Shadow Labyrinth Review

Pac-Man, or as he was originally called in Japan, Puck Man, is a beloved icon of the video game industry. The majority of the games involving the pellet-eating mascot have been the traditional Pac-Man gameplay, but there are some others that are a little out of that comfort zone. There has been a visual novel-style game, as well as some 3D platformers, and the newest addition to the list is a 2D action-adventure Metroidvania, set in a dark, surreal world.

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The world of Shadow Labyrinth is dark and grim.

You play as the Swordsman, who awakes on a mysterious planet amidst relics of wars past. You are guided by the enigmatic Puck, who chose you to help for some unknown reason. The world of Shadow Labyrinth is actually connected to the Secret Level episode of Pac-Man, which serves as a prologue to this game. It’s definitely a bit intriguing, since it’s taking one of gaming’s biggest icons and creating an actual story about him. Of course, like a number of games in recent times, you can find memories that give you additional lore, which is always a weird thing to do. There’s no telling how many of these a player will obtain, since they are completely optional.

A War Torn World

In addition to the game’s dark theme, the actual design of the world and its various locales are also of the same nature. This is a war-torn planet you’re exploring, so it’s only natural that things are dreary. You’re not really getting much in the way of vibrant areas to look at here, especially given the setting, but it would have been a little nicer to get maybe one or two sections with more colors available. The game does run very well, though, at least on the PlayStation 5, with no problems whatsoever regarding the framerate.

One of the biggest problems with this game is the sound design. It’s definitely nostalgic hearing some of the familiar sound effects from Pac-Man, but that’s about as far as good things go with the title. The music is mostly atmospheric and low, so sometimes it just doesn’t feel like any sound if there at all. When you do hear music, like during battles, none of it is really memorable, so you’re not going to be humming it while not playing it.

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As a Metroidvania, exploration is one of the key elements and Shadow Labyrinth does a good job there.

Shadow Labyrinth is a Metroidvania, which comes with certain elements attached to it. You explore a variety of locations, with a map recording your progress and some of these map areas cannot be fully uncovered, since you might not have a specific ability yet. This makes it so you can come back with that maneuver to do everything, but this is completely optional. However, it might be a good idea to come back to grab any items left on the map, since you might get power-ups that increase your health or allow you to upgrade your attack, for example. The gameplay loop is fairly simple in Shadow Labyrinth, with a few things here and there to help break it up.

An Unfamiliar Yellow Dot

Of course, while the exploration is fairly simple, you will have some breaks with the D-Line stuff. Think of these as magnetic rails, where you turn into a Mini-Puck to travel along them. There are quite a number of these you’ll encounter, and it’s a different method of exploring, but one big problem exists with these D-Lines. Getting your wanted jump off of them is a big problem, since it can be a bit finicky. There are ways to get this to work better, but it’s not the most intuitive. You will also find two types of save points, ones that allow you to do everything at them, and checkpoints that just act as quick respawn points.

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Managing your ESP gauge is key to your survival.

As you’re going around the areas, you will be fighting a lot of enemies, which means there is a good deal of combat. Unfortunately, the combat is a little bit on the dull side. Your character only has a three-hit combo, and it doesn’t really evolve beyond that. You will discover extra attacks that can be used, but these moves will usually use the ESP gauge. Think of the ESP gauge as a stamina meter that is used for some basic maneuvers, as well as these extra attacks. For example, the basic dodge uses ESP, so you cannot spam it infinitely. If the ESP gauge is drained completely, then you’ll have to wait until it fully replenishes before using it again.

So, while there are ways to mix up the combat a bit, you’re kind of restricted by the ESP gauge. This can make some of the more hectic battles a little harder, since you have to manage that meter. Additionally, you start the game with one healing potion, but you need to find more as collectibles in the wild. This can make things a lot harder, too, when combined with managing the ESP gauge. The only way to really recharge these healing balls is via the larger save points mentioned above, which can be few and far in between one another.

Pac-Man in Disguise

Not far into the game, you do get your big, last resort skill, called GAIA. This is basically a giant robot that uses its own separate meter. While using GAIA, you are almost invincible in terms of taking health damage, but you still take damage to GAIA’s meter. Of course, the robot has another mechanic tied to it, called Devour. Essentially, whenever you stun or defeat an enemy, you can Devour them, which will grant you some materials. It’s definitely a neat concept, but there are two big problems with it. First, this is the only way to get materials, and second, performing this maneuver will consume some of your ESP gauge.

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GAIA is basically a last resort type of move, since you’re invincible while using it.

That means if you’re in the middle of a big battle with many enemies, you’re going to forgo using Devour in favor of saving your ESP for more important abilities, like dodging or potentially using a combat skill. One last thing about Devour is that you’re not invincible while performing it, so if you are next to an enemy that is still alive, they can damage you while you’re using it. Of course, you’ll have to use Devour to actually charge up GAIA, so if you are using the big robot often enough, then you have no choice but to keep spamming Devour.

One of the bigger highlights for Shadow Labyrinth eventually comes in the form of the Mazes, which are extremely fun and break up the monotony of the base game. These will unlock later in the game, despite finding some earlier, but they are a play on the traditional, old-fashioned Pac-Man game. While there are some little bits here and there of eating pellets, the Mazes are split up into different stages. Your goal usually is to move around, eat pellets, and then get the power-up to make the Ghosts vulnerable. This will move onto the next stage of the Maze, with more mechanics added to it, where you’ll eventually encounter a boss. Complete the Maze to earn some rewards, which can make these replayable if you don’t get everything on the first try.

Shadow Labyrinth is kind of meaty, as there is a good bit of game here to tuck into. If you rush the main story, then you’re probably looking at about 30-35 hours, but you can extend that time by trying to go after the collectibles to achieve 100% completion. Doing that will require a good bit of backtracking, but there are markers to tell you when you’ve fully completed a portion of the map. If you plan on getting all of the trophies/achievements, then you’ll essentially have to acquire all of those collectibles.

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Mazes are different takes on the familiar Pac-Man gameplay, and actually very fun.

Overall, Shadow Labyrinth is a solid game that falls short in some areas, due to some of the design choices. Exploring the world is fun, especially once you unlock some of the navigational abilities. However, the combat can feel a little stale, mostly due to not having much improvements over the course of the game. This is also affected by the ESP Gauge being severely limiting, as a lot of things can drain it, especially the Devour skill that pretty much becomes mandatory. Thankfully, this isn’t a full-priced release, but it might be a little tough to recommend at the $30 price point, so maybe wait for a sale.