A perfect example of a sleeper hit! This game was either gonna hit or miss, and this time it hit a homerun!
This game has been on my radar since about a year ago or so, and ever since then, the revolutionary concepts described by the developers that would be implimented into their multiplayer game have "tickled my fancy." As this game came nearer and nearer to launch and I saw some more videos for it; I started to get skeptical. Man was I wrong though, this game, while having a ton of potential to fail if it had balance issues, bad maps, and bad implimentation of powers, came through in a blaze of glory. GAMEPLAY: This game simply has some of the best "gameplay" for a multiplayer game since Counterstrike. building off of Counterstrike's "buy weapons and equipment before each round" formula, you can choose to purchase some generic firearms, technological equipment (such as a glider), and magical powers. When combining the gunplay, use of anti-magic tech and gliding, and the many astounding magical abilities at your disposal you can outsmart, outflank, and outfight your oponents. Magic skills include smoke (turning you into an invurnerable invisible cloud that can only be harmed by "gust"), gust (a blast of air that can knock a player backwards, launch grenades across the map, or knock someone out of "smoke"), teleport (teleporting you 8-10 feet in the general direction your traveling in, regardless of walls or barriers), Tree of Life (a magic tree that grows to provide cover and also heals anyone in it's radius), Revive (reviving a dead player and putting them back into the fight), Summon (summons a other-worldly creature to fight and patrol sections of the map for you), and Strangle (creating a barrier of crystals that traps anyone caught in them, and blocks off paths). The Tech abilities are a glider (glides you across large distacnes and down from great heights), Enhanced vision (allows you to see through walls), Smartlink (provides extra level of zoom and accuracy to weapons), Anti-magic generator (reduces magical effecrs and essence in the general vicinity), and wired reflexes (makes you run faster, reload faster, jump higher, and with a katana - block bullets, with a minor cost of health). These skills combined with grenades and guns can make epic combat situations that have infinite ways they can play out. A great emphasis on teamplay also makes each skill important in its own situation, making a corrdinated team the dominate team. GRAPHICS:
While not the absolute prettiest graphics as in such games as Gears Of War, Shadowrun does a good job with the engine they have. They use ragdoll (havoc) physics on all bodies ect. and the engine renders good quality models and very detailed enviroments. The graphics really fit the game perfectly and are quite visually stunning. Lots of shadows and lighting provide the proper ambiance in many of the levels. Graphics were deffinitly better than I thought they would be, and actually left me impressed. Lots of attentino to detail and quality models and shaders make these graphics great, while not as great as Gears.
SOUND:
The sound in the game is perfect. The gun noises fit each gun perfectly (especially the whine of the chaingun) and all explosions sound convincing and menacing at the same time. The chatter of the on-character radios echo throughout the level and really provide ambiance, even when you dont have real people to play with. The bots use the same radio commands to illustrate where people and items are in the levels. The magic and tech noises also work perfectly conveying the proper sound for each action. Overall sound was quite excellent, while not being so good that you notice nothing else.
VALUE:
This is where it gets a bit tricky. This game lacks any single player story mode whatsoever. While there are tutorials and bot matches to be played off-line, you will find the bulk of the game online on LIVE. Whiel one could feasably play with only bots and still have fun, it is just plain better to play with real people as a team. But, the sheer amount of options online and the combinations of gameplay make this a much-valued title. Despite the lack of any campaign, the bot matches will do it some justice as the difficulty for the bots can be turned up to a almost human-like level. It is for this reason that I can still give Shadowrun a great score in the value department despite its lack of any campaign.
REVIEWER'S TILT: Overall i feel that such a game is a perfect entry into the gaming of xbox LIVE. It has astounding, if not revolutionary online elements, and overall makes a lasting experience that will tide most of us over till Halo 3 comes out. If you have any interest in online shooters... but this game as soon as possible and play the hell outta it!