Shadow Warrior 3

released on Mar 01, 2022

Shadow Warrior 3 launches the offbeat first-person shooter series to the next level with a seamless blend of fast-paced gunplay, razor-sharp melee combat, and a spectacular free-running movement system.


Reviews View More

has a lot of problems but I found it fun and charming, just short enough to overlook somethings that might get annoying if the game was longer.

Honestly just a solid FPS game, short and sweet, doesn't overstay its welcome, and looks fantastic

Shadow Warrior 3 has a fairly competent foundation, thanks in part to imitating the speed and style of something like Doom Eternal. Its even got the beauty and soundtrack to boot (even if music was a little hard to hear at times). However, there's a surprising amount holding this game back from becoming something more.

Perhaps the biggest issue of all for me is the game's pacing. Where something like Doom Eternal sprinkles rewards down its side paths to encourage exploration and includes plenty of fights in between its big arenas, Shadow Warrior 3 does away with any of the in-between content in favor of a mostly linear FPS. This could work in some instances, but what you get here is a game that's arena of enemies, followed by parkour section, followed by arena of enemies, followed by arena of enemies, fol- you get the idea.

This results in the game feeling like, outside of cutscenes, it never takes a moment to let the character breathe. It's all just this nonstop train that needs grand battles or crazy parkour sections constantly. It feels awesome at first, but after the first hour you feel yourself almost wanting to catch your breath.

It also causes the game to feel much longer than it actually is. I put in about 5 hours to complete the story, but I came away surprised I hadn't gone past 10. By the end, any hit of dopamine felt muted as I just kinda wanted it to be over.

The other major issue is in the upgrade system which, for most upgrades, feels niche. Stuff like the Riot Gun's full auto and removal of reload feels essential, but buffing explosive barrels and traps feels pretty niche. I can count the amount of times I though Chi-Blast would be useful on one hand.

Still, credit where it's due that it does manage to make things feel visceral. The twist on glory kills with power weapons you can get off finished enemies is a great choice, and the grander traps being able to deal with many enemies at once was nice.

Overall though, Shadow Warrior 3 feels like one of those shooters I'm going to forget most of now that I've concluded. It's a roller coaster that has some interesting thrills, but ultimately uses a few way too often.

P.S. I hope I never have to hear Hoji's voice ever again. My poor ears can't handle it.

A solid fps that took some tips from modern DOOM. Pretty fun gameplay, great gore, nice visually. Story exists, and the game is mad short, but I don't mind since it's "free". Final boss was pretty ass imo, but otherwise, solid fps.

It may not have the best story, but Shadow Warrior 3 returns to its origins and has some of the funest gameplay out there. I shall defiently be doing a rereun on NG+!