View All (3)

View All (1)

FASA Studios mixes technology and magic with a twist of cross-platform gameplay.

Shadowrun is the inaugural game by Microsoft Studios to utilize the new Xbox 360-to-Windows Vista online compatibility.  That's right, Shadowrun is the first game to allow Xbox 360 owners to play with (or against) their PC owner counterparts.  Being first always puts a lot of pressure on ones head, I know through grade school I was always thankful my last name started with an "L" and not an "A".  No fear, however, as developer FASA Studio has plenty of experience with titles like MechWarrior and Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge already under their belts they are more than qualified to take on this heavy burden.

Xbox 360-to-Windows Vista online compatibility is not the only reason there are high hopes for Shadowrun.  After all the game is based on the cult favorite pen-and-paper RPG of the same name.  Of all the genres this game could have been (obvious choice being an RPG), I am sure that old-school Shadowrun fans were not expecting a first-person-shooter.  FASA Studios is going to have to go above and beyond to satisfy those guys after such a blatant disregard to the source material.

Well, I shouldn't be so quick to say FASA is disregarding the source material.  This may be a FPS, but it sports some very RPG features.  To augment all the weaponry and technology players get to choose from four different races and an array of magic spells.  Those in the know will remember at the heart, the original Shadowrun was all about a merger of magic and technology which is exactly what the new Shadowrun appears to be all about.