As it is, Fatal Shadows can't be recommanded to everyone.
- 2 playable characters
- Stealth kills are good to pull off
- There a tutorial
Negative
- Frustrating camera and controls
- Other than stealth, combat isn't much fun
- Linear missions and boring level design
- The sound is really bad
This series has lost something that made it fun many years ago in the previous generation. For a PS2 it isn't half bad, but comparing to Wrath of Heaven, Fatal Shadows feel clunky, a bit frustrating and the worst part of it, boring.
Tenchu maintained the same style of medevil Japan with ninjas and killing and stuff like that. In Fatal Shadows you get to control two characters, both female and which play almost the same. Ayame and Rin, the 2 main characters first cross path, but don't work together, instead the game pits you in different situations which you need to sneak through the area which you can engage the enemy in a fight or kill him by sneak behind him and strike. Ninjas are all about vengeance and honor, and that's what this about. You get to choose items to take on missions.
The best part of the combat is the stealth kill. You can go behind the enemy and the characters can perform a cool looking kill from behind like the Cross Blades and these vary from character. Jumping from high above is fun too. But the other combat mechanisms aren't that great. The hand-to-hand combat is fairly good, and since most areas are tight it's difficult to fight. The bad camera renders things worst, and with multiple enemies, the gameplay can be a chore. At the beginning of the game you can see the tutorial with the instructions, although the game isn't too difficult to learn.
Fatal Shadows looks somewhat dated for this day and age, and it looks very much like its predecessor. The death animations are decent enough, the character and enemy models are a little rough, not to talk about the environments which are repetitive since you have to crawl through a lot of these. The level design can cause some problems. The cutscenes could have used some more work.
The sound is the worst part of the game. The voice acting is mediocre, the main menu song is horrible and almost nothing stands out. The soundtrack isn't good enough, and the sound effects are pathetic. To those who look for a challenge, one can change difficulty of every level, and even repeat levels done.
Tenchu: Fatal Shadows is a game that falls to live up to its reputation. Some dated visuals, poor combat, weak AI and horrible sounds; Fatal Shadows is best left alone but for those fans of the series. The PS2 may not offer much like Tenchu, but new comers should consider looking for Wrath of Heaven first. For others, this is a decent game, but you'll be entertained as long as you don't expect much from this flawed game.
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Graphics = 6.1
Dated graphics with rough models and mediocre death animation. Background environments are too tight and don't offer much change in scenery, and if that happens, they all feel familiar.
Sound = 4.0
Horrendous main menu song made worse by some fairly decent voice acting. Sound effects are repetitive but they are the best in this category.
Presentation = 6.3
Cutscenes look rough. There is some variety to be found here. The camera is awful since the areas are so tight and the controls are a bit clunky.
Gameplay = 5.5
The stealth kills are really fun to pull off, but the hand to hand combat isn't engaging, multiple enemies can make it frustrating. The pace is somewhat slower than it should be. The AI is weak and doesn't keep things heated.
Story = 6.0
2 female characters to play as, which play similarly. The story follows the girls from different sides, making the story less linear, but the missions don't.
OVERALL = 5.6 / 10
Fatal Shadows is difficult to recommend to anyone outside the Tenchu universe. It's a lazily done game, which could have been without its frustrations. But as it is, it's not worth your time.