History YMMV / ShadowMan

** ''2econd Coming'' is also far easier than the first game, first by maps being much less expansive and labyrinthine, and second by how dying brings up the Teddy Bear warp screen instead of depositing you in front of the Marrow Gates. Since every boss battle has a warp point leading to it, you can simply respawn in front of them when killed and pick up right where you left off, with the boss' health meter still reflecting the damage you've dealt so far..

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptational'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of jumps and drops that were difficult in the original version [[EventObscuringCamera due to camera angles]] more manageable because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptational'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of jumps and drops that were difficult in the original version [[CameraScrew due to camera angles]] more manageable because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of jumps and drops that were difficult in the original version [[CameraScrew due to camera angles]] more manageable because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* MostWonderfulSound: The brief but reassuring chant that plays whenever you find and obtain a new weapon or item.

** Jack the Ripper. During his boss fight, he prances and jumps around like a weird cross between [[Music/TheRollingStones Mick Jagger]] and ComicBook/SpiderMan, talks in a thick cockney accent, and one of his regular taunts is to "make a Mary Kelly out of you!", but somehow he manages to be the scariest of The Five.[[labelnote:*]] Though, if one is aware of [[{{Squick}} what he did to Mary Kelly...]] [[/labelnote]]

** The Wailers and Shiverers attack Shadowman by draining his life force from a distance. The good news it that destroying them with the Shadowgun gives back whatever they stole. The bad news is the game likes to place them in small cages you can't get into to reclaim your health. Duppies and Deadwings are also a huge pain in the ass for their ability to spit giant loogies from a distance and -for Duppies- rapidly shred you to pieces up close.

* RemadeAndImproved: ''Shadow Man Remastered'', the 2021 UpdatedRerelease by Creator/NightdiveStudios, has been generally received positively for not only a few gameplay improvements (tweaking the movement controls and adding a weapon wheel to streamline combat), but also integrating content that had to be scrapped for time from the original game (such as Milton Pike and Marco Cruz's levels, which means they no longer share Gardelle County Jail with Batrachian), as well as the second Violator from the [=N64=] version. Due to these factors, it's seen by some as the definitive version of the game.

* PolishedPort:
** The Dreamcast and N64 ports. The original PC game was too big to fit on any of the consoles, but the Dreamcast retained most of the content and even the high resolution graphics (although with the PC game natively supporting modern higher screen resolutions, it can pale in comparison to running the game on modern PC hardware). The N64 lost a few things (a few minor rooms, Mike's more detailed separate shirt, some minor audio), graphics had to be compressed and even sound samples are a bit compressed, but the game is not only rather well done, it's amazing it even fit on the cartridge. Although you WILL need a memory card, the cartridge has no internal saving, and it took up most of the card (around 80 blocks). There was also a higher resolution mode via the expansion pak. While the PC original is far superior, the N64 version was probably the most well known version for many years, largely for being a standout "mature" game on what was still seen as a very "kiddy" console.
** ''Shadow Man Remastered'', the 2021 UpdatedRerelease by Creator/NightdiveStudios, has been generally received positively for not only a few gameplay improvements (tweaking the movement controls and adding a weapon wheel to streamline combat), but also integrating content that had to be scrapped for time from the original game (such as Milton Pike and Marco Cruz's levels, which means they no longer share Gardelle County Jail with Batrachian), as well as the second Violator from the [=N64=] version. Due to these factors, it's seen by some as the definitive version of the game.

* AnticlimaxBoss: Although the PC version jacked up the difficulty quite a bit, Dr. Batrachian is still this in all versions for deciding to take on an immortal voodoo warrior with naught but a PR-24 baton.

* CompleteMonster: The twisted and macabre world of ''Shadow Man'' has the BigBad and two [[SerialKiller serial killers]]:
** [[IAmLegion Legion]] is an [[GodOfEvil ancient entity]] who rules over Deadside with an iron fist. The mastermind behind a prophecy surrounding [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the end of the world]], Legion manipulates the protectors of Liveside to get his hands on the Dark Souls, seeking them to empower himself and his faction. Wanting to announce his return to the other side of the veil, Legion unites a team of serial killers under his banner, The Five, granting them demonic status as his generals and ordering them to kill more victims in his name. In Deadside, Legion is the overlord of the Asylum, where he [[PlayingWithSyringes experiments]] on Deadsiders, butchering them and using their remains to create a massive army of grotesque monsters to invade Liveside. Legion toys with [[PlayerCharacter Michael LeRoi]] by posing as his deceased little brother, Luke, mocking Michael for not letting him rest in peace. A sadistic being wearing a mask of aristocracy, Legion proved himself to be one of the worst demons faced by the Shadow Man.

** Jack the Ripper. During his boss fight, he prances and jumps around like a weird cross between [[Music/TheRollingStones Mick Jagger]] and ComicBook/SpiderMan, talks in a thick cockney accent, and one of his regular taunts is to "make a Mary Kelly out of you!", but somehow he manages to be the scariest of The Five.[[labelnote: *]] Though, if one is aware of [[{{Squick}} what he did to Mary Kelly...]] [[/labelnote]]

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of jumps that in the original version a lot of jumps and drops that was previously difficult [[CameraScrew due to camera angles]] more manageable because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of jumps that in the original version a lot of jump and drops that was previous difficult [[CameraScrew due to camera angles]] more manageable because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really more of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of previous difficult jumps in the original version a lot easier because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of previous difficult jumps in the original version a lot easier because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* SequelDifficultyDrop: Really of an ''Adaptional'' Sequel Drop. The ''Remastered'' version gives the player a lot more control over the camera and thereby also Mike's ability to aim his weapons. In effect, it makes a lot of previous difficult jumps in the original version a lot easier because it is easier to see what you're doing, and it especially makes the previously fairly difficult boss-battle against Jack the Ripper [[AntiClimaxBoss a complete cakewalk]] because it is now also possible to attack him when he is crawling around on the celling, whereas in the original version you could really only hit him when he jumped down and tried to attack Mike.

* {{Sequelitis}}: While not outright unplayable, 2econd Coming is considered a huge let down compared to the first game, with murky graphics, poorly defined controls, inefficient weapons and dull, repetitive combat-focused gameplay. It was rushed out as a quick cash grab during the peak of Acclaim's financial downfall, and it shows.

* ThatOneBoss: Jack may cause some problems. He ceiling crawls, so it's easy to lose track of him, and he will rip you apart at close range. Also, your shield won't work here because it won't deflect his blade (it only stops projectiles.
* ThatOneLevel: The Temple of Prophecy, where the Marcher tattoo is guarded. The previous temple has few enemies and mostly simple/risk-free platforming, and the next temple is one of the final levels in the game, but this level sits around the halfway point and alternates between rooms with difficult platforming over OneHitKill lava floors, and rooms containing most of the [[MacGuffin dark souls]] of the level, guarded by large numbers of [[DemonicSpiders Sisters of Fate.]] Compounding this, is that unlike other levels in which the checkpoint is right around the middle of a level, this one is practically at the Temple's entrance.

** The Wailers and Shiverers attack Shadowman by draining his life force from a distance. The good news it that destroying them with the Shadowgun gives back whatever they stole. Duppies and Deadwings are also a huge pain in the ass for their ability to spit giant loogies from a distance and -for Duppies- rapidly shred you to pieces up close.

* HilariousInHindsight: One of the quests in the game is to collect three parts to an ancient voodoo blade to bring nightfall to the world of the living, so Shadow Man can stop the Five. The game starts early in the morning can only takes a few hours to beat, meaning everything likely happens in real time and the change to night is actually necessary to beat Legion before he can carry out his plans.

* PortingDisaster: The [=PS1=] version is pretty god-awful for a number of reasons. The graphics are absolutely horrible and even more content is missing than in the N64 version, but the worst thing may be the constant disc reading it has to do, as the game is constantly loading while you play it. The [=PlayStation's=] laser motor practically ''groans'' under the strain. The system was nowhere near up to specs needed for a game this big, and it really showed. Interestingly, however, this version is the only one with surviving source code, and is, as such, providing the primary code base for the Remastered version (with the missing content and features being backfilled from a disassembly of the PC version).