Shadowrun Chronicles: Boston Lockdown Reviews
Smart co-op partners make Shadowrun Chronicles: Boston Lockdown's tactical combat work, but anything less falls short.
Shadowrun Chronicles is a bad use of the Shadowrun license, and a bad tactical RPG.
In its current state, Shadowrun Chronicles — Boston Lockdown is a perfectly adequate game. It has loads of potential, but needs more time in the oven to feel complete and worthy of your time.
It's a shame the same anything-goes mindset doesn't apply to the mission structure and the story, because the dryness, repetition and general rudimentary air is what will ultimately keep me from coming back for more, but if you want a few hours of XCOM-lite with cyberpunk trimmings and the option for co-op, you could do a lot worse than Shadowrun Chronicles.
Dedicated Shadowrun fans will likely be disappointed at the lack of depth, and your mileage may vary in terms of the appeal of the multiplayer function, which seemingly took over some of the other more endearing aspects of the series. If you haven't played a game in the series since the SNES however, Boston Lockdown is a decent starting point, and a perfect way to re-acclimate yourself to the genre with friends. If you prefer to fly solo, just go with Shadowrun Returns instead.
Shadowrun Chronicles: Boston Lockdown takes the Shadowrun experience - where magic works alongside high technology - and brings it online for players to play cooperatively. But it's hard to make a living in this dark cyberpunk fantasy when there are so many problems with the world... and we're not just talking about the dragon that destroyed Fenway.
A co-op version of XCOM in the Shadowrun universe sounds a great idea, but this lacks the depth to make the best of the concept.
It's a shame really, because this game and any other with Shadowrun in its name has so much content to draw from. Missions, equipment, rules, it could translate to the digital world quite well.
Shadow run is a campy romp that doesn't take itself too seriously. Its fun to play through, but only mimics (and doesn't quite stack up to) the exceedingly excellent XCOM. There is better weapon class variety, character customization, and a few other points where it might exceed its muse, but it measures up just a shade below on most other occasions.
Lag notwithstanding, I would recommend Shadowrun Chronicles to anyone who enjoys the Shadowrun universe and enjoys turn-based strategy games. If you liked Shadowrun Returns, you'll probably also enjoy Chronicles, although you won't find the same depth of story just yet. The developers at Cliffhanger promise much more story that will be molded by the players as time goes on.
A bit rough around the edges, and downright buggy in others, Shadowrun Chronicles has a lot of flaws to recommend unless you are a fan of the setting.
In the end, the missions just aren't enough to really make this stand out too strongly.
Jack of all trades, master of none
Even without the frequent sever issues, Shadowrun Chronicles : Boston Lockdown would be hard to recommended to anyone but the most rabid fans of the setting. Even they would be better served seeking out superior adaptations. Which do exist, so it's not like this is your only option. Lockdown commits the worst crime of all; not being terrible, but being boring
If you're a dedicated fan of the Shadowrun setting and enjoy your games a little on the complex side, you will be disappointed in the lack of depth in Shadowrun Chronicles. If, however, you enjoy turn-based tactical action and cooperative multiplayer, you might have a blast with the game.
'Boston Lockdown' is an online Shadowrun game that manages to admirably translate the popular setting's quirky sci-fi/fantasy romance, but struggles with the online bit. The narrative is less of a strong glue holding everything together - it's more of a thin balm that can be more pervasive than entertaining. If you want to do some shadowrunning with some friends and don't mind the price point, it's not a bad entry in the franchise. If you're not into co-op, there are better options in the turn-based strategy genre.
Shadowrun Chronicles is not necessarily a game that can stand on its own merits; it exists to fulfill the lack of multiplayer in the Shadowrun series, and while it does this rather well, players approaching this game from an uninformed position should do so only once they've become fully aware of what they'd be getting themselves into. In short: do not play this game by yourself. If you prefer a singleplayer experience, play Shadowrun Returns or Dragonfall, or even the upcoming Hong Kong.
Despite a few slight issues, Shadowrun Chronicles is a fantastic strategy game to sink your time in this summer.