Game no Tetsujin: The Shanghai

Game no Tetsujin: The Shanghai (“Iron Man Game: The Shanghai”) is a puzzle/board game for the Super Famicom, Saturn, and PlayStation (later released on PlayStation Network), and is based on Shanghai, or mahjong solitaire. It was released exclusively in Japan.

The game features three different modes:

Classic “Shanghai” Mahjong Solitaire, where the player can remove any two tiles as long as they match and both have a free horizontal side and aren’t trapped with a piece on top.

“Chinhai” or “Sichuan” Mahjong Solitaire, where the player can only remove paired tiles if they can be connected with an invisible line that bends at a 90 degree angle two times or fewer. This mode features stacked tiles, unusual for games with this variant, but has the benefit of instantly removing any paired tiles that are touching.

Shikinjoh, A unique block-pushing mode where the player has an avatar and must make their way to the exit of the board by pushing certain mahjong tiles. When a mahjong tile connects to another like it, both tiles vanish. If it connects to a different tile, it’ll change to that tile. Some tiles cannot be pushed, and if a pushable tile connects to one, it too will be immovable and the player may end up trapped. They do not have to remove all the tiles on the board – the only goal is to reach the end.

The game’s story mode alternates through these three modes, and the player can also play any of the three modes directly from the main menu.