Here is our test of the console port of Shadow Tactics, a real-time tactical game developed by Mimimi productions and published by Daedalic Entertainment.
In the period late 1990 – early 2000, Commandos and Commandos 2: Men of courage had left their mark on the PC gaming world. Set against the backdrop of the secret operations of the Second World War, the series offered in its time a unique recipe for real-time strategy. Strangely, few games have come to be inspired by this formula that has existed for nearly 20 years. But in December 2016 came out Shadow Tactics, developed by Mimimi productions and published by Daedalic Entertainment. The title was well rated and seemed to remind players of all the flavor of yesteryear of the commando series, but in a completely different context. Building on its success, an adaptation of Shadow Tactics has been planned for consoles. But the controller isn't always ideal when it comes to strategy. Let's see how Shadow Tactics fares.
Shadow Tactics: a very captivating atmosphere
The game takes place in Japan in 1615 in the middle of the Edo period, the culmination of the reign of the Tokugawa (yes sorry, I spread my science, but I come out of Samurai Warriors, so I'm pretty much in the mood). Here therefore no world war but always secret operations. Indeed, 5 individuals were chosen by the Shogun to carry out assassination or espionage missions. The atmosphere is particularly well established by an effective artistic direction. The environments perfectly represent the Japan of that time and the effective music reinforces this immersion even more. The choice of colors is rather well thought out to reinforce the graphics that are pile-hair what is needed for a strategy game. Because we must not forget that we are not in a realistic FPS that must be at the top of what is best in graphics, but indeed in an independent tactical game. In any case, the atmosphere is particularly successful and serves immersion very well, helped by excellent gameplay.
Pure real-time tactics
Here, no turn-by-turn or strategic pause, but real time. Don't worry, you won't have to give different orders to a crowd of characters at the same time. You can put them under cover in bushes or buildings. Each has its own abilities that you will have to use if you want to achieve your goals. Mugen the samurai, for example, can distract the guards with a bottle of sake (yes, because guard towers are long huh, if you can console yourself by tingling a little, we will not complain) and also perform an area attack to kill up to three enemies. This will not be the case of Hayato the ninja who will prefer to kill his enemies by surprise with his sword, or by a shuriken throw. Old Takuma will prefer to use his rifle from a distance. You understand the principle: disguises, distractions, traps, assassinations will be in your possibilities to fulfill your missions. You will also be able to hide, but also use the environment to your advantage. Jumping from rooftop to roof, for example, will be particularly useful. It is important to note that the interface has been specially adapted for consoles, and that the controller is ultimately not a brake for gameplay. The only reservation I have had is in the case of joint actions. There is a shadow mode that allows you to plan actions in advance before triggering the execution of your plan, but for this case, the actions are easier to execute on PC.
Thrilling missions
You are a handful of infiltrators and you will have to face about fifty guards. Do I really need to tell you that the discreet approach is essential? But don't worry, a quick backup system is in place so you don't have to constantly start all over again. A simple tap on the touchpad and you've saved. Don't worry: if like me you constantly crash and press by mistake, the last three saves are kept and you can load them from the pause menu. The missions follow one another quite quickly depending on your chosen difficulty (and your talent of course). If you are talented, you can complete the 13 missions in about thirty minutes each. On the other hand, if you are like me (end null, I specify) you can have up to 2 hours per mission. But yes, it's a bit of an extreme case, I grant it without problem. Whatever your pace, the replayability is excellent as the variety of action possibilities is present, but also thanks to the secondary objectives that will push you a little to redo the missions to improve. Side scenario, the plot is quite thin but will be enough to keep you in suspense from one adventure to another.
A particularly well thought out challenge
The guards are quite numerous, that I have already mentioned. Their field of vision, although materialized, intersects quite often and you will have to have eyes everywhere. Fortunately, you can turn the camera and walk a pointer to predict in advance the environment and the dangers around you. Simple guards will be sensitive to all your strategies considered, but this is not the case for everyone. Straw hats, for example, will not be easily distracted. Sake or not, they will not leave their post even if they hear a suspicious noise. Which is a rather strange logic in the end: "What, a noise? No, I'm an elite soldier, I'm not supposed to intervene if I hear an enemy." Otherwise, the Samurai will give you a hard time. They do not let themselves be distracted and do not risk being murdered by surprise. You'll have to use Mugen for that (and again, forget about the zone attack with them, it will be one-on-one). In short: Shadow Tactics will offer you varied missions neither too easy nor too frustrating, and an adaptable challenge with the 3 different difficulties. As mentioned earlier, the secondary objectives as well as the variety of action will ensure exemplary replayability.
A simple commando-like? Well, not so much. In the end, Shadow Tactics sublimates the genre of tactical games by bringing its own personality through a particularly neat artistic direction. The gameplay is very successful and offers to play 5 characters with very different and complementary gameplay. If you missed the experience on PC, do not hesitate because the console versions offer a neat and very accessible interface. The gameplay at the controller responds well, despite a slight adaptation time. If you are looking for an honorable challenge but not necessarily frustrating if you are a beginner, Shadow Tactics should meet your expectations perfectly.
