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Never mind the art, here's a Shadowrun preview
As the first game under the Windows Live brand to bring both PC and Xbox 360 gamers together, Shadowrun isn't the most casual-friendly title imaginable. So unexpectedly complex that after the initial training exercises and multiplayer matches, we were overwhelmed to say the least. A few hours and a dozen or so matches later, it hadn't fully connected, but the pieces were starting to fall into place.Like we said in our previous coverage of the game, Shadowrun is about finding your niche and sticking to it. In other shooters, your niche can be as simple as controlling the rocket launcher or defending the flag. In Shadowrun, it's defined by the powers you equip, how you utilize them and what role you take in your group. Even if you consider yourself a sponge for tactical knowledge, a learning curve this high won't be conquered in your first hour of play. And for a high profile, predominantly multiplayer shooter, that could spell trouble for Microsoft and FASA Studios.%Gallery-1774%
Shadowrun: controller vs. mouse. Fight!
Shadowrun, in a way, is Microsoft's great white hope. Shadowrun is poised to launch Live Anywhere, the extension of Xbox Live that allows players on PC to share game space with players on the Xbox 360. Hell, even cell phones are being thrown into the mix. VelocityGirl is thrilled. Shadowrun, in particular, raises some questions. Scratch that. It raises one question: how will controller players fare against the deadly mouse and keyboard combo? According to Joystiq's recent play test, pretty damned well. That's right, Joystiq was getting the tobacco juice beaten out of them by one of the devs, Mitch Gitelman. Gitelman was using a PC, but much to the surprise of the Joystiq team, he was using an Xbox 360 controller. Granted, Shadowrun was built from the ground up to accommodate both controllers and the KB & mouse combo, but it's a surprising result nonetheless. Joystiq notes that neither setup proved overwhelmingly advantageous -- though the controller was significantly faster at navigating the radial menus at the beginning of each match.Long story short, if Microsoft really wants to converge the Xbox 360 and its Games for Windows brand, Shadowrun just might be the game to do it. Hit the "read" link for the full story. Be sure to check out Joystiq's gallery of images while your at it.
Shadowrun: CTF with a magical twist
GameTrailers snagged a couple of videos from Shadowrun at CES. Qualms about the graphics aside, the game looks like it could be a lot of fun. These two videos show off some of the magic used in the game, including the tree of life -- which heals anyone who stands under it, enemies included -- and the teleportation spell. We dig the radial selection menus, though it looks like the player in the video struggled with it a little. Also, the teleportation seems a little confusing, though it will probably make more sense when we're the ones behind the controller. Check out the video above and the other after the break and tell us what you think.
More Shadowrun, no TrueSkill matchmaking
We reported yesterday that Shadowrun will feature a party based matchmaking system, flying in the face of Epic's claims that Microsoft does not allow the feature. It looks like we might owe Epic an apology. 360Arcadians revealed in an interview with Knuckles Dawson, who had a chance to actually play Shadowrun, that the game will not use TrueSkill. TrueSkill is Microsoft's in house matchmaking system, and according to Knuckles, it was tossed by FASA -- creators of Shadowrun -- because it does not allow friends in ranked matches. FASA has opted instead to use their own matchmaking system. Gears of War uses TrueSkill, so it looks like Epic's reasoning for not including a party system is valid after all. The interview also contains lots of information about Shadowrun. If you're interested in Shadowrun, you should definitely give it a listen.
Shadowrun preview at FASA
Over at Method Director they received some special treatment from FASA studios and got some hands on time with Shadowrun. I honestly haven't been too much in the loop with this game, but after watching the YouTube video (embedded after the break) and the description of the game ... it has some potential. Blending technology with magic is like peanut butter and chocolate (word to Cliff). Given that it takes a LOT of work to make a FPS new and fresh, Shadowrun has peaked my interest. Can anyone out in fanboy land shed some more light on this game and whether or not your interest too has been peaked by this blog post?
Magic, science, and fun, Shadowrun preview
Evil Avatar scored a sneak preview of FASA's upcoming Shadowrun, the debut game of Microsoft's new Live Anywhere platform which will allow both 360 and PC players to hash it out online. Some of you may remember that FASA was involved with the debut title for Xbox Live -- MechAssault -- way back in 2002. The preview pretty much covers everything you need to know about Microsoft's would be multiplayer king. The game plays out like Counter-Strike. Each match is divided into six rounds. At the beginning of each round, players purchase magic, technology, and, of course, weapons. The interesting factor here is that magic and technology remain with players even if they are killed during a round -- weapons must be purchased again, however. Essentially this causes the match to intensify with each new round. Adding another layer of strategy to the game is the ability to resurrect dead players. As the author notes, there's nothing quite like resurrecting your entire team and fighting your way back to victory. The preview is full of other details about the game. For instance, PC and 360 players may not be able to answer the age old mouse vs. controller question after all. See, you won't be able to tell if your playing against 360 or PC players. As far as the game is concerned, they're one and the same. The game also has another way of leveling the playing field. The faster you move the targeting reticle, the less accurate your shots. The idea is to moderate the massive speed advantage that mouse players have over console players. According to the author the experience on both the PC and 360 versions is nearly identical. We're always excited by fresh multiplayer so, here's hoping Shadowrun really shapes up. Anyone looking forward to this cross-platform frag fest?
