PSP Review: Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow

Gabe Logan and his team of agents are back, this time to save the world from middle-eastern terrorists bent on global domination. If you feel like you have played this game before, you are definitely not alone — most of the aspects that made the previous Syphon Filter games so enjoyable are present here, with a few notable additions. The game’s plot, taken directly from post- 9/11 headlines and then sufficiently altered so as not to offend anybody, is utterly convoluted and forgettable. But what really shines in the Syphon Filter series has always been the tactical stealth gameplay, and there is plenty of that here to appeal to fans of the genre. Include top-notch production values and a solid infrastructure multiplayer mode into the mix, and you’ve got all the ingredients for an impressive PSP game. Continue reading to find out what is new in this sequel, and why PSP-owning fans of the genre should consider signing up for Gabe Logan’s latest mission.

Veterans of the Syphon Filter series, and particularly of the first PSP game, Dark Mirror, will be instantly at home here. This is undoubtedly one of the game’s strengths, but also one of its weaknesses. On one hand, we were able to skip past the training missions and jump right into combat against terrorists, using the familiar control scheme from the first game. A few new moves have been added, including close-quarters moves and blind fire, but these can be pretty much figured out on your own without having to go through “retraining” (although completing the training missions within specified conditions will unlock some new weapons). One downside of all of this is that the game doesn’t feel as much like a new experience as it does a continuation of an old one. Gabe Logan looks, sounds, and moves pretty much the same way he did in the previous PSP outing. Only the exotic locations and villains have been swapped for new ones this time around. Logan’s Shadow takes players on a veritable world tour of exotic and impressively-rendered locales, from Cyprus, to the bottom of the Indian Ocean, to a civil war in Uzbekistan.

For the last time, get off my ship!

Similarly, many of the twists and turns that made Dark Mirror so compelling are re-treaded in this game. Shoot through thin walls using your IR goggles, provide covering fire for another (frustratingly vulnerable) agent, solve an environmental puzzle to make it to the next part of the environment. Sure, there are some new surprises that we won’t ruin by revealing here, but for the most part the feeling we got from Logan’s Shadow was one of familiarity, for better or worse.

Of course, there are some new additions that spruce up the experience this time around. While we didn’t find ourselves relying too much on Gabe’s new set of moves, the game has added some other new elements that do fundamentally change how it is played. The most important new element is probably water: many of the levels will find Gabe either completely submerged or transitioning between swimming and walking segments. Swimming is carried out very competently, especially in the default control scheme. We were able to get the hang of swimming and taking out enemies with the new underwater dart gun in no time. We can’t think of another recent game that has implemented a swimming mechanic as successfully as the developers have done here, let alone on a handheld console.

We had mixed feelings about the other newly added gameplay element: timed button presses. This gameplay conceit has been showing up in a lot of Sony titles with alarming regularity, particularly for those, like us, who suck at anything approaching a rhythm game. Thankfully, most of the timed sequences are easy, and allow you to redo them on the spot if you fail. It probably won’t hinder your enjoyment of the game even if you detest these sequences, but it is unclear what the new mechanic adds to the overall experience.

One of the best features of Logan’s Shadow is the revamped multiplayer component. Some players have complained that the new version has balance issues and buggy network code. We did not experience any lag or dropped games during our testing, and found the online competition to be quite fierce. The game ships with seven maps, which can be played in standard deathmatch, capture the flag, or objective-based modes. Unfortunately, hackers and pirates are back too, so you are better off playing with a cell (clan) in order to eliminate the riff-raff.

One of the advantages of sticking to a well-treaded formula is that developers can play to their strengths. Overall, Logan’s Shadow is a better game than Dark Mirror. It looks better, plays better, and has even more imaginative set pieces than the first PSP title. On the other hand, this game builds on, rather than reinvents, the basic formula behind the series. For fans who couldn’t get enough tactical espionage action on the PSP the first time around, that will likely be enough.

Things we liked: