Another way the game surrounds you with life is by connecting you to a simulated network of information via the videophone and psuedo-database features. Gillian can call a host of different phone numbers using his videophone—ranging from serious inquires with suspects to gags like the "Love Line." You can call the local fire and police departments, you can call Jamie at home while she's still in bed—hell, even the developers of the game have their own videophone numbers (they're secret though). You can also access the developers' individual profiles through JORDAN (Junker Online Regional Data Access Network)—a computer system Gillian can use to help with his investigation. It acts as sort of an Internet simulation by which you can call up all sorts of information about the history, people and places of Neo Kobe—an idea that many games nowadays are imitating. With so much available at the touch of a button, Snatcher throws up the illusion that you can call anyone or do anything within its world—a prospect that gamers can only fantasize about usually.

The great thing about Snatcher is that it's more than a video game—it's an interactive graphic novel. Despite the heavy influence of modern cinema in the game, Snatcher does not try to be an interactive movie like many of the games that were released for Sega CD. Pictures and text are combined to tell a story in the same way a comic book would, but Snatcher is able to push the concept further by taking advantage of the many opportunities video games—or in this case, the Sega CD—afford. For instance, animation and voice is extensively employed in the game to give the characters and their world more texture and personality. During gameplay, characters speak through scrolling text at the bottom of the screen, but when the game takes a break to develop the story, the characters converse with each other through voice and animated talking heads. The realistic tones of voice and the exaggerated facial expressions allow the player to get a better grasp on the characters' true motivations—something that's just not possible in other media, not to mention the game consoles of the time that lacked Sega CD's technology. This way of storytelling also leaves plenty of room for humor, which Snatcher overflows with at times. Never in my life have I laughed so hard at characters sneezing—something that happens in Snatcher due to SNOW-9, a pollen that just happens to be present whenever Snatchers are around. It's funny not because it's a sneeze, but because of how it reveals things about the characters and the story.

Snatcher may be the only game to truly deliver on the idea of interactive storytelling. It also avoids all of the trappings that many story-heavy games have since fallen into. The writing and adaptation from the original Japanese is so good that you don't even think about what an achievement it is for the video-game industry. With so much reading required in the game, it's amazing how gripping the story remains throughout. Credit must be given to the game's supervisor, Jeremy Blaustein and translator, Scott T. Hards for making it seem as if Snatcher was originally developed for an American audience. The character voice-overs are at least as good as any animated film. A veritable cast of no-names turn in incredibly convincing performances—certainly going above and beyond anything the industry had previously seen—predating the standard set by Kojima's own Metal Gear Solid by more than four years.