The Case

The original Shadow Warriors was released in 1997, based on an improved Duke Nukem 3D engine with the much-vaunted addition of ninjas and tongue-in-cheek racism. I remember sitting in front of my computer screen and snorting out loud: "Lo Wang? What an absolutely ridiculous-sounding name"...said the kid called Mok Xiang. However, almost unsurprisingly, I found the game to be one of the most viscerally exciting and downright fun games that has ever graced my hands, giving me what you would get if you combined Quake with katanas. Now, the recent remakes of classics within the gaming industry has produced a mixed bag of results, ranging from the genuinely good, such as XCOM: Enemy Unknown, to the atrocious - Duke Nukem: Forever. Where does Shadow Warrior fall? Read on to find out.

The Trial

It seems that this iteration of Shadow Warrior goes back to the good old-fashioned practice of having absolutely insane stories, filled to the brim with horrible decisions and laughably-crafted characters. All of this then combines together to create something both incredibly bad and, at the same time, really good. You take control of the famously-named modern ninja mercenary - Lo Wang, who proceeds to chop up hordes of men followed by hordes of demons and sometimes both at the same time. The game doesn't shy away from the action, instead dropping you into its fast-paced, frenetic combat mere minutes after throwing you into a loose story regarding the retrieval of a sword for your boss. As expected, negotiations sour and soon you have to fight off waves of Japanese bodyguards, all of whom comically carry katanas. A state of affairs that I can categorically tell you does not exist in reality.

Still, the story does turn out to be a fun romp, with most of the jokes managing to hit the funny bone, either through tongue-in-cheek wit or brazen audacity. The characters you get involved with are certainly memorable, though none more so than Wang himself. The banished trickster spirit who fights by your side and grants you special powers, Hoji, does take a solid second place though. I have since heard it compared to a grindhouse film and I cannot say that I do not agree, though I have to state it is at the forefront of its craft. Most importantly, I did not get any of the desperation that Duke Nukem Forever reeked of. Instead it is an extremely interesting premise and it has a story that stands on its own.

However, nobody plays Shadow Warrior merely for its story; here's the part that will blow your mind, or at least chop your head clean off - the gameplay. A blast from the past would be a simple way to describe it, although that wouldn’t be doing it justice. Fun, frenetic, inspiring, seat-of-the-pants and adrenaline-drenched would perhaps be a better string of descriptors, though even then it misses some of the magic that makes it work. Sprinting about the map, running circles around enemies as you slice and dice your way to victory is an indescribable, unmatchable experience that will have your blood pumping.

A whole slew of different powers are available and you can upgrade these as you find hidden secrets which grant you more upgrade points throughout the game, powering you up even more. These magical spells or sword-talents are in themselves pretty amazing but combined with your normal swordplay, it turns into something even better. You’ll be trying to swing your blade at just the right angle in order to stagger your opponent, before blasting him away with a fiery shockwave. Boss fights are much harder than before, requiring key points to be hit in a certain manner, or with a certain timing - definitely a challenge to be contended with.

The different enemies are also varied though some are more interesting than others, such as the demons which are a furious cloud of angry berserker rage charging straight at you. The only downside to the combat that I really do feel like I wish to point out is the fact that swordplay is so damn fun that gunplay is pretty much left in the dust, both in the minds of the players and in the mechanics of the game itself. Aiming is a chore and really not well-suited to the fast-paced gameplay that erupts all about you.

The graphics are the most surprising aspect of this package though and they are quite amazing. While the engine is by no means cutting edge, Flying Wild Hog not being a common triple-A game developer, the gorgeous design of the levels hide this fact incredibly well, sculpting the levels with the care and attention that led me to suspect they hired actual Asian architects rather than just stealing a bunch of photos off Google. The slightly cel-shaded visuals work well against this backdrop, lending the entire experience just the right amount of grittiness and of the fantastical. Animations are also jaw-dropping, with models twirling about the levels in a dance of death, limbs flying everywhere as your eyes are barely able to keep up with the feast of input offered to them.

The audio is similarly awesome, albeit slightly less so. The music certainly provides good backing tracks to fight to and the special effects gives each of your actions a certain amount of oomph. I found that it was the sounds gargling from the throats of the demons that captivated me the most, with the spine-chilling growls of the demons instantly alerting you to their presence and triggering yet another stream of adrenaline into the bloodstream.

The Verdict

Is this Shadow Warrior? No. It's something somewhat fresher, a bit more mature and a bit less kooky. It feels more legit and it doesn't use the same cheap tricks that its predecessor did as it attempted to ape Duke Nukem. The story is genuinely good this time around, with memorable characters and a slightly more believable protagonist, while the gameplay has truly found a niche of its own with its frantic melee combat. It has taken everything that made Shadow Warrior good and then refined it, making a great game simply amazing. As remakes go, I call that a success.

Case Review