Shadow Complex (2009)

Developer: Epic Games, ChAIR Entertainment Group
Publisher: Epic Games, Microsoft Game Studios
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PC (Microsoft Windows), Xbox 360, Xbox One
Genres: Shooter, Platform, Puzzle, Adventure
Rating: 4.2 of 5, 55 player ratings
Completionist: about 16 hours
Where to get it: Xbox

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A Metroid-inspired 2.5D action platformer blending exploration, combat, and puzzle-solving in a tense sci-fi setting.

metroidvaniasci-fiaction-packedside-scrollingexplorationfast-pacedmodern classic

About

Shadow Complex is a side-scrolling action-adventure game presented in a 2.5D style, where the world is rendered in three dimensions but movement stays on a two-dimensional plane. Drawing heavily on the Metroidvania tradition, players explore a large, interconnected underground complex, fighting enemies and gradually gaining new weapons and abilities that open up previously unreachable areas. An experience system lets the character grow stronger over time, rewarding exploration and combat with upgrades that carry forward into new playthroughs.

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This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.