Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun – Engaging Strategy for Players who Like to Think

Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun is a strategy game set in Japan’s Edo period. While it has been available on Steam for several years, it comes to the Nintendo Switch 2 on March 18th. The game involves a lot of stealth and strategy, so gamers who enjoy rushing in and killing everything in sight might not find a lot to like, but gamers who enjoy planning out their moves and the rush that comes with slipping past enemies unnoticed should have a great time.

About Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun

Developed by Mimimi Games and published by Daedalic Entertainment, Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun takes place during the Edo period of Japan. As the game progresses, you gain multiple characters to control, and they’ll sometimes have to work together in order to complete missions. The graphics are nicely detailed, considering that you’re working with an overhead view. In addition, the game is fully voiced, and the voice acting is well done overall.

Now, how about the gameplay? There are a lot of features to keep track of, which might seem overwhelming at first, but fortunately, the first mission acts as a tutorial. Instead of being a step-by-step grind on how to do things, the tutorial is part of the story, and it teaches about each ability gradually through scrolls you pick up as you complete the mission. This way, the instructions feel natural instead of intrusive.

You start out in control of a ninja named Hayato, and the first thing you do is jump on top of a guard to kill him. Yes, that’s literally the first thing you do in the game. Maybe it’s supposed to introduce how this will be a serious game, but I found myself laughing. I laughed even harder when I discovered that you can pick the body up and carry it around.

However, this actually turns out to be essential to the game. Whenever you kill someone, you have to hide bodies in bushes or in empty buildings, or else you risk people spotting the carnage you leave behind. For some reason, I love this feature. Dumping the bodies never got old.

What Else Can You Do in Shadow Tactics?

If you don’t like killing guards just so they won’t spot you, there is an option to knock them out instead. However, be aware that this makes the game harder, since they’ll wake up quickly and still spot you. This can be a fun feature if you want to challenge yourself or if you have moral objections to killing people just because they’re in your way. As for myself, I just went around killing people and stashing their bodies. 

Different characters also have different skills, and you have to utilize all of them to progress. For example, Hayato can climb walls and walk on roofs. This encourages you to make use of your environment. He can also throw shurikens. Some of the skills can even be humorous. For example, one character can set out a bottle of sake to distract guards. There’s something highly amusing about baiting someone with alcohol before slitting their throat and stashing their body in the bushes.

Shadow Tactics also features a unique feature called Shadow Mode. Shadow Mode lets you plan out moves for multiple characters to execute at the same time. This might be necessary if, for example, there are multiple guards posted in a single area and you have no way to creep behind or around them. This mode adds a level of depth to the game, since you have to work out how much time each move will take when each character executes it.

I Recommend Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun

Obviously, this game isn’t for everyone. Gamers who prefer action-oriented games like The Legend of Zelda might want to look elsewhere. In addition, the game’s difficulty is high, even when you’re playing on Normal difficulty. Even in the tutorial mission, I died over and over. Fortunately, there is a quick save feature, which you can use at any time. In addition, the game lets you choose which of your last few quick saves you want to reload. This helps cut down on the frustration level.

Despite the difficulty, fans of stealth games like the Metal Gear Solid series should find a lot to love here. Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun is engaging, deep, and encourages you to use your brain. Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun comes to the Nintendo Switch 2 on March 18th, and it will cost $39.99.