I really enjoy Philip K. ♥♥♥♥ novels. Not because of his beautiful prose, but because they are a breeze to read even though they take place in settings that the reader is alien to. Take Ubik for example, even on the first page there are colloquialisms like teep, precogs, psis, inertials and Ubiks. PKD obviously doesn't expect you to understand all of them, but puts you in a situation where you can extrapolate the meanings and roles of various actors in that universe without needing an information dump that so many writers and especially RPG games are guilty of. In that sense Shadowrun: Dragonfall is narratively very close to a PKD novel that gives you just enough information to extrapolate from and trusts you to interpret events and actors based on your own experience with the story and not through the creator's intended lens.

This works really well in conjunction with your role in the universe. Assuming the role of a shadowrunner, a wet works operative, your character is just a pawn on the chessboard of corporations, small and large political entities, dragons and deities. All actors in the game make moves towards their intrinsic goals, simulating a real life intricacy of clashing ideals, and economic realities rather than the usual (and tired) RPG convention of most powerful actors also being forces that reinforce the status quo. This creates a dynamism in the game’s world, making every manner of things move in Berlin. And even though you’re just a pawn, the game is already in play and you can shape it just by being on the board.

This is where Dragonfall really shines, the setting. Cyberpunk Berlin, controlled by an anarchist organisation called the Flux State does wonders in putting the punk back in cyberpunk. I really loved Cyberpunk 2077, but at the same time, I lamented how the diminished sense of community that is present in Night City makes it a much more depressing experience than it needs to be. We might be really heading towards that hopeless, individualistic future that Cyberpunk predicts but I like the antithetic utopianism of Dragonfall's Berlin as something fresh. Having a hub world Kreuzbasar, filled with outcasts and non-caricaturized anarchists that of course ♥♥♥♥ the state but are also self-sacrificing people that care about the people around them is a great change of pace, and shows a surprisingly better understanding of anarchist politics than I usually observe in gaming space. I also loved that being a leader in this space is not derived from forceful hegemony over other many miniscule power struggles, but being a person that people look up to due to your actions and selflessness.

Dealing with the newest corporate ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ on missions then coming back to Kreuzbasar to help or just chat with its
various inhabitants creates great pacing within the game, just like reading the Shadowland forums with wild theories about the missions you participated in. It makes the world feel more lived in. I really liked the fact that I didn't need to know each of Kreuzbasar's inhabitants' backstories. There are tens of regular people that we interact with daily but we don't need to know the details of their lives. Just because they exist, this existence creates a solid anchor that ties us to our immediate surroundings, to our community and to reality. In the streets of Kreuzbasar, there is an exotic dancer on the streets that you drop five nuyens every once in a while. You don't need to know her back story and you don't need to get in a romantic relationship with her. The fact that she exists and can dance on the streets is an anchor that tells you everything is alright. In the same manner, if something were to happen to her, you would lose that anchor and know that there is something wrong with your neighbourhood.

It's not only your neighbourhood, every kiez in Berlin got its share from being the battleground of various corporations and political entities. Racist gang with questionable funding moves into the kiez next to you, another kiez are filled with lumpens that think stealing from an anarchist commune makes them Robin Hoods, in one kiez a gang ruled by a Rote Armee Fraktion sympathiser troll is in conflict with ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ mages. This weaves an intricate, beautiful network of Berlin districts where every location is filled to the brim with intrigue and conflict, not arising because the developers wanted some chaos in the setting, but because the actors in these kiezes have legitimate political and economic concerns that require a solution by force.

Intervention by you is what usually becomes this "solution by force". I would love to see how other districts play things out between each other, but being a positive influence in how Berlin and Flux State is run is equally satisfying (of course you can be an ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ and help neo-nazis, corporations and deranged mages but then you're wrong and we don't need to discuss this any further). What's also equally satisfying is being a drugged-up dwarf that wields a shotgun that's her size, controlling two other drones and blasting every enemy that spawns in just one turn. But of course, this is in late-game. Builds in Shadowrun can be divided into two, simple builds that focus on gunplay that can be very efficient at the start of the game but fall off near the end game, and complex builds that focus on drones or magic that suffer in early game but turn into terminator in late game. My only gripe here is the one that has been present in RPGs for a long time, you need charisma for more dialogue options and etiquettes, so if you're not a magic user but want to experience every possible dialogue option, you're hampering yourself as the skill points have a set amount.

There is also the issue that this is a turn based tactical game. Meaning that you're prone to breaking PC peripherals when you miss three shots in a row with 98%, stay far away from this game. It wasn't an issue for me, as on normal difficulty, you're not severely punished for missing shots but I can understand some people can be very frustrated by it. Although the soundtrack is beautiful, gun sounds lack the necessary punch, reducing the enjoyment I got from Shadowrun’s combat.

All in all, Dragonfall is my favourite PKD novel. It even goes a step further than a standard PKD novel and ties inconceivably massive power struggles to a small, self-contained narrative. While playing it I kept thinking which one is the better "cyberpunk" game (not the better game overall) Cyberpunk 2077, or Shadowrun: Dragonfall and considering how much I loved Cyberpunk 2077, this is a very high praise for Dragonfall.

Puts punk back in cyberpunk/10

P.S. There are a few points that the Steam word limit didn’t allow me to add in this review, you check out the comments for them.

По сравнению с предыдущей частью, обрасла мясом, сторилайнами и кучей экшона с выборами прохождения. Местами этого слишком много, местами происходит бред в виде стелса, иногда игра тебе подбрасывает интересные ситуации, которые надо решать тактически, что порой чертовски бесит. Из-за перебора с экшном я забросил игру в бэклог, не любитель пошаговой боёвки, да и сюжет мельком читал, спойлерить не буду. Считал, что это худшая часть серии, но со временем мое отношение к ней изменилось в лучшую сторону. Хотя диалоги с военной тематикой, пафосом и наличие феминитивности отталкивают до сих пор, игре явно не хватает юмора.

Not going to write much a review about this game - only couple of things that mattered to me most.

I played elf conjurer/a bit of mage in late game - spoiler alert - that was pretty bad choice combat wise but pretty good choice dialogue/charisma wise.

I've only finished it because I've got it for free - it's not my vibe.

World is pretty limited - size of locations, things you are able to interact with.

Graphics are good, combat is x-com style (percentage to hit), music is ok but nothing really standing out imo.

Story - actually it's the strongest part of this game. It's deep and suprising with couple possible endings.

Overall Shadowrun Dragonfall is not that bad of a game but also it's not really good one, If you like cyberpunk climate maybe you will like it more.

I give it solid 5/10