Shadow Warrior Classic Redux

 PC
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 43 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 43
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 43
  3. Negative: 1 out of 43

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  1. Sirik_Matak
    Sep 7, 2014
    9
    Being able to play it on modern rigs without problems just helps you to realise how **** things have went in the shooters department.
    This game is not the best fps (Duke Nukem and Doom are obviously better at every aspect), but it's still a blast to play.
  2. badbd518
    Jul 31, 2014
    9
    amazing 90's old school pc fps games gotta love em and this game sure is a classic right next to doom , quake , duke nukem 3d, blood , etc etc etc this game was aan amazing game with a **** ton of blood gore and just allaround insane amounts of fun this is free here on steam so pick it up add it to youre account this game is fun as hell still holds up today and is still fun as hell i giveamazing 90's old school pc fps games gotta love em and this game sure is a classic right next to doom , quake , duke nukem 3d, blood , etc etc etc this game was aan amazing game with a **** ton of blood gore and just allaround insane amounts of fun this is free here on steam so pick it up add it to youre account this game is fun as hell still holds up today and is still fun as hell i give this fps game an 96/100… Expand
  3. JimCorbett
    Oct 25, 2013
    7
    Basically just an upgraded version of the original game. Better graphics, audio, and the inclusion of both expansion packs. If you're a fan of the original, or liked Duke 3D and are looking for something similar, you should probably get this game.
  4. Mrman7
    Nov 12, 2014
    8
    Shadow Warrior takes the open-ended interactivity that made Duke Nukem 3D so fun and expands/improves upon it. Almost everything in Shadow Warrior is breakable and the addition of drivable vehicles, truly 3D pickups and "room-over-room" levels add to the immersive nature of the game. Unfortunately the game relies on some really racist caricatures of Japanese people and culture that is moreShadow Warrior takes the open-ended interactivity that made Duke Nukem 3D so fun and expands/improves upon it. Almost everything in Shadow Warrior is breakable and the addition of drivable vehicles, truly 3D pickups and "room-over-room" levels add to the immersive nature of the game. Unfortunately the game relies on some really racist caricatures of Japanese people and culture that is more offensive than funny. I'm not an easily offended individual and personally loathe all forms of political correctness but I don't see why the developers couldn't have used this as an opportunity to create a character that positively portrays Japanese individuals. Additionally, the graphics were already dated in 1997 (keep in mind this was the same year that the truly 3D Goldeneye64, Quake II, Hexen II, Turok and Dark Forces II: Jedi night were released) and may turn off newcomers to this title. All in all a fun romp down memory lane but not the a classic like Doom or Duke.… Expand
  5. Duke0102
    Jul 21, 2013
    7
    Imagine Duke Nukem 3D but as a ninja!
    Good fun and very playable. I don't think the Redux version is a huge improvement over the old but very well worth getting if you see it on offer.
  6. Captain_Chaos
    Jun 22, 2016
    8
    Who want some Wang? As a young lad I played the shareware version of the original Shadow Warrior many, many times. The opening four levels that comprise what is now known as "Enter the Wang" represent to me a high point in classic shooters. Shadow Warrior was the logical evolution of the kind of gameplay pioneered by Duke Nukem 3D. It was no longer enough simply to have big guns,Who want some Wang? As a young lad I played the shareware version of the original Shadow Warrior many, many times. The opening four levels that comprise what is now known as "Enter the Wang" represent to me a high point in classic shooters. Shadow Warrior was the logical evolution of the kind of gameplay pioneered by Duke Nukem 3D. It was no longer enough simply to have big guns, explosions and ludicrous gibs, no, you must also have interactive environments and a smartass protagonist offering witty, post-kill one liners! And so did 3D Realms deliver. Together with Duke and Monolith's horror-flavored FPS, Blood, Shadow Warrior forms the holy trinity of Build Engine FPSs. Shadow Warrior is in most respects a superior game to Duke, with more potent weapons, smarter level design and improved world details- many objects that were 2D sprites in Duke are now 3D models, albeit blocky. You are Lo Wang, raunchy, east-asian pastiche, professional mercenary, and wise-cracking old master, on a quest to exact revenge on the evil Orochi Zilla and his army of gun-toting demons. At your disposal is an arsenal of ballistic, explosive, and outright magical weaponry, and you will need it all to survive the game's punishing difficulty. Shadow Warrior, like most FPSs of the era, is not an easy game, but it is an entertaining one. This rerelease also includes both the game's expansions, Wanton Destruction and Twin Dragon. If you enjoy this game, I recommend moving on directly to Flying Wild Hog's excellent remake.… Expand
  7. LegionIscariot
    Oct 7, 2015
    8
    This is what i think of when i think of FPS done right.

    If you enjoyed Duke3D then you should enjoy this. Its just as good if not better. Its the Asian version of Duke3D. The weapons are great: Katana or Fists, Shuriken, Riot shotgun, Uzi (+dual wield), Grenade launcher and rocket launcher, Sticky bombs (stick to any surface including enemies), Railgun, Guardian head (the head of    This is what i think of when i think of FPS done right.

    If you enjoyed Duke3D then you should enjoy this. Its just as good if not better. Its the Asian version of Duke3D.

    The weapons are great:
    Katana or Fists, Shuriken,
    Riot shotgun, Uzi (+dual wield), Grenade launcher and rocket launcher,
    Sticky bombs (stick to any surface including enemies), Railgun,
    Guardian head (the head of an enemy that shoots fire), Ripper heart (heart of an enemy that can make a clone of you).

    Powerups: fortune cookies give health boost, armor, Nuclear bombs, Heatseeker cards for rocket launcher.

    Interesting enemies like female warriors, Sumos, even ghosts.

    There is less nudity than Duke3D, the girls are anime girls.

    Keys can be used multiple times, you have the keyscards but you also have keys for locks.

    The game is more fast-paced than Duke3D but at the same time easier. My main weapon in Duke3D was a shotgun, in Shadow Warrior its the dual Uzi.

    Bosses are also easier, not giant alien monsters.    … Expand
  8. Bottlecaps
    Jun 27, 2019
    7
    Shadow warrior classic was a hard game for me to get my opinions out for me its a good game and challenging for sure and this is my first experience with this type of old school shooter iv never played doom, wolfenstien or duke nukem. so iv been putting this off.

    Story: function able demons attack lo wang so you take revenge thats the story and thats all it needs to be its a shooter and    Shadow warrior classic was a hard game for me to get my opinions out for me its a good game and challenging for sure and this is my first experience with this type of old school shooter iv never played doom, wolfenstien or duke nukem. so iv been putting this off.

    Story: function able demons attack lo wang so you take revenge thats the story and thats all it needs to be its a shooter and shooters were never known for their story's ( at least at this time ) that being said story wise this games aged like milk the best thing about the story is lo wang , he is a bad ass and he knows he is and dosent give a **** what you think of him in other words hes a bit of a douche but a douche who will cleverly insult you and out witt you
    Story:5.5/10

    world building: the world building is ok at best, it feels like an action adventure and those storys worlds are hit or miss (indiana jones being a massive miss with its world building, starwars being a juggernaut of world building) and shadow warrior is a miss , not a huge miss , enemy types and locations are varied enough to give you a sense of location and locals are cool and make sense but besides the basics there is not much lore that iv found more an average amount but it makes it clear that game play was the for front of focus
    World building : 4.5/10

    Graphics: its 1997 and the graphics are even outdated then but i think this pixle style was a good choice to keep and even though this style was outdated at this point they took this opertunity to pack as much detail in the textures and "models" as possible there is a distinct increase in detail when i look at old screen shots of doom and this game
    Graphics: 8/10

    Game play: this game is really fun , its hard enough to feel like a challenge but not so hard its frustrating ( even if at some points it was) all guns are fun and useful even if the mini uzi is the most useful but its very easy to waste all your ammo for it. enemy types mix it up and how you deal with certain situations especially when you run out of ammo for your Uzi, the secrets are by far the best part of this game, they are placed so well and clever and it feels old school in the best possible way. the shooting feels good especially on a modern machine game runs like a dream.
    gameplay: 8.5/10

    Sound design: music was ok but the voice acting was on point and the earliest example of good voice acting even if t was simple , the lines are well written and performed. music is ok but the sound effects are king the uzi sounds equely puny and speedy (witch is kinda is) and the explosions and lazer rifle have zip and smash all over them. sound design is not perfect but pretty great
    sound design: 8/10

    5.5+4.5+8+8.5+8= 34.5
    34.5/5= 6.9/10

    a pretty good old school game. but even at its time of release it was technologicaly out of date made up for with a great style and solid mechanics. i got this game for free and its definitly worth a play if you can get it under 5 dollars or free    … Expand
  9. Babutto
    Mar 11, 2023
    9
    It's hilarious game.

    I got my hands on the CD of the game long time ago, around 1999-2000. But never finished. I never liked Duke Nukem 3D graphics. Always felt dizzy or sick. But now, strangely, fine. Pros.: - Humor. - Protagonist. He's hilarious. Jokes and lines. - Game design - I liked the maps and how you had to unscramble them. - Alternative shooting system. Especially    It's hilarious game.

    I got my hands on the CD of the game long time ago, around 1999-2000. But never finished. I never liked Duke Nukem 3D graphics. Always felt dizzy or sick. But now, strangely, fine.

    Pros.:
    - Humor.
    - Protagonist. He's hilarious. Jokes and lines.
    - Game design - I liked the maps and how you had to unscramble them.
    - Alternative shooting system. Especially rocket launcher and nuke.
    - Secrets.
    - Ladies)

    Cons.:
    - Variety of weapons, but you usually use 2-3.
    - The special items are useless most of the time. Just do not need them.    … Expand
  10. BlueDemon75
    Dec 1, 2020
    9
    Shadow Warrior: Classic Redux is an updated version of the classic First Person Shooter, Shadow Warrior, published by 3D Realms in 13th of may, 1997.
    This re-release also includes two expansion packs, Wanton Destruction and Twin Dragon.
    Shadow Warrior along with Duke Nukem 3D and Blood stand tall as the holy trinity of the Build Engine games. The best 3 games to ever come out pushing the    Shadow Warrior: Classic Redux is an updated version of the classic First Person Shooter, Shadow Warrior, published by 3D Realms in 13th of may, 1997.
    This re-release also includes two expansion packs, Wanton Destruction and Twin Dragon.
    Shadow Warrior along with Duke Nukem 3D and Blood stand tall as the holy trinity of the Build Engine games. The best 3 games to ever come out pushing the engine's to its limits. For the time, its level were beautiful and still are in a certain way.

    The plot is rather barebones, as it is usual for FPS games of the time, following the Zilla Enterprises ex-bodyguard, Lo Wang, in his quest against Master Zilla's plan to use demons to conquer Japan. Later Lo Wang learns that Zilla killed his old master, and now Wang wants Zilla's Head. Also Lo Wang is voiced and its a one-liner machine, its great.

    Shadow Warrior Redux presents 20 Levels plus 2 secret ones, add in the expansion levels and you have a total of 47 different and unique levels. These range from Japan Streets to blazing volcanos. Awesome variety, with great design, the maps have a flow to them, it's rare to get stuck, which is a testament of good level design that often gets overlooked.

    Lo Wang has an arsenal of fists, Katana, Shurikens, dual uzi's, auto shotgun, grenades, rail gun, rocket launcher, demon head and heart, and to top it all off, you can launch nukes. All weapons have a purpose and a place in game, nothing feels wasted, the only exception being maybe the fists that overlap with the katana as an melee weapon.

    Shadow Warrior gameplay is rather intense, but incredibly rewarding, Lo Wang moves fast, and you will need to use that to your advantage, as any other Build Engine game it can give you a hard time if you are a tiny grasshopper still learning the ropes of the Boomer Shooter games. Enemy variety is good and challenging, when paired with each other they can create some really cool encounters. And a small tip from me, explosive weapons are king, you are not playing Shadow Warrior properly if you aren't blowing your self up a few times.

    In terms of soundtrack, it is composed by the legendary Lee Jackson, who also worked on Duke 3D, so there's nothing more that I can say, its just great and it fits the Eastern vibe the game have. It range from some fun action tracks to some really atmospheric and rather gloomy tracks.

    Controls are good and responsive, can be rebound at will, and the game runs flawlessly on on modern systems and hardware.
    Oh and no, this is NOT one of those lazy DOSbox ports.

    You can see the original dev Team had a clear vision and passion for the game, and I think they succeed in everything they set out to do. Overall Shadow Warrior is an absolute classic that along with Duke3D and Blood had a hand shaping an entire generation of shooters.

    A must play for any classic FPS fan.

    Score: 9.5/10 // Excellent [★★★★★★★★★✫]    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Sep 19, 2013
    60
    An audiovisually elaborated remake of the brutal shooter from the late 90's. Duke Nukem's pal is going well, bringing mad and red action. [Issue#232]
  2. Games.cz
    Aug 28, 2013
    70
    Even after all those years with lack of interest Shadow Warrior Redux works. Despite its outdated graphics it's entertaining shooter of pureblood genre and bitter humour. It's a blast from the past when developers had balls.
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