http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19057894/

So there's the link to the review for Shadowrun, the XBox360 version.

Teleport behind your enemies. Plant a healing tree. It's a multiplayer FPS without roleplaying elements of any kind. You can't even grow a character from one battle to the next - you build a brand new one each time.

And at the end of the article the reviewer, apparently an RPG player from back in the day, calls for FASA to "bring back" the paper game.

My brother bought the game, and it actually isn't too bad if you are into the really arcade-like shooters. This game is a little more arcade-like than Counterstrike. It plays a lot like Jedi-Knight and Deus-Ex(multiplayer that is) except with a buy system with upgrades. It isn't very unique or innovative, but I am told it is a lot of fun. As soon as you start watching a game you will know it isn't Shadowrun. It seems like there isn't even any attempt by the developers to capture anything at all from the Shadowrun feel or flavor. They just made a FPS with somewhat futuristic guns, cyberware, and magic. Cyberware in the game is more like a spell that doesn't require essence to use. In this game essence is actually mana and not something that resembles man vs. machine.

It is almost if labeling this game Shadowrun was with tongue-in-cheek by the developers/publishers. Though it isn't funny at all.

Lastly, I would suggest in the future such things be placed in the general gaming forms, as it is the most relevant forums for this topic and is also where I posted about this game. On the otherhand, I understand that very few people would actually see it there.

I think the author of that blurb was going for "bring back the feel of the pen and paper game". I, for one, would have really liked it if there was a RPG element to it. Since there isn't, I won't be buying the game.

Mark(psycho)Phipps( HAHAHA! )

In my opinion, that game shouldn't be allowed to use the name 'Shadowrun' - the only correlation between the two is the concept of cyclical magic in a futuristic setting.

The whole concept of a shadowrun (criminals engaging in work against sensitive targets) isn't really in the game at all...

My guess is that since Microsoft has had the license for digital shadowrun for years and has not done anything with it they were in danger of losing the license. Microshaft not being one to lose some profit decided to take the tried and true arcade shooter style and slap some crappy special effects on it that they call magic.

Corporate profit pure and simple. I doubt they have any intention of doing anything else remotely close to an RPG with the series... ever.

Don't people understand that the game itself is a post-ironic representation of the corporate soulnessless that epitomises the Shadowrun setting? If anyone else had produced the game we would have naively assumed it to be a simple cashing in on the reputation of the Shadowrun game by sticking a few copied names on an otherwise generic FPS. But with Microsoft we can appreciate that the specific violation of Shadowrun core mechanics such as resurection and teleportation is in fact a beautiful homage to the rape of the Earth by the corporations portrayed within the setting itself, thus showing the designer's true honour and respect for the Shadowrun atmosphere and motif. In short, the Shadowrun XBox360 product is more truly Shadowrun than we mere pen and paper players could ever hope to portray.

None of us are worthy to buy this game.

So we wont.

now thats what i call artistic/commercial double-talk

I suspect Knasser is a Mr. Johnson

The game is great. It doesn't have more than a very superficial resemblance to Shadowrun, and it doesn't have any single player either. But is a very, very good FPS multiplayer game. It's great fun and the tech and magic give a lot of unique tactical options.

I played the beta and had a blast, but this is not the Shadowrun game that I wanted... Hopefully, a MMORPG will surface in a year or two based on Shadowrun.

given how saturated the mmorpg world is right now (i have 5-6 free to play ones installed on this computer) that game better be one hell of a game to capture people.

but its future+fantasy world is kinda unique so it will stand out based on that (there are not many near future mmorpgs right now, and none that i know of that mix fantasy into it).

still, i wonder how they will bring the matrix into it all as that will be damned hard. or for that matter astral space. it can quickly turn the game into 3 overlapping ones...

Just to clarify DE's statement: Microsoft bought FASA Interactive way back when. To wit, they own the computer game rights to: Shadowrun, Crimson Skies (another underused IP), and BattleTech/Mechwarrior/Mechcommander.

So, unless MS decides to sell off FASA (hint: they won't), they're the only ones that will produce another Shadowrun game in that name. Doesn't mean that other similar types of games won't be produced, though.

Sort of; it doesn't draw any distinctions between FASA Interactive and FASA; to the best of my knowledge, the game/world was developed at FASA Interactive, then sold as part of FIT to Microsoft, but FASA Corporation was able to easily license it back to do the board game, fiction, etc.

FASA Interactive (from the original FASA) =/= FASA Studios (created by Microsoft)

That's how it was explained to me by the Shadowrun devs.