Back when this came out on Xbox Live Arcade (remember that?), I played through it over and over. I completed, and in fact, 100%ed, every single difficulty setting and then maxed out my level. I loved it, not least because it’s a Metroidvania, but back then the term wasn’t so widely known or used.

I have no idea what is actually “remastered” here. It seems identical to the original, so unless my memory is playing tricks the only real difference is the platform I’m playing it on. Actually, I’ve installed Heroic on my Steam Deck to let me play Epic Store games, and Shadow Complex was free on there years ago, hence why I have it. It’s great on the Steam Deck too, with the fact that (even in remastered form) it’s pretty old now meaning I can knock all the quality sliders up full and it still not even wheeze.

This is all waffle though, as I have said nothing about the game. Well, you’re a guy who ends up in a terrorist base “by accident” (spoilers: it wasn’t an accident) and while trying to rescue his captured girlfriend from the baddies gets caught up trying to stop them from beginning an attack on the US, finding upgrades and – eventually – a super suit along the way.

Like all good Metroidvania games (and school Geography lessons) there’s plenty of map colouring-in, giant bosses, tricky platforming, hidden areas, places you can’t get to until you’ve unlocked skills and items, and it’s really, really good. The acting in it suffers a bit from overly macho nonsense and hasn’t aged well, but the traversal and shootybangbang stuff is still incredible.