text:
- Publisher: Harebrained Schemes LLC
- Release Date: Jul 25, 2013
- Also On: iPhone/iPad
User Score
Mixed or average reviews- based on 828 Ratings
User score distribution:
Positive: 620 out of 828
Mixed: 84 out of 828
Negative: 124 out of 828
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Jul 25, 2013Shadowrun Returns is nice. But nice isn't great. Which is a serious disappointment after all those enthusiastic videos from harebrained and those positive previews all over the net.
The story is good. Sometimes it feels like it's written by a pubescent nerd, but anyone familiar with Shadowrun shouldn't be surprised by that. It fits the universe and is very entertaining. (+5)
The only problem is, that it doesn't feel like any choice you make matters. The story just goes on and on in the same direction, no matter how you behave. But that can be fixed by custom campaigns created by the community. (-1)
The combat is good, too. Its nothing surprisingly great, but a well made turn based tactical combat system. Not too hard and not too easy, just generally well made. (+4)
A serious issue are the technical shortcomings:
* There's no save system except for autosaves on map changes. This can get really frustrating when real life calls and you have to quit before finishing a map. To me, this is a fail at game design. (-3)
* The UI is clearly made for touch screens. Its just ugly. Everything feels kind of out of proportion and needs to be clicked. Very much not intuitive and no shortcuts whatsoever. Which leads to the next problem.. (-1)
* No customizable keybindings. You can't even switch weapons with the mouse wheel. You have to click the up and down buttons on the screen. Same goes for spells, which cant be used by pressing a number but have to be clicked. This is really bad design and clearly shows harebrained's origin in mobile gaming. (-1)
The background graphics are great. Much love was put into them and there's so much detail, it's always great to see such nice 2D graphics. (+1)
But then there's the character models. It seems the background was much more important to harebrained than the characters. They seriously lack detail in any way and generally look quiet bad. Its nothing game breaking, but really sad to see. (-1)
The bright beacon of hope for this game is the mighty editor. The community gets all the tools to create their own campaigns and addons which is a lot of fun to do and gives hope for custom content, that fixes some of the negative aspects of SRR. (+1)
In conclusion, I don't regret backing the game, but I'm also not satisfied with it.
The technical shortcomings need to be fixed asap to make this nice game for fans into a fun experience for everyone!
4 of 10… Expand
Jul 25, 2013An amazing game living up to the Shadowrun name. If you weren't a fan of the series before you should be now. Beautiful artwork and great tactical strategy elements mixed with true Shadowrun RPG style. Also the ability to create your own complete runs adds INFINITE possibilities.
This game has SERIOUS superior re-playability
Jul 25, 2013The game is good, but there are some major down points being glossed over by fan-children or sales representatives.
1) No save anywhere system. You can and will lose up to 30 mins. of progress because you did not hit the checkpoint. There is no save after a certain time either, its only on checkpoint, so if you have to do something, or are otherwise interrupted, you end up going back through a lot of dialogue and decisions you have already made, not just combat.
2) Unlimited ammo. Got a sweet rocket launcher? Shoot it forever.
3) Extremely linear; hopefully the user created campaigns are better.
Still probably a good game for a Shadowrun fan; if youre not a fan, you might want to wait for a sale.… Expand
Aug 4, 2013After completing the game and spending some time working with the User Generated Content tools, I'm afraid I have to drop my original score from a 6 to 4. Below is my original review with some minor revisions to address the change in score:
I was really stoked for a reboot of the CRPG version of Shadowrun, especially after Microsoft and FASA tried exploiting the world for a terrible FPS years ago. I loved the PNP version and played both the SNES and Genesis Shadowrun games so when I first heard about this I was excited.
Unfortunately, if you're looking for a CRPG in the style of older ones, keep walking. Shadowrun barely qualifies. The game offers the typical Shadowrun classes but then makes them completely arbitrary and therefore meaningless, since a "perk" of the game is that you can make your own "class" by assigning your own points anywhere. It took a modder to create a loot system because the devs themselves didn't put it in (mobs always drop the same items all the time in the base game), and there's no difference from character to character or "choice" to "choice". Most of the time spent will be spent reading, not playing, and combat is so simplistic, even on the harder difficulty levels, that you have to be a complete moron to fail at it.
For the classes and skill point themselves, they're ultimately meaningless. Dump enough points into health and one attack type and you'll win. If you want to play the game on "EZ-Mode", remember these two words: Street Samurai. "Stat" checks to accomplish things in the game are exceedingly rare, and stat checks in dialog trees are pointless because they always funnel you to the same place without adding anything of real substance. You can't augment your specific class by hiring Shadowrunners e.g. a hired Decker cannot unlock a datapad that requires Decking so Shadowrunners are basically just cannon fodder to make the game even easier.
Then there's the save game issue. Saving by checkpoints, causing players to repeat entire sections of game (mostly reading the same dialog over again) simply because the devs couldn't be bothered to add in a simple quick save, state save, or save on exit capability is ridiculous. Case-in-point: The game crashed, hard, early on in my first Shaman (in the Redmond Barrens), and the save system was so borked that it hadn't even saved, at all. About an hour of play was completely erased, leaving me to start over from character creation.
I'm sorry to say that this game is more akin to reading a b-rated, poorly written graphic novel than playing a game. There's little connection with the characters, the game is broken down into completely linear chapters with few side quests to do, player agency is minimal, and the writing bounces between well crafted and bad fan fiction. Credit where it's due, though: the background art is amazing and the music is top notch.
Originally, I had said "save your money and wait for a sale, or wait for user generated content to make the game worth purchasing". However, after playing with the UGC toolkit, I can't even recommend the game for community content. This is because the toolkit, while expansive, doesn't allow content creators address the fundamental flaws in the Unity engine itself. All addons are going to be as linear as the original main episode, and the RPG elements will always be lackluster because these are core components in the engine that simply cannot be "edited" through the toolkit. There will never be a community "open world" addition because the engine simply cannot allow for it. Even the BEST user generated content for SRR will suffer ALL of the same foibles of the core game.
If you're looking for nostalgia, just replay Fallout 1 or 2, or pop in Shadowrun for SNES or Genesis on a handy dandy emulator and save your money for a better game. I guess Harebrained can at least be happy in knowing that a 4/10 is still better than what I'd rate Shadowrun the FPS.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013This game is billed as being an amazing, in depth RPG with tons of choice and customization. What it actually is a super simplified version of Shadowrun that is planning on relying on user created content to make it worth the price; I was so completely bored an hour in (there is literally nothing to do but fight-- by pointing and clicking endlessly, with no need to do otherwise to succeed-- and read endless walls of text. Reading the text is more or less just a chore, as opposed to an interesting plot driver, once you realize that nothing you say matters in terms of what comes next. Totally linear, totally simple, totally boring. Skip this one if you have anything better to do at all.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Obviously, the game doesn't deserve a zero. Let's reserve zeroes for games that are released in an alpha state or are just well-disguised computer viruses. I want to like Shadowrun Returns, I really do. I was looking forward to this game for the full month before it came out, and while I was never a die-hard Shadowrun fan, I've always loved CRPGs, grit, grime, and sci-fi.
The emphasis there should go on the CRPG part. I was looking forward to reliving the wonder of my youth, playing Fallout and Fallout 2, owning a character, exploring a filthy wasteland. You know, that sort of thing. I was also looking forward to well-written dialogue, colorful characters, and maybe the occasional voice-acting on an important NPC. What I got was absolutely none of that. Literally, none.
Gameplay. Okay. Well, the gameplay is good. It has XCOM written all over it, and I loved that game. But even XCOM was more open-world than this. Shadowrun Returns doesn't even attempt to give you any sense of freedom or choice, not even the proper illusion of control, it just straight-up demands that you take it by the hand and be lead through a guided tour.
Playing this game brought on an increasing sense of claustrophobia, as I kept waiting for the "big reveal" in the story, the point where you're let off the chain and allowed to forge your own path on the dark streets of Seattle, or maybe explore the outside and meet tribes (I was a shaman, it was cool). But no. Never happened. And the closer I got to realizing this, the more angry and disappointed I felt.
The salt on the wound was the heinous, purple-prose writing I had to endure. I was being bombarded constantly by characters giggling and tittering and being "my bestest pals ever" despite the fact that I found them obnoxious, and really, the worst of all, moments where the writer's description of what the character is doing actually ECLIPSES the dialogue itself.
This isn't to say the writing is always bad, some of it is decent, and the core plot structure is ace. But some fanboy/fangirl on the staff was way too jazzed to be there, and it comes through in the overseasoned roast that is some of the dialogue screens.
Speaking of which, as someone who always tags speech, invests in charisma, and likes getting the conversational upper hand, I was sorely pissed that despite the game having a ton of etiquette options, the whole thing is so damn short, I'm pretty sure some of them were actually missing. Like, you never got a chance to use it, at any point. I could be wrong, but I sure didn't see them.
The conclusion? This game failed to live up to what my expectations were, so hard. Even without that crushing disappointment tainting this review, I'd still give it no higher than a six for the hives-inducing purple prose and gameplay issues. Checkpoint saves, really? What the dude. And where's the loot system? And it took me like two hours to figure out how to swap equipment without buying something in a store!
Weren't you guys like 500% funded on kickstarter? This is seriously the best you can do? I guess it all went to just making the engine instead of a full-fledged game. Which is fine. Was also hoping for a NWN style multiplayer aspect. But no. Frowny face.
The game should be billed as a "Shadowrun single-player CRPG engine" not the "CRPG throwback nostalgia bender you've been waiting for, person between ages 24 and 40." I guess there's always those other titles being made in kickstarter.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013It's a game designed with iOS in mind. UI is oversimplified. Moreover no manual save, no loot, no inventory, in a freaking RPG. All in all it seems very lackluster with the goal of being a quick money grab.
Jul 25, 2013Great retro style pc game. Very good tactical combat, classic shadow run style leveling system. What i dislike the the lack of a save feature, you have to rely on auto saves at checkpoints, and i find that annoying.
Otherwise its a great game.
Jul 25, 2013I am sorry but this game is utter crap. Its like a linear graphic novel with no impact on the story or choice in the dialogue. The interface is made for tablets and doesn't work well at all with the pc. The combat is way too repetitive and offers little feeling of reward. Barely any customization at all. Certain playstyles are rewarded more than others meaning if you decide to play it not the way it was made for you are not going to have much fun.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013Shadowrun Returns is everything we were promised and more. Can't wait for the Berlin expansion and more campaigns to come. As the guy who made Shadowrun Identity: Life on a Limb, I encourage you all to play user-generated content (UGC), submit bug reports on shadowrun.com and join our team of dedicated GMs at shadowrunidentity.org to help create a 100+ hour community campaign. Peace, chummers!
Jul 25, 2013The main word I have to describe Shadowrun Returns is "dissapointing". I have a massive problem with the way the game was designed and created in that this is more or less an ios style game. Whether or not that's what they are going for the interface is completely abhorrent and everything that relies on it as well. The save system is atrocious and the game would have gone up at least another point if it didn't have this godawful save system. WHY? WHY? Why did they have this atrocious checkpoint system in a game like this? It makes NO SENSE. The dialogue is a mixed bag from horribly written to passable to good although most of it is not good and was seemingly written by a teenager. It is just so immature in relation to the maturity of the world, it doesn't fit at all. Gameplay is meh but that really isn't the allure of a game like this. Overall I am greatly dissapointed and the only thing I like is the artstyle. Which also shows another glaring error when playing at high resolutions: the character models. The environments are gorgeous but the characters look extremely bad at 2560x1400. They are pixelated around the edges, especially when besides cover (even with 8x aa one) and the detail on them is horrendous. All I could think about while playing this game was that this was a phone game that wasn't properly ported to the PC and technical issues are what hurt it the most. Animations, character graphics, the awful UI it all makes a pretty good game horrendously average. It could have been a solid 8/10 but I don't know. Maybe they needed more time.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Kickstarted this game from day 1 as it's A) Shadowrun which I love in PnP B) The editor they promise reminds me of the good old NWN heydays. And while I don't regret backing (15$ was it?), I can't say I'm satisfied by the game. As it is right now sadly it does not deliver. Pros: - The modding function appear to be nearly as powerful as promised - The story is so far very enjoyable
- Lack of Save system
- Lack of Loot/inventory system
- Poor implementation of PnP Shadowrun rules (classless system where you can be the perfect hero in every possible skill. Yay Elder Scrolls vomit)
- Other various UI annoyances like switching weapons/scrolls/matrix programs
- Lack of consequences for the choices you make
What flaws there are to the campaign isn't all too important to me, as I still remember NWN1's horrendous single player campaign, and it's still my favourite game after spending 6 years on UGC.
What really ticks me off is the flaws that sadly can't be fixed by plain modding. Granted, I haven't looked completely in depth yet. But as it seems the game as a whole does not support saves, is built for an iPhone UI instead of a Desktop UI, and has a wack implementation of PnP rules the core itself is damaged and probably unfixable by modders.
I doubted for a long time what score to give this game. But in it's current state, I can't possible go any higher than a five. I hope in a few months custom content and patches by the developers will convince me otherwise.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013interesting design, good story elements, great nostalgia value, so why such a low score?
because i find myself not even wanting to play it due to the unreliability of the save system. playing for 25 minutes and have it crash? or suddenly need to shut down the game and leave? well get ready to lose all of your progress no matter what. no common autosaves or manual save function. (the ancient "save point" system was more reliable than this. i understand manual saves giving to much power to the player, but it's not hart to have a good auto-save system. look at dark souls, you can't exploit saves like in skyrim, but damn well wherever you are, you can quit and feel safe that you are going to pick up in the same spot without losing 20 minutes of gameplay.
heck, get to a new area with shops and stuff? better quit now, you can't adjust your stats and inventory before calling it quits.
it is just impossible to play this game comfortably when you don't know whether or not you are safe to play it, unless you have hours to dedicate. even then, it's unreliable for whenever you have to quit. just got to a new area, and going somewhere in half an hour? you can't be sure you'll be done it time. don't enjoy that sense of discomfort looming over your head do you?
all in all, a great game devastated by some unnaturally bad game mechanics.
recommend not buying unless they patch it.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013An absolute triumph of great design and overwhelming developer passion, Shadowrun Returns is at long last a worthy successor to it's predecessors on the SNES and Genesis/Megadrive, and a proud representation of the classic tabletop game.
Graphically, the game is luscious and stays utterly true to it's source material. Most impressive is the diversity of the classes in terms of gameplay. The matrix hacking element of the game flows naturally into the game, offering a spin on the gameplay which is a welcome distraction. Magic has been overhauled; no longer is playing a Shaman a chore.
The turn based system just works perfectly. Comparisons to X-Com are bound to occur, and they are justified to an extent, but it isn't a carbon copy of the system as it adds very definite Shadowrun only elements to it.
Another definitive Shadowrun feature is the Karma system of development. For this game, the Karma system lends itself to the RPG aspects of the title, forcing you to do good deeds to gain rewards. Whilst on paper this seems like a forced method of levelling, in practice it does well as it prevents the all-out turn based grind towards completion and compels you to explore the detailed world, held together by a spellbinding steampunk inspired soundtrack.
The core game is a bit on the easy side, and it is short (the £15 shelf tag highlights this lack of depth, but it's the perfect price point). That said, it isn't difficult to see how much this game is going to be built upon by a rabid fan base who have been baying for this game since the 90s. Six months from now, this game could easily have another 100+ hours of gameplay built on it by modders and the joyous thing is that the diversity and enjoyment of the game means that those 100 hours will be well spent indeed.
Shadowrunners everywhere, eradicate all memories of that woeful FPS offering that broke our hearts several years ago, get out your credsticks and buy this game because finally we've got the game we've been waiting for.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013I'm a gamer for more then 15 years. I always believed, then in our days AAA studio makes crap games, because all they care about are money. But not indies. They are different. I've waited for Shadowrun as the triumph game of the year, 1.2 mln budget on kickstarters could something like Fallout dev team ever dream about it?
And so we have this game, its just average. Boring, linear. It was supposed to have nice story, but how can I enjoy it, when my choices doesn't matter? Somethis is wrong with this game in so many ways, like developers just care about getting salary, game has no soul, nothing, its empty. Meh, it could be so much better then this. It has quite potential, hopefully community mods are going to bring something fresh into it. Still, spending so much money for such a poor game has no excuses. It is so hard to enjoy it.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013This game is wonderful for anyone who appreciates a good story in a game: fans of the old classic Fallout games will love this. I've been playing all night and its 6:30am now and I can't wait to get back in to the game. The story is incredibly interesting and the characters are very well designed. there is a mix of humor and suspense, the visuals are awesome and the music is top notch. The devs set out to make a game about what shadowrun is about: immersion and story. if your version of a good game is action and ironsights move elsewhere: this is a thinking mans game.
the reason it gets a 9 and not a 10 is it has a few flaws: the equipment/magic screen is terrible: you need to visit a shop to equip and unequip weapons and spells. This is especially jarring for spellcasters like shamans. Shamans are supposed to learn their spells from their mentor spirits, not from the quick-e-mart!… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Pros: The setting. The noir-ish writing. Multiple solutions to many of the encounters. The combat is quite fun, if a bit simple. The potential of user-generated content.
Cons: The save system checkpoints are hard to accept in a PC RPG. The RPG systems seem a bit lite.
Conclusion: For the price, Shadowrun Returns is a great value.
Jul 25, 2013Finally, a real quality old school RPG. Crazy good story, Very fun and addictive gameplay, Character customization is awesome and easy. The game offer a good overall quality. This game prove something, Gameplay and story matter more than Special effect and eye candies. I hope to see more of that kind of game. I'm waiting for wastelands 2 and planescape, I hope they will be as good at this one.
Finally, if you like games like the old Fallout series. This game is a must to buy.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013I have a real soft spot for turn based RPG games. The addition of the XCOM style cover system and the dark art theme brought this game to a level I didn't expect. II look forward to the community content and I hope this game has a very long life.
*** I wish people wouldn't tank game scores by giving games a zero. Do you really see the game as a zero? Did you dislike it that much?
Jul 25, 2013One of the most satisfying gaming experiences I've had in a long time. Shadowrun Returns is what it is, unabashedly a throw back jam to the good ole' days. It's locations and characters are so enthralling, however, that I found myself getting giddy at the mere thought of expandable content down the road. THis first installment seemed to be a crash course in Shadowrun, and I feel like theres much more to come… Expand
Jul 25, 2013Shadowrun Returns is exactly what it is meant the be: The ultimate cyberpunk RPG maker tool kit. This is less a game and more a 20 dollar version of RPG Maker that is geared to make Shadowrun games. Considering that RPG Maker VX Ace is a 50 dollar program and you have to do all the programming, this toolkit is amazing. It's also integrated seamlessly into the steam workshop and there is already a community driven effort to recreate all the classic modules via the editor. BEST THING EVER!… Expand
Jul 26, 2013I'm an old fan of the tabletop game and the Sega Genesis version of Shadowrun, both of which are amazing experiences.
Unfortunately, Shadowrun Returns is nowhere near those and is instead a linear, boring disappointment. Where to begin... How about the fact that this game takes what should be an open world experience and turns it into a graphic novel where you occasionally point and click and your character shoots stuff. Why did they feel the need to gut the tabletop rule-set? Are you telling me a computer can't handle some dice rolls? Why are there vast amounts of Cyberware and weapons missing from the game? How hard is it to implement Bioware when the exact description of the rules is available in old source books? Why is the matrix far more complex is in the 19 year old Genesis version? Why does Shadowrun have HITPOINTS?!
I feel that the developers were either lazy or incompetent. Instead of designing a linear piece of trash, they should have given us an engine with the underlying source book rule-set. Hell, they could have completely skipped the campaign and just really given us an open world to build with.
This game simply went in the wrong direction. Imagine a Shadowrun game using the Sleeping Dogs engine but with all the character customization of the tabletop game. That would give us a living breathing city in which we could craft our stories. You could steal a car, you could mug a civilian, you could do a run on a coporation, you could blow up your enemies apartment provided you were able to find it, etc...
Instead we're given lifeless level after lifeless level. The entire engine is flawed because it is based on hand designing every scene rather than giving us a useful framework and useful npc AI.
The only saving graces are the somewhat entertaining writing (of which there is an abundance) and the music.
Here's a breakdown:
1. You can't save the game, you just have to play for an hour and hope that somewhere in there the game auto saved (if you missed the split second notification).
2. Your choices mean absolutely nothing except perhaps losing or gaining a few point of karma.
3. The world is not alive. Npc's stand exactly where they are placed and do nothing but wait for the player to speak to them (or shoot at them). The streets are not packed with people as they should be.
4. The rules are typical crpg garbage. They had a chance to easily implement tabletop and they chose not to.
5. The art is disney-esque. I distinctly remember and preferred the gritty cyberpunk art of the books.
6. The list of shortcoming goes on for ages but it isn't worth continuing.
Listen chummer, if you want a real taste of Shadowrun, get an emulator and play the Sega Genesis version, it is somehow far more open world than this drek.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a PC platform, role playing game that takes on the rules, themes and likeness of the popular table top role playing game Shadowrun.
Besides some minor likenesses of the game, you are going to discover that this game is incredibly stiff, limiting and lifeless. The tabletop edition of the game was ALWAYS about player decisions and interactions with the game world, rules were always secondary.
In this game, very few choices are made and the ones you do make are mostly in dialog and usually have the same end result. The game is strictly story driven and during this time they refuse to allow you actually leave the path they've written for you.
I don't know if it's based on the engine or the campaign that came boxed with Shadowrun, but the system is very limited, you cannot even back track into old zones unless the system decides the story needs you to. Sides quests are also very few and far between.
There's almost no side quests, one of the big things in Shadowrun was running missions, but I am finding that besides the ones that directly effect the campaign itself, the side missions are few and far between.
The NPCs are pretty much lifeless, it wouldn't even matter if they were there unless they are for a quest or something.
The game is incredibly restricting and limited. And the length of the campaign that comes with the game game is practically unacceptable.
It's an alright game, but something I and many other people weren't expecting. We were expecting more. This software conversion of the role playing system does it no justice or service. My advice? Take the money you were going to use to buy this game and get a copy of the SNES game instead.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013At first look this game looks nice and polished and as a Kickstarter backer I was happy that they delivered this good. The story is well written and I decided to play a brutish Troll Adept. I bullied people, took their money, was unfriendly....and it hat no influence on the game or any character. When I did meet a character again for the first time, he even introduced my brute as a friend!
Then I realized that nothing I do or say does matter in any way.
The city itself looks nice but is soulless. As good as no interactions.
The tactical fight is very shallow. I had no problem to swipe through my enemies lie a scythe, bare hands only against machine guns and spells.
This game leaves me baffled: so much could have been done, so much was done really good, but the essence of an RPG, the interactions and the consequences of them, the tactics in fights and the looting are non existing.
One can only hope, that the community will be able to spice this game up, since they have a editor delivered with the game.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013This game is nothing but an XCOM enemy unknown clone and a bad one at that. The story is incredibly predictable, linear and there is no depth whatsoever. The game doesn't even have a save ability outside of an autosave that happens maybe once every 30 minutes to an hour. It is not worth anyone money unless you enjoy bad cloned iphone games.
Jul 26, 2013Tabletop and Sega Genesis player here. This game has me pretty pissed off. As many others have noted--it is LINEAR. Wtf? I was so excited that I even survived the first few missions thinking it was a railroad track tutorial, but that the world eventually open up in glory. I even thought there might be the ability to talk to a Johnson and do a matrix run to farm some infos after I unlocked the main base, because, like a fool, I rolled a Decker. Totally disappointed. Boring boring boring. Roll a Troll Samurai with a shotgun to speed up the train to the inevitable, and disappointing, end of the game. I rate this a "1" because it is yet another Kickstarter bull$hit game so some burned out has-beens can ruin a great idea/franchise with poor, shallow implementation. The only reason it even got a "1" is because it put me in the mood to play the Sega Genesis version for the millionth time (and still enjoy). BOO.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a great throwback to isometric RPGs like Fallout and Baldur's Gate. The released module's storyline is interesting, and offers a fair amount of replayability through different class/skill loadouts or dialogue choices. Combat is engaging, and plays similar to the recently released XCOM: Enemy Unknown, which in my book isn't a bad thing. Many of the systems in Returns are also very similar to pen and paper Shadowrun. A couple valid complaints that can be leveled at SR are that it has a checkpoint save system, and it is a bit combat centric, though the latter can easily be avoided in future modules. Anyway, what's been released so far is well worth the $20 admission fee, and the user-made content being generated guarantees SR a place on my hard drive for a long time to come.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013This game is dreadful. It takes linear gaming to new, never before seen levels, has extremely dull and simplistic combat, and because it has no manual save system, if you die and go back to a checkpoint, you'll have to reassign any karma points you had since spent. Just about the only positive thing I can say about it and the reason I didn't give it an even lower score is that the writing is actually good, and because with the editor maybe someone somewhere might make a story good enough to suffer through the dreary combat again.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013i really liked the old snes shadowrun,ive read some books and i m glad that they made shadowrun Returns.
it s a unique Setting and fun to Play but you will have to read allot and the save system is not for everyone.
i love this game so far we will see if Players will Keep the game alive with new content.
Jul 27, 2013Okay, heres the deal on Shadowrun Returns folks: Let me first say that I have always been a big fan of the top-down, party-based classic rpgs like Fallout 1 & 2, Baldur's Gate, etc. That is why I was disappointed and surprised by some of the inexplicable decisions that the design team made with Shadowrun. Let's get to the disadvantages first: Disadvantages: -No save game!? Are you kidding!? This is so annoying and is utterly inexplicable why they would do this. In an rpg, you like to try out various choices, conversation options, etc. Because you cannot save, you have go back all the way to a start of the chapter just to choose a different conversation option.
-Stupid inventory system. You can only carry a couple items and everything else goes in a stash you can only infrequently access. Totally annoying, and once again inexplicable. Why not use the tried and true inventory system and save game system of Fallout and other classic rpgs?
-Virtually no tracking of side quests in Journal. I did several side quests that never appeared in the Journal. The Journal is very poor overall.
-The game is absolutely linear. There is no freedom at all but to progress forward in a straight line. You cannot travel, for the most part, to any place you have visited before. The only place you can travel to is the next hop along the main mission. If you happen to miss something, tough luck, unless you want to do the whole chapter over again.
-I have other issues with the game, like a lack of any voice talent which should have been available with the money they raised and a lack of being able to manipulate items in the enviroment, but these were the main ones.
-ShadowRun Returns advantage and saving grace is that it has a good story. The story is good and keeps your interest. The story has many elements of a murder mystery, which is unusual and refreshing to find in an rpg. The dialoge is good and the npc's emotions seem geniune. I just wish they had some voice talent to voice them.
-The graphics are acceptable, and the music was actually pretty good.
I hope this review is of use.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013The game is great if our materialistic "me" society hasn't damaged you. It's linear. It doesn't have great graphics. It uses a checkpoint system. Somebody mentioned losing 30 minutes due to the checkpoint system. i call BS on that. If it takes you 30 minutes to redo something you just completed you are doing it on purpose. 10 minutes, tops.
There is a tool set. I was under the impression from the get go that the campaign was going to be a teaser and the real game would involve user generated content. Thus it was delivered.
I don't care for the lack of options in the options menu, I would have liked to see some key bindings. It sits at a 7.7 and I think it's deserving of that. If you don't like retro style games, turn based combat, linear story lines then I wouldn't suggest this game. I'm 30 years old, this game really brings me back and I'm loving it. If you happen to have played the snes Shadowrun title and you enjoyed that you'll definitely enjoy this as well.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013This game delivered exactly what it advertised it would. A spiritual successor to the SNES game, and it stays true to the pnp lore and a bit of the gameplay. Nice customization, and a fair story for $20. Add on the ability to create content, and this is one hell of a deal.
Jul 28, 2013I paid twenty dollars and all I got was a tablet game. I'm disappointed so many reviews are giving the main campaign a pass and scoring the game on all this imaginary user created content that doesn't actually, and may never, exist. Also surprising is the lack of mention of the tremendous amount of grammatical and spelling errors. I've seen better freshman level writing projects. The most worrying thing is this game is the result after they got almost 5x the original asking price of 400k. I'd hate to see the version they would have pieced together for that much, since this is literally a tablet game. It probably would have been in adobe flash.… Expand
Well, let's start with what it is: This is a CRPG, based around the Shadowrun universe (which was one of my favorite tabletop games). It allows you to jump into the life of a Runner for a few days and deal with some drek that just keeps piling on. It is, IMHO, a nice single player tabletop-like experience if your GM likes to keep tossing more and more on you.
What it isn't: This is not Fallout or FO: Tactics, this is not FF, this is not Diablo. If that is what you are looking for you will be disapointed.
The Good:
1. The writing... oh wow, the writing. You can tell that the game was put together by a team that loves the world, and knows how to write a campaign. It's one of those stories that remind me of sitting with game designers at GenCon playing their favorite modules or testing out a new story line.
2. Atmosphere. They nail the dark and gloomy of SR's Seattle, the inter-species/racial tensions of the world, and the socio-economic politics that go along with it all. You deal with Corps, Johnsons, Riggers, Trolls, Shamans, etc, etc, etc. A good taste of a little bit of everything. Pre-rendered background art that works well with decent sprites keeps you interested in the world and makes you want to look around. Subtle and nice music keeps things flowing (when it isn't choppy). Portrait art is very reminiscent of the game art from the books, and helps keep you in the world (think Baldur's Gate).
3. Tactics. Yup, they've got that down rather nicely. Mild inventory management, but more of a time management game (think original X-Com). You pick your team of runners, you spec out your own kit, and then you run your crew. Positioning, cover and flanking, saving some time for Overwatch fire, or popping off a spell with a long cooldown early, you have lots of options in combat.
4. Character. This is a hit and a miss for me. You have a fully open character sheet to spend your Karma (XP) as you will. Want to have a Mage with high strength? Sure, uhm, you could do that. Your outfits are rendered on the sprite so it's neat to see the new armored trenchcoat you just bought actually on the character. Sadly, we're all a little spoiled by Bethesda when it comes to creation customization for looks, which is something you have very limited control over.
The Bad:
1. Check-point only saves, seriously? What PC developer does this? Massive negative. You can not save the game at any point in time. Only at the beginning of levels does the game auto-save. Should you have a power failure, need to hop off the game to tend to RL stuff, etc. You get to replay the whole area you just did.
2. Levels. Now, let me clarify, since I said the writing was one of the best things, what I mean here is the linear nature of the story and the follow the arrows map design. The good memories I have of running or playing module based tabletop RPGs is tempered with my hatred for straight from the book GMs. SR:R is definitely a pre-made module. It is a linear story line with only a few minor choices to make, and a handful of hidden rooms. That doesn't mean the story itself is bad, just that it is extremely limiting. Of course, the GM toolkit and futher expansions will mean that this may not be a massive issue given time.
3. Strategy. The game has tactics, the game does not have strategy. You can't really customize your Runners, or establish a regular team. You don't have the option to just do off-site hacks or sneak in through a vent... sure those things are there, but only when the game gives them to you. Yes, you can get out of some combats by having the right skills set or stat, or picking certain dialogue options, but really you are playing the game the way the GM wants it played.
4. Optimization. Odd graphic glitches, weird music stutters, and the occasional hangup on a load screen came make things annoying and make you worry that you'll have to replay things. No massive game breakers, but enough that it is rough.
Did I like it? Hell yes, Chummer! Was it worth the money to get it on Steam? I think so, but I'm a fan of the game and look forward to designing my own campaigns and seeing what others will make available.
If you miss doing runs for Mr. Johnson, you can again, but you may be left wanting more. With only the one linear campaign available right now, you're looking about about 12 hours of game. Granted that's game with wonderful writing, but you need to understand what you're getting into. There is no voice acting, you will be reading (oh quit complaining, we had these things before tablets and iwhatsits called books), you wont be getting Mad Lootz from enemies you'll bring in your gear to the fight and hope it's enough. You wont get to wander around and take jobs from the different Corps, you'll do what your GM tells you to do.
If you want to Run in the Shadows, I say get this game. If you want to play Diablo or Skyrim in the SR world, you're out of luck.… Collapse
Jul 25, 2013As a Shadowrun player I had a lot of high hopes going into this game. But they do deliver. One thing lacking is multiplayer, which hopefully will come soon enough. The graphic design isn't the top of its class but more than expected. The simple, yet advanced gameplay mixed with an in depth story line keeps you on point. Difficulty isn't to complex but does grow with the character. If you've never played an actual game of Shadowrun you may be disappointed. If you have, well this might be the game for you.… Expand
Jul 30, 2013If you remember those isometric games of old, the games like "Fallout 2" or "Baldur's Gate" and remember them with fondness, then this is MOST CERTAINLY not a game for you, as it lacks quite a bit of vital characteristics of aforementionet games, such as player's freedom of actions, multiple side quests, comfortable user interface, captivating gameplay and, for God's sake, decent plot.
If you tried to play those games again in the recent years and found it to be tedious and prefer the more up-to-date game quality like "Skyrim" or "Fallout: New Vegas", then this is STILL not a game for you, as it most obviously lacks anything resembling a decent graphical engine.
If you are feeling nostalgic, then DON'T try this game at all, as if you do, you will risk a massive blood loss through eyes bursting due to uncontrollable fit of rage and aversion.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013I'm really enjoying this game. It seems like a lot of people are eager to judge it based on expectations for a baldur's gate like game, a skyrim like game, or other things that just seem completely off.
To me, it feels closer in combat to xcom or fallout. I was worried it was too complex to get into but have already started digging it I meant to start out making a samuri decker, but just through the skill system ended up making a pistol toting shaman and have loved finding spirits to summon in my surroundings. It's rare that a game gets me out of my intentions and it feels like the system itself is shaping my experience. I like the sound a lot, I like the character's quips, and I'm brought back to fond memories of the SNES game. Anyway, check it out for yourself.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013This is a decent adventure with a fairly well spun story. I love the hand drawn backdrops and they convey a pretty good atmosphere. I also love the music!
but there are a few major issues with my gaming experience;
1) it's one of the most linear games ever and really just catapults you from one event to the other, without any freedom. You also do not, at any time, feel that your choices have any real impact on the game world. This is more of an adventure game setup then a RPG setup as such.
2) The character development is really basic and does not apply to your followers. as such, there's no real RPG element here
3) The UI was clearly designed with tablets in mind and it's a double facepalm for PC users. You have to click on *everything*, which is annoying and slow
4) Too little inventory slots, no loot.
5) The save game issue
So, my conclusion has to be that in the current state this is not an RPG. This is a very linear tablet adventure and as such I can only call it "mediocre".
HOWEVER, I do have hope for this game yet as including the editor is a stroke of brilliance and modders will hopefully be able to deliver new campaigns which improve the gaming experience, but I fear the engine has too many limitations to ever become an EPIC experience.
Sad puppy out.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013No manual saving. No VO. No choices with actual impact. Short. Mediocre combat thats a bad knockoff of XCOM. Poor writing with exposition dump load screens
Jul 25, 2013It will take you back to the 80's when games made you think. Yes you read ALOT and the story is heavy if you decide to take in all the information given. The atmosphere is simply amazing. With simple stylized graphics that would make any cyberpunk fan happy. It is Bladerunner and Dungeons & Dragons rolled into one sexy low priced package. If you played the Super Nintendo Shadowrun you will be very happy. This game is not for everyone but if you want something different then this is for you. I really wish more games were made like this, its very very rare to see a gem like this. With user generated content and campaigns, the replay value is limitless.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Shadowrun Returns has good ideas, pretty visuals and a great atmosphere, but ultimately falls short.
It is fun while it lasts, but it is a very short and incredibly linear experience and offers little else other than storytelling that ranges from interesting noir to groan worthy cliches, interspersed with combat that offers little challenge.
While the game and editor offer potential, I have to judge the game on it's current value, which leaves a lot to be desired.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013Really disappointed with this game. I'd say the worst thing about this game is that it's totally linear, I haven't played an RPG that was as on rails as this one ever (other than some Final Fantasy type rpgs). Dialogue choices have no impact on story other than occasionally allowing you to skip some task if you have a high enough attribute point. Almost no side quests and the ones available have no impact on the story. Really no way to do anything other than follow the story.
Character customization is also not very fulfilling. Leveling up my character was boring and most of the time I didn't even bother with it and it didn't seem to matter. The system was designed so that the characters are classless but I found that it just made all the characters bland.
There's no loot and the items and cybernetics you can buy are uninspired and feel mostly the same. Obviously there's a difference between a shotgun and an SMG but between the 3 or 4 different weapon in the same class they all feel and look the same.
Tactical battles are also boring and don't really need any tactics to succeed. For the most part I had no problem just shooting at people to win battles, no need to take cover or use support characters or do anything tactical.
The matrix seemed tacked on last minute only because it was promised in the Kickstarter. There are only a few instances where the matrix is accessible and they are forced on you at those time. I found it to be the same as tactical battles, boring with no real point. For something so central to the Shadwrun world to glossed over in this way is very disappointing.
On the upside the writing for this game is great and the map editor will allow for a lot of community generated content but I feel like the foundations of the gameplay just aren't there so that no matter how much content is available it just won't be fun. Overall I feel like I would have been better off buying a Shadowrun novel or re-reading Neuromancer.
Also lack of a manual save is dumb and the fact that they tried to say that this feature would have been too expensive is lame.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013This game is awful. It had an initial budget goal of $400,000 on Kickstarter with 8 staffers working on it. It raised $1.8 MILLION dollars on Kickstarter alone, not even counting presales on Steam! And they increased their staff from 8 to 30. Yet we are still stuck with a game that doesn't resemble the Sega, SNES, or Pen and Paper version of Shadowrun at all. So how can it be Shadowrun Returns!? It can't be! It has NO save option other than autosave. The vanilla campaign takes ~8 hours for someone halfway competent with clicking a mouse to complete. The storyline is completely on rails. In other words, there is nothing else you can do but what you must do next. You HAVE to click on this spot, then go to this person, then exit the room cause there's nothing else for you to do. The game has like 3 sets of spells, lightning, acid, fire. That's it. There is the crudest crappiest verson of 'The Matrix' available. Take the rest of the turn based world you see and make it blue instead. Very disappointing.
It comes with an editor tho! So, while I know you wanted a game. Here's a chore.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013A nice tactical RPG with excellent music and backgrounds. The character animations aren't great (though not terrible either) and there is a complete lack of any voice acting, but overall the story is very enjoyable and the dialogue is well written.
More side quests would be excellent, and we will probably see a healthy modding community start building many side quests either as extensions of the main game or as their own stories. The character customization and loot are fairly simplistic, and the interface seems like it really had tablets in mind (good if you're playing on a tablet, so-so if you're on a PC). Loot from enemies would have been an excellent addition, even if much of it were just fenced for extra Nuyen.
One very poor design choice was to make saving only occur between "levels" or the loading of new maps. A save state during gameplay would have made much more sense, and for those who feel like that's cheating to constantly reload to attempt something difficult they could have included a "hardcore" more in which death is permanent and a complete replay of the game/level is required.
For the price ($20 at launch) this is a pretty good game, certainly no AAA title but enough to keep me entertained and excited to see what the modding community comes up with, which will probably end up being as good or better than the main campaign, which I only wish were a bit longer and had significantly more side quests and exploration instead of railroaded 99% of the time.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Like every game, this isn't for everyone. The default campaign is short (took me slightly north of 10 hours without skipping sidequests), it has a check point system instead of save anywhere, lack of lootable corpses, and no voice acting. If none of that bothers you, it's worth a look. The story isn't bad, and there's a lot of dialog.
My main complaints are as an RPG, it's kind of lacking content. The campaign is very linear, not a lot of tactical depth to combat, no ability to customize anything except a handful of consumables on party members, nearly all hired runners lack any personality, and reactivity is pretty sparse (ie special dialog for race/gender is rare). However, where this game will really shine is future content. It shipped with an ugly but powerful editor that allows modders to fix certain things (more open world questing and lootable bodies for starters). The Berlin DLC is also planned to be more open ended.
Overall, a shallow but solid default campaign. The best of this game will come to the surface in the coming months.… Expand
Jul 29, 2013Well it's a cheap game and it shows. Shot, linear, simple. Pretty much what you'd expect from a casual/tablet game. Don't expect a full-fledged oldschool RPG and you won't be disappointed.
Jul 26, 2013While I would actually rate the game around a 7.5/8, I have to give it a 10 because in now way, shape or form does this game even come close to deserving the 0's or 1's that some people are giving it, crying about the fact that there isn't any voice over's and that they have to read the text, along with a bunch of ridiculous nit picking such as infinite ammo and the whole 4 typo's in the game's dialogue.
Pros )
+ Great story that start's off small and continues to escalate the duration of the game. Sure there aren't any branching path's and blah blah cry whine but it doesn't need them. The people who hated the story I'm sure don't like to read. It's not a slam, but just because words bore you to death doesn't mean this game deserves to get plunked with your 0 rating.
+ Customization; You base your character off one of 6 Archetypes during creation but after that your free to add skill points to whatever you see fit; Need a little extra firepower while your Mage's spells are on cool down? Throw some point's into ranged combat and pick up a shotgun. Your also given a decent amount of choices for the actual look of your character so I have no idea why people are crying about it like they expected Bethesda level options.
+Combat is fun, simple but fun. Besides the fact that you pump so many shots out during a fight that ammo management would ruin and bog down every fight, this game is meant to focus on the story. It's built with the mindset of an old school table top RPG and with only having 4 runners per mission, doesn't want you to get bogged down 1/4 through a fight with Doug our ranged weapon master ran out of ammo...guess hes just gonna punch stuff for the rest of the fight?". The different classes all offer a WIDE amount of options as to what they can take and as I said earlier, when it comes to your character you can make them as focuses or well rounded as you'd like I played through with a Troll Physical Adept that learned a little magic on the side but was also willing to risk getting some cyber implants to toughen him up, even if it raised the CD on his spells. Threw some points into ranged combat and picked him up a shotty after awhile and suddenly I realized I was playing MY character. )
+Editor; It's overwhelming the stuff you can do, it really is. I think people are forgetting about this feature being in the game entirely. The campaign is 12 hours of "You can make and use ALL of these resources", a real sampler platter.
+Graphics: I loved the look of this game. It's fantastic, simply fantastic. How anyone could complain about the look of this game, coupled with it's musical score is mind boggling. Again, I don't know what people, especially those that Kickstarted the game, were expecting...It's an updated version in the same vein as the SNES game. I loved every detail, every gritty street with sheets of paper breezing through, the bright neon lights casting an errie glow of salvation over a desolate and torn from the inside city on it's last breath. It felt like I was there.
Cons )
- The Save Feature: This is the major gripe I, and many others, are having with the game and It really is a valid point. Considering that some scenes take around 30-45min, not being able to save whenever and losing all that progress is ridiculous. The dev's really dropped the ball on this one and it's something that I hope gets fixed in a future patch. If not, it's going to be the major thing that keeps this game's score low and player's uninterested. I can only assume that Flash Saves aren't in the game because like many are saying it's coming to iOS and you don't need to save a game on your iPad really, just exit back to the Home screen and the game sits in stasis until your ready. But after being one of the highest Kick Starter's in history it's hard to understand why flash saves couldn't be put into the game.
-The Hit Chance in Combat: This was the only real glaring flaw with the game. I don't know how many times I had my entire team of runners fire everything they had into an enemy that they all had an 83% chance to hit and completely whiff. Likewise, I would sometime's ending hitting more frequently on enemies that had a 23% hit chance. It might just be my bad luck but after awhile I just started to ignore the Hit% and just assumed every shot in the game was 50/50.
-Weapon/Spell options; I know I said earlier that there was a wealth of options in the game, and there is, but it is lacking in some areas. Newer weapons feel like upgraded versions of what's already for sale and it takes a lot of the uniqueness away from your arsenal. Hopefully in the future more options come into the fold so having SMG A really feels different than having SMG B, but right now it's just slightely irritating, though it doesn't detract from the fun.
All in all, this game is great. My personal score would be a 9.5 as I really enjoyed it, but taking a step back and looking at it for what it is, I would give it an 8.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013This game is absolutely awful it's just like any other RPG tactic Indie game. Nothing special to this game, just your average game, I was pumped for this game when it was first released after all the hype of the trailers, screenshots, and many other factors I was ready but it was a major let down I want a refund for this game. All these good reviews are mediocre gamers that never experienced a real tactics game.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013Great plot, great dialogue. It's a short story, but with the promise of community-made stories moving forward it's forgiving.
The gripes with the savepoints is legitimate, though. It's frustrating even in safe houses, when you've dug through a half-dozen pages of dialogue, only to not be able to save and have to re-read them next playthrough.
To the Gen-Y kids expecting a sandbox free-roam action RPG though, good lord. Nobody born in the 80s who enjoyed the SNES/Genesis titles were expecting that sort of game, why were you? Kids today.
Thanks for the great platform, I look forward to a lot of great stories.
Please address the savepoint issues, though.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Don't let some of the reviews dissuade you. People who expect everything to be voice acted and hate to read are simply being lazy and missing how the game was actually designed and that was to be built to be easily used as a foundation for users to create their own campaigns within a world they love. Saying that the text is too much to read or the combat is too easy is flat out silly and shows a poor understanding of the game style and genre.
The art is solid and clean, as is the music. It exists and gives a great feel to the world and the campaign that comes with.
Combat is not very challenging but that may simply be a fault of the included campaign not being designed with difficulty in mind and more a neat showcase with a good story. Players of the tabletop rpg will be at home in the world and system for the most part.
The downsides being that the checkpoint system is annoying but I feel that is mission design more than game itself (as changes to level design and the like could mitigate this)
The shortness of the included campaign might be noted but at the same time there are games put out with higher price tags that provide WAAAAY less content and quality.
So don't let the naysayers get you down, most of those zero reviews and such are from people who want a triple A title from a major studio and instead got a good isometric rpg and don't understand why it isn't what they wanted.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Interesting game, I love the isometric graphics. However the save system is a deal breaker. Spending 20 mins talking to npcs, spending "Karma"(experience/customization points) and not being able to save is ludicrous. It works for an adventure game but not for an RPG. It's pity because, like most Shadowrun fans, I was really looking forward to this tittle.
If you often have to leave your computer and hate to redo dialog and character customization don't buy this game.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Whilst the game has its own charms, what it basically boils down to is a wall of text with choices lead to the same result no matter what you pick. Also there is very little action, with little interaction. For example entire streets are eye candy, just something to walk down, with nothing to do in them. The game play seems extremely linear and the lack of a save function means reading the wall of text again due to lost progress becomes a reason not to reload the game at all. Whilst the story is interesting, I think reading a Shadowrun book would be a lot cheaper and more fun than playing the shadowrun returns game.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013That's all?!?
As a kickstarter backer I'm just appalled at how skimpy this offering turned out. I downloaded it and played it through, completing every optional objective and sidemission (of which there were like 2!) in 10 hours.
This is a point-and-click adventure game with meaningless dialogue (Nothing you say alters any outcome, with a couple minor exceptions) supported by a combat mini-game and a laughable inventory system. Completely on-rails story, forget about a sandbox, there isn't even a quest-hub system in place, or world map or... anything.
People who enjoy modding games who also still play pen-and-paper Shadowrrun might wind up enjoying this game when the "community" gets around to actually creating content for it, but no one else is going to find their money well-spent upon purchasing this title. Caveat emptor.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013While it isn't the longest game out there, every moment of it is fun and worth the price you'll pay for this little gem (In fact, given the pricing it is quite a steal). While the graphics may not be using the latest tech out there, but they are still pretty decent and quite stylish. They fit the theme perfectly.
Which leads me to another point, the Atmosphere, the graphics, music and sounds combine perfectly to immerse you in the world of Shadowrun. Add that to the fact that all of the different class are fun to play and offer different ways to solve the quests/situations you'll encounter and you get an awesome replay value from this.
Lets not forget that there is also a level editor which will ensure your investment is a sound one, since buyers shall be getting new campains from the community.
I strongly advise you check this one out … Expand
Jul 26, 2013An amazing game with a few flaws in it.
- Yes, there is no "save-anywhere" feature, but it doesn't hinder gameplay all that much (except for the obsessive-compulsive among us). Considering most areas of the main campaign are easy to a fault (more on that later), its not that big of a deal.
- Yes, you have unlimited ammo. However, you still have to reload, which can take up an action.
- Yes, its quite linear to play through, but I suspect this was done to keep the focus upon the story, and things will really open up in a couple of months once the community has played with the level editor.
- No mode selection; game seems to be stuck on Easy for the most part.
-- If anything, my two biggest complaints are:
A) Its too easy for the most part I hardly ever died or needed to push a lot of tactics into what should have been a tactical turn-based RPG;
B) there's still quite a few glitches and annoying parts here and there (enemy AI spazing out, walking into a room only to accidentally trigger a cutscene and get stuck out in the open, etc).
Now let's look at the good.
+ The art design. Characters are not all that well-detailed, but are distinct enough to easily tell them apart. In contrast, the world is well-detailed in a 2D isometric perspective and almost beautiful in its filthiness.
+ The characters. Although there is no voice acting in this game, all of the main characters have a distinct feel to them how they dress, how they talk, etc. Even the fellow 'Runners you recruit as hired muscle have their own feel. And the humor some bring to the table may not have had me on the ground laughing, but it definitely brought out a chuckle when one was sorely needed.
+ The combat. Its beauty is in its simplicity; every action can be pulled out at a whim, and there are multiple paths that the Player can take. The races don't feel all that different (besides different stat/skill caps and maybe some dialogue), but each of the different classes has their own feel.
+ Distinct classes. Each of the classes has its own play style and feel to them; Mages & Shamans bring down magical destruction upon their foes and support their allies, Street Samurai wield gun and blade in equal measure, Adepts use their life force to smash opponents into submission, Riggers use drones to fight for them, and and Deckers use technology to jack into the matrix, turning machines against their masters.
And with the promise of an avid community willing to mod the living hell out of SRR, things couldn't look brighter. Granted, the game isn't for everyone, and its obvious that Hairbrained Schemes was pressed to release the game on-time, but despite its flaws there is a lot to look forward to you could certainly waste $20 on far WORSE things nowadays.
Bottom line: Its functional, fun, and short the campaign is only about 12 hours long, but its at least going tto be a memorable 12 hours.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013I'd been looking forward to Shadowrun Returns since first hearing about it's kickstarter and waited and waited. Now that it's a reality, I am quite pleased. First and foremost, my favorite thing is the atmosphere and world creation. SR does an incredible job of realizing the world of Shadowrun. It takes no time to treat you like an ignoramus and paints a natural picture of the world you occupy. Hearing casual talk about magic and trolls in an environment occupied by machine guns is refreshing. This makes way for a fantastic and well written story that feels a bit noirish, with your main character acting a bit like a detective. The primary tale has you trying to solve the murder of a friend whose pre-recorded a message asking you to find his killer, with a handsome reward waiting.
The game opens with a customization that makes you feel as though you've just delved into the PnP RPG of yore. You can customize your character, picking from several different and distinct fantasy races. You then can use Karma points to upgrade your character and build them as you see fit, whether it's a deckker built for hacking computer systems, a shaman specializing in magic and healing, or a street samurai, specializing in combat. My own personal tastes had me create an elven street samurai gifted with natural charisma.
Gameplay is comparable to last years Xcom, where you and up to three other runners, which are made up of important story characters or ones you hire. Once in combat, you have several option to choose from, between close and ranged weapons combat, magic, healing, movement, and so on. The gameplay is fairly simple, though strategy can be complex. You will across an assortment of enemies, and will have to play intelligently to keep your characters from dying.
However, combat is only one aspect of gameplay. You will come across other problems you will have to solve, such as navigating conversations and investigations. While the story is fairly straight forward, how you get from point A to point B is up to you. Examples include fighting, complying with, or bribing characters to have your way. Multiple choices in this game are less about multiple reactions and more about picking the best solution that suits you. In my case, my highly charismatic elf is gifted at talking his way into getting what he wants, though he also specializes in combat.
Maybe the best part of SR is the map/game builder. You have all the tools you need to create your own chapter in the Shadowrun saga. It goes a long way to making the game completely worthwhile and having long lasting value. And in case you might think it's overpriced, the game is only about $20, and it's worth every penny. For any fan of the older games, this is very much a worthy game to the title it holds.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013Loving this game, lovely writing and gorgeous art. Really captures the feel of the source material. About four hours into the campaign and really enjoying the detective story feel. My only criticism so far is the lack of a quicksave, instead relying on a checkpoint system. However this is minor, especially compared to the huge boon of the bundled editor, I cannot wait to see what the community does with it. Like Skyrim and Neverwinter, I can really see this game evolving with the input of the fans.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013The game, had potential, and I absolutely love turn based RPG games, especially ones that are like fallout or x-com ishy style.
To bad this game is neither, the turn base combat engine is ok, but really they should feel ashamed for the poor to use UI, and lack of options. 20 year old turn based isomentric combat games had better UI, and made the combat feel a lot more 'alive'. Not to mention how for instance the new x-com turn based engine shows how a good UI should be done. This is none of the above.
Storyline is linear, and falls flat on it's face. Some of the text is ok to read, but really if you are used to reading good books. This isn't one of those. Compared to some other video game text/stories it is overall ok. For 1.2million budget they could have had some voiceovers on important characters/plot events maybe, just to give the game a bit of a not 20 years old feel.
Nothing redeeming about this game at all really, if you are looking for a turn based RPG combat game. Go get the old x-com, or Jagged Alliance, or BG, or one of the many other games from the 90's. Most of them have, better interface, better graphics and better storyline.
After looking on Metacritic I can tell what they did spend all the extra money on, creating sock puppet accounts to vote 9/10 and 10/10 for this obvious game that any sane person would never give over a 7 for.… Expand
Jul 25, 2013My Background:
I've never played Shadowrun before, neither on pnp nor pc. I'm a great fan of dystopian cyberpunk, but I loathe the idea of elves and other fantasy races in sci-fi. Still, I was hyped and had fairly high hopes for this game because there is a severe lack of good cRPGs these days. Every HBS game I've played before SRR have been pure and utter so while hope where high expectations where low. Game Mechanics: Skills and abilities are somewhat minimalistic for a cRPG, both in number and stated function. They are however to the point and without a huge number of redundant and useless abilities. They are also numerous and deep enough to allow for strategy through character building in a meaningful way. Maybe more meaningful than many games with a more numerous and complex skill-set. This is an achievement from a game-design perspective. Furthermore they make full use of the skills through dialogue options like Fallout 1 and 2, and planescape: torment. This works really well, even better than in those original titles! The class-less system works perfectly, unlike many other popular cRPGs. At a glance the skill-system looks a bit like in the mass effect franchise, while the class-less feature can be compared to the Elder scrolls franchise. Both of them works a lot better in SRR than they do in the two blockbusters! Gameplay is real-time except for turn-based combat (like in xcom) and dialogue, just like in the first two fallout games. This works well. 2D Graphics put limitations on destruction of scenery, but compared to the gains of using 2D this matters little. There is plenty of object interaction such as looking for clues and analyzing them, hacking computers and security-networks, hacking the internet-like Matrix, finding hidden items and more. Character Concepts work way better than I could ever imagine. I felt bad chills going down my spine as I realized that my character concept probably worked best as an Elf(!), but decided to try it out regardless. Would I have to endure glittering nail-polish, pouty lips and pink ribbons in my hair? When I found a portrait that looked more like a Necron than an Elf my grin went from one metallic ear to the other. Who would have known that the concept of elf could actually add to the feel of the fiction?!.. I'm amazed! The Stock Campaign: HBS have made a very stylised «Sin City meets Blade Runner -ish» detective/agent story. They have just the right amount and type of clichés to make it work, and every element in the game contributes to this sci-fi noir feel. Both the characters and dialogue are mature and intelligently made. Fantastic story with no redundancy. Not once did I ask myself "why the heck am I doing this?!" Not once did I have to run errands to earn xp, or be left with the choice of being either an utter or a charity-running do-gooder. Not once was I forced into a random combat that felt out of place or redundant. It's incredibly liberating to once again play a cRPG that doesn't feel like a slaughterhouse grind. SRR do this better in its stock campaign than even Planescape: Torment did. It's not that you can avoid every combat, but rather that every darnedest one feels will-timed, proper and meaningful. Graphics: 2D background is beautiful and well done. Drawback no scenery destruction. Character sprites are undefined and ugly, but I find myself not caring much about this. Character Profile Pics are maybe the best I've seen in any game. Champaign Editor: Haven't tried it yet, but I'm gonna assume it's at least able to create the stock campaign, in which case it's brilliant compared to anything out there. Can't wait to try out user-created campaigns. State-of-the-Game: The game is quite stable and appears polished for the most part. Bad Drawbacks: Checkpoint based saving This is such a weak and unintelligent solution that really hurts gameplay. Pixel-clicking The activation area of sprites in the game are glitchy. Matters of Taste: The game is very linear in the sense that you don't have a choice in where to go next. The areas you move through is in essence a track. However, I'be found that in this game this is a strength, as it helps focus and remove redundancies from the story. Short Campaign: In my opinion a game should not drone on for the sake of adding game-hours. The campaign is compact 12 hours of constant fun. There is more fun baked into SSRs 12 hours than there is spread out amongst DAOs 60 hours or Skyrims 360 hours. Quality is equal to fun divided by time imho. A Conclution of Paradox: The package of SRR as a whole is so powerful that even with the minus 30% from checkpoint-saves, it deserves the very highest score possible. Doesn't mean that it cannot be better, just that even with this glaring flaw it's the very best of it's genre so far.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013It would be great, unfortunately, it's id***-friendly improvements, mentioned many times: checkpoints! UNLIMITED AMMO! It's only 1/100 of what it could be.
Jul 26, 2013Good game with few minor (at least for me) issues. Personally I like the checkpoint system so I can`t just reload when something goes wrong.
Inventory system seems little simple & could use more stuff for people who like to LOOT everything =P
Jul 25, 2013Shadowrun Returns is everything I hoped it to be. It has an extremely captivating and fun narrative that'll pull you in straight away, always giving you a hunger for more. The gameplay is fun and although it would have been cool if it were deeper, it feels enough like a proper old RPG like Baldur's Gate or Fallout to captivate me. Graphically the game is beautiful as well; the textures are of high quality and the top-down perspective is well-executed.
An excellent RPG that will immerse you in its story and world before you know it.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013While I support the developers for returning to the isometric turn based RPGs, I'm very disappointed with the result. The game is 100% linear. Your choices don't matter. You have to replay the same scene (up to 30 minutes) after you had to close the game due to RL distractions or simply not feeling like continue playing at the moment. I'm going to wait a couple of months for at least the save anywhere functionality. For now I will just uninstall it.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Shadowrun Returns brings the post apocalyptic world of Seattle back to life, brought to you by the people that started it all in the first place more than 20 years ago.
While there may be some tropes from modern day RPGs such as massive inventories and phat lootz dropping every 3 seconds not present, the streamlined interface and focused game play allow the story and setting to take a much more prominent role. Shadowrun Returns is a triumphant return of the Shadowrun universe to the electronic mediums.
There are some very minor points that i found missing from the Pen and Paper game, such as Stun and Physical damage, but all in all, Hairbrained Schemes has done a wonderful job of putting together what is needed to take me back to days gone by with friends sitting around a table, rolling handfuls of 6 sided dice, dodging Lone Star and working for whichever Mr Johnson happened to be paying the bills that particular week.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Don't listen to the trolls and lowbrainers. Shadowrun Returns isn't a perfect game by any stretch of the imagination, but if you're looking for an engrossing story, excellent writing and deep characters, you owe it to yourself to check out this game.
Jul 27, 2013I just finished the game. The ending story is nice but the ending itself was poorly done. The game is too easy all along. There's no replay value to the main story since it's so damn linear. Kill forward kill. It's a game built for consoles. I'm pretty sure they're going to release this on xbox and such and that's probably why it's so easy. The UI is oversimplified. The combat gets very repetitive once you got the moves down. The buffing system is annoying as hell, with rebuffs every few turns.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013I gave this game an honest 4. It isn't a 0 as it is not a disaster but there is no way it is a 10. There are much better games out there that are similiar that deserve a 10. While it is good that an indy and kickstarter game has made it, it is really dissapointing for their budget with what else is out there.
-Writing and unique immerison are farily good
-Skill point differential allows for different playthroughs and dialogue
-Different races and interactions with characters is nice
-Game world backdrops are nicely drawn (eventhough you can't interact)
-It's in Seattle where I live
-Story is completley linear, just a point and click adventure
-Combat is very poor, repetitive, and straight forward.Also very easy
-Classes are meaningless as guns rule the game
-No open world (just clarify as it kinda impies it is)
-Equipment/guns are really limited, you will only change it about three times in the 10 hour game
-Checkpoint save only. It doesnt make it harder it just makes it annoying… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a fun game that takes you back to the days where the SNES and Genesis versions wowed many of us.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time playing this game. I was never bored reading all the dialogue. Although that was a complaint of a few people (no voice overs). The art is amazingly well done and fits the tone of the mythos of Shadowrun very well. I live in PDX not too far from Seattle and it still felt like I was up there visiting Pike's Place Market and grabbing some seafood near the bay.
This game supports several runthroughs but is very linear in the Dead Man's Switch campaign that's included with the game.
Fortunately there is a powerful editor provided with the game and I look forward to adding my own UGC to the game on Steam's Workshop.
I predict Shadowrun Returns will be like Neverwinter Nights. Endlessly supported by a passionate community.
See you in the Shadows, chummer!… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Great game, well worth the price.
Given the limited budget, time and low price you get an excellent Shadowrun game. It has all the feel of the old NES one, fantastic music and beautiful backgrounds, the writing is mostly good to very good and skills, choices, personality all matter and affect what happens.
The combat is somewhat limited but still fun and has a *ton* of options for you to choose from in regards to how your character engages enemies, the option to create your own 'class' is brilliant and if you always wanted a Mage who dabbled in decking or a Rigger who could kick ass with his mystical powers... you can create it, anything goes pretty much, whilst any mix of cyberware and magic will be limited by essence usage you always have the *option* to do so which is great.
The story is definitely rather linear but that doesn't detract from it at all, the locations are gorgeous, searching and exploring is rewarded, as is tactical use of cover in combat.
Overall well worth buying in my opinion, oh, but definitely play it on hard or very hard if you want a challenge, normal is a bit too easy for any veteran of rpgs.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013This game is fantastic. Couldn't ask for more, except more content, which is on the way. The writing is incredible, soundtrack is outstanding, animations are well done, environments are beautiful. To me, it's an instant classic, and should be for anyone who loved the old Shadowrun books/roleplaying game and the Baldur's Gate games.
Jul 26, 2013The SNES verion of Shadowrun was a big influence on me. It had a unique noir artstyle, incredible music and I honestly believe it to be the most atmospheric game ever made. More atmospheric than system shcok 2 even. I always wanted a worthy sequel and never thought I'd get one, until yesterday when I played Shadowrun Returns.
Yes its linear, but it is so action packed and the story is so great that I failed to notice. I couldn't stop playing. Because it has a lot of text rather than voice acting a strong imagination is important. The real gem for me was the combat which is deep, satisfying, and a ton of fun.
Its a worthy successor to the SNES title and that is about the highest praise I could give something.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013I have been waiting 15 intense months for this game- and I am having a blast. The dialogue is excellent and very Fallout-esque (Fallout 1 & 2) and brings companions and even "merchants" to live. The Shadowrun narrative is woven into the whole storyline and not just the topping, but a foundation of this game.
The best and most important feature for me has been the Editor though! I've spent quite some time creating content and experimenting with triggers and found ways to do many things others marked as impossible.
Every fan of creative narrative, cRPG's, UserCreatedContent & diverse tactical combat should give this game the chance it deserves!… Expand
Jul 30, 2013Having played 2 Shadowruns (SNES and Sega) I was really excited about this since it was announced last year. Very sad to see the game turned out to be way less than what I expected. This game is boring, *very* linear, without any incentive for replay, and the dialogue trees doesn't affect very much the outcome of the game. Shadowrun on the Genesis is way, way better despite it being 20 years old
Jul 30, 2013I can not fathom why this game is getting so many good reviews. In my opinion this game is more of a monumental failure.
First up is the save system. I know I am not the only one but I guess there aren't enough of us that dislike a checkpoint system to make a difference in the global video game market. I am not sure what the reason for this idea is, I hope it is not replay value. Because I can tell you there are games I have NOT purchased solely because of a checkpoint system, in addition, when I do accidentally buy a game with one, all I want to do is get my money back. I can not stress enough how much I detest the idea of restarting and entire level because I want to try a conversation a different way, or was one point of charisma away from using a charisma check in a conversation. I did not do enough research into the game before I purchased it, but if I did I may have just skipped this one all together. The idea of an RPG with this type of save system is preposterous. Harebrained confesses they did not have the money to implement a proper save system. This is a piss poor excuse for laziness, incompetence or a complete lack of prioritization. Graphically, the game is beautiful, so obviously some money and time could have been spared in this department.
Second, inventory and drops. Again I say..R P G.. I must have been sleeping because I missed the boat that took the idea of inventory out of a role playing game. When did this become a good idea? Even brain science supports the idea that video game addiction is based on a constant reward system.. WHY take it out?!?!? Additionally, when I frag a ganger, I want the satisfaction of striping his armor and weapon and selling it. It makes me feel better for the insolence he paid me when he tried to kill me!
Third up. This game is so linear it hurts, add to that this game is supposed to be... you guessed it, an RPG!!! The developers put corners into the game.. congratulations by the way. But the game would have not suffered one bit if they had made every level a straight line. I'm not sure why they tried to mask it with corners, maybe weak minded non Jedi types are easily fooled by such farcical attempts to add depth to an environment. The truth is there is nothing between point A and point B, no loot, and maybe one side side quest that will take you two seconds to complete.
Fourth. Writing and plot. I have to confess the Narrative, or the way the story line is told, is remarkable. The flowerful writing used to describe the environments, characters, states of being. It is truly visionary. There is no audio at all in this game so every word needs to be read, and I enjoyed every moment of it. It was a pleasure to "read" this game. The story line and plot however are surprisingly simple. For example, when I discovered who the Emerald City Killer was I was a bit taken back that the plot was so simple. I had in essence, gone from the feeling of reading a really good novel, to suddenly reading a child's book.
To sum up, I guess I have been offended and feel cheated. I LOVED the snes version of this game, and was hoping for something grand and nostalgic. Something reminiscent of what a real RPG could be and what gaming used to be about. It seems like everyone is just out to make a quick buck. Max the sales with minimum effort, "go with the averages and we can't fail." Harebrained will be an excellent candidate for EA membership. This game may have been better if they just called it Call of Duty 16: Shadowrun Returns.
Amph… Expand
Jul 31, 2013Games like this make me wonder what criteria professional reviewers grade on. This may be the most linear RPG I have ever played. There is absolutely no chance to wander around and experience the Shadowrun world in any way. The gameplay sticks you in a claustrophobic section of town, and you are never for a second in doubt of what to do next, because you have no say in the matter. Any choices you have as a player are irrelevant, the classes are just different glosses on two basic concepts, and for all of this at the end, all you get is some chitchat style dialogue and a page of text to read. I'm not interested in waiting around for the community to turn this game into something better, there's just not enough to work with. Uninstalling.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Wait for the inevitable Steam Sale. With no voice acting and a lot of text to read (and I am old and the text is small), you can tell they really tried to tell a story and make you feel as if you were part of the story, and yet that story seems linear, simple and your choices seem to not make a difference in that linear story line. This coupled with a check point save system, means that you have no idea how long to the next check point, and if you have been reading everything and trying to explore everything, there can be a long time between saves and this sucks if you have to stop playing because of real life. Graphics are kind of washed and muddy to me, but that might work for the Shadowrun Universe...eh. Combat is good, but the inability to rotate a screen where cover is important, and you cannot always see clearly around objects well to see what cover you would be getting, you feel like perhaps you should just go back and play more x-com. Except for the character system. There appears to be a lot of versatility in play style, and user generated content will hopefully be much better than the lack luster writing of the team from Hairbrained. My recommendation, wait for the inevitable Steam Sale.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013Honestly brought me back to my childhood. Was a lot of fun and very well told story. The most exciting part for me is after this campaign is done there is still Berlin coming out and an indefinite amount of user created campaigns. I'm excited to see a lot more of this world and hope it is a sales success so we can see more iterations in the future!!!
Jul 26, 2013Game overall is very fun to play. The only thing that bothers me is the no loot drops. Items you get seem to only come from vendors. As you raise more karma, better items will be available in the shops. Some reviews i can agree with while others are are just plain written by kids that think they deserve more for donating 5 bucks or 15 bucks to a kickstarter campaign.
1) The UI. Yes. The user interface is optimized for play on touch screen devices. This doesn't bother me as much as most of the other players that gave it a low score just because of this. I think its just sleek and stream lined, and you can still do everything you need to do.
2) Autosave. Yes you can't save the game anywhere you want. Would you really want that though? If the game let you save anywhere you want, you would easily explore all dialogue choices on the first playthrough. That ruins the game in my opinion. Having a save point you can go to (camp) might have been better, but not really necessary.
3) Walls of Text. Yes, there is alot of reading in this game. Ever since SWTOR intorduced 100% voiced missions, everyone's expectations are 'if there is any kind of reading, it sucks' But in my opinion, the emotes in the dialogue add a genuine glimpse into the situation you would otherwise miss if it was just bad voice acting.
4) Linear gameplay. The campaign that came with release is pretty darn linear. Nomatter what choices you make, you always end up with the same dialogue in the end. Your choices only impact wether you get to the end faster or not.
I havn't gone on any shadow runs just yet. Been sticking to the storyline mostly, but i feel like the game lacks that free open world feeling that Genesis and SNES versions of Shadowrun had. You enter an instance of a zone, click on everything that has an icon over it, and you're pretty much certain theres nothing else to find in the area. I havn't finished the campaign yet but thats the feeling im looking for. Will do another review when i finish the first campaign.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013SRR: Why Shadowrun Returns is a huge step forward Objective Review from a non-fan )
I don't usually review games, and am not even that much of a Shadowrun fan, but since there has been a huge spam of extremist opinions around here and steam, I figured it could turn off potential future players based on uninformed reviews. English isn't my first language, hopefully that shouldn't taint my take on this. Well then, Shadowrun Returns, should you buy it or not?
I never played the Pen and Paper game, or even the SNES version I got stuck with Sega Master System for years Regardless, I do have PnP experience with games like D&D and Cyberpunk2020, etc. Don't let that intimidate you, none of this should condition your enjoyment of ShadowRun Returns and I'll tell you why.
Last year, I got introduced to ShadowRun by former SR writer Peter Taylor who works near my college, he was hinting me on how to improve my writing, and on ocasion we talked about PnPs and eventually dragged the chat to MMORPGs, and how Computer Games always fell short of mirroring the experience you got from PnPs.
PnPs, where adventures were crafted by Game or Dungeon Masters specially for that bunch of players in the group, where a mighty Dragon was slain by a party of four heroes whose paths happened to cross and lead to glory, the Dragon is vanquished and never again spreads it's vile aura over the world. While on the virtual world, a respawning Dragon is butchered every 15 minutes by incoming hordes of players, who then scavenge the corpse to show off a Dragon Armor that thousands of others already have, while the Dragon in question is actually still rolling and getting it's handed to it in a perpetual Respawn-Get beaten-Die cycle. Most MMORPGs have partial solutions of these things like World Changing Expansions and whatnot )
Maybe it will never be possible to truly mimick that side of the PnPs, the strong point, and probably the reason why I ever played any, now that I think of it. In the end, it is this experience that ShadowRun Returns is working on. While I don't believe you have to be a veteren PnP gamer or hardcore this or that to enjoy it, it helps to make your decision to know what exactly is SRR doing here, and in the end, why it's doing it. I'll dive into some subjectivity now and say that it's a good take on the PnP whole thing, being closer than any game got so far while simultaneously still a long way from achieving it, but walking down the right path.
I can imagine how the whole making the player a possible game master thing is risky in SRR, but it's the kind of risky it takes to get closer to a PnP experience in a computer. All of this, assuming it is this you are looking for, is the reason why you should look into SRR.
If it's not this what you are looking for (understandable since there aren't that many PnP fans anymore) then it's possible you won't enjoy this game, or at least not the way it was made to be enjoyed.
Lastly I'm leaving my personal opinion on the game. I'm not actually a ShadowRun fan, but I found in SRR what I was expecting when I prepurchased the game, I can see some questionable points, like the checkpoint save system which will be very inconvenient to some, that's a given. I for one, am OK with it, it does drag a save for long periods sometimes, but most of the times it let's you play in small bits and leave, which feels a bit like sitting in a table with a GM and friends and waiting to finish a fight or get to a tavern or area to call it a day so you don't have to record fighting data like whose turn it is first next session who has what buff or debuff, etc etc, Ironically sort of the same reason why it happens in SRR even though it's something a computer should fix, but I digress Other than that I enjoyed the story very much, mostly for how it was written, less for the plot. The play style is a bit linear, in much the same way that a PnP GM would craft an adventure for a particular session, and everything would revolve around that adventure, although you could always try to find ways to get off the rail and the GM would either improvise or put all his efforts into barring your way, and Improvising is something computers can't do yet not the same way a human GM can and so SRR may feel a bit linear at times, though it is possible to have more freedom in SRR if a campaign is made more "open wordly".
I give SRR a solid 9/10, taken that this is the sort of experience you're looking to support, otherwise, there are games out there more fitting to your tastes and whims.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013Not all will agree with my rating, but let me explain why I am particularly excited to see this game. I will admit, I am a Shadowrun fanboy who has been waiting a long time for a competent reboot of the franchise. I can't overemphasize how exciting it is for a Shadowrun fan to see a franchise once thought dead on the PC return to life.
Shadowrun was a great IP from the late 80s and early 90s that has largely lapsed for the past 20 years. Many have already mentioned the great Sega and SNES games from this period. There have been good cyperpunk titles since then (Deus Ex comes to mind) but the Shadowrun 'reboot' put out a few years back abysmally disappointing.
What this game does well is capture the spirit and the setting of the Shadowrun universe. I agree that the packaged campaign is short. However, it is well made and enjoyable.
The real proof in the pudding will be whether this game will catch on in the modding community. Games that look a bit rough around the edges (Mount and Blade for example, or the NW nights franchise) can do very well years after their release if they have a dedicated fanbase
In sum, if you have $20 to spare and loved Shadowrun- Buy immediately.
If you have $20 to spare and loved the Xcom or Fallout 1 and 2 turnbased tactical combat- I strongly suggest you buy
For all others, I think you might like it, but I can't guarantee it. In that case, waiting a few months to see what the modding community does might be the best option.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013I started to play the game with hope, but overall I am disappointed. The things I liked: - storyline written by some Shadowrun writer, enjoyed it - decking reality real time combat - music Things I disliked : - totally linear, your conversation choices are mostly neglected, lack of freedom you cannot even go through the city as you want, just game takes control. - no saving, just checkpoints which can make you to lose 20-30 min of gameplay. What is "Rewind and copy!?"
- short, taken me roughly 10h to finish.
- static terrain and actors (the background is very tidely drawn though)
- no voice acting, not even the major characters (like in Neverwinter nights 1)
- extremely simplified no ammo,… Expand
Jul 29, 20135 biggest NO of Shadowrun Returns: no open world, no loot, no save, unlimited ammo (O, no!), no matrix (and don't even tell me that i am wrong, matrix here is just identity xcom fight system)
Aug 1, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a very poor game. I feel bad for folks who threw their support behind this game and myself for throwing an extra $5 at it.
The bad:
1. It's buggy. I've had to reload a map twice now due to uncompletable bugs.
2. The story is weak. It could have had some depth, but it falls way short.
3. It's very short. There doesn't seem to be any secrets or easter eggs so you can blow through this in 5 hours or so.
4. Documentation is terrible. In-game documentation is sometimes cut off. There are incompatible skill trees that are completely undocumented. I'm currently running with 17 wasted "karma" points due to an incompatible skill tree that I couldn't know of beforehand. Online documentation is limited as well.
5. Clunky interface. Nothing is clear, everything requires clicks. Basically you're buying a tablet game even on the pc.
The good:
1. The editor. Hopefully the community will make the game they should have made.
2. Although short, there is absolutely no grind. There's not even travel for the most part, just pure action which leads to a lot of bang for your 5 hours.
3. The hand painted art is great. Gritty atmosphere without being too dark to see.
In the end they were paid a lot of money to do a minor Unity engine build so the community can build the game they want with a shabby interface. Does it have potential, yes. But from the community, they don't deserve full price.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013The lack of player controlled save system is the only major downside to this top down turn based rpg.
Hopefully that's something modders can address there is however a charecter importer to bring your avatar into as many player created missions as you want (mod tools included with base game and integrated with the steam workshop) If nothing else this is a solid investment at it's price for what it has the potential to be.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013Been a fan of Shadowrun since early 90's and was looking forward to this game. As I can forgive the straightforward story where player only controls the fights, the worst thing in this game is that there is no save game option. So basic thing in gaming and devs "forgot" to include it.
Jul 26, 2013A mediocre game, with what looks to be a great engine behind it.
Could be a great game in 6 months after there is a reasonable amount of user content available for it, but I don't know how reasonable it is to expect the community to put together a good game…isn't that what we paid for?
The music is excellent.
Jul 27, 2013It's...adequate. The story is just compelling enough to keep you going, the UI is functional, though not impressive, the graphics decent though not flashy, the animations...well, ok the animations are somewhat sub par. Overall, it does the job. Good enough.
Jul 27, 2013Great game, really catching the feel of Shadowrun in general and well worth the 18 euros 20 dollars it costs through steam. There's much love given to people who played the SNES game, maybe to the genesis fans aswell (didn't play the SEGA version myself). Music composers from the SNES and Sega game made some parts of the soundtrack aswell as characters from both game pops in on the storyline. I'm quite sure that fans of the Shadowrun Universe PnP will like this game, but also fans of the RP genre in general.
The only downside the game has, is the current save options, I didn't lower the score cause of this, in hope it will be fixed somewhere in the future, or at least be better for the upcoming "Berlin" DLC campaign by Harebrained Schemes.
Shadowrun community seems to have a good community, which will most likely create some very well written stories through the editor that came with the game which again leaves you with a good opportunity to get even more shadowrun for your money, as well as maybe an even more open world feeling, as the current main campaign is a bit linear. (Berlin campaign is already said to be more open world'ish)… Expand
Jul 26, 2013To anyone who loves Shadowrun, this is a GREAT game if for no other reason than they released the Editor with the game. I've already played on two user created adventures. The main story is great and has a lot of old favorites making an appearance. Plus the price is right. Yes the checkpoint system could have been done better. A lot better. But there is also a lot more to come.
Also we still have the Berlin campaign to come.
I've seen people complaining because it wasn't voiced. They were clear early on that they couldn't afford it. I'd rather have two well written campaigns than one with voice.
And it is sad when some people savage a good game because it wasn't exactly what they were expecting. Rate the game on what it tries to do. If it claims to be things it is not or is deeply flawed then give it a zero. But don't give it a zero because it didn't match up with your favorite style of play.
The developers of this game laid out exactly what they were trying to do, gave regular updates, and they delivered to the backers (except for the save system which they explained).
To those that rated this game a zero, you must not have been paying attention.
There was no bait and switch and it more than delivered on what it promised.… Expand
Jul 28, 2013a great bit nostalgia, everything about the game reminds me of the Shadowrun pen and paper game. my only problem with it is with the auto save function although it could be better it has yet to cause me any real issue's. in all I feel like they did a great job this game!
Jul 26, 2013awesome game. got more than what i figured would be put out with the game. can't wait to finish it. love the combat systems. love the fact that they added an option to create my own campaigns
Jul 27, 2013Right from the start of playing this game i thoroughly enjoyed it, the game play was great, the music was fantastic, the story line was amazing. Everything about this game i found to be refreshing in the genre and just in general.
My only gripes about the game it self are the sometimes errors when dealing with moving around, where clicking once doesn't always work and you have to find the sweet spot on the map in order to move and the autosave function. Autosave is nice and it requires you to play smart because if you mess up then it's game over and you have to repeat what you just did.
I hope that these guys in the future make better and better story lines surrounded by amazing detail and the ability to get even more into the characters you make.… Expand
Jul 27, 2013I've been waiting countless years for this game. I grew up on the SEGA Shadowrun, one of my favorite games of all time and it is against this that I will judge Shadowrun returns. I'm going to be harsher on it than I like, but it's tough love.
1. Art-style. Absolutely love it. All the tilesets and graphics perfectly encapsulate the cyberpunk feel.
2. Character generation/RPG system. Very familiar. Different enough to be fresh to Shadowrun veterans, yet familiar enough to feel comfortable.
3. Good weapon selection, but I don't like the tiered structure where the expensive version is simply the better one.
4. Main campaign had a good story and is a great primer for those who don't know what the Shadowrun universe has to offer.
5. Available classes/make your own class. I think that was well done and offers a fair bit of replayability.
6. Editor vastly increases replayability and really lets the community express itself. I'll reiterate that this is the major strength of the game.
7. The soundtrack is great.
Negatives :
1. No save system. I personally haven't had as big of an issue with this as other people have, but I can see how this is an issue. Personally, I've found the save system keeps me honest since I'll usually save/reload during critical points of the game, sometimes to pursue different roleplaying choices. However...
2. No impact of choices. I have not yet seen how my dialogue choices or any choices have made a difference in anything. SEGA SR suffered from the same ill, but this is something that only affects the default campaign and can be remedied in user campaigns.
3. ***Lack of sandbox-style/non-linear gameplay*** This is my biggest issue as I was hoping to be plopped into a living, breathing Seattle. Naturally, I knew this was the case from the trailers, but I'll still complain about it since I think the SEGA SR really had it right with the non-linear gameplay.
4. No weapons modifications. Not a surprise as I kept up with HBS snippets about SR, but still, I enjoyed pimping my gat on the SEGA game and thoroughly enjoy it on the PnP RPG as there are limitless options for customizing your weapon of choice.
5. No martial arts system. I'm glad hand to hand is an option, but I hope in the future we'll be able to pick martial arts and maybe even have a few animations for different martial arts styles. The walk up and punch in the face gets a little old. However, this is just like the SEGA game so I can't come down too hard.
6. More outfits needed.
7. Persistent Shadowrunner companions. I loved hiring the diminutive rat-shaman Ricky and forging him into an extremely inexpensive to hire rat-Gandalf. There was also a hint of personality and backstory to each runner you could hire in the SEGA game and I'm extremely disappointed that that didn't really make it into SR.
8. Need Cyberspurs.
9. ***Loot drops and scoring gear*** This is a big issue that I feel needs to be seriously addressed. What fun is there running against megacorps if you can't steal any of their 1337 gear?
10. Need Heavy weapons.
Conclusion At $20, this is a great buy. While my socks are not blown off by this revival, I feel like the game contains much of what I wanted to see again in a Shadowrun revival, but skimps on some aspects concerning non-linearity and customization. The editor is a huge boost, however, as I'm a Shadowrun GM and thoroughly enjoy crafting my own campaigns for others to enjoy/hate. Shadowrun Returns is a very solid base game that the community will make into a great game.… Expand
Jul 30, 2013Only one word can describe Shadowrun Returns: underwhelming. The gameplay of the included campaign is extremely linear. The mechanics are simplistic. There is no multiplayer support. The player can't even save when he wants, as the game uses a checkpoint system. The checkpoints could actually be better described as chapters in a book. As this isn't really a game so much as it's an interactive novel.
Browsing any forum related to this game will reveal a common hope that Shadowrun fans cling to: player-made content. In fact, I've often read about comparisons to Neverwinter Nights. These people say, "well, Neverwinter Nights had a disappointing campaign, but the mod community made the game a success!" This thought process, while it does has some merit, is rather weak. First of all, Neverwinter Nights was a success because the game shipped with an interface that allowed an electronic simulation of pen-and-paper Dungeons and Dragons. It had a strong toolset for creating content, but more importantly, it had multiplayer support with the ability for one player to play host as a gamemaster. This gamemaster could create content on the fly and direct a campaign with multiple players, thus simulating the pen-and-paper experience. Shadowrun Returns does none of this.
There are no current plans to introduce multiplayer support with Shadowrun Returns. It's possible down the road, of course, but in the meantime, the most modders will be able to accomplish is to create single-player stories.
Furthermore, from what I can tell, the game editor is not as strong as some fans are claiming. From the FAQ on the Steam forums:
"The editor does not support the creation of whole new skills, archetypes or gameplay mechanics although you could fake some of the latter with triggers and dialogue (such as adding a workbench for modifying weapons use dialogue to interact with it and triggers to remove the old weapon from the player's inventory and add a newer version)."
Players will be able to add their own 2D art assets though. But I'm not sure that this will be enough to keep people interested.
All in all, if it were possible for a digital game to collect dust, I'd expect this one would be buried in a few months time.… Expand
Jul 30, 2013Game is far too short, about 8 hours to complete it.
The Tactical combat part is dull and far too easy and basic, not really tactical in fact.
The Shadowrun universe is partly there, but all that make the game what it is is gone. Magic and Matrix are very badly representated, the skill system is gone and replaced by a diablo II clone. The scenario is interesting but cliche and is just not working in Shadowrun world (Invulnerable True Spirit not chasing player in the astral or even to the back street )
A very disappointment that could have been potential.
The innability of the developper to manage permanent area or save game, will seriously curtail any attempt at providing interesting player made content.
Dont buy it, it is not 20$ worth... About 5$ worth for the 8 hours long demo, not a cents more. And please remove the Shadowrun Tag on it, there is no Shadowrun in the game engine.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013As far as I'm concerned SR is worth it's salt in every way. It's NOT going to be Fallout 2054 or whatever. It's more of a story telling thing, than strictly RPG. The art and overall game-play experience create a deep feeling of immersion. Also the Editor is included, so expect additional content for years to come.
Jul 26, 2013This game is amazing, its a great start to what will be absolutely incredible game a few months from now, for a start its awesome a hard 9 a few months to a year from now it will be a solid 13 out of 10
Jul 26, 2013I am about six hours in and am enjoying myself quite a bit. Really feels like a pen and paper Shadowrun game from back in the day. Minor technical glitches, no Co-op and and annoying save system bring the experience down but it is a few patches and some custom mods away from being a truly great single player RPG, totally worth the price I payed.
Jul 26, 2013An amazing job on a minimalist budget.
First off let me start by saying that if this was a AAA game I'd rate it 6 or 7 of 10, however for a small independent studio, it is top notch. The game play could be slightly more polished(Check point saves, no custom bindings) but the flavor is spot on. Right away you are pulled into a deeply rich storyline, full of twists and turns, and denizens of the shadowrun universe. You feel the grit and hopelessness of the SINless. The base story was highly entertaining, but fairly linear...however I look at that as more of an intro to the game, a tutorial if you will, for the UGC that will be coming out in droves(if the prerelease is any indicator).
Alot of the reviews I've read are either lambasting SR:R for not being a AAA title, or can see no wrong in it. Make no mistakes there are flaws in the game, but they are relatively minor. There is no "save anywhere" but I can name AAA titles that didn't have that. No custom keybinding? Again plenty of AAA titles w/o that. A few bugs? etc.
If you are a fan of Shadowrun this is a game you don't want to miss, if you are a fan of 3rd person tactical games this is a fairly good representation of the genre. This game is well worth the $20 you can buy it for right now...and honestly I've paid $60 for games that were 1/2 as fun, or had less replayability.… Expand
Jul 26, 2013A lot of people are noticing what I'm seeing as the major drawing point of this game. The Campaign included with the game purchase is a fun 9 hour introduction into the Shadowrun universe, and it provides a fun way to learn about the universe, the lore, and the combat.
While the combat may not be as polish as others in it genre (Xcom, Jagged alliance, etc.) It does provide a fun and challenging experience that I felt provided an authentic experience. My guns felt like they were doing damage, and my runners were viable no matter the spec.… Expand
Well, let's start with what it is: This is a CRPG, based around the Shadowrun universe (which was one of my favorite tabletop games). It allows you to jump into the life of a Runner for a few days and deal with some drek that just keeps piling on. It is, IMHO, a nice single player tabletop-like experience if your GM likes to keep tossing more and more on you.
What it isn't: This is not Fallout or FO: Tactics, this is not FF, this is not Diablo. If that is what you are looking for you will be disapointed.
The Good:
1. The writing... oh wow, the writing. You can tell that the game was put together by a team that loves the world, and knows how to write a campaign. It's one of those stories that remind me of sitting with game designers at GenCon playing their favorite modules or testing out a new story line.
2. Atmosphere. They nail the dark and gloomy of SR's Seattle, the inter-species/racial tensions of the world, and the socio-economic politics that go along with it all. You deal with Corps, Johnsons, Riggers, Trolls, Shamans, etc, etc, etc. A good taste of a little bit of everything. Pre-rendered background art that works well with decent sprites keeps you interested in the world and makes you want to look around. Subtle and nice music keeps things flowing (when it isn't choppy). Portrait art is very reminiscent of the game art from the books, and helps keep you in the world (think Baldur's Gate).
3. Tactics. Yup, they've got that down rather nicely. Mild inventory management, but more of a time management game (think original X-Com). You pick your team of runners, you spec out your own kit, and then you run your crew. Positioning, cover and flanking, saving some time for Overwatch fire, or popping off a spell with a long cooldown early, you have lots of options in combat.
4. Character. This is a hit and a miss for me. You have a fully open character sheet to spend your Karma (XP) as you will. Want to have a Mage with high strength? Sure, uhm, you could do that. Your outfits are rendered on the sprite so it's neat to see the new armored trenchcoat you just bought actually on the character. Sadly, we're all a little spoiled by Bethesda when it comes to creation customization for looks, which is something you have very limited control over.
The Bad:
1. Check-point only saves, seriously? What PC developer does this? Massive negative. You can not save the game at any point in time. Only at the beginning of levels does the game auto-save. Should you have a power failure, need to hop off the game to tend to RL stuff, etc. You get to replay the whole area you just did.
2. Levels. Now, let me clarify, since I said the writing was one of the best things, what I mean here is the linear nature of the story and the follow the arrows map design. The good memories I have of running or playing module based tabletop RPGs is tempered with my hatred for straight from the book GMs. SR:R is definitely a pre-made module. It is a linear story line with only a few minor choices to make, and a handful of hidden rooms. That doesn't mean the story itself is bad, just that it is extremely limiting. Of course, the GM toolkit and futher expansions will mean that this may not be a massive issue given time.
3. Strategy. The game has tactics, the game does not have strategy. You can't really customize your Runners, or establish a regular team. You don't have the option to just do off-site hacks or sneak in through a vent... sure those things are there, but only when the game gives them to you. Yes, you can get out of some combats by having the right skills set or stat, or picking certain dialogue options, but really you are playing the game the way the GM wants it played.
4. Optimization. Odd graphic glitches, weird music stutters, and the occasional hangup on a load screen came make things annoying and make you worry that you'll have to replay things. No massive game breakers, but enough that it is rough.
Did I like it? Hell yes, Chummer! Was it worth the money to get it on Steam? I think so, but I'm a fan of the game and look forward to designing my own campaigns and seeing what others will make available.
If you miss doing runs for Mr. Johnson, you can again, but you may be left wanting more. With only the one linear campaign available right now, you're looking about about 12 hours of game. Granted that's game with wonderful writing, but you need to understand what you're getting into. There is no voice acting, you will be reading (oh quit complaining, we had these things before tablets and iwhatsits called books), you wont be getting Mad Lootz from enemies you'll bring in your gear to the fight and hope it's enough. You wont get to wander around and take jobs from the different Corps, you'll do what your GM tells you to do.
If you want to Run in the Shadows, I say get this game. If you want to play Diablo or Skyrim in the SR world, you're out of luck.… Collapse
Oct 5, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a bit more simplistic than I had hoped for, but at the same time it is not bad at all. [Sept 2013]
Sep 13, 2013Shadowrun Returns is a faithful reinterpretation (and in a vague sense, sequel) to the SNES game from 20 years ago, maybe a bit too faithful. Though most aspects of the the wild and unruly Shadowrun world is included, the promise of this game lies more in the open embrace of the mod community than the included adventure.
Sep 10, 2013Shadowrun Returns will probably please most fans if perhaps not blow anyone out of the water. The campaign is well written and serves as a good introduction for new players. The variety in combat and character creation and dialogue options is great but suffers from a badly implemented autosave system. With lots of new campaigns on the horizon Shadowrun Returns is well worth keeping an eye on.