Shade: Wrath of Angels

3rd-person action/adventure has experienced a patchy history on the PC platform. The simplistic platform-jumping dynamics commonly associated with the genre seem tailor-made for a console’s joypad rather than a keyboard.

Nonetheless, Czech developer Black Element Software forges ahead to bring us Shade: Wrath of Angels, a dark, brooding title reminiscent of Shadowman on the N64.

     

Shade exchanges the former’s voodoo sensibilities for a tale of religion and supernatural occurrence in the mountains of Europe.

After a miracle is reported by the local priest, the Vatican dispatches the player to investigate. Apparently, not all miracles are the work of God; shortly afterwards, the priest is found brutally murdered, his neck decorated with teeth-marks.

The work of demons? Divine fury perhaps? Regardless, the stage is set for a somber quest of discovery and spiritual conflict, each step bringing the player closer to a sinister evil older than mankind itself.

Like Shadowman, the player visits several dimensions including a troubled present, a medieval past and the menacing world of Shadows. Across the game’s 50 levels lie a besieged village, cursed mines and a templar stronghold.

The muted visual direction: bleak cobblestones, flickering candles and corrugated iron, appropriately reflects the grim narrative. Shade uses an original, 3D engine, employing all manner of graphical wizardry: real-time shadows, transform & lighting, vertex shaders and point/directional/ambient lighting to give a rich illustration of this somber world.

     

Judging by the concept art, the player will have to contend with all manner of unholy hellspawn and walking dead in his search for the truth. Luckily, an arsenal of weaponry: pistols, shotguns and assorted firearms, provide an explosive deliverance from evil. 

It’s fairly early in development to make judgments but Shade: Wrath of Angels does show promise, particularly for platform-starved PC gamers. With action/adventure constituting a sizeable chunk of the console market, Shade would have struggled to compete in that arena. However, its unconventional presence on the PC might just give it the attention it deserves.

 

- Justin Liew

(September 2, 2002)