Shadow Warrior (2013) - Game Review
Hello viewers,
If you had an Xbox One gaming console and an Xbox Live Gold subscription in the month of February, you may have noticed a free game called Shadow Warrior (2013), which is an FPS (First Person Shooter) developed by Flying Wild Dog, that released on Microsoft Windows in 2013, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in 2014, and OS X and Linux in 2015. The full retail price was originally at $60, but can now be purchased for $29.99 if you weren’t able to pick up the game when it was free February 1-28th.
With Miyazaki killed in the invasion, Wang allies himself with Hoji, the former sharing a body with him in order to seek out the Nobitsura Kage, which is actually 3 swords. During their journey, they meet “whisperers” which hold the memories of an ancient, that they have chosen to party with. After slaying the first whisperer, Wang learns some of the backstories and obtains the first piece of the Nobitsura Kage. With each Whisperer they encounter, they enter the shadow realm, the domain of the ancients, who are Hoji’s brothers and sisters. They are tasked with defeating each ancient in order to use their energy and travel back to the human world. During a certain mission, Wang encounters the Kyokagami twins, fellow assassins who work for Zilla. Wang betrays them and goes after Zilla for the final piece of the Sword. The game ends with Wang defeating Zilla, and Xing, the killer of his sister. Hoji sacrifices himself to save Wang during the battle.
While this isn’t a Call of Duty or BattleField game, Flying Wild Dog did an excellent job in the implementation of gunplay. As you play through the game, you come across new weapons to use, and unlike other games in the genre(yet again), you can hold every weapon in the game on your person at once, without dropping or exchanging them. To use a different weapon, one is not forced to scrounge through desecrated demon corpses in search of it. You can instantly equip it through the weapon inventory, which is a call back to the arcade shooter formula. Along with the 6 different guns you can obtain in the game, each gun can be upgraded with things like laser sights, to the PDW, a submachine gun, or firing all 4 rounds in the shotgun if the upgrade is purchased. Each gun comes with a standard of 4 upgrades each. All upgrades can be purchased by looting containers around the game and grabbing the cash from them.
But of course, the game isn’t only about guns. With an extensive skill tree, the player can lay waste to the horde of demons that awaits them with their character able to absorb pain, and other such skills. There are also Abilities that the player can utilize, which can be unlocked in the Ki Crystals tab. These abilities unlock new techniques, that when triggered with the right combo, can slice up your foes in new and interesting ways. And since the game’s difficulty only gets higher as you progress, it is in your best interest to collect as many of the Ki Crystals as you can find.
If you had an Xbox One gaming console and an Xbox Live Gold subscription in the month of February, you may have noticed a free game called Shadow Warrior (2013), which is an FPS (First Person Shooter) developed by Flying Wild Dog, that released on Microsoft Windows in 2013, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in 2014, and OS X and Linux in 2015. The full retail price was originally at $60, but can now be purchased for $29.99 if you weren’t able to pick up the game when it was free February 1-28th.
Story
The story of Shadow Warrior (2013) is straightforward but throws some curveballs your way when you least expect it. Starting out in the first cutscene, you can infer by the phone call Lo Wang makes to his powerful employer Orochi Zilla, that Wang is a mercenary that is trusted to do whatever it takes to get his contract completed. He is tasked with purchasing an ancient Katana called the Nobitsura Kage from a collector named Miyazaki for 2 million dollars. After his refusal, you have to fight through his guards to get to Miyazaki. Wang is then captured by Miyazaki, and it is revealed that Miyazaki has a bond with a demon named Hoji. Hoji is caged, but when demons attack, is freed.With Miyazaki killed in the invasion, Wang allies himself with Hoji, the former sharing a body with him in order to seek out the Nobitsura Kage, which is actually 3 swords. During their journey, they meet “whisperers” which hold the memories of an ancient, that they have chosen to party with. After slaying the first whisperer, Wang learns some of the backstories and obtains the first piece of the Nobitsura Kage. With each Whisperer they encounter, they enter the shadow realm, the domain of the ancients, who are Hoji’s brothers and sisters. They are tasked with defeating each ancient in order to use their energy and travel back to the human world. During a certain mission, Wang encounters the Kyokagami twins, fellow assassins who work for Zilla. Wang betrays them and goes after Zilla for the final piece of the Sword. The game ends with Wang defeating Zilla, and Xing, the killer of his sister. Hoji sacrifices himself to save Wang during the battle.
Gameplay
Shadow Warrior reveals itself immediately as a first-person action game, with the ability to hack and slash through enemies like butter with the Katana equipped. Unlike other First Person Shooters in the genre, Shadow Warrior sets itself apart with advanced sword fighting techniques involving the camera and player movement. With the right combination of moves to the left or right, you can deliver devastating blows to whoever faces Wang. However, it wouldn’t be called a first-person ‘shooter’ unless there was some shooting mechanics in place.While this isn’t a Call of Duty or BattleField game, Flying Wild Dog did an excellent job in the implementation of gunplay. As you play through the game, you come across new weapons to use, and unlike other games in the genre(yet again), you can hold every weapon in the game on your person at once, without dropping or exchanging them. To use a different weapon, one is not forced to scrounge through desecrated demon corpses in search of it. You can instantly equip it through the weapon inventory, which is a call back to the arcade shooter formula. Along with the 6 different guns you can obtain in the game, each gun can be upgraded with things like laser sights, to the PDW, a submachine gun, or firing all 4 rounds in the shotgun if the upgrade is purchased. Each gun comes with a standard of 4 upgrades each. All upgrades can be purchased by looting containers around the game and grabbing the cash from them.
But of course, the game isn’t only about guns. With an extensive skill tree, the player can lay waste to the horde of demons that awaits them with their character able to absorb pain, and other such skills. There are also Abilities that the player can utilize, which can be unlocked in the Ki Crystals tab. These abilities unlock new techniques, that when triggered with the right combo, can slice up your foes in new and interesting ways. And since the game’s difficulty only gets higher as you progress, it is in your best interest to collect as many of the Ki Crystals as you can find.
Presentation
With this being a 2013 game, you might think the visuals wouldn’t be much for the eye. But as I played through Shadow Warrior, I was happy to be wrong. While it isn’t a 2018 Nvidia tech demo, it certainly holds up to current gaming standards. Shadows and lighting are well done, and the textures always look new and fresh.Replayable?
After completing the main story in around a week(school schedule), finding time here and there, I found myself content with the outcome. If you’re like me though, and you enjoyed the game, you’ll want more. And that’s what Flying Wild Dog gave us “Survival Mode”. In Survival Mode, you are tasked with surviving a long as possible against waves and waves of demons, without any sword powers. Whilst playing this, I found it a struggle to dodge demon after demon, struggling to find health as I fired what limited ammunition I had obtained from the pause time in between rounds. After playing the Survival Mode though, there is an included artwork section, where you can see concept art from the game, which I found nice to relish in after the hard work I put into the game. 
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