A Taste of Shadowrun Returns [Impressions]

I’m about five hours into Shadowrun Returns and I’m already loving it. Play-wise, the game jumps right in and gets cooking. For fellow super fans of the original, you are going to love how the first mission pays complete homage to our SNES glory days.

What I like:

Again, the ultimate fan-service issued during the first quest had me grinning from ear-to-ear. I really wish I could spoil it here just so I can talk about it. However, I won’t ruin the joy for those of you who’ve not played the game yet.

The turn-based combat – Gone are the days of dragging the occasional AI controlled team members into a clunky battles while trying to use an SNES controller to move a mouse-like cross-hair to shoot enemies. Now you have full control of your team in terms of placement and tactics. It’s a solid step-up from the oldschool.

The gorgeous environments – So much detail is given to every set piece thus far into the game. This allows the setting to pull you into each scene as if you were there. Not bad for an isometric game.

The characters – Each character thus far is well written and beautifully drawn.

What I don’t like:

No manual save system – I cannot for the life of me fathom why Hairbrained Schemes thought this to be a good idea. Maybe it was intended to make combat seem more intense or make the player feel a greater sense of risk. What it really does is force me to keep playing past desired stopping points to make sure I hit the next checkpoint. This was a bad move that I hope they patch.

Linearity – I’m getting to the point in the game where I can feel the leash coming off. But, early on, it feels a bit to point-a-to-point-b.

Overall

I’m really digging Shadowrun Returns at this juncture. I’m looking forward to finishing it and also completing my full video review. If you loved the first game, I can’t think of any reasons why not to jump on board with this one.