Shadow Tower Abyss

"Shadow Tower 2:Abyss"

Ever since Shadow Tower,some fans surely wanted a sequel,so people have to wait 5 years later until it was finally released.

But the problem was that the game was more like a horror game and for that and another reason they decided to only release it in Japan and not in the U.S.

But let's get to the review.

The question is:It's Shadow Tower Abyss better than it's predecessor?

Yes,of course,yes.

First let's get to the:

Difficulty:7.5/10
You are not going to believe this,but the difficulty in Shadow Tower Abyss is lesser than the original one.It poses a good challenge,but sometimes a great challenge.It's not to say like the first one,like:This game is superbly difficult or This game is my nightmare,no,nothing like that.In fact,this game difficulty is more balanced,sometimes is great,but sometimes and most of the times is good difficulty,Because:There are more health potions,more equipment to collect,more items,there are less enemies to fight off and you can slice enemies parts away,making easier to kill the enemies.

Story:5/10
Well,story in Shadow Tower Abyss has nothing to do with the original Shadow Tower. It's about you were tricked into a cave by an old man,and the old man locks the cave from where you came.Now you must escape from that cave.It could have done better but,oh well.Exactly like the original you will find people to talk to.Also,there is a prologue which happens after you start the game but,just like the intro,it also includes a narrator speaking in Japanese.

Controls:6.5/10
The controls are almost good,you use Circle button to accept and to search during game play and X button to cancel and bring the inventory menu during game play.This can confuse you sometimes,but also you use the right analog stick to attack,making it more real,for example if you move the right analog stick down,you do a smash attack.You use Triangle to switch weapons and the Square button to use a spell.You also use R3 button to shoot and the left analog stick to move.This can take quite a while to master or 10 to 15 minutes to master.

Game play:8/10
Thanks to the difficulty,game play is much fun than it was in Shadow Tower,there are 68 enemies not 150 enemies,game play speed is much faster,there are guns,yeah that's right guns.Another thing is blood,this game is very violent and the best thing is you can slice their arms away,making a perfect monster's blood splash to the screen for a short period of time.This make the game seem more like a horror game but in a cool way.There 200 weapons at your disposal,lots of different equipment,but less different spells.The dark environment makes it creepier and the addition of no music makes it even creepier.The atmosphere of this game is beautiful.The area design is better,it's more wider,more simplistic.Enemies are cooler than in the first Shadow Tower,more strange,nightmarish style.The game length is long like the original,as,instead of worlds with areas,there are only areas with elevators which take you to the next tier of areas.It could take 24 hours to complete the game.Some enemies are not that great.Another thing which is very good,is the removal of loading times during game play,resulting that the only loading time you are going to see in the game is when the prologue ends and when you load the game,it will appear Now Loading with a draw with the head of the intro.You can also use the fists,which may look like a nice addition but you lose HP points by attacking with the fist.This makes this addition a bit worthless,because also if you attack with a glove,it may increase the attack damage but,in that way gloves break way too fast,but sometimes it helps when you just break your weapon against an enemy when is mortally wounded by the final attack you gave him by finishing him with your fists but this is not useful against a strong enemy.Instead of the traditional stamina bar,you are shown slots which by attacking or using a spell,it decreases one slot,also to notice that they are HP and MP bars but without the HP and MP numbers and the numbers appear only when you bring the inventory menu and when you are damaged.

Sound:8.5/10
Unlike the predecessor,there is some music when you enter an area,but there is no music after a while.The best thing which,here is one of most strongest aspects of the game is that the sounds of the enemies are perfect.Instead of just entering an area in the original Shadow Tower and hearing sounds here and there,you hear sounds that perfectly blend with everything.You hear moans,perfect moans of monsters dying.The footsteps sounds better than before.Sounds more real.You no longer need music because the only thing
you need is some footstep sound and some monster sound.The music in the menu is kinda cool too.The weapons and spells sound good.

Graphics:9/10
Definitely the most strong point of the game,the cut scenes look greater than in Shadow Tower and in game play are pretty strong.The graphics look familiar with Ico.When you turn around in game play,it seems that the camera tries to move very quickly,but it can't.It seems that the director of this game wanted to make this sequel great,improving lots of things.

Pros and Cons:

The good:
Superb Graphics.
More balanced difficulty.
Great game play.
Perfect Sound.
Guns addition makes this game better.
The dismemberment is cool.
The game is very violent.
Simplistic and wider area design.
Tons of different equipment.
Most of the enemies are strange,nightmarish style.
It looks like a horror game but in a cool way.
Game play speed is much faster.
No more loading times between the inventory and the game.
The bad:
Story is confusing.
Controls are not good.
Some enemies are not cool.
The fist addition sometimes is worthless.
Guns were never seen in Shadow Tower.
There are less spells.

Overall:Shadow Tower Abyss is a great game,it's pretty well worked and developed.I give this game an:8.5/10.

Buy or Rent:

The best thing to do is to buy this game.Trust me,you won't be disappointed.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/21/08

Game Release: Shadow Tower Abyss (JP, 10/23/03)