The universe of Shatterzone shares some structural similarities to the Star Wars expanded universe including an intergalactic government called the Consortium (like the Republic from Star Wars) run from a central region of space known as the Core Worlds, large megacorps that run galactic affairs (a theme common in the cyberpunk genre of storytelling), and a super-industrialized capital world, called Centaurus, but similar to Star Wars' Coruscant.

The Shatterzone is home to cult worshippers, bands of alien exiles called "bolters" seeking to flee Armagon oppression, and groups of deep space miners looking to make a fortune off the rare minerals to be had in this unusual sector of space.

The development of coldsleep technology and mastery of nuclear fusion engines enable easy travel within our solar system, and the possibility of extrasolar colonization.

The overwhelming desire to escape the restrictions of life on Earth drive some to establish illegal "black" colonies without the consent of the government.

2486: The establishment of the Consortium of Worlds, a joint government of the homeworlds of the Humans, Glahn, and Ishantra.

Like the "Wild Die" in Savage Worlds, the player can roll an additional time per Critical until they get a result lower than "10".

The 17 red Subplot cards are used immediately by the Game Master to create a random event or encounter.

Like WEG's earlier Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game and TORG, the player chooses from archetypal templates (like "Megacorp Freelancer" or "Old Scout") rather than create a custom character.

Meanwhile, more experienced players can easily replace a deceased character in an ongoing adventure or campaign.

For those who want to take their chances, they can roll 2d10 on a table and get a random number of beginning Attribute and Skill points.

Toughness, the character's innate resistance to damage, is Shatterzone's equivalent to Hit Points.

Trained skills require that the person has to study or practice for a long time to familiarize themselves.

Because they have restrictions, they cost half as much as regular skills during character template design but are the same price afterwards during play.

Players can buy skill levels higher than "3" after their characters earn experience through gameplay.

Studying with a tutor or master for training during play reduces Skill Point cost by half.

The conversion rules to figure out time values in Shatterzone are complex and still don't work.

[note 11] There are also modifiers derived from the General Push Table, which is when you want to drive faster, keep moving while fatigued or wounded, or exert more effort in lifting a heavy object.

The character gets an increase in Result Points at the cost of a penalty (like a damaged engine, a septic wound, or thrown-out back-muscles respectively).

Pretty pictures in the final version might bump the rating to a '3,' simply because of production quality.

"[1] In the March 1994 edition of Dragon (Issue 203), Rick Swan was not impressed with the overly-complex rules system of this game, saying, "reading the rulebook is about as much fun as staring into a light bulb."

He did like the setting, commenting that it "combines high-tech grit with fairy-tale whimsy to create a role- playing arena of remarkable invention."

He concluded by giving the rules system a poor rating of 2 out of 6, although he gave the setting of the game 4 out of 6.