Shadows of the Damned Review

The creators of Resident Evil and No More Heroes collaborate once again, delivering their most ambitious title yet; Shadows of the Damned. Players step into the shoes of Garcia Hotspur, a demon hunter who's girlfriend (Paula) is kidnapped by Fleming (King of the underworld/hell). On a rescue mission to save Paula, Garcia must dismantle the underworld in search of Flemings Castle.

By his side at all times is a former demon named Johnson, who can transform, into a pistol, shotgun, machine gun and torch. Those who played Resident Evil 4 or 5 will be familiar, with the games third person over the shoulder shooting mechanics.
As you tread along the underworld the background music entails you to walk slowly, pondering what's around the corner. Credit goes to legendary video game composer Akira Yamaoka, known for creating Silent Hill's score. Shadows of the Damned feeds off 70/80s horror, giving an intentional b movie vibe. Inspiration for the sound and general theme of the game, derives from Quentin Tarantino's work ethics.

What differentiates this game from others, is the gameplay mechanic known as the darkness. Once you enter it your health depletes and Garcia must  shoot a mounted goats head, to escape darkness. The wrath of darkness sometimes works in your favour, to highlight enemy weaknesses and create puzzle sequences. Such as shooting highlighted items to open doors and collecting health pickups, while looking for a exit.

Enemies ranging from mini bosses to demons, come in all types of shapes and sizes . With or without armour either walking, crawling, running or hovering. If they enter darkness they become bullet sponges however, triggering a light shot (alternative fire) weakens them. Getting a headshot rewards you with a instant kill and focused camera shot. Unfortunately carrying out this tactic is easier said than done.

Whenever your aiming  your view is constantly limited. You'll always receive a surprise attack from behind. Luckily you can manoeuvre whilst aiming, familiarising yourself with your surroundings. Adapting to the games controls isn't easy at first. Especially when your aiming with a laser without crosshairs. Eventually an hour into the game, it becomes second nature.
In terms of level design its fairly linear, mainly consisting of compact streets switching between indoor environments. Towards the end of the game things gets interesting, when 2D side scrolling levels are introduced for example. It's a shame later design choices weren't present to begin with.

While the levels may be linear, there still space for exploration of red, white and blue collectable gems. Red gems are for performance upgrades of weapons, such as speed and damage etc. White gems are used for purchasing ammo or alcohol to be concise. In the underworld alcohol has quite the opposite effect and increases Garcia's health. After defeating a boss, blue gems become available and give you new weapons.

Boss fights have to be the highlight of the game, you never know what to expect in this demented hell. Discovering their weaknesses is always rewarding and follows a repetitive strategy, for victory.

Just like many games on the market today, Shadows of the Damned utilizes Unreal technology. A common issue with the engine, is the time taken to load textures. In the game this is evident, whenever you load a saved game.

Shadows of the Damned Succeeds in delivering a title, that experiments with new gameplay mechanics and breaks away from modern war scenarios. The shelves at retailers needed a breath of fresh air and Grasshopper, has delivered just that.