Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun screenshot 1Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun screenshot 2
IndieStrategyStealthTacticalNinjaReal Time TacticsSingleplayer

77 playing

Peak in the last 24 hours: 125

Peak in the last 7 days: 187

Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun Steam store

Game description

Shadow Tactics is a hardcore tactical stealth game set in Japan around the Edo period. A new Shogun seizes power over Japan and enforces nationwide peace. In his battle against conspiracy and rebellion, he recruits five specialists with extraordinary skills for assassination, sabotage and espionage.

Basic info

DeveloperMimimi Games
PublisherDaedalic Entertainment
PlatformsWindows · macOS · Linux
Steam DeckVerified
Release dateDec 6, 2016
Price

Prices by IsThereAnyDeal

Minimum specs

OSWindows Vista 64-bit
ProcessorIntel i3 2nd-Generation 2.5GHz, AMD Quad-Core 2.5GHz
Memory4 GB
GraphicsNvidia GT640, AMD Radeon HD7750, 1GB Vram
Storage13 GB
steamyze

Review Analysis Score

Based on 442 reviews from the past 1 year

86.9/ 100
Top 30%

Steam rating: Overwhelmingly Positive (96%)

Metacritic: 85 /100

Review analysis summary (Reviewed Oct 23, 2026)

Players call this real time stealth tactics game set in feudal Japan a demanding puzzle box, and it scores 86.9, top 30% of games we analyzed.

👍 Strengths

138 reviews say it is fun and absorbing, and a few admit they lose track of time or keep planning missions away from the screen. 109 praise the strategy, saying each level allows several viable approaches and the squad abilities work well together. Gameplay ranks 208th of 1396. 39 enjoy the difficulty, calling it a tough but fair challenge that pays off after repeated attempts. Story & World ranks 454th of 1096, Content Volume ranks 272nd of 1351, and Visuals & Sound ranks 588th of 1249.

👎 Where it falls short

46 reviews find the difficulty frustrating at times, and some say surprise enemy patrols ruin careful plans and push them to save after every step. 44 criticize the controls, with many naming an awkward camera that is hard to rotate, and some find the default keyboard layout inconvenient. 12 report stability problems, many mentioning bugs, while a few describe crashes or lost quick saves. Tech & Support ranks 665th of 1399.

Representative reviews Original reviews ↗

“game so good you dream about it and think through strategies at work” · 138 reviews
“multiple viable strategies and synergies discovered through experimentation” · 109 reviews
“gorgeous map design with excellent presentation and beautiful art style” · 26 reviews

How it holds up

−50+5

Controls, difficulty, progression and depth
Mentioned in 76% of reviews · Top 20% of the games we've analyzed

Strategy +3.74 · Depth of builds, tactics, and meaningful choices
Positive “multiple viable strategies and synergies discovered through experimentation” · 109 reviews
Negative “shadow mode too restrictive, limited tactical freedom” · 2 reviews

Progression 5% · Difficulty 40% · Onboarding 13% · Freedom 7% · Controls & feel 21%

Plot, characters and the world
Mentioned in 42% of reviews · Top 50% of the games we've analyzed

Story +2.67 · Plot, quests, writing, and the ending
Positive “finely polished level design and story, RTT masterpiece and historical peak” · 21 reviews
Negative “story quality drops significantly after chapter 10 and character arc disappoints” · 6 reviews

Characters 21% · World 17%

How much there is to do, variety and replay value
Mentioned in 23% of reviews · Top 30% of the games we've analyzed

Replayability +2.68 · Reasons to play again — runs, randomness, New Game+
Positive “high replayability with multiple playstyles and challenge modes” · 6 reviews
Negative “no desire to replay due to bland story and slow pacing” · 2 reviews

Volume 11% · Variety 10%

Graphics, art style, music and sound
Mentioned in 25% of reviews · Top 50% of the games we've analyzed

Visuals +2.97 · Graphics, art style, and animation
Positive “gorgeous map design with excellent presentation and beautiful art style” · 26 reviews
Negative “cartoon art style lacks visual center and beauty” · 7 reviews

Audio 12%

Playing with others, the community and servers

Not enough data — only 2% of reviews mention this.

Playing together +4.22 · Fun of playing with friends, teammates, or rivals

Community 0% · Servers & Connection 0%

Pricing, cheaters, balance and matchmaking
Mentioned in 7% of reviews · Top 20% of the games we've analyzed

Pricing +0.06 · Whether the price, DLC and microtransactions are reasonable, and how much paying gives you an edge
Positive “worth the price on discount” · 3 reviews

Anti-cheat 0% · Balance 3% · Matchmaking 0%

Bugs, performance and developer support
Mentioned in 12% of reviews · Top 50% of the games we've analyzed

Stability -0.04 · Crashes, freezes, save loss, and game-breaking bugs
Negative “game would randomly close itself” · 12 reviews
Positive “polished with no bugs found” · 1 review

Performance 3% · Developer support 4%

Grey means too few reviews mention it to trust. — means almost no reviews mention it.

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