Shadow of Loot Box
Title: Shadow of Loot Box
Developer: Stately Snail
Publisher: Ratalaika Games S.L.
Website: http://statelysnail.com/shadowoflootbox
Genre: Action / Adventure / First Person Shooter
Platform: Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PC, switch
Audience: All
Release Date: November 2nd 2018
Price: £6.49 – Rapid Reviews UK was very kindly provided with a review code for this title.
What the Developers say
If you always thought that there were too few loot boxes in other games, this game is for you!
Shadow of Loot Box is an attempt to present what video games can become in the near future.
Each level of this shooter is a reference to a popular trend in the modern game development industry.
Will you be able to overcome the thorny path full of microtransactions, loot boxes and bugs, resisting the temptation to use the in-game store?
Introduction
Shadow of The Loot Box is a shooter that has you fighting against monster loot boxes across several levels as you unlock more weapons and skills. The concept of the game is a satire on modern day gaming trends as it attempts to mock early access, loot boxes and microtransactions. A quick disclaimer about this game, it took me around 90 minutes to complete it so forgive me if there isn’t loads to say.
The game visuals are similar to Minecraft but not as polished and with deliberate level glitches put in to joke at early access games it is fair to say this game is not a visual masterpiece. The only variation on offer from your enemies is the colour of the loot box which very quickly gets boring.
Sound wise the game offers very little, weapons all have a similar dull pop sound to them including the rocket launcher and the constant noise of your footsteps is the dominant sound throughout the game. There is no real soundtrack to speak of with most levels having a tune played on repeat; luckily you get through most levels pretty quickly.
Gameplay and Replayability
This is not a difficult game and you will find yourself shooting at enemies while running backwards over and over to get through most levels. The main concept is to collect keys to open gates that take you to the next area.
To get these keys you will need to complete simple tasks such as fetching letters from settlers or visiting all the towers in one level. You may find yourself fighting a boss loot box at the end of a few levels but even this does not offer much challenge.
The gameplay is often interrupted by deliberate jokes from the developers who are jumping on heated topics such as loot boxes, microtransactions and DLC content. An example is one level which is just the start and end point with a note saying something along the lines of level available with DLC, and this continues throughout the game.
Overall the game offers around 90 minutes of gameplay which most players will walk straight through without any issues. The only replayability this game has to offer is starting the game again for any of the trophies you missed as there is no level select once completed. With a guide you can get yourself a Platinum in one playthrough and not have to come back to the game.
Conclusion
The best thing about this game is how easy and quick you can achieve a Platinum trophy. This game has been built around poking fun at the state of some of the games industry methods of making money and it does that but unfortunately between the jokes there isn’t much else here.
Rapid Reviews UK Rating
You can purchase Shadow of Loot Box at the following link, http://www.ratalaikagames.com/games/shadowoflootbox.php
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