Shadow Warrior once again stars Asian samurai Lo Wang on a mission to take out demons and the bad guys all while saving the world. In the new release, Lo Wang will be a much younger man as compared with the original, and a new attitude makes him a bit less grumpy and vulgar, but only by a little bit. Humor still abounds in the narrative with Lo Wang constantly cutting down his enemies with his trusty katana blade and with his words. The warrior is wrapped up in a war between humans and demons after his employer sends him on a job to recover a legendary blade only to have the company betray him and open a portal to another world unleashing hordes of demonic beasts on the planet. Shadow Warrior features a funny storyline that never takes itself too seriously and makes several nods to old school games that many players can appreciate.
Gameplay in Shadow Warrior is similar to the choices given to players in titles such as Dishonored in that players will have a choice in how to play the game and upgrade their character. Players can easily choose to go through the game shooting everything in sight with the various firearms readily available and only switching to the katana as a last resort when ammo is low. Players could also choose to do the opposite and slice open any foes in their way and only use guns to take out flying foes from a distance. The katana is a unique option that gives players full control of the weapon to perform quick slashes or charge the weapon for more damage and a greater chance to slice off enemy body parts, and all of the swings are controlled with the precision of the mouse to give players one more option of how to take down their enemies. The game never forces players to stick to one playstyle, and each weapon in Shadow Warrior has its own advantages and disadvantages.
There are around 12 primary weapons available to players in Shadow Warrior, and each can be included in the arsenal of the player at all times. There isn't much diversity in the weapons in the game from the original release or other first-person shooters in the industry, but there are some really neat upgrades the player can eventually unlock to gain new abilities and additional firepower. For example, shotguns are common weapons in any shooter, but upgrade the weapon to a double-stacked, quad-barrel shotgun, and you've got a super powerful weapon that is rarely seen in any game. The game is also offering additional skins for the katana blade in the game on different platforms including special edition content on Steam that includes the Serious Sam 3 sledgehammer , Saints Row IV penetrator and Hotline Miami katana to add greater weapon variety.
Shadow Warrior offers more than just swords and guns to battle with in the game. There is plenty of blood and gore flowing throughout the entire campaign in Shadow Warrior, and players can actually use the katana to decapitate or cut out the heart of demons and use the body parts later for some impressive kills. Demon heads fire off powerful energy blasts that make quick work of enemies its aimed at, while demon hearts can be brought out and crushed to make any weaker demons nearby instantly explode. Players also unlock magic spells and projectile attacks, though magic must be carefully managed to prevent demon enemies from becoming enraged and more aggressive and powerful in combat.
Upgrades are a huge part of progressing through the tough campaign featured in Shadow Warrior. The katana, guns and magic can all be upgraded throughout the game to give players total control of how they want to play the game and defeat enemies. Additional upgrades for the katana will allow the sword to be spun in a circle with the player to take down enemies in a full 360 degree radius or to do powerful lunge attacks at enemies to close the distance and deal maximum damage. Gun upgrades allow for cool new abilities such as dual-wielding machine guns or laser targeted rocket launchers, and each weapon has secondary attacks that can become more powerful as well. Magic typically becomes more potent when upgrading whether its with more damage and flames for a fire spell or faster healing for a defensive spell. The upgrade system is a lot of fun and makes playing through the entire campaign of Shadow Warrior multiple times a better options than in other games in the genre.
Shadow Warrior packs a lot of content into its campaign, and with no multiplayer included in the game, it definitely needs a good single player experience. There are 17 chapters included in the single player campaign, and it will take players around 7-8 hours to complete to game to its entirety. Shadow Warrior encourages additional playthroughs with over 100 secrets to find in the game and additional difficulty modes to unlock. Secrets can be found scattered around levels in hidden areas players wouldn't typically think to search, and many of the secrets have neat easter eggs for players such as one of the first secrets featuring throwback textures to the original 1997 release. Shadow Warrior is already a challenging title, so the harder difficulties in the game will definitely lengthen the game after numerous deaths by the player. $39.99 may seem like too much to pay to play a single player shooter for some gamers, but it is a worthwhile purchase when considering how much content is packed into this new title.
Shadow Warrior is built on the all new game engine developed for next generation consoles and high end PCs by developer Flying Wild Hog, and needless to say it looks pretty awesome. Slicing off limbs and heads will send the body parts flying with large spurts of blood, and the guns in the game have good weight that react as they should during the game. There are a good variety of environments to explore in the game while battling demons and searching for powerful artifacts. Character models aren't quite up to the same level quality as the level design, but there is a good variety of enemies that will challenge players to come up with new ways to defeat them as well as some massive boss battles that tasks players with cutting them down to size very methodically.
The team behind the game recently stated Shadow Warrior would only be releasing for PC in the near future and the game would have to be released for next generation consoles if it were to come to any console in the future. It was also noted that PC players will likely receive additional content for the game in the near future that would add an arena-like game mode for single player that would force players to take down waves of enemies in succession, though the content is still very much in development and may not ever release.
Shadow Warrior is a great game and a tribute to old school shooter games and their fans. The game offers a challenging and lengthy campaign that focuses more on taking out large groups of enemies in a chaotic frenzy rather than tactically shooting other players and taking cover to automatically recharge health. Shadow Warrior is full of humor, blood and intense action that gamers love in their shooters, and it's a well polished game that is a worthwhile investment for gamers looking to purchase a fun new shooter that offers unique gameplay. Some players won't be happy the game doesn't have any multiplayer support, and they may be equally disturbed by the $40 price tag, but luckily Shadow Warrior is a game that is fun enough in solo play, and it can currently be purchased for 15% on Steam with some additional preorder content, so pick up your copy while this deal lasts!
Shadow Warrior is now available exclusively for PC and can be purchased from Steam, GOG and the Humble Store for $39.99. For more information on the game, check out the official Shadow Warrior website.
Game Features:
Game Information:
Developer: Flying Wild Hog
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Available exclusively for PC
Release Date: September 26, 2013
During launch week, get Shadow Warrior at 10% off on Steam, GOG, Humble Store, and Get Games stores. Wangtastic!