In a move sure to please nostalgic shooter fans and racists alike, Steam has now made cult “classic” FPS Shadow Warrior free to play. The other game from 3D Realms (you know, the Duke Nukem guys), Shadow Warrior was the gripping story of one man’s quest to become the world’s most stereotypical Asian character. Oh and he shoots monsters and stuff. Yes the battle between Lo Wang (Get it? GET IT? GET IT!!!???) and the nefarious Zilla Enterprises (DO YOU GET IT!? ANSWER ME DAMMIT!) wasn’t exactly nuanced satire, and while the developers assured gamers it was all in good fun, the game still meet with some controversy when it released in 1997, whereas today it would probably be met with the burning of effigies and a brick through George Broussard’s window.
According to Rock, Paper Shotgun the price cut comes as a result of a Facebook giveaway snafu that resulted in a lot of stolen keys and an equal number of unhappy customers. Devolver Digital, who currently owns the Shadow Warrior rights, decided to do right by their fans and just cut out the middleman entirely. A classy move, though that altruism probably has something to do with wanting to avoid pissing off potential customers for, you guessed it, their upcoming Shadow Warrior reboot! There is some hope for the new version however, as it’s been placed in the hands of the talented folks at Flying Wild Hog. Plus, in an interview with Game Informer Devolver Digital’s Nigel Lowrie said, “We’re keeping the humor and sharp wit. But we’ve removed the more negative things that have no place in our game,” which is about as close to “it’ll be less racist” as you’re gonna get.
Follow me on Twitter
