REVIEW - SHADOWRUN RETURNS: DRAGONFALL
If you thought Dead Man's Switch, the first official adventure of Shadworun
Returns, was excellent, get ready to have more fun, because Dragonfall is
even more awesome. The game takes all the feedback players gave after
experiencing Dead Man's Switch and makes everything better. Dragonfall
is a deeply thought provoking adventure which takes you into a wider world
than you were able to experience in Dead Man's Switch.
Set in Berlin, rather than Seattle, the main plot of Dragonfall involves hunting down a famous and mysterious professor-come-dragon-slayer – a quest which begins from a desire for good ol' fashioned revenge. This desire is also what unites your motley crew of runners. Your custom-made protagonist is accompanied by three runners who just ooze cyberpunk cool. Dietrich, ex-punk-rocker-skinhead come shaman with a passionate drive to deliver his own brand of civilian justice upon those he believes deserve it; Eiger, Troll weapon specialist with a strong military background and steely stubborn attitude; and Glory, combat medic who is more steel augments than flesh, lending her a stony emotionless quality that contrasts sharply with her strong sense of conscience. Each is a mystery in their own right and everyone seems to have little in common besides your quest for revenge.
A second, interweaving plot-line surrounds a scarily advanced artificial intelligence program named APEX. APEX's story, and the consequences of your decisions regarding APEX, stood out as the most interesting plot thread. Although the story of Adrian Vauclair and the Dragon Feuerschwinge (‘Firewing’) was interesting, it did not achieve any feeling of urgency, as it seemed obvious throughout the game that my team would be able to stop one nutty professor. APEX, on the other hand, was such a complete mystery of unknown potential and motive that it seemed more important to investigate the A.I. Aside from the main plots, Dragonfall includes many smaller adventures or ‘runs’ all of which come with their own carefully crafted path of decisions. In every adventure you have to make quick-fire decisions which really test your sense of humanity and morality. They all possess a good level of depth and challenge – none of them stands out as boring or easy.
Something refreshing about Dragonfall is the way it expects you to be curious. Rather than explaining every little feature and unfamiliar term, Dragonfall plunges you into Berlin, confronting you with a mixture of German terms and Shadowrun slang. Perhaps the creators assume that their sole audience are long term Shadowrun fans. Instead, I like to think that they have faith in their game – they know the story is interesting enough that people will investigate terms and concepts they do not understand. This is a great attitude, as it encourages investigation and thinking, rather than the laziness encouraged by the overly accommodating tone of many contemporary releases. Playing a game like Dragonfall, which is not afraid to plunge its users into a crazy and complex world without holding their hand, is an awesome experience.
The end of the campaign was a little disappointing - it felt abrupt and directed. Although Dragonfall is a noticeably larger adventure and you do get to make more decisions than in Dead Man's Switch, this sense of agency is largely an illusion. Every decision you make will lead you to the same final confrontation. Following this, you return briefly to your base and then out towards a meeting with a new fixer. The campaign ends with an epilogue screen which summarises how your adventure fits into the wider Shadowrun chronology. Nothing is said of APEX and nothing is said of any of your mysterious Shadowrunner team.
As in Dead Man’s Switch elements of the game such as music and visuals are of the highest quality, and there are many technical improvements which make the game smoother and more fun. Perhaps the most notable is the fact that you can now save anytime during the game, instead at the pre-designated intervals of Dead Man’s Switch, although the modifications to combat are also worth mentioning.
The Dragons of Shadowrun are fascinating. Although it takes a little getting used to, as their position in the world order is quite unconventional, overall their inclusion makes for a really interesting version of this typical fantasy beast. Dragons are like people. Some are good, and some are bad, but most are grey. You do not know who they are or what they want unless you spend time getting to know them, and with dragons this is a much riskier game than with humans. The Shadowrun Returns games give a sense that Dragons are few and that they mainly slide onto the evil side onto the spectrum. While playing Dragonfall I’ve also been reading one of the old Shadowrun novels ‘Never Deal with a Dragon’ (by Robert N Charrette) which has broadened my understanding of Shadowrun Dragons. There are many different types and lesser dragons as well as the Great ones. The game tends to make reference only to the handful of Great Dragons – knowing that there are many more out there unaccounted for can considerably alter your attitude towards the main plot of Dragonfall.
The Shadowrun Returns world is enough fun that it has led me to begin playing User Generated Content (UGC) – something I have never really explored for any other game. Although Dragonfall has a few plot holes, overall it is an excellent adventure and certainly technically better than Dead Man’s Switch. The team at Harebrained Schemes continues to do justice to the world of Shadowrun, and I look forward to their next adventure.
Set in Berlin, rather than Seattle, the main plot of Dragonfall involves hunting down a famous and mysterious professor-come-dragon-slayer – a quest which begins from a desire for good ol' fashioned revenge. This desire is also what unites your motley crew of runners. Your custom-made protagonist is accompanied by three runners who just ooze cyberpunk cool. Dietrich, ex-punk-rocker-skinhead come shaman with a passionate drive to deliver his own brand of civilian justice upon those he believes deserve it; Eiger, Troll weapon specialist with a strong military background and steely stubborn attitude; and Glory, combat medic who is more steel augments than flesh, lending her a stony emotionless quality that contrasts sharply with her strong sense of conscience. Each is a mystery in their own right and everyone seems to have little in common besides your quest for revenge.
A second, interweaving plot-line surrounds a scarily advanced artificial intelligence program named APEX. APEX's story, and the consequences of your decisions regarding APEX, stood out as the most interesting plot thread. Although the story of Adrian Vauclair and the Dragon Feuerschwinge (‘Firewing’) was interesting, it did not achieve any feeling of urgency, as it seemed obvious throughout the game that my team would be able to stop one nutty professor. APEX, on the other hand, was such a complete mystery of unknown potential and motive that it seemed more important to investigate the A.I. Aside from the main plots, Dragonfall includes many smaller adventures or ‘runs’ all of which come with their own carefully crafted path of decisions. In every adventure you have to make quick-fire decisions which really test your sense of humanity and morality. They all possess a good level of depth and challenge – none of them stands out as boring or easy.
Something refreshing about Dragonfall is the way it expects you to be curious. Rather than explaining every little feature and unfamiliar term, Dragonfall plunges you into Berlin, confronting you with a mixture of German terms and Shadowrun slang. Perhaps the creators assume that their sole audience are long term Shadowrun fans. Instead, I like to think that they have faith in their game – they know the story is interesting enough that people will investigate terms and concepts they do not understand. This is a great attitude, as it encourages investigation and thinking, rather than the laziness encouraged by the overly accommodating tone of many contemporary releases. Playing a game like Dragonfall, which is not afraid to plunge its users into a crazy and complex world without holding their hand, is an awesome experience.
The end of the campaign was a little disappointing - it felt abrupt and directed. Although Dragonfall is a noticeably larger adventure and you do get to make more decisions than in Dead Man's Switch, this sense of agency is largely an illusion. Every decision you make will lead you to the same final confrontation. Following this, you return briefly to your base and then out towards a meeting with a new fixer. The campaign ends with an epilogue screen which summarises how your adventure fits into the wider Shadowrun chronology. Nothing is said of APEX and nothing is said of any of your mysterious Shadowrunner team.
As in Dead Man’s Switch elements of the game such as music and visuals are of the highest quality, and there are many technical improvements which make the game smoother and more fun. Perhaps the most notable is the fact that you can now save anytime during the game, instead at the pre-designated intervals of Dead Man’s Switch, although the modifications to combat are also worth mentioning.
The Dragons of Shadowrun are fascinating. Although it takes a little getting used to, as their position in the world order is quite unconventional, overall their inclusion makes for a really interesting version of this typical fantasy beast. Dragons are like people. Some are good, and some are bad, but most are grey. You do not know who they are or what they want unless you spend time getting to know them, and with dragons this is a much riskier game than with humans. The Shadowrun Returns games give a sense that Dragons are few and that they mainly slide onto the evil side onto the spectrum. While playing Dragonfall I’ve also been reading one of the old Shadowrun novels ‘Never Deal with a Dragon’ (by Robert N Charrette) which has broadened my understanding of Shadowrun Dragons. There are many different types and lesser dragons as well as the Great ones. The game tends to make reference only to the handful of Great Dragons – knowing that there are many more out there unaccounted for can considerably alter your attitude towards the main plot of Dragonfall.
The Shadowrun Returns world is enough fun that it has led me to begin playing User Generated Content (UGC) – something I have never really explored for any other game. Although Dragonfall has a few plot holes, overall it is an excellent adventure and certainly technically better than Dead Man’s Switch. The team at Harebrained Schemes continues to do justice to the world of Shadowrun, and I look forward to their next adventure.
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