Game title: Shadowrun
Platform: Xbox 360
Studio: Fasa Studio, Microsoft
Rating: M for mature, blood, intense violence
Score: 6.5 out of 10
THE REVIEW:
GAME PLAY: In the relatively short history of video games, new concepts have been added to old formulas. Sometimes the results are tedious and sometimes they are brilliant. "Shadowrun" follows this pattern by releasing a pretty standard first-person shooting game that tries to build on the genre with features of its game play. The game feels a lot like the ultrapopular "Halo 2" in its Xbox Live mode where players are thrown into combat scenarios against other players.
Games stand out from the pack because of story line, characterization, plot and some explanation of the often exotic setting. No such story mode exists in "Shadowrun." The only role to play here is that of a combatant in the mayhem of battle. This is odd considering that the "Shadowrun" franchise is based on a noncomputer role-playing game popular in the early '90s.
The basic format follows the conventions of other FPS "capture the flag" games with the flag in the form of a relic that one or both teams try to carry to mapped extraction points. Doing so scores a team a win. The relic is placed between the two opposing forces called the RNA Global (the establishment) and the Lineage (the rebels). Evoking a cyberpunk atmosphere, the maps blend the visuals of fantasy and technology settings with lots of tunnels, ledges, blind spots and switchbacks.
Players must select a race (Human, Elf, Dwarf, Troll) and then are placed in teams to wage 10 time-limited rounds in one of nine available settings. Each player begins armed with a pistol, two grenades and some money and is allowed to spend the cash on weapons, magic abilities or combat technology. After each round the player is given more money based on individual and team performances and then can buy more and more ways to eliminate opponents. It is these extra abilities that add depth to combat, keeping the game from becoming just another entry in a long line of shooting games. With nine weapons, five tech enhancements and seven magic abilities, the variety in combat is compelling.
For example, a player can choose a tech glider to soar short distances, magically resurrect fallen comrades or launch a rocket to take down even the biggest opponents.
Each of these enhancements takes a while to master, especially while under fire from enemy combatants, but the unpredictability of each participant's skill set in any given battle, combined with variations on race and well-thought-out maps, provides plenty of combat freshness.
Still, with no campaign for the single player, the game is limited.
One advantage "Shadowrun" has over the "Halo" games is the player's ability to simulate player vs. player mode even when playing offline. In either an eight-on-eight big battle or a four-on-four small battle, the remaining players can all be "bots" played by an impressive artificial intelligence system. This is a good way to sharpen skills before taking the step into the live arena.
The downside to this feature is that there is no split screen or any way to invite a friend over and play together unless he has his own 360 and copy of the game. Not having a plotted campaign on the game is forgivable but not having a way to host a few buddies in your basement for group gaming carnage is not. The addition of this feature would have added significantly to the value of the game.
GRAPHICS: The combat visuals are decent but not spectacular. There isn't enough character variety outside of the four races and two factions. There isn't even an option to play as a female. Environmental textures are quite attractive.
AUDIO: The sound effects are solid, crisp and loud in 5.1 Dolby Digital. Sounds such as characters running up metal stairs and the sounds of different guns delivering unique sounding rounds are well above average.
THE WRAP UP:
PARENT'S TAKE: Rated M for Mature for blood and intense violence, it delivers plenty of both. The game is all violence, all the time, with plenty of blood splatters on the walls and floors.
FINAL WORD: "Shadowrun" delivers excellent solo game play with creative and fun variations on traditional shooting games. This works well with either simulated participants or with other players over the Xbox Live system. However, that is all it delivers. Split-screen capability and a story mode are conspicuously, painfully absent.