'Shadow Warrior Classic Complete' for macOS, 'Sorcery!' on iOS now free to download

Developed by "Duke Nukem 3D" creators 3D Realms and originally released in 1997 as a shareware title, Shadow Warrior is a first person shooter and combat game set in a version of Japan where a major corporation has taken control of all major industries. Playing as former bodyguard Lo Wang, players must battle monsters sent by the organization in an effort to stop him from interfering with their plans.

Borrowing elements from "Duke Nukem," the game includes destructible environments and an assortment of projectile and close-combat weapons, including throwing stars and four-barreled shotguns, as well as drivable vehicles that can also cause damage to things in its path.

The free "Shadow Warrior Classic Complete" release on GOG is the classic version of the game, complete with original graphics and sound and released without any DRM, accompanied by the Wanton Destruction and Twin Dragon expansions. The game requires at least an Intel Core Duo 2GHz processor with 1GB of RAM, 64MB of video memory, and macOS 10.6.8 or later.

For those wanting to play the game but with improved visuals, there is also "Shadow Warrior Classic Redux" available for $9.02 from GOG that updates the graphics but keeps the game the same. In 2013, a modern remake was developed by Flying Wild Hog, with a sequel released in 2016.

Created by Steve Jackson and developed by Inkle, "Sorcery!" is a four-part interactive fantasy adventure that uses text and hand-drawn images to tell the story. Similar to the game books that were popular in the '80s, "Sorcery!" describes the scene with words and illustrations, bringing up new text passages based on the user's choices, with the story changing with each decision.

The game's sword-dueling system relies on reading clues to decide how to react to opponents, with the text hinting at what the player should optimally do, and the duel participants shown in drawings below the story. There are also 48 spells available to master, which can be used to avoid traps and solve puzzles on the player's journey.

Illustrations in the game were drawn by John Blanche, with DC Comics artist Eddie Sharam producing the character art. The interactive 3D map was drawn by Mike Schley of Wizards of the Coast, and the game's music was composed by David Wise.

The first episode, which takes players through the Shamutani Hills, is available free from the App Store for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch,with the download weighing in at 170 megabytes and requiring iOS 7.0 or later. Previously, the game was sold for $4.99 through the App Store

The other three episodes in the "Sorcery!" series continue to be priced at $4.99 each.