Having been featured in three different platforms unsuccessfully, the supernatural tale of the Shadow Man continues with Shadow Man: 2econd Coming for the Playstation 2.  Yet the question gamers should be asking is “Does this series truly deserves a second chance?”

Once again gamers assume the role of Mike Leroi, a man who becomes the possessor of the Mask of Shadows--a burden that involves traveling between the monstrous world of the undead and the living in order to living world from demonic evil. However, he is more or less working under the influence of a New Orleans voodoo priestess named Mama Nettie who placed the Mask on him in the first place. Together, along with a dwarf named Jaunty, the battle against the Grigori--a group of demons disguised as humans --and their plans to resurrect their leader, Asmodeus.

The most interesting aspect of the game is the fact that during the day gamers play as Mike, however when nightfall comes Mike is automatically transformed to his Shadow Man persona. Both Mike and the Shadow Man are polar opposites of each another in more ways than just physical appearance. For one thing, Mike is stronger than his undead alter ego and can push crates that Shadow Man can’t and cause the most damage during battle with his powerful firearms. However, Shadow Man has the distinct advantage of using voodoo weapons and spells that need no ammo. Shadow Man can also breath underwater (a skill that comes in handy in many places throughout the game) and takes no damage from long falls.

Controlling Mike/Shadow Man is an easy task and they start the game unarmed but powerful enough to punch an enemy into a gory mess.  When your character does encounter weapons, gamers choose what hand will be wielding the weapon.  You can mix and match different weapons on the fly; for example, you can hold an axe in your right hand and a piston in the left hand. These interesting combinations make for an unusual style of fighting that gets complicated.

Each weapon Mike encounters also slightly morphs when he becomes the Shadow Man (most notably the sniper mode) and the more powerful voodoo weapons work better in his undead form than his living counterpart.  You also encounter a pocket watch later in the game that allows gamers to use time as an advantage (you might need Mike to push crates or Shadow Man to stay in the water for a long period of time).

Because the Shadow Man is a “Walker Between Worlds,” he moves from the world of the living and the undead world known as Gehenna.  This undead world is made up of wide, dimly lit caverns and dark passages that lead to various similar looking vaults.  Meanwhile, in the world of the living, the story unfolds across such exotic locales from New Orleans to Russia to Ireland.  The good thing about this is that the game allows for free exploration of any area.

The game does suffer from a couple of frame rate hiccups that either slow the game as if everyone is moving in slow motion to the occasional freeze (the kind where gamers have to restart your PS2).  This is quite unfortunate since it mainly happens in the heat of an important battle.

Throughout the game you face several foot soldiers but they are so easy to dispatch that the action becomes a repetitive cycle of beat to a pulp or blast away to nothing. This is not to say that fighting is a breeze, though, since the enemy AI is quite responsive to your actions.  The level bosses are also far from being easy to defeat.

Although there are many spots where the game’s graphics look spectacular, there are several more areas where the flaws cannot go unnoticed.  One example might be that the exterior surroundings in upper Ireland are flourishing with detail yet the ruins inside are made up of plain textures giving the ruins stage the same boring look.  Characters also take on a PSOne quality in terms of shape after cut scenes--which look fantastic--and unfortunately so do many of the human enemies (their heads look rather blocky).

Yet the sound is surprisingly higher in detail than the visuals themselves.  The surroundings in various level areas have their own distinct sound.  The murky swamps of Louisiana are alive with the sounds of distant frog croaks; loud chirping crickets and flocks of birds that circle overhead with their loud flapping wings and croaky caws.  The soundtrack, although mellow seeping with sleepy New Orleans jazz influence, is both creepy and perfect. The voice acting is also decent and makes up for the lack of good sound effects.

Although much better than its predecessor, the game’s weaknesses hold it back considerably from being a pretty good game.  There are a number of interesting stages worth checking out; nevertheless this isn’t enough to warrant a purchase . . . it does make for an interesting rental though. 

Gameplay: 6.8
Both Mike and his Shadow Man alter ego are easy to move around with the exception of switching weapons--a complicated mess that revolves around the R1, L1 and triangle buttons.  You can choose what weapon goes in what hand but using them at the same time makes combat complicated.

Your character can also cling to ledges and use rope to get across a body of water or a deep chasm, but occasionally the camera angles to a position that gamers will have no idea if they made it to safety or not. 

Graphics: 7.5

There are areas in the game that walk to fine line of spectacular to rather upsettingly plain . . . and this just doesn’t apply to environments but also characters themselves.  Mike, as the Shadow Man, is a prime example of great character graphics (his semi-skeletal frame and glowing Mask are well detailed down to the clinging sinew on his shoulders.) Yet many of the humanoid enemies lack the same attention to detail as the main character himself, in fact, many of them take on a blocky appearance.

Yet the visuals excel in the special effects department, especially when it comes to voodoo spells or voodoo weapons.  The visual highlight of the game is most definitely the transformation of Mike to the Shadow Man . . . it never fails to impress even when you can do it on cue.

Sound: 8.9
Peppered throughout the game are a running soundtrack that truly expresses the creepiness of the supernatural theme.  The soundtrack actually does make up for the sound effects that are minimal (with the exception of grunts from dying enemies or an explosion or two). Still, what really shines in this game is the superb ambient sound.  Depending on where you are, the level of audio detail is incredible.

The voice acting is also good; in particular the voice acting performed for Mike himself. Sensitive gamers beware, though, the profanity in the dialogue is high and there are a number of instances where the four-letter word is dispensed more quickly than bullets.

Difficulty: 7.8
Shadow Man’s difficulty level is variable, which is to say that some levels provide more of a challenge than others do.  However, the difficulty lies more in the hands of the enemy boss AI than in skill or combat experience.  Naturally each boss has his or her own weaknesses, but gamers will be yanking their hair out of their roots trying to figure out what that weakness is.

The puzzles in the game are few and usually revolve around gathering items such as bird skulls or flipping switches that open other areas.  It is also easy to get lost in the caverns of the undead world and constant backtracking becomes an annoyance.

Concept: 8.5
The game’s story still remains quite interesting since the debut of the first Shadow Man game and the idea of playing a character that transforms into an undead being is indeed very appealing. And although the mechanics of manipulating two different weapons at the same time haven’t been completely worked out, the idea is still good.

There are six levels in total, with enough freedom to roam around and explore, and the game does push the Walker Between Worlds aspect of the game.  This pushes gamers into Gehenna--the world of the undead--where the enemy is more grotesque and plentiful.

Overall: 7.1
Sadly, Shadow Man: 2coming is a good concept that had fallen victim to its several flaws in graphics and its frame rate glitches.  Those consumed with the desire to play a game with a great supernatural theme will be greatly disappointed but that is not to say that the game should be avoided completely.