Shadwen

It takes a lot to make a stealth game worthwhile with many AAA titles like Metal Gear Solid, Hitman, and Splinter Cell on the market. Unfortunately, indie developers have very large shoes to fill, so let's see how Shadwen stacks up.

Despite its problematic narrative, Shadwen is a very unique game that breathes new life into a genre that hasn’t seen much development in a while. The last time I had such a fun and interesting time with a stealth game was Dishonored. Shadwen carefully designs and organises at every turn; every piece of the environment is deliberate, purposeful, and interesting. The graphics hold up nicely, with a...

Shadwen has a novel idea behind it, but doesn't quite live up to its promise. Dodgy AI and mechanics make this game a bit of a chore to play, especially once you figure out the optimal path that can be applied to each level.

PS4 version tested. Review code provided by the publisher.

Shadwen begins with promise, but has neither the depth nor the variety needed to fulfill it.

Coming from the developers of Trine I expected a little more quality from Shadwen, the uninteresting environments echo the bland characters and gameplay that evolves too slowly. A level editor and mod support will give it some longevity and you might find some enjoyment from making a purely non-violent run through the game. But even the extra items couldn’t spice it up enough for me to find Shadwe...

Shadwen is a decent game at best and mediocre at worst. While not bad, it fails to build upon the mechanics it presents. What you do in the third chapter is largely the same as the final chapter: grappling to higher platforms, killing guards, and moving crates to help Lily move forward. Nothing new is presented, and what is already there is never combined in clever ways. About midway through a new...

Shadwen makes no bones about copying from other games. However, with the lack of compelling story-telling and gameplay, it fails to even accommodate interesting mechanics that other games handle better.

The few times the game opens up to let the player make use of their high level of mobility are incredibly memorable, and the world building makes it feel like we’re only scratching the surface of this world. That’s not enough to make me recommend it, of course, but they do make Shadwen’s shortcomings all the more painful.

Honestly, Shadwen feels like it needed more time in development, both to work on its core ideas and bring them to fruition. The bland environments, the lack of an interesting plot, the technical issues, and the various gimmicks makes Shadwen a poor stealth and assassination game. At the very least, it tries to do something a little bit different, but simply doesn’t pull it off.