Shadowrun Returns

The game is good and stable, the general level of the plot is decent. But 90%+ of the game is linear. There are like 1-2 side missions, very little character development, no choices that matter etc. Basically, it's like "we've built an engine, here's what it can do" type of feeling. Somehow reminds me of Half-Life 2: great engine, solid story, solid experience, 100% railroad shooter. Except that HL2 did not pretend to be an RPG, but this game does. Shadowrun Dragonfall, for example, feels quite differently (even though after classic CRPGs the world feels a bit empty of action, and controversial choices could matter a bit more..).

I've just run into a bug discussed online since 2014- the game freezes after a dialogue scene at the UB basement and all you can do is watch an NPC moving her hands. Can't even access controls and exit the game other than ctrl f4. It's mid 2021 guys... I enjoyed the game so far (even though it's linear as hell), but this is taking the biscuit.

Excellent intro into the Shadowrun universe. Turn based combat, great artwork (take a careful look at the scenery around town for some laughs), and a very open format character development system. A few bugs on occasion, but nothing a few minutes research on the forums won't cure. This *is* a short adventure, just one single campaign to locate whoever flatlined an old friend, and make them pay. However, the way the missions are set up, there are multiple ways to succeed, so you can probably replay the campaign several times with different play styles and still enjoy it each time. If you are into Cyberpunk, or you enjoyed the Fallout series of games (isometric, turn based, apocalyptic RPG) you'll enjoy this game. If you liked the movie Bladerunner, you'll enjoy this game too (Bladerunner + magic + metahumans...what's not to like?) They got the flavor of the Shadowrun setting just right, and I enjoyed it so much I'm going to buy the other Shadowrun game they offer here on GOG - and I'm not waiting for a sale on it either. Buy it chummer, then chip in, and enjoy the ride...its Better Than Life.

Shadowrun return is an enjoyable rpg set in the Shadowrun universe. It is however not perfect. The included campaign is rather short and linear. However there is a good number of fan made campaigns available. This is important, as the game was made with user created campaigns in mind. I still feel they could have included at least 1 more though. I finished the included campaign in around 8-10 hours I think, and it could have been faster since it was very linear. Still enjoyable though. Anyways, Shadowrun Dragonfall is supposed to be an improvement (haven't tried it yet), and a lot of newer user campaigns need Dragonfall to run. So you get a better value for your money by buying Shadowrun Dragonfall instead.

Just so you know where I'm coming from, I had never played the original game(s) and thus have no opinon of them, and I'm not obsessed with cyberpunk or dystopian futures, but I played the main game to completion and enjoyed it. Some people complained that the game was too linear, but I have nothing to compare it to, so that's not a complaint of mine. Some people say that the turn-based combat is a tad simplistic, but again (aside from it perhaps getting a bit repetitive near the end) I had nothing against it. These days I'm completing less and less games, so I was very happy to find one I was motivated to play all the way through: Interesting story, interesting world, engrossing gameplay, while it may not have been the greatest games ever or anything, it checked all the boxes for a great experience. As far as the technical stuff goes, played it on Linux on a fairly weak laptop, and had no technical hitches.