Yes, the crazy pseudo ninja is back! But maybe you don't know Lo Wang? Little reminder then!
Shadow Warrior is an FPS .... well a Doom-like as we called them at the time, released in 1997. We played there Lo Wang, a kind of ninja working for a big company, which will finally be rebel (willy-nilly) against her after discovering that she was planning to launch an army of monsters, and playing the hero, somewhat in spite of himself. I will spare you the details, the best thing to do is to play the game to discover a scenario rather well put together and interesting for a FPS.
Originally developed by 3D Realms (yes yes, the same as Duke Nukem), the license finally lands in the hands of Devolver Digital, and the result was a reboot of the original game in 2013, which I had already previewed.
This direct sequel plunges us back into the skin of an even more talkative and insolent Lo Wang. Without making too many revelations about the story, let's say he's going to end up with a young girl again in his head ... and I don't mean that he's in love by that. No no, he literally has a young girl (at least his soul) in his head. Temporarily, hopefully. But both having a rather well-defined character, this guarantees very funny dialogues!
Small aside, Shadow Warrior 1 already offered this gimmick of a character found in the head of the hero, which caused quite funny situations indeed, in view of the different characters. I find it a bit of a shame to take up this same scriptwriting trick, which even if it is ruined, suddenly becomes not very original.
Anyway, let's take a look at what this new opus has in its belly! At first glance, we find ourselves in familiar territory: nervous FPS, shooting weapons, bladed weapons, enemies do you want some, here it is. In short, after all, the recipe was working well, why change? Especially since the recent arrival of Doom and its ultra successful campaign (the solo a little less) gave a good boost to these good old old-school FPS!
Universe
Despite everything, after a few hours of play, a few small changes stand out. The narration first of all, which benefits from a much more punchy staging. We find on the other hand the dialogues always so tasty, and fortunately!
The world also wants to be more open and less "corridor" (yes yes, I know, I invented it!). A kind of base allows you to stock up on weapons, ammunition, and especially to recover missions from different NPCs. For the story quest first of all, but also some side missions, which will give a little fresh air between and give rather interesting rewards. Thus, we at least have the choice in what we want to do and have less the feeling of being directed in a specific direction.
Note one thing, the levels are generated procedurally. A good idea, which avoids repetition. However, even though the levels differ a bit in their level design, there are quite a few different environments, and the feeling of repetitiveness can come quite quickly. Let's say that the procedural levels make it possible to delay the deadline a bit.
The enemies, luckily, add a bit of spice and variety. After a while, we inevitably find the same archetypes, but the number of different enemies is high enough not to get bored. They are also so different that it takes a relatively keen sense of adaptation to be able to counter them. And of course, we must not forget the bosses. They are far from being ultra charismatic, but some are rather original and promise good times to tear them apart!
Small nice addition, the presence of "LoWangPedia", a complete database, which allows to know (a little bit) more about the universe around us.
The game is also full of small details, little winks, like these arcade machines (not playable) from the Devolver games.
gameplay
Lo Wang benefits from a wider range of movements: double jump and dodge (dash). It doesn't look like much, but it adds a lot to the level design, allowing more verticality. The clashes also want to be more dynamic. On the offensive side, Lo Wang's range of weapons and powers is so wide that I wouldn't even dare to list them all! The classic shotguns, revolvers, katana alongside more atypical weapons, such as the chainsaw, the energy pistol or the katana-chainsaw! Even claw-shaped gloves recovered from a huge monster!
Magic is not to be outdone, with a power of healing, invisibility, one that repels enemies and another that impales them. All of this adds a lot of variety and allows you to approach fights in a different way. Lovers of discretion will not necessarily be too frustrated.
The big novelty of this sequel is the much more extensive RPG component. Unfortunately, not necessarily in a good way. It is now possible to upgrade weapons and armor to change their characteristics: more damage, more crit, less missed shots, higher rate of fire, etc. Improvements that can be recovered from enemies, chests, etc. A good idea, moreover, but clearly spoiled by the not very intuitive interface which does not make you want to dwell on it. After several hours of play, I have some doubts about the usefulness of this feature, at least in the medium difficulty modes. Not investing in these improvements did not prevent me from having made good progress in the game, without necessarily having a lot of difficulty (in normal mode).
Another RPG component: the skills of Lo Wang. Each level gain earns one Skill point, to be spent on various bonuses: health, powers, ammunition, etc. Very classic after all, but still works well. And for once, it is much clearer and more pleasant than the improvements!
Conclusion
I was able to rediscover the joys of old-school FPS with the reboot of Shadow Warrior. Far from the Battlefield of Duty blockbusters (although I love doing these campaigns), I'm delighted to rediscover the sensations I felt when I first played Quake or Duke Nukem.
However, this Shadow Warrior leaves me with mixed feelings. Which still leans more on the positive side. The universe is still just as sleazy, Lo Wang is more vulgar than ever and the great variety of weapons means that we don't get bored much. But a few small details come a little taint this pleasure. The system of improvements, the few environments ... it gives me a little impression of unfinished work. Clearly, after finishing it once, I doubt I will go back. Or in multiplayer, the game offering to browse the campaign in cooperation (up to 4). With one or more friends, yes, I would go back with great pleasure to slice monster steak!
