The year was 1997. 3D Realms released Shadow Warrior, a game they claimed was a parody of bad kung-fu films, whilst everyone else blasted it for being a bag of racial stereotypes. The year is now 2013, and the teaser trailer for the reboot of Shadow Warrior has hit the net. How far has this oriental shooter come? It’s hard to judge yet, but the evidence lies waiting for you in the video.
There’s next to nothing to go by here, but it looks like they’re going with modern popular ideas on eastern culture as opposed to ‘traditional’ stereotypes. Dark clothes, gun in one hand, samurai sword in the other, suited men beheaded on temple steps. All the familiar marks are here. Less obvious are the more energetic elements of in the game, which publisher Devolver Digital CEO Fork Parker describes with glee: “You get to tangle with twin female assassins and slice off demon heads to use as weapons. It’s super fucking rad.” Well that certainly tells a story at ends with the serene trailer.
The reboot is being developed by Flying Wild Hog, who previously worked on Hard Reset. “The team here at Flying Wild Hog are longtime fans of the original Shadow Warrior with its unique combat innovations and distinct setting not seen in shooters at that time,” said Michal Szustak, Studio Head at Flying Wild Hog. “The classic arcade-style shooter is a genre we genuinely love, so redesigning the world of Shadow Warrior and the character of Lo Wang has been a fantastic project for the team.”
The game is due to hit PC later this year, and will be exclusive to our platform until 2014.