Shadow Man (video Game) - Gameplay

Gameplay

Shadow Man is an action-adventure game comparable to games like Tomb Raider or the Legend of Zelda series. Most gameplay takes place in a third person perspective, though there is an option for first-person aiming. The player can run, jump, climb, swim and perform various other actions. Combat is focused on the use of firearms, the most important of which is the Shadowgun, a pistol through which Mike can channel his shadow power and reap life energy from his enemies. Numerous other weapons also exist, such as voodoo implements, ordinary Earth weapons, and some oddly-designed Deadside firearms.

Shadow Man is also one of few games of its time to feature a 3D targeting feature (pioneered by The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time a year earlier). This allowed for the player to lock-on to an enemy and strafe around them as desired during combat. Also unique to a game of its time, Shadow Man has a dual-wielding system, allowing the player to equip two items controlled by two different buttons/keys and use them independently of each other yet at the same time.

The main focus of Shadow Man is the collection of "Dark Souls", a set of 120 indestructible souls which imbue Mike with greater power once enough are absorbed. These are what Legion intends to implant into his army of monsters, thus making them immortal. As the player collects them their shadow power level will increase level by level (to a maximum of 10), which serves two purposes: it increases the charge potential of the Shadowgun so the player can cause more damage, and it determines what level of coffin gates (coffin-shaped doors that restrict access to portions of the game) the player can open in Deadside. The player's voodoo meter increases in tandem with their shadow level, allowing voodoo weapons to be used for greater periods.

A secondary focus of the game is the collection of the small ceremonial seed pods called cadeaux (French for "gifts"). When the player has collected one-hundred cadeaux, they take them to the Temple of Life and offer them to the Loa (Voodoo gods of Deadside) so as to increase their life meter by one unit. There are five-hundred and twelve to collect in total, resulting in a possible ten health units.

The player can play through the game as he or she likes, with the only limitation being the number of dark souls in the player's possession. For example, the five main bosses of the game can be fought in any order provided the player has access to both the shadow powers in Liveside and the relevant area.