Shadow Complex is an Xbox Live Arcade game set in the near future, with you playing an everyman who accidentally stumbles across a terrorist base (American terrorists, for a change), and then goes about saving the world. It’s a game which I’ve been meaning to play for a while now. The fact that it has made it onto many “Best of 2009” lists, not to mention “Best Xbox 360 Game of All Time” lists had me intrigued.
Shadow Complex is without a doubt the most technically ambitious thing available on Xbox Live. While it’s not quite retail release quality (it could use some extra texture work, not to mention being about twice as long), it’s definitely worth the money.
The game is supposed to have a heavy Metroid influence, but I’ve never been a Nintendo fanboy, so I wouldn’t know. To me, it seemed like Contra in 3D. It’s a side-scrolling shooter, except that you can fire in all directions.
With serviceable graphics, some tasty lighting, and satisfying gameplay, I’d happily recommend Shadow Complex to anyone wanting to pass the time until the next big release, or wanting to hunt for some achievement points. It took me about four hours to play through, but if you are a completionist, you could easily spend another four hours exploring.
My expectations were quite high, and to be honest they weren’t quite met. The story wasn’t told very well, and the gameplay was slightly repetitive. There were, however, some great puzzles, and the controls were solid.
An enjoyable few hours.
Reviewed on: Xbox 360
Available on: XBox 360
Reviewed by:
I tried the demo and found it a bit wanting. The Unreal engine world is fully 3d, but the player is trapped in a sort of 2d hell, much like Trials HD I guess. The game itself was ok, but after 10 minutes of playing the demo I just went back to the fully 3D worlds of other XBL titles.