Mark looks at Microsoft’s other big FPS hope…

A strictly multiplayer first-person shooter designed with online play at its core, Shadowrun sounds like the majority of run ‘n’ gun titles proliferating the PC and Xbox 360 catalogues. However, even on gaming’s two most FPS-packed systems Microsoft’s magic-infused multiplayer offering presents enough unique points to stand out.

Top of the reasons why is its compatibility between Windows Vista and Xbox Live. Shadowrun is the first game to let Xbox 360 and PC owners play together, and as such is something of a torchbearer for Microsoft’s new Windows Vista operating system.

The great news is that you won’t be able to discern who's playing on console and who's on PC. The drawback, however, is that PC players will need to pay an Xbox Live-esque subscription fee for the service, which will no-doubt be a little prohibitive for a service with, initially at least, just one game to its name.

Turns the Counterstrike template completely on its head

But that’s not Shadowrun’s sole talking point. Indeed, its very gameplay mechanics turn the Counterstrike template completely on its head, making for a rather original take on the traditional competitive FPS.

Shadowrun offers but a wafer-thin premise where magic has returned to a technologically advanced world – which basically sets the scene for players to pick either RNA Global troops or Lineage forces and wade into Deathmatch and CTF battles wielding a standard FPS weapon set, plus a nifty slew of Tech abilities and magic spells.

Techs are introduced with the Glider, which can literally let you leap tall buildings in a single bound in instantly empowering fashion. Other Techs, such as Smartlink, which gives you a useful auto-aim function, and Enhanced Vision, which lets you see opponents through walls, serve their purpose, but are largely less useful than the majority of magics.

The uses for Magic in Shadowrun are wide and varied. Generally widely useful are the self-explanatory Teleportation, plus the healing powers of Regeneration and Tree of Life, while the less descriptive Gust and Strangle – which respectively propel enemies backwards and lay down damaging spiky walls – are especially handy in defensive situations.

Moolah

Here’s where the depth comes in: in the vein of Counterstrike, Shadowrun asks you to purchase your weapons, spells and techs at the start of each round – with your successes or failures against your foes determining the amount of moolah you have to spend next time round.

It then lets you access any and all purchased techniques and magics – but only allows three to be assigned to individual shortcut keys. Moreover, using them eats up essence, so you’re not only weighing up which ones to shortcut, but constantly offsetting the Essence cost against the benefits of each ability amidst Shadowrun’s decidedly frenetic FPS to-and-fro.

The entire balancing act is also offset by Shadowrun’s four different character classes. Humans are the best all-rounders and the only race to not suffer essence loss while using techs. Trolls are slow, lumbering behemoths able to dish out and sustain considerable damage with heavy weapons. Dwarves are small and able to withstand a headshots but regenerate Essence slowly and steal it from other players to compensate. Elves meanwhile are exceptionally fast and regenerate health, which has made them the most widely used race online, and lead to an imbalance which the developers wouldn’t have intended.

It’s worth noting too that, while the four races all look suitably different from one another, there is but one skin for each, and thus no player customisation is possible. Indeed, it’s a facet of Shadowrun’s general presentation that, whilst functional enough with full HD support, it’s hardly a visual spectacle for next-gen consoles or cutting-edge PC gaming.

PC-to-360 playability

What we have here then is a title which falls victim to its own ambition. Shadowrun’s gameplay can be both hugely inventive and immensely enjoyable, but it lets itself down on the finer details of presentation, a lack of game modes, and a Matchmaking system which sees the game end if the host quits. Moreover, the vaunted PC-to-360 playability is a great start for the future of playing online, but it will take more than Shadowrun alone for most PC owners to buy into Microsoft’s networked vision.

And that’s a shame, because despite the drawbacks, we quite like Shadowrun. Having spent the last three weeks lost in Halo 3 it feels refreshingly different to play a shooter which adds so much extra to conventional running and gunning. Give it a try, we say – Shadowrun may not be the future of the FPS here and now, but for online gaming in general it’s an undoubtedly bright start.

GAME's Verdict

• Fast, frenetic multiplayer FPS action
• Unique mix of abilities, techs and character abilities
• Seamless online play against console or PC gamers

• Lack of overall detail in presentation
• Notable dearth of variety in game modes
• If the host quits during online play, the game ends

Review by: Mark Scott
Review Published: 08.06.07