Reviewed: July 14, 2007
Reviewed by: Jeff Gedgaud

Publisher
Microsoft

Developer
FASA Studio
Microsoft Game Studios

Released: May 29, 2007
Genre: FPS
Players: 1-16

7
7
7
6
6.8

System Requirements:

All joking aside Shadowrun is very much like a similar team based shooting game that was a definite hit, Counter Strike. Shadowrun uses the team-based concept of fighting in a capture the flag game with up to 16 player’s total.

The object is simple; either defend the flag, staff in this case, or capture it and get it to your exit point. Either side can also wipe out the other team to win the round, which happens quite frequently. Each team has a few seconds to choose equipment in a setup screen before the three-minute matches start where you choose your weapons and ammo, magic and what buttons control that magic.

Each race has its weak points and strengths but you don’t get to exploits these much in a round as they are very short. There are also a slew of modern weapons that some of the races of course will be better with due to their size or speed. Examples are Elves are great with the Katana due to their speed and the Trolls can heft the Mini Gun easily with their superior strength.

The magic also comes in a good variety with things like a Tree of Life that heals or a crystal wall called Strangle that blocks your path. There are also advanced technology items that can be very helpful like the Glider wings or the AntiMagic generator. Most of the weapons are good and the magic as well as the advanced technology items can be useful at times but the main problem I have with the game is the short time you play.

The story is almost a byline to the game but here goes; the RNA Security Division has been trying to block the use of magic and has taken strong steps in preventing its common use. The other side of your fight here is the Lineage who embraces the use of magic and wants it out in the open for all to take advantage of.

There are basically two types of games here no matter which side you end up on, capture the flag and team death match. In the team death match there is a staff for you to fight over but this staff reveals the location of the opposing side. The games last for about three minutes depending on the setup of the server and there are several games per round.

But the short game time aside Shadowrun is pretty fun. If you start out as the race that does not work out for your team you can just wait till the next round of games and switch. Weapons can be exchanged the next time you start a game so you can always quickly try your hand at a new combination. Magic that you purchase for any round of games will stay with you but the weapons disappear when you are killed.

The shortness of the individual games is somewhat compensated by the bragging rights earned by achievement points for Windows and Xbox Live. Achievements are earned when you perform certain things in the game such as resurrect across the races. These achievement points are added to your Live gamer tag to show off how much you play.

In order to play Shadowrun against others you have to sign into Live and you get to play not only against PC Shadowrun players but against the Xbox 360 Shadowrun as well. There are a limited number of maps to play on but they are pretty big and the game is very fast paced. Just having the time to use all the items you can purchase or pick will be very hard in most rounds.

You can try to play with a group of friends but the Live component that places you in games will automatically match up teams according to your skills in each game. So there is no telling which team you will be on when you do join as a group. Joining a game is easy but playing as a team can be pretty hit and miss as each round you can have people choosing from the races and you end up with such poorly balanced teams.

The effects for your magic and the weapons are very well done but there are also omissions to major portions of the game. When you climb a ladder the character has no climbing animation so you stand in a pose like your waiting for something and rise up the ladder. There are nine maps total but some are smaller so are only played with the smaller groups of players. A wider variety of maps would have given the game a better look and feel instead of getting the same maps over and over again.

The voice chat works very well with the right hardware but you will need a decent voice headset. Using a cheap one will not get good sound out so others will have a hard time hearing what you’re saying. If you buy a good quality headset it will go a long way into others understanding what you want to say in game.

Each race uses certain weapons and magic better than others but there is a great variety to the use of the items you get to purchase and the various combinations possible. The glider and many of the magic items can used very well on the run and adds so much to what you can do during a quick but intense firefight.

Another useful and extremely diverse spell is the Teleport that allows you to run through solid objects including the floor and ceiling. In combination these spells and items can give a great variety to what you can do and only after much experimenting on tactics do you get the feel for the full use of many of them.

Shadowrun includes six tutorial missions and a bot arena for practice but the game is solely an online multiplayer experience. There is a good variety to the game even though the games themselves are quick as you do get a very good variety of toys to play with and find out the best possible uses for them during rounds.