Shadow Tactics: Aiko`s Choice in the test: if it may be of the good more

Original text too short.

Anyone who is on real-time tactics à la Commandos is not over at Mimi mi Games: Five years ago, the Munich's genre revived the genre, her Japan adventure Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun was overflowing with prizes and came to the buyers Best. After that, Mimi mi had the outstanding desperadoes 3 followed, which has even more truncated (here's our extensive test). Since then, the studio is busy with the next game, which officially bears the working title sweet potato. But something is different this time: The developers recognized early that they had a little air between their two major projects. So one decided to tackle a smaller game before the mysterious sweet potato is in full production. Fast was Shadow Tactics: AIK's Choice born, an independently executable extension, which offers less playing time, but otherwise the same level should be achieved as in the main game.

In the test, AIK's choice meets all expectations: a lookup has not tasted for a long time.

Strong return to the old Japan

Although AIK's Choice is independently running, we recommend that first finish the main game or at least play it in detail. The extension sets in the middle of the central story and crumbles a nice adhesion in between. That is, at the beginning all figures are already fully established and will no longer be explained. Already alone, therefore, AIK's Choice is not necessarily the best choice for newcomers. Transshipment artist AIK is the focus of history. Source: PC Games Also the more remarkable, however, we find how Mimi mi seems easy to build on old strengths: from the atmosphere over the figures to the voice output, just everything is so designed as if there were no two weeks since Blades of the Shogun. So if you liked the last story of the five assassins, you will have your bright pleasure again. The bitter-sweet degree also forms a clever reconciliation to the main game, which never feels like a foreign body, but like a successful addition.

More of the same? Certainly!

That too is a pleasant change: the developers talk clearly. As a result, since the announcement, we knew that AIK's Choice will not offer new features, everything stays in the gameplay as it had: You are back with your five-member specialist team, enemy guards loudly brings around the corner and uses special skills such as traps, throw stars, blinding powder and much more. New elements introduced with Desperado 3 (e.g., the cool summaries at mission end) are awarded here. Whether control, graphic or I, this is 1: 1 the same shadow tactics we have played in 2016.

In addition to the story, only the missions are fresh — but they are doing again so outrageous fun that we did not miss additional features. AIK's Choice consists of three major main missions and three small intermediate levels, in which the story is mainly driven. While the intermediate games only deal for a few minutes, the three main missions are exactly so beautiful and salvaged as they are used by Shadow Tactics. Also, the variety is right: On the first map, you have to lock your team through a pretty city screen, where it is teeming with guards. Particularly agile heroes, who can move across roofs and walls, play their strengths here. On the second card, the first wallpaper change awaits us, the majority of the card is covered with water. We let our troupe swim to several islands, where you destroy ammunition crates and make sure you have to pay attention to no suspicious footprints in the sand. The three main missions are so clever designed as in the main game. Source: PC Games The third map then sends us into a pleasantly extensive temple, framed in a magnificent natural scenery. There we have to fulfill several mission targets, for example, a costume for AIK steal, mix a poison mixture or produce a blast trap, and we always can choose from two options. Especially here Shadow Tactics plays again one of his great strengths: there are several solutions for most situations. Some players will prefer a guard against a distance at the right moment, others direct themselves with a stone's throw or send the disguised AIK, so they involve the opponent in a conversation. There are fountains and bushes, which greatly hide a few corpses, as well as nasty ambient traps that open several guards at once. You can curl up some enemies of their posts, others have to catch up for the Bear Samurai Eugen. So you judged pieces for piece over the extensive card, clears an area after the next empty and works to your goals — that's exactly as motivating and satisfactory as five years ago.

Time and price

AIK's Choice is basically fair, not too heavy and not too easy. But: Who has already played Shadow Tactics and Desperado 3 up and down, should crack the three new missions relatively easily. In any case, we never felt so tricky the expansion as the last mission of the main game. Most players are likely to need good 6 hours on the normal degree of difficulty, professionals are certainly faster, beginners will need longer. With three selectable levels of difficulty, optional achievements and several solutions, the three levels offer at least a certain rate of play.

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AIK's Choice plays exactly as the five-year-old main game. [Source: PC Games]

Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun (Buy Now €19,99 / €33.99) AIK's Choice offers just as the main game only English and Japanese language edition, German speakers do not exist. You get the standalone extension for 20 euros at Steam, Gog and the Epic Games Store. The game has been available for PC since 6 December, console conversions are not planned this time.

My opinion

From field contactor editor felix.schuetz@computec.de

Small but extremely Oh: AIK's Choice serves first-class real-time tactics

No question, if you set up the pure playing time per euro, AIK's Choice stands a bit Micky. The main game brought after all for the double price after all loosely the triple scope! But that's also my only true criticism: I would have wanted a fourth main mission, still a great use with 1-2 hours playing time. The rest is exactly as class as it is used by Mimi mi Games now: the staging is atmospheric, the level design invites you to create creative puzzles, the design of the maps is varied. That the heroes do not master new tricks, I do not care about: AIK's Choice may be short, but shows the same care at every corner, which has already excelled the main game. If your Shadow Tactics already knows and look for a lookup, the extension is a mandatory purchase: Better real-time tactics will barely find this year.

Did you miss our test about Shadow Tactics? Here's our test video!

From Felix Schultz editor 09.12.2021 at 19:13