{{Short description|2021 video game}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2023}} {{Infobox video game | title = Cyber Shadow | image = Cyber Shadow Cover.jpg | developer = Mechanical Head Studios | director = Aarne Hunziker | designer = Aarne Hunziker | publisher = Yacht Club Games | platform = {{cslist|Windows|Linux|macOS|Switch|PlayStation 4|PlayStation 5|Xbox One}} | composer = Enrique Martin | genre = Action, platform | release = January 26, 2021<ref>{{cite web|last=Goslin|first=Austen|title=Cyber Shadow is a 2D ninja action game published by the makers of Shovel Knight|url=https://www.polygon.com/2020/2/26/21154564/cyber-shadow-trailer-switch-ps4-xbox-one-pc|website=Polygon|publisher=Vox Media|date=February 26, 2020|access-date=March 5, 2020|quote=Cyber Shadow is scheduled to be released in fall 2020[...]}}</ref><ref name="Releasedate">{{Cite web|url=https://www.gematsu.com/2020/12/cyber-shadow-launches-january-26-2021|title=Cyber Shadow launches January 26, 2021|first=Sal|last=Romano|date=2020-12-15|website=Gematsu|language=en-US|accessdate=2020-12-15}}</ref> | modes = Single-player }}
'''''Cyber Shadow''''' is a side-scrolling action-platform game<ref name="gamespot2">{{Cite web |last=Winslow |first=Jeremy |date=March 27, 2019 |title=Shovel Knight Dev Reveals Its Next Project |url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/shovel-knight-dev-reveals-its-next-project/1100-6465877/ |access-date=October 16, 2022 |website=GameSpot |publisher=CBS Interactive}}</ref> developed by Finnish indie studio Mechanical Head Studios and published by Yacht Club Games. Using an 8-bit aesthetic, the game follows a cybernetic ninja named Shadow who sets out to rescue his clan in a world overrun by machines.
The game is mostly developed by Aarne Hunziker, who is the sole member of Mechanical Head Studios. It was first shown at PAX East 2019, having been in development from years before and silently announced before that event. It contains stated inspirations from other platform video games such as ''Ninja Gaiden''. The game was released on January 26, 2021 to mostly positive reviews, citing the graphics and gameplay as highlights.
==Gameplay== ''Cyber Shadow'' is a side-scrolling action-platformer in which players control a ninja character who battles enemies with a sword and various special abilities acquired as subweapons. It features an 8-bit aesthetic which shares similarities to ''Shatterhand''<ref>{{Cite web|last=LeClair|first=Kyle|url=https://www.hardcoregamer.com/2019/04/16/pax-east-2019-cyber-shadow-delivers-more-goodness-straight-out-of-91/328719/|title=PAX East 2019: Cyber Shadow Delivers More Goodness Straight Out of '91|date=April 16, 2019|website=Hardcore Gamer|language=en-US|access-date=October 11, 2019}}</ref> and contains several gameplay elements of ''Shadow of the Ninja'', ''Ninja Gaiden'', ''Mega Man'', ''Castlevania'' and similar games, which include snaking paths and occasional backtracking.<ref name=kotaku>{{Cite web|first=Ethan|last=Gach|title=Hands-On With The Gorgeous New Ninja Gaiden-Like Cyber Shadow|url=https://kotaku.com/hands-on-with-the-gorgeous-new-ninja-gaiden-like-cyber-1833639791|website=Kotaku|publisher=Gizmodo Media Group<!--Is this correct?-->|date=March 28, 2019|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref><ref name=nwr>{{Cite web|first=Neal|last=Ronaghan|title=Cyber Shadow Might Be The Next Great Throwback Ninja Platformer|url=http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/hands-on-preview/50188/cyber-shadow-might-be-the-next-great-throwback-ninja-platformer|website=Nintendo World Report|date=April 1, 2019|access-date=April 17, 2019}}</ref> Several bosses are present.<ref name=nwr/><ref name=pushsquare>{{Cite web|first=Stephen|last=Tailby|title=Shovel Knight Dev Yacht Club Games Announces Cyber Shadow for PS4|url=http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2019/03/shovel_knight_dev_yacht_club_games_announces_cyber_shadow_for_ps4|website=Push Square|publisher=Gamer Network|date=March 28, 2019|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref><ref name=eurogamer>{{Cite web|first=Matt|last=Wales|title=Shovel Knight dev unveils 8-bit-style ninja romp Cyber Shadow in new trailer|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2019-03-27-shovel-knight-dev-unveils-8-bit-style-ninja-romp-cyber-shadow-in-new-trailer|website=Eurogamer|publisher=Gamer Network|date=March 27, 2019|access-date=April 30, 2019}}</ref>
The game's story is told primarily through cinematic cutscenes, though in-engine ones are used as well.<ref>{{Cite web|first=Jeremy|last=Peeples|title=Yacht Club Games Announces Cyber Shadow|url=https://www.hardcoregamer.com/2019/03/27/yacht-club-games-announces-cyber-shadow/327837/|website=Hardcore Gamer|date=March 27, 2019|access-date=April 17, 2019}}</ref>
==Plot== The game's plot follows Shadow, a cyborg<ref name=siliconera>{{Cite web|first=Joel|last=Couture|title=Cyber Shadow Developer Talks About The Work That Leads To Pretty Pixel Art|url=https://www.siliconera.com/2017/01/28/cyber-shadow-developer-talks-work-leads-pretty-pixel-art/|website=Siliconera|publisher=Curse LLC|date=January 28, 2017|access-date=April 17, 2019}}</ref> ninja who sets out to free his fallen clan from synthetic lifeforms harvesting them for their powers.<ref name="kotaku" /><ref name=pushsquare/> It is set in the ruins of the fictional Mekacity.<ref name="eurogamer" /><ref name=gematsu>{{Cite web|first=Sal|last=Romano|title=Ninja action platformer Cyber Shadow announced for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC|url=https://gematsu.com/2019/03/ninja-action-platformer-cyber-shadow-announced-for-ps4-xbox-one-switch-and-pc|website=Gematsu|date=March 27, 2019|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref><ref name=nlife>{{Cite web|first=Liam|last=Doolan|title=Yacht Club Games Reveals Cyber Shadow, A Thrilling New 8-Bit Ninja Platformer|url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2019/03/yacht_club_games_reveals_cyber_shadow_a_thrilling_new_8-bit_ninja_platformer|website=Nintendo Life|publisher=Nlife Media|date=March 28, 2019|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref> Shadow travels across Mekacity, fighting the cybernetic beings as well as a traitor from his ninja clan called Apparitor, and ends his captured clanmates lives to free their spirits. His ultimate goal is to find the Master of the clan, with whom the original human Shadow had a seemingly romantic relationship. Shadow discovers that the Master was dying of a mysterious spiritual disease, and her father, in a mad scheme to save her life, attacked the city with his synthetic army and betrayed the Clan so as to drain their mystical powers, and use the drained energy to keep his daughter alive. Cyber-Shadow sets out to defeat him so that he can free her spirit from her dying body and reunite with her in the Ethos, the spiritual realm.
==Development== ''Cyber Shadow'' was developed by Mechanical Head Studios, a team consisting purely of the creator Aarne Hunziker, and published by Yacht Club Games.<ref name=nlife/> Aarne Hunziker, having already been developing the game for years on his own, initially had no intention of teaming up with a publisher; he was first discovered by Yacht Club while posting about the ongoing development on Twitter,<ref name="usgamer">{{Cite web |last=Bailey |first=Kat |date=March 31, 2019 |title=How Cyber Shadow is Benefiting From the Expertise of Shovel Knight's Developers |url=https://www.usgamer.net/articles/how-cyber-shadow-is-benefiting-from-the-expertise-of-shovel-knights-developers |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401000654/https://www.usgamer.net/articles/how-cyber-shadow-is-benefiting-from-the-expertise-of-shovel-knights-developers |archive-date=April 1, 2019 |access-date=April 16, 2019 |website=USgamer |publisher=Gamer Network}}</ref> and later was convinced by them to "join [their] little family".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Doolan |first=Liam |date=April 2, 2019 |title=Cyber Shadow's Publishing Deal With Yacht Club Games Didn't Happen Overnight |url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2019/04/cyber_shadows_publishing_deal_with_yacht_club_games_didnt_happen_overnight |access-date=April 16, 2019 |website=Nintendo Life |publisher=Nlife Media}}</ref> Although most of the development is handled by Hunziker, the music will be composed by Enrique Martin and produced by Jake Kaufman;<ref name="eurogamer" /><ref name=nlife/><ref name=gamespot>{{Cite web|first=Jeremy|last=Winslow|title=Shovel Knight Dev Reveals Its Next Project|url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/shovel-knight-dev-reveals-its-next-project/1100-6465877/|website=GameSpot|publisher=CBS Interactive|date=March 27, 2019|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref> in addition to their usual role as a publisher, Yacht Club is giving design feedback from their previous experience developing ''Shovel Knight''.<ref name=eurogamer/><ref name=usgamer/>
Hunziker's first experience in game development was hacking the ROMs of classic games to manipulate their visuals, effectively customizing them.<ref name=kotaku/><ref name=siliconera/> He later decided to create his own game, but scrapped it. Four years later he began coding from scratch what would become ''Cyber Shadow''. He has had continued difficulties with the development of the game due to its scope and having to do it almost entirely alone.<ref name=kotaku/>
Hunziker has described the game as one that combines "the level design principles of ''Mario'', the skills and action of ''Ninja Gaiden'', the enemy designs of ''Contra'' and the dark visual aesthetic of ''Batman''",<ref name="eurogamer" /><ref name=gamespot/> but has also said that it is more deliberately intended as a callback to ''Shadow of the Ninja''.<ref name=nwr/> In an interview with ''Siliconera'', he said that "[t]he story is about exploiting carefully nurtured ancient knowledge with logic" as a reason why it involves both ancient ninjas and futuristic robots.<ref name=siliconera/>
The game was first shown at PAX East 2019,<ref name=usgamer/> though it was announced less publicly earlier.<!--Verifiable using Siliconera and other sources, but I'm not sure if a citation here is necessary.-->
In the "Yacht Club Games Presents" on February 26, 2020, it was revealed that the game would release in 2021, and that the Shovel Knight Amiibo would be compatible with the Nintendo Switch version of the game.<ref>{{cite video|people=Velasco, Sean; Faulker, Alec (narrators)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4D4HDAYKrTo&t=2m24s|title=Yacht Club Games Presents 2.26.20|type=YouTube video|publisher=Yacht Club Games|date=February 26, 2020|access-date=October 8, 2020|time=2:24}}</ref> It was released on January 26, 2021 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5,<ref>{{Cite web|first=Matt|last=Wales|title=Meet the one-man studio behind Cyber Shadow|url=https://blog.playstation.com/2021/01/12/meet-the-one-man-studio-behind-cyber-shadow/|website=PlayStation Blog|date=January 13, 2021|access-date=January 13, 2021}}</ref> Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows.<ref name=gematsu/><ref name=gamespot/><ref name="Releasedate"/>
==Reception== {{Video game reviews | MC = PC: 81/100<ref name="MCPC">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/cyber-shadow/critic-reviews/?platform=pc |title=Cyber Shadow for PC Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=February 15, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126001303/https://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/cyber-shadow |archive-date=2021-01-26 }}</ref><br />PS4: 79/100<ref name="MCPS4">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/cyber-shadow/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-4 |title=Cyber Shadow for PlayStation 4 Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref><br />PS5: 77/100<ref name="MCPS5">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/cyber-shadow/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-5 |title=Cyber Shadow for PlayStation 5 Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=February 15, 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125153206/https://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-5/cyber-shadow |archive-date=2021-01-25 }}</ref><br />NS: 81/100<ref name="MCSwitch">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/cyber-shadow/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch |title=Cyber Shadow for Switch Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref><br /> XONE: 80/100<ref name="MCBBoxOne">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/cyber-shadow/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-one |title=Cyber Shadow for Xbox One Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref> | OC = 84% recommend<ref name="opencritic">{{cite web|url=https://opencritic.com/game/10837/cyber-shadow|title=''Cyber Shadow''|publisher=OpenCritic|access-date=November 11, 2025}}</ref> | Destruct = 7.5/10<ref>{{cite web |last=Carter |first=Chris |date=January 30, 2021 |url=https://www.destructoid.com/stories/review-cyber-shadow-617103.phtml |title=Review: Cyber Shadow |publisher=Destructoid |accessdate=February 15, 2021}}</ref> | GI = 7.5/10<ref>{{cite web |last=Stewart |first=Marcus |date=January 25, 2021 |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/review/cyber-shadow/cyber-shadow-review-a-war-of-attrition |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126024206/https://www.gameinformer.com/review/cyber-shadow/cyber-shadow-review-a-war-of-attrition |url-status=live |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |title=Cyber Shadow |publisher=Game Informer |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref> | GSpot = 7/10<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/cyber-shadow-review/1900-6417636/|title=Cyber Shadow Review|accessdate=February 15, 2021|last=Kemps|first=Heidi|publisher=GameSpot|date=February 3, 2021}}</ref> | HCG = 4/5<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hardcoregamer.com/2021/01/25/review-cyber-shadow/395962/|publisher=Hardcore Gamer|title=Review: Cyber Shadow|accessdate=February 15, 2021|date=January 25, 2021|first=Kyle|last=LeClair|archive-date=February 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208112849/https://hardcoregamer.com/2021/01/25/review-cyber-shadow/395962/|url-status=dead}}</ref> | IGN = 8/10<ref name="IGN review">{{cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/cyber-shadow-review |title=Cyber Shadow Review |website=IGN |publisher=Ziff Davis |first=Saltzman |last=Mitchell |date=25 January 2021 |access-date=26 January 2021 }}</ref> }}
All versions of ''Cyber Shadow'' have received "generally favorable reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic.<ref name="MCPC" /><ref name="MCPS4" /><ref name="MCPS5" /><ref name="MCBBoxOne" /><ref name="MCSwitch" /> Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received strong approval, being recommended by 84% of critics.<ref name="opencritic"/> ''IGN'' summed up their 8/10 review by saying "Cyber Shadow's excellent gameplay, level design, variety, and music make it a great modernization of the classic Ninja Gaiden formula."<ref name="IGN review"/>
According to Nintendo (which runs the Nintendo eShop), ''Cyber Shadow'' was one of the 15 best-selling indie games of 2021 on the Nintendo Switch.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hernandez |first=Patricia |date=2021-12-29 |title=The Best-Selling Indie Games On Switch In 2021, According To Nintendo |url=https://kotaku.com/the-best-selling-indie-games-on-switch-in-2021-accordi-1848283596 |access-date=2023-03-24 |website=Kotaku |language=en}}</ref> {{-}}
== Further reading ==
* {{Cite magazine|first=Brian|last=Shea|title=Cyber Shadow Is An Indie Action Game That Wears Its Ninja Gaiden And Contra Influences On Its Sleeve|url=https://www.gameinformer.com/preview/2019/08/22/wearing-its-ninja-gaiden-and-contra-influences-on-its-sleeve|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190825051159/https://www.gameinformer.com/preview/2019/08/22/wearing-its-ninja-gaiden-and-contra-influences-on-its-sleeve|url-status=live|archive-date=August 25, 2019|magazine=Game Informer|date=August 22, 2019|access-date=August 27, 2019}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [https://yachtclubgames.com/cyber-shadow/ Yacht Club Games website] {{Yacht Club}}
Category:2021 video games Category:Action games Category:Indie games Category:Japan in non-Japanese culture Category:Nintendo Switch games Category:Platformers Category:PlayStation 4 games Category:PlayStation 5 games Category:Post-apocalyptic video games Category:Retro-style video games Category:Science fiction video games Category:Side-scrolling platformers Category:Single-player video games Category:Video games about cyborgs Category:Video games about ninja Category:Video games about robots Category:Video games developed in Finland Category:Windows games Category:Xbox Cloud Gaming games Category:Xbox One games Category:Yacht Club Games games