It doesn’t waste time telling an intricate story but instead weaves its tale through short cutscenes and quick whips between the game’s protagonists, which, honestly, suites Shadow Warrior 3’s pacing just fine. This time, the merc with the mouth (not that one) Lo Wang finds himself taking on a giant dragon, as well as an endless stream of killer demons, to once again save Shadow Warrior’s unique version of Neo-dripped feudal Japan. Shadow Warrior 3 continues the franchise’s tried and tested formula of keeping its story beats light, letting the FPS shine elsewhere. Light on features, big on functionality and fun, even when Shadow Warrior 3 does stutter, it moves so quickly that its occasional misdemeanours are quickly – and easily – forgotten.

The franchise may not have achieved the grandeur of fellow arena-blasters Doom and Duke Nukem, but there’s something so decidedly charming about the absurd and wholly gruesome world in which Shadow Warrior resides that it’s impossible to dismiss. If the Shadow Warrior series has taught us anything, it’s that a successful FPS doesn’t need bells and whistles to be a blast.

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