Shadowrun Returns: Something to be excited about
Well hey there!
So I hear you like to play Cyberpunk, urban-fantasy RPGs with full frontal customization! Well then, have I got the game for you!
Now just about 25 years ago, a tabletop RPG called shadowrun was created, and expanded to many years of joy and numerous award winning variations, including 4 video games made for both consoles and pcs. The latest game was brought to you by FASA Interactive and was released as an FPS for the 360 and Windows Vista in May of 2007. Unfortunately, the game did not stick too well with reviews averaging at about 6/10 by various critics. 
The creator of the table top phenomena, Jordan Weisman, wasn’t impressed with the 2007 flop, and decided he wanted to start his very own Shadowrun adventure. Due to the success of a kickstarter campaign he set up in March 2012, the project was opened to pledges with a goal of $400,000. Not only was this objective met within 28 hours, it exceeded his expectations by 5 times that, totaling in $1,895,772.
The project was handed to a small but extremely talented group of people at an indie games company known as Harebrained Schemes. 
Earlier on, I mentioned customization, so now let’s talk about that. In October, the lovelies at Penny Arcade posted a more in depth article on how everything is going to work and how Mr. Weisman is dealing with the sudden blow up of support the game is receiving, which you can check out here.
Looks like you can build whatever you want. WHATEVER you want. Not only can you fully customize your character, you can make your own buildings, streets, caves, landmarks, anything you could ever dream, you can now create. Opening a game with so much freedom definitely adds to re play value with games being $60.00+ now a days, that’s just such an amazing feature to have. Early chatter from the fans has all been pretty positive so far, and with learning about how this game is being handled, it’s easy to see why. Unfortunately, there is no official release date. It is however rumored to come out January 2013.
Looking at screenshots and concept art from the Harebrained blog just gives you a feel for how wide the scale is for customization, which for me is so ridiculously appealing that though this isn’t a game I would normally pick up, I’m wondering where I can pre-order like now. Not only that, but it looks simple to do. The developers at Harebrained are taking what they do everyday to bring you this game and giving you the power to do it as well, in the easiest way possible. That cannot be an easy task, so for that, thanks guys ;-). I’m definitely a fan of the art style. The overall design has the gritty futuristic neo-noir imagery that I personally just cant get enough of. Oh! and just so you all know, this bad boy is being released for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linus, iPad and Android tablets. You have plenty of options to choose from!
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