Shadow Warrior 3 could unfold in the ruins ravaged by the demons of a futuristic Japan, but the game itself looks like a return to the early 2010s. The protagonist Lo Wang pleasant constantly, breeze the fourth wall and uses his own Name for jokes on dick while he auditionne to be the next Ryan Reynolds. There is parkour, grapples and a focus on lightweight gore. The term “panda trash” is dusted and used to describe a raccoon.

It may seem unfair to focus as much on the style of the suite, but it is so difficult not to do it when comedy attempts are so frequent and so exhausting. All jokes are there: word games that Lo Wang defends consciously, replacing the lyrics of the songs of the 80s by “showerbag”. The protagonist hardly has time to breathe, not to mention the game.

Because comic friction aside, Shadow Warrior 3 can be a deliciously chaotic shooting game. This simplifies things: six firearms, limited health and many enemies designed creatively to keep you on your guard. The 11 missions of the game are distributed among arena style combat parts and high-flying crossing sections, both as tight than the others. The addition of the race to the wall, air-dashing and the Grapple of Lo Wang creates great free-run players, as well as adding a vertical element to the fight.

The shooter is at its peak towards the end of his eight-hour campaign when your screen is flooded with enemies. Pushing dozens of kamikazes decorated with dynamite while pulling rockets on four-armed sombrero samurao is really exhilarating, while the culminating dragon hunting of the game is visually impressive. There is obviously a lot of heart in Shadow Warrior 3.

But there is also the price of 40 £ to take into account. For a campaign as short and sometimes very similar, it seems too expensive – especially when Shadow Warrior 2 had so much extra chewing content.

Simple but tight, Shadow Warrior 3 is a solid shooting game with some occasional excitement flashes. It’s a shame that comedy attempts to lose their lives – and 40 £ for an eight-hour campaign is barely a good value for money.

  • Chaotic fight
  • Tight crossing
  • Keep things simple

  • Fantastic enemy design

  • The comedy falls flat

17 Minutes of Shadow Warrior 3 Gameplay
* A disappointing sequence
* High price for a short game

Not bad 6/10

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Revision copy provided by Devolver Digital