Combat is slow, even for a turn-based game, and doesn’t really have any special shine or tricks to it. I was either a cyberpunk, or a wizard, and cyberpunk was the only practical way to go. You can, in theory, play as a druidic mage with a street degree in hacking, but all too often I felt a little railroaded in my character choices. Genre-blending is a balancing act, and all too often it feels like Shadowrun can’t quite walk the tightrope. The problem with Shadowrun is that dorky delight only goes so far, and that’s where I began lying to myself. One second it’s a neo-noir detective story, the next it’s an action packed cyberpunk shootout (but also a very slow one), and then all of a sudden it’s a murder mystery. Shadowrun can’t even quite decide what it wants to be. “It’s just kinda weird.” And weird it is. In any other game, I’d take points off for the term “null sheen,” but it’s all part of that slightly ridiculous, self-aware energy.Įlves, orcs, trolls and magic are all the norm in Shadowrun, and the game takes a dorky delight in mixing up science fiction and fantasy tropes. Combat feels a little slow-paced, even for a turn-based game, but what’s a little slow combat between chummers? I get the chance to swear like a sailor in PG-13 sci-fi slang, throw down in some simple combat tutorials, and get introduced to the world. Sam, your murdered friend, has left a video message asking you to track down his killer, and it quickly becomes clear that he’s been another victim of a sophisticated serial killer operating all over Seattle. I get tossed into the slums of Seattle, chasing down the murderer of a friend of my character (you can chase the bounty, if your character ain’t the friendly type) and rapidly get tangled up in a bizarre conspiracy involving cults, serial killers, and a particularly ugly elf. A grim cyberpunk world reminiscent of a William Gibson novel, crossed with high fantasy tropes after magic is reawakened across the world. A top down, isometric RPG from an old school IP, funded on Kickstarter? They were a dime a dozen in 2013, and the only unique thing Shadowrun had going for it was a pretty strong setting. I reinstalled it specifically to write this piece, and I said to myself, “This wasn’t much fun the last time I played, and probably won’t be this time.” And I’ll admit, I never finished Shadowrun and probably never gave it a fair shot. Shadowrun Returns almost made a liar out of me. Only the very best titles will stand up to scrutiny today. Brutal Backlog is a semi-regular feature where the JDR team plough through some of the unplayed games on their shelves (both digital and physical), disregarding their age or the technical limitations of their era.

Which shadowrun game is best