A new Shadowman game was seriously not on my bingo card for this year, but let it never be said that the videogaming world can’t surprise you. More than 20 years since the console-only Shadowman Second Coming, and almost 25 since the original game, Shadowman Darque Legacy will mark the return of the classic horror game series for Steam and the Epic Games Store. For the uninitiated, this is a good time to try Nightdive’s Shadowman Remastered. For the veterans, it’s time to get hype.
The first Shadowman game launched in 1999, and was later re-released on GOG back in 2013. Though it scored a sequel, Second Coming, that game only ever made it so far as the PS2 – and that was 21 years ago.
Now, publisher and developer Blowfish Studios is working on Shadowman Darque Legacy, boasting an “RPG-lite” progression system and tough boss encounters, as it marks a new chapter in the classic horror game series.
The story is shrouded in mystery right now. Battling some kind of global conspiracy, you play as novice Shadowman Jack Boniface, traversing both the living world and the trademark Deadside as you combat demons and monsters using melee combat. Set to launch in 2024, according to Blowfish, Darque Legacy will be “punishing but rewarding.”
“It’s been an honour to breathe new life into such an iconic IP, with Shadowman’s first venture into gaming since the PlayStation 2 era,” game director Clinton McCleary says.
“We’re looking forward to ushering fans into the horrifying, punishing, but rewarding experience we’ve crafted. Stepping into the role of Shadowman, players will encounter a compelling cast of heroes and villains while taking their scythe to the most wretched denizens of the Deadside.”
Blowfish also says that Darque Legacy will be a “brand-new, out-of-continuity Shadowman story,” so don’t expect it to pick up from the original two games. Nevertheless, with Nightdive preparing to launch the System Shock reboot, and John Romero apparently working on a whole-new FPS, it looks like the classics are alive and well after all.
Check out some of the other best old games that you can still run on your PC. You might also want to know all the upcoming games we’re expecting in the next 12 months, or perhaps the best apocalypse games if you’re a big Shadowman fan.