Shadow Warrior 2
Hard to believe this has already been out for seven years, found it on a key site for as little as £3 and just had to give it a shot - and man am I so glad that I did. In essence, this game as I make my way through the early stages takes me right back to my first time playing the wonderful genre classic Bulletstorm, the writing the execution and constant main character quips all take me right back to that same kind of experience. I'm kind of surprised that this game wasn't talked about more tbh.
The level design though sometimes wildly sporadic (and still fun for hunting hidden loot chests) retains a very lovingly crafted touch throughout every level I have played so far, combat is a blast and much better than I was expecting clearly taking a leaf out of the DooM 2016/Eternal playbook. And it absolutely works. It does very much feel like a direct throwback to a genre bygone era, hints of older loved titles such as No One Lives Forever included but also falls very much in line with the boomer shooter revival of today.
Though I never completed the first game and always considered it a good but somewhat throwaway kind of game everything about this sequel is a considerable step up. Combat and weapons are just kind of nuts with a wild assortment of enemies to take down a ridiculous physics system and the game runs absolutely flawlessly for me at 60-70 frames. So far it's one of those games that I feel guilty about paying so little for the experience - being someone who predominantly tends to scour key sites for bargain price deals as I'm skint a lot of the time I should be feeling more happy than guilty - note: silly goose enjoy your hobby at whatever level you can, who gives a fuck right?
One of my absolute favourite game mechanics - a simple button press hold that instantly warps you both back to the games base hub or in conjunction back exactly to where you were situated in the world outside of it. No fiddly map traversal or entering certain sections of a map to travel in between - simple clean and instantaneous. Other games should take note.
It may not have the most modern graphics but there is still a great feeling of craftmanship at play in every level and in every weapon you pick up and I absolutely love the shotgun and all the reloading animations, there are just these extra nice touches put to everything you really do appreciate. The upgrade system is cool too and much more in-depth than I first realised.
Just one of those mindless have fun and soak up the experience kind of games and I'm so glad that I finally gave it the attention it deserves.
![Image](https://i.imgur.com/8rkOSyK.jpg)
Building the future, and keeping the past alive - are one and the same thing.