna by teleporting her to new areas.
- Zohar: A recurring boss and Shyna's rival, who also wields both attributes.
- Grigg: A shark sent to destroy the shelter Shyna resides in.
- Nardo: Leader of the Samurai Security Patrol.
- Goliath: A strong fighter, but not a smart thinker.
- Altar2 & Virtuer5: Small bullet enemies that power the attribute gun.
- Pablo: A young boy who resides in a castle given to him by Megido. He has two sides.
- Samson: Delia's chauffeur, who is very strong but not too smart.
- Sara: A TV show host that seems to be a cut-out of a bunny girl.
- Faust: A master of shadows from Media City.
- Delia: The host of a cooking show who uses his nose to attack.
- Yona Division: A group of neutral enemies from inside Prinsdams.
- Reaper: A secret boss only present in the Playstation version. Appears to challenge Shyna if she never dies.
- Polly Peepers: Small Mirage minions. They use guns and punching fists.
- Specters: Small Silhouette minions. They use bombs and hammers.
Guardian Angels[]
- Dynamis: The first guardian angel: a fish with a doll's head.
- Malak: The second guardian angel; its face is actually the end of the tongue of a lizard.
- Prinsdams: A double headed sheep dragon that is never actually fought by Shyna.
- Gargantuan: A large trash compactor that can only be hurt by making it consume Polly Peepers or Specters.
- Serah: A large humanoid butterfly and an extremely strong Guardian Angel.
- Geluve: A human who calls herself Hal's daughter. Only present in the Playstation version.
Parasites[]
- Surosa
- Priday
- Angara
- Grattoni
- Rasti
- Envia
- Cavitas
Unused Characters[]
- Judas
- Nebuchadnezzar
- Hashmalim04
- Geluve (Sega Saturn version)
Reception[]
Silhouette Mirage has an overall positive score on reviews and is often stated as a hidden gem.
The Sega Saturn version is praised but it is also noted how the combat can easily be broken with spamming or button mashing. The unbalanced power-ups were also a stated issue.
The PlayStation version has more divided reviews often because of the changes made to the game. Some reviewers dislike the game for how repetitive it can get when the enemies' health is higher and how the items were balanced in a strange way.
Versions[]
Silhouette Mirage was released on both Sega Saturn and Playstation, with the Saturn version coming first. The Sega Saturn version has more details in the presentation, such as more layers on background graphics and more complex music. Despite the reductions of the Playstation version, two new bosses were added: Geluve and Reaper (with Geluve being a scrapped boss from the original Sega Saturn game), as well as a new ending.
In Japan, the PlayStation version was renamed Silhouette Mirage: Reprogrammed Hope.
The North American PlayStation version had further additions, such as DualShock controller support and memory card selection, as well as a new mini-game where the player could control Zohar during the credits and a bonus game. The ending song was also dubbed and rewritten in English as well, and the animated opening and endings were remastered into a higher quality. The North American version also added stills from the animated opening to the loading screens, whereas they were simply black with the text 'Now Loading...' in the bottom left.
In the North American version, a lot of gameplay mechanics were changed. Shop items were repriced depending on their usefulness but were also overall cheaper than the Japanese version. Shyna's spirit in the Japanese version would go down whenever she used her power-up, but in the North American version her spirit would only drain with special attacks or if an enemy hit her with the same attribute that she is.
Unused content[]
Concept art from the Guidebook shows three designs for bosses that were never implemented into any version of Silhouette Mirage. These bosses are Hashmalim04, Nebuchadnezzar and Judas.
- Hashmalim04 is an unused Guardian Angel who would have likely used both attributes since their design has a red and blue side. Its name comes from a ranking of angel from Judaism, a theme throughout the Guardian Angels' original names.
- Nebuchadnezzar resembles a movie director, implying they were a planned boss for Media City. They are most likely named after Nebuchadnezzar II, a king of Babylon who destroyed Jerusalem.
- Judas has no notes for a boss fight unlike the other two, but they are mentioned to be an ally of Megido. Judas is named after one of Jesus' disciples who betrayed him, possibly implying that the character was meant to betray Megido.
In the Japanese version, the shop keeper uses a dialogue portrait with a burning cross in the background as well as a portrait where they hold a cigarette; this is unseen in the North American version due to censorship. The cross is replaced with a burning dragon, and the cigarette is simply replaced with the shop keeper's fist.
In the North American manual, the screenshot paired with the description of the Shamain stage depicts an unused enemy: a large humanoid mech with green and purple armor, wielding an axe with a blue blade. This enemy faces one of the bipedal mechs piloted by Polly Peepers in the final game. Given its use of a physical melee weapon to contrast the Polly Peepers' use of firearms, it is likely that these enemies could have been used by the Specters.
Credits[]
Voice Actors[]
Japanese version:[]
- 矢島 晶子, Akiko Yajima:シャイナ=ネラ=シャイナ(Sinna・Neutlarva・Sinner)
- 松井 菜桜子, Naoko Matsui:ゲヘナ(Gehenna)
- 難波 圭一, Keiichi Namba:ゾファルMT(Zohar-Metatron)
- 水谷 優子, Yuko Mizutani:ゾファルSP(Zohar-Sandalphon)
- 南 央美, Omi Minami:クロッド(Clod)
- 置鮎 龍太郎, Ryotaro Okiayu:ハール=バースクロッド(Har Birthclod)
- 増谷 康紀, Yasunori Masutani:メギド=バースクロッド(Megido Birthclod)
- 田中 一成, Kazunari Tanaka:グレゴリ(Grigori Shemhazai)
- 幸野 善之, Yoshiyuki Kono:パラケス(Paracelsus)
- 郷里 大輔, Daisuke Gori:ゴリアテ(Gollath the Philistin warrior)
- こおろぎ さとみ, Korogi Satomi:G・A デュナミス06(Dynamis)
North American version:[]
- Jackie Powers: Shyna
- Katherine Kirk: Gehena, Zohar Sandalphon
- Jenny Stigile: Dynamis
- Dean Williams: Delia, Megido
- Tammy Jones: Malak
- Blake Dorsey: Bug, Hal, Goliath, Grigg
- Keith Lack: Zohar Metatron
- Brandy Teske: Geluve
- John Haas: Nardo, Faust
- Dixie Garrett: Serah
Trivia[]
- The game has many biblical allegories in its story, characters and some of its mechanics: the plot revolves around a fallen world needing to be saved, most characters are named after figures in the bible, and the Parasites are named after the seven deadly sins.
- Many of these allegories are less explicit or removed in the English translation.
- The North American version has two different kinds of discs you can find with the game, so it's random which one you will have. One is of Hal and one is of Megido.
- It is rumored the discs content varies, but it may have just been a marketing ploy to make people buy more copies to have both discs.
- The North American credits erroneously swap the voice actors of Zohar Metatron and Zohar Sandalphon.
- The game's name was referenced in Gunstar Super Heroes, in a part of Golden Silver's dialogue.