The fundamental gameplay is still the same, though that should be viewed as a glowing endorsement of the already refined mechanics presented in the game’s predecessor. The new campaign setting is utterly compelling, the writing is some of the industry’s finest with astounding prose and character development, and the added content simply equates to an experience that is only rivaled by the genre’s best. “In the end, Dragonfall is a more complete and sophisticated version of last year’s Shadowrun Returns. Yet again, we spoke highly of it, awarding it a 4.5/5. Upon our completion of Returns, we figured its offering could not be topped. While other developers’ efforts come off as hamfisted and lacking any kind of TLC, the team at Harebrained seemed to pour every ounce of their love and passion for the Shadowrun IP into making something worthy of its heralded legacy. Obviously, we spoke strongly about the intricacies of the game. And honestly, we hope it doesn’t end - we hope that community takes to the game faster than Vin Diesel to a new Fast and Furious film, because this is the type of title that deserves to be played by many, and live a long and prosperous, cyberpunk life.” To cherry the Sundae, though, the game editor means that Shadowrun Returns goes from being a game that is a handful of hours long, to one that truly could never end. This is a game that unabashedly understands how to deliver the full-bodied, total package experience. It’s strong in narration, sporting one of the best scripts we’ve seen in a long time, rich in customization and solid in its combat sophistication. This is one of the most satisfying and complete tactical roleplaying experiences to come out of 2013, and realistically the last few years. “Even with the few flaws it possesses, Harebrained Schemes have knocked it out of the park with Shadowrun Returns. In our review of Shadowrun Returns, I said this about the overall experience: Let’s take a look at that backbone off which Dragonfall plays. That’s significant in that, not only does the game open itself up to a wider audience, but it takes an already solid foundation and builds off it by layering on even more content to an already content-loaded endeavor. Shadowrun: Dragonfall – Director’s Cut, despite having an absurdly lengthy title, is a stand-alone version of this year’s add-on pack to Harebrained’s original 2013 gem.

Why, at the end of the day, we all love this wonderful medium. We say that coming from a place that understands what makes games work.

We don’t say that to sound hyperbolic, either. We say that because, by having not played it, you missed out on some of the best writing and tactical gameplay around. If you somehow missed playing Harebrained Schemes’ narrative-heavy, tactical-RPG Shadowrun Returns, or its expansion Dragonfall, well, then…shame on you.

Which shadowrun game is best