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Underappreciated gem

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: February 12, 2001
Author: Amazon User

For seem reason, 'Shadowman' never got as much attention as it should have. It was the game N64 fans seemed to be wanting since the beginning - a huge world to explore with mature themes that won't insult your intelligence.

'Shadowman' is like a dark 'Legend of Zelda:Ocarina of Time', where you get to roam around a vast (and I mean vast) labrynth-like world solving puzzles and clashing with monsters. The world's (there's actually two, much like the original Zelda games) are pretty non-linear, although you'll find you'll have to solve some puzzles before moving further. The game is prettymuch a big egg-hunt, and the eggs in question wind up in some pretty difficult areas. A really challenging game that should keep you playing for hours.

The graphics are great. Gloomy, dank areas are awesome to look at. They may seem plain to begin with, but I always stress to new players not to give up: the rewards are deep into the game and well worth the ordeals. Keep your 'Resident Evil'; the Tenemant, Asylum and Subway levels are by far some of the creepiest locations of any game.

My favourite elemant, however, is the sound effects and voice-overs. 'Shadowman' has some of the most over-dramatic dialogue, but it's campy and fun. And nothing is more chilling than the legless two-headed beasts howling "Ssssssshhhadowmaaaan!"

I loved this game. Many who picked it up were turned off by some of the elements in the game (repetitive fighting was a big one) but these are just small pieces of a huge puzzle. Buy this game and immerse yourself.

A decent game with some good ideas.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: May 23, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This game was fairly enjoyable. It is a good dark, adult adventure game and has some features that other games of this type should take note of. The game is fairly non-linear. I say fairly because your character, Shadow Man, has to collect dark souls to gain more power and you need more power to access certain areas. The Shadow Power is a nice feature, in my opinion. It gives a player more of a sense of accomplishment to have your character grow more powerful as the game progresses. Another good part of this game is the atmosphere, especially the Asylum. A particular level, called the Playrooms, has background music that you would hear in a baby's room, while at the same time you can hear horrifying screams. Levels like these, while twisted, add to the overall scary feeling of the game. The only problem I had with this game is that the interface was a little annoying to get used to. It was evident that it was designed more for the Playstation controllers, then for a keyboard/mouse combination. With the price of this game being $19.99 or less, I would definitely recommend it.

The Most Underrated Game Ever

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: May 18, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This is a title that I wonder why no one picked up on. True the first 2 boards were long and monotonous. But after them, I could not believe the plot that was unfolding. This was clearly the most original game I had ever played. (Okay so maybe collecting 120 items was elsewhere on N64) Anyway, I suggest that N64 owners give this a first or second chance. In additon, I have never played a game in which the sound effects and music played such an integral part of the game. This is also rated mature for a reason. Kids, be careful with this one, you'll probaly want to sleep with the light on for a month.

A work of art on the Dreamcast, PS2 version?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: December 24, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is the reason I bought my Dreamcast, it's dark themes, and superb gameplay make it one of the best games I ever played, why has no one heard of this game? A lost treasure if you ask me. If it comes out on PS2 I would buy the console just for this game.

Shadowman, it is Mario for adults

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: April 13, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This is a briliant game. The graphics are superb, the sound is very good, the control excelent and the gameplay very exciting. It compares with Mario64 only you are not collecting stars but dark souls, 120 of them, in a huge envirionment, solving puzzles on the way and have a battle or 200 with mass murderers, ghosts and other freaky customers as well. Not for the young but a must for teenagers and adults who like dark comics.

Shadow Man

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: June 13, 2001
Author: Amazon User

There is something about Shadow Man…I first encountered it in its Playstation version, which was so awkward it was unplayable. The scenery kept tearing as the program strained to keep the game going. And Shadow Man himself moved like he was wearing socks on a polished floor – not good when the ability to make precise jumps is often vital. I gave up quite early into the thrilling story, and traded the disc in. But Shadow Man stayed with me. I was intrigued by its promise, and the atmosphere from the start was striking. The game also had a brilliant music score, which to this day is indelible in memory. So when, some months later, the game appeared on Dreamcast, I was drawn back to it. I haven’t played the N64 or PC versions, but on Dreamcast, Shadow Man is superb. Everything that the Playstation version failed to do justice to is here. Unfortunately, the programming itself has its limitations. The game runs choppily a lot of the time, and collision-detection is noticeably bad (though is nowhere near the disaster it was in the PS version). It is a shame also that the music cuts abruptly when you cross the border of one area to another. Given some more time and resources, the developers of this game could have smoothed off a lot of edges, but the quality of the product still makes its lack of popularity a mystery. Other reviews here have already given an idea of the content, so I will just add that playing this game is absolutely compelling. I recently devoted a week to playing through it a second time, from start to finish. During this time, the game was even in my dreams. Stuck on where to find the next Govi, containing Dark Souls crucial to my progress, I dreamed them in locations that annoyingly turned out to not exist in the game when I woke up. While RGPs, famous for their depth and duration of play, still seem to be aimed at kids, and feature characters and dramas suited to young sensibilities, it is refreshing to have a long and involving, story-based game that is mature. Though not an RPG, Shadow Man does have elements of stat-building, and is certainly long. Battles can seem random as well, especially if you keep going back and forth between major areas (enemies re-spawn). It does have in common with RPGs the feel that you are in a huge world with quests to complete, people to meet, powers and possessions to build up. Longevity? I clocked in, this time, at around thirty hours of in-game time, though this includes a non-productive seven or so spent wandering around in vain (looking for Dark Souls that suddenly became elusive as mentioned above). Even that time wasn’t really wasted, however, as the world of the game seems deeper for your crossing and re-crossing it. One of the rough edges in the design is that having left a ‘level’, all enemies are back in their original places when you return, so you know what to expect. It would have been good to have various programmed enemy-placements, to develop the illusion of a living world. Which brings us back to the fact that the game world is truly huge. One manner of your progress requires you to remember locations. See another of those weird-looking ‘doors’ or other physical features? You will later acquire the means to open or use them. But will you remember every location in which you saw one? Fail to do so, and you may miss something important to your advancement in the game. Less vitally, you might just miss some of the minor collectibles, which though not essential to completing the game, may help, or simply arouse any compulsive tendencies you might have. There are five hundred little red pods called ‘cadeaux’. Each hundred of these presented at an altar will increase your life/power capacity. This is necessary only up to a point. But the compulsion to root out every last one is there, even if you defeated the final boss ages ago. It is not surprising to me that reviews for the Playstation release were bad, while the Dreamcast, N64 and PC reviews were at worst lukewarm. This game is so ambitious it needs a stronger machine to run it decently. This aside, it still sadly lacks the polish it deserves. Hopefully, ‘Shadow Man 2econd Coming’, which is due out later this year, will be better. I am greatly looking forward to it, as I had feared lack of enthusiasm for the first game had killed plans for it. For now, though, if you own any of the formats other than PSOne, and this sounds like a game you would like, Shadow Man is highly recommended. And you should find it going ..., too – probably the only advantage of its lack of commercial success.

From The Mouth Of A Grade 'B' Gamer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: July 25, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I come from the old country, arcades in the 80's, where Tempest, Joust, and Jungle Hunt reigned supreme. I purchased my N64 LOOOOONG after it was the system to have, it was cheap, I was looking for relaxing kicks. So I picked up a copy of Shadowman, discounted, vaguely remembering it when it was new on the market. Put it in, and (cliche Sound Effect) I was hooked. The game is murky as heckland. Opening cheekily with Moonlight Sonata playing underneath a 'narration' of Springheel Jack. Great cinematics, great sounds, great levels, some (the temples) are so bloody frustrating you want to whip the whole system out the door. But I kept with it, and I beat it. HA, first game since Double Dragon in the arcade, and I beat that with one bloody token. I recommend this game to non-gamers who are looking for something to dig into, with a different approach than the usual blast'em. (Gamers will say witty and snide things, scrutinizing and bla) So to hearken back to my metal roots, THIS GAME ROCKS!!! (so there)

Creepy

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: September 29, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game creeped me out but it was fun and a bit different from your average game. It has a sort of "Clive Barker" look. Definitely not for kids.

Makes blasting monsters fun again!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: July 15, 2000
Author: Amazon User

I LOVED Doom. I thought it was the final stage in game evolution.Now I know that isn't true. Of course, between Doom and Shadow Man, there were a zillion fps demon-blasters, but they didn't feel... real enough. I had high hopes for the Quake games and Half-Life, neither of which quite delivered. Shadow Man does. It feels real and looks surreal -- a marvelous combination. All aspects of this game were fantastic, especially the sound. The default controls are a bit cumbersome, but they can be remapped...-- in my opinion, it's absolutely worth it.

So freaky, it's good

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: June 15, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Shadow Man is very underrated, in my own opinion. Some people just look at the box and say, 'This one's gonna bite'. They have no idea how wrong they are. Shadow Man draws you into the world of Mike LeRoi, a man who has a strange relationship with Nettie, his voodoo priestess. Nettie planted the Mask of Shadows into Mike's chest, which enables him to journey back and forth from Liveside to Deadside. This game grips you from the beginning and once you're gripped, I'm afraid you can't get out, sorry. The game has a very interesting idea, showing the player awesome levels and environments. My favorite level is the Temple of Fire because of all the engaging puzzles. You see Mike LeRoi, who seems to be an ordinary man at first. But then, you go with him on a long trip to the many regions of Deadside, and as you do, you might find it amazing for one man to be able to go so far and do so much. Some parts are rather frightening, though, like when you get to Asylum. Oh well, you'll see when you start playing. I don't want to give the events of such a good game away.

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