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You're in for a real treat

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: February 18, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I have a friend who once told me that the game "Colosseum" was really fantastic. It mixed the Roman backgrounds with all of the fantasy of being one of the hallowed 'sports stars' in one of the most bloody "games" in all of history. COOL! Doesn't that sound cool??

Let me just say this about "Colosseum", though: it sucks. My favorite thing about it is how the camera is situated right in front of you the whole time so that you remarkably can't manage to see straight in front of you as people run up to stab you in the face. And not being able to leave the one dingy little forum that the game offers is really thrilling, too. But I digress...

Because of this, I was understandably wary about investing in "Shadow of Rome". But when I ordered it from Amazon, I had just finished watching the extended edition of "Gladiator" and I was in the mood for some more Holy Roman Empire-based fun.

I can honestly say that now, having played this game, I handed my copy to my aforementioned friend and told him, "trash 'Colosseum' and play this instead. But forget to give it back to me, and I'll do such horrible things to you that the gladiators in this game will envy me."

The plot goes like this: Julius Caesar has been murdered! I think I can pretty much safely say that that's not going to be a spoiler for anyone, unless you 1.) skipped all of your English classes in high school, or 2.) are an idiot who knows nothing about anything. But what is different about this approach is the clever retelling of the famous story through the eyes of a gladiator and a simple peasant boy. Agrippa is the son of one of Caesar's most trusted advisers, Vipsanius, and Octavianus is an orphan boy who was raised under Caesar's benevolent care. Despite their entirely different backgrounds, Agrippa and Octavianus have somehow forged a deep friendship (and considering their Roman heritage, I have to wonder if it doesn't go deeper than just friendship). I don't know how historically accurate Caesar adopting some random kid and taking him as a nephew is, but it's still kind of fun, and at least the characterization strives for a level of authenticity that many games wouldn't even bother with.

The peasant boy is named Octavianus, and he will serve as your "story" character. That is, his levels may be slow-paced, but if you have any romantic soul in you whatsoever and wish to know just what the PURPOSE behind this game you're playing is, you will enjoy the levels playing as Octavianus. The main reason he exists in a game that is primarily meant to attract aggressive, hormonal gamers is to explain the story playing behind all of the horrific bloodletting. His dedication to his best friend, Agrippa, is quite admirable, and his ability to extract information will depend on whether or not you can lie your way out of risky situations. That being said, he's a total wuss and will die with only one hit from a shield or sword or any other weapon. He's not exactly the human tank that his pal is, and to that end, he can get kind of aggravating to play (if you're good at talking your way out of things, though, you won't need to worry about this). Nevertheless, he's still an interesting character, and certainly deserves the same amount of respect as your other guy.

The other guy being, of course, Agrippa. Agrippa is your "action" character. He's a musclebound general with mad fighting skills and a chest that probably measures about six feet in diameter. I have to laugh whenever the cut scenes have him talking to someone, though, because with that body and that voice, he comes across as a real dumb-jock-with-a-heart-of-gold type. Which would be annoying if it weren't so charming somehow. At first he seems uninteresting and one-dimensional, but as you keep playing, you'll find yourself becoming more dedicated to him. He goes to such lengths to prove that he's fighting for a noble cause, after all. How could you not like a guy like that?

...Okay, okay, personality be damned, the main reason to like this guy is because he looks cool mashing other people into dog food.

Much like the two versions to "Kill Bill", Octavianus' and Agrippa's adventures play as two deceptively separate epics, when in fact, they are two halves of an intimately linked coin. I won't go into the details, but your stealth levels playing as Octavianus and your action levels playing as Agrippa are both very crucial to unraveling a very complex mystery. I've read the other reviews here, but I have to say that the folks who can't find the value playing as Octavianus just because his stories don't feature gore seem to be missing something very important. I found the stealth levels to be nice supplements to all of the violence that I was bombarded with the rest of the time. Once you've fought your way through countless ogres wielding war axes, it's kind of nice to be able to play a level where your only objective is to blend in with your surroundings enough to deflect the suspicions of characters who will try to thwart you from your goal of gathering information.

What about the other aspects of the game, though? Well, first of all, I can say that I was also immensely impressed with the length of the game. It took me over 30 hours to finish, which is rare for an action/adventure. Usually it takes me somewhere between 9-10 hours, and this is always disappointing for me. But the game designers weren't playing around with this one, and wanted to make sure that dedicated gamers would have a good challenge to work with. Without a doubt, the story could have been abridged, but I'm thankful that they didn't go the easy route by cutting it down. Instead, it is a very thorough investigation into Caesar's death and how it affects the lives of the Roman citizenry.

The sound and graphics are standard, nothing too spectacular there. But you won't care. Trust me.

All in all, I can't recommend this game enough. It's fantastic. If you're reading these reviews in depth at all, you're probably seriously considering it anyway. Go with your gut instinct and just buy it already! You're going to love it.

gotta play this game!-Instant Classic

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: February 15, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Truly one of the best games that I have played in a while. I loved the gameplay and the way that you can play two different characters at the same time (the game will automatically switch between the 2 characters). The graphics are awesome and very deep. This game is both hack and slash and stealth. (Think Splinter Cell mixed with Ninja Gaiden). One of the best games of '05.

Best Game of 2005

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: March 07, 2005
Author: Amazon User

What can I say about this game that other people haven't. The gladiator fights are hack n' slash heaven, the stealth portion of the game is inventive and challenging, even the between the scenes movies are fun to watch and unbelievably realistic. It was like I was watching the movie Gladiator and controlling Russel Crowe's character. The absolute best part is fightin with an opponent's arm or head - how awesome is that! Then, you can show the body part to the audience, watch them cheer, and wait for them to throw you a new weapon. There are so many cool weapons to fight with - you will not get bored playing this game. I would say that since I bought it two weeks ago, I've played an average of 4 hours a day. I cann'ot drag myself from the game, nor would I want to. You won't be sorry you bought this game.

Out From the "Shadow"

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: May 23, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Few games have managed to capture the brutal grandeur that is the Roman coliseum and its most famous athletes, known as gladiators. Some have tried, with varying degrees of success. Lucas Arts' "Gladius" opted for turn-based roleplaying and strategy in a mostly fantasy setting, while the action-packed but flawed "Gladiator: Sword of Vengeance" took things to a level reminiscent of old arcade beatdowns like "Final Fight." Other games featuring this setting are hardly worth mentioning, but at last it took some of the people behind "Onimusha" to get the damn thing right with "Shadow of Rome."

Owing as much to Ridley Scott's year 2000 epic as pretty much every gladiator game released since then, "Shadow of Rome" casts you, primarily, as the hulking centurion Agrippa, who becomes a gladiator in a desperate bid to rescue his father, who is accused of murdering Julius Caesar, and avenging his mother, executed by decree of the new emperor. His young friend Octavianus, also a player character, is there to help when it's needed, but his skills lean considerably more toward stealth and cunning than clobbering any enemy that stands in his way. The look and feel of the game is Ridley's, but filtered through an Asian lens. It's both highly stylized and acutely familiar, and the plotline and characters driving it forward do their job surprisingly well, even if they lack historical accuracy.

"Shadow of Rome" feels suitably epic, and the action, which is the game's focal point, is intense and highly gratifying. Agrippa's journey from elite Roman warrior to mighty gladiator pits him against hundreds upon hundreds of interesting and downright challenging human foes, and a few animals as well - thankfully, there are scant few fantasy trappings here. With a wide assortment of weapons and attacks, the ensuing spectacle is such that it would certainly please a bloodthirsty crowd of Roman spectators. Implements of destruction are many and varied, from bows and arrows to mighty serrated broad swords, and the effect of each put to use is extremely bloody. The level of carnage in "Shadow of Rome" is virtually second to none, and the gouts of spurting gore go a long way toward enveloping you in Agrippa's plight.

Appropriately, the game encourages you to play to the crowd after each kill - the bloodier the end to a fellow gladiator, the more they enjoy it, and the more they enjoy it the louder they cheer. The cheering might be its own reward in this case, thanks to the crowd's bawdy roars, which add further adrenaline to the already intense onscreen action, but gaining their support is in fact sometimes quite essential to your survival, as they often compensate you for your brutality by throwing you helpful items such as fresh weapons or food to help you replenish your health. The need for the latter is obvious, as the game packs plenty of challenge, but due to weapon degradation and eventual destruction, the former is pretty much necessary as well - and that's not to mention the better weapons, which can only be attained through appeasing the masses.

"Shadow of Rome" manages to deftly evade the hack-and-slash formula of gameplay that starts out fun but soon sinks into tedium, thanks not only to the wide variety of weapons, but more importantly to the wide assortment of challenges arrayed before Agrippa. Every pitfight is not merely an excuse to kill everything that moves - sometimes there are more specific objectives, which can involve teams of gladiators or staged rescue missions. What's more, a handful of chariot races pop up to further mix and match, and they offer an enjoyable, challenging diversion midway through the experience. With gameplay this diverse, it's hard to grow bored.

Unfortunately, all this diversity is perhaps the game's biggest flaw, as between Agrippa's scenarios the game switches gears to focus on his friend Octavianus, who employs tactics of stealth to sneak around Rome and find answers to a vast conspiracy tied to the late Caesar's death. While far from bad, these frequent interludes certainly slam on the brakes, and feel like they belong to another game entirely. Action goes right out the window, as Octavianus goes down like a sack of stones if he gets caught and whacked by a centurion's gladius. The pacing of these particular missions is slow and very deliberate, but as far as stealth games go, they have been done infinitely better than this. The guards on patrol are amazingly dimwitted and apt to forget Octavianus five seconds after he's out of sight, and, all in all, it's an unnecessary distraction from the action game that works so bloody well. The Octavianus portions of "Shadow of Rome" ultimately feel like another game entirely - one that is not on par with the rest, which is of a much higher quality.

Although "Shadow of Rome" stumbles beneath the weight of its tacked on stealth mechanic, the gladiatorial action keeps it on its feet even at its lowest ebb. A suitably epic campaign will keep players busy for quite some time, and when that's done a host of unlockable goodies (such as arena battles) await to further ensure the game's shelf life. All in all, "Shadow of Rome" is the first game to truly deliver on the gladiator premise, and should not be missed.

Brutally Awesome!!!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: July 18, 2005
Author: Amazon User

It's about time, the gladiator fighting arena has been demonstrated to be brutally awesome on a video game. Yea, sure the game starts out a little slow, and somewhat irritating, but, it's all worth it once you become a gladiator and get to chop of arms, legs, and heads and not to mention cutting bodies completely in half and smashing heads and pleasing the crowds. The more brutal and agressive, the more the crowd will love you and Chant your name and throw you tons of different amputating and smashing weapons to do even more damage. It's just like the bloody arena we've all heard it was. I can go on and on.
The story line is really good as well and gets you into the game more. I don't really care about it anymore though, I just love playing the arena over and over.........

Yes, another G4ttv review.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 02, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Yes, As well as the other reviewer, I am a watcher of Adam Sessler, and Morgan Web. The game Shadow of Rome does look promising, but please dont forget, this is a preview, not a review. You virtually obtain 2 characters, one of which is a stealth blonde boy character who prefers the quieter side of killing. While your counter part is a gladiator like worrior who is you lack and slash, brute force killer. The game includes chariot races while at the same time killing your enemies, as well as puzzles. I say try this one out, it looks to be a very interesting and fun adventure.

g4techtv freak

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 4
Date: September 22, 2004
Author: Amazon User

ok i saw this game on g4tech tv it is awesome for those of you who dont know what that is. its a channel on cable that is devoted to video games. anyways this game looks like good gameplay as well as good fighting. also tons of gore which is always a plus

A MASTERPIECE

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: February 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Hey, Just like to brief you Roman Empire fanatics about Shadow of Rome. The game play is really smooth and clear. The graphics are sweet and very textured. Dudes you can see the strands of hair in the wolves. Played it for 5 hours straight and not one glitch.
The characters are a little bit buff up "exaggerated"; however, still present great texture and movement throughout the screen.
I thought the double character feature would confuse the story line, but on the contrary it's very clear with in depth details. It's a cool feature to have. One second your brutally cutting limbs off...5 minutes later your in stealth mode...next thing you know, your in a chariot race. The diverse game play gives you aspects of many genres of videogames. (GTA, Resident Evil, Metal Gear).
It's true Rome wasn't built in a day, and if you enjoy playing a game that will last you a long time, you'll also see that Shadow of Rome can't be won in a day. You are getting your $$ worth with this game.
Folks, be prepared to join S.R.A. (Shadow of Rome Anonymous) because this game is addictive.

Great Game,
Highly Recommended...
Great Job Capcom!!!

One of the best games of the year so far

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: March 04, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I have been hearing a lot about this game for a long time and as soon as it released I picked up one. The fights are crazy, the graphics are good and the game is addictively fun. Buy it. Buy it now. The only thing lacking is a 2 player mode where you can hack each other to death or join forces and hack the other gladiators. Apart from that the game is AWESOME.

Great Game! Buy It NOW

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 03, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game is very fun in this game you dont just fight the whole time you get to go through a rome and fight enemies get weapons and armor you do a story mode, dont worry this game has plenty of action and gore. The only thing that could of made it better is to be able to have two or more players (this game is only 1 player) but besides that it is very fun i recommend this game i dont think you will be dissapointed.
1-5 scale:
Graphics - 5
Sound - 5
Music - 4
Fun - 5
Value - 5
Just buy it already...

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