Shadow of Rome

 PlayStation 2
  • Publisher: Capcom
  • Release Date: Feb 8, 2005
Shadow of Rome Image
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 52 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 91 Ratings

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  • Summary: The year is 48 B.C. The grandeur of the Roman Empire has been tarnished by political corruption and society has been overrun by unruliness and violence. Julius Caesar advocates for drastic reform to rebuild the republic to its former glory, but is metwith opposition. Before changes could beThe year is 48 B.C. The grandeur of the Roman Empire has been tarnished by political corruption and society has been overrun by unruliness and violence. Julius Caesar advocates for drastic reform to rebuild the republic to its former glory, but is metwith opposition. Before changes could be implemented, the enlightened head of state is murdered. Consequently the horrific news finds its way on the battlefield and to the ears of one soldier, Agrippa, who rushes back to Rome only to be confronted withthe announcement that his father, Uesnius who was a close advisor to Caesar, is the accused murderer. Unfortunately, time is running out for Agrippa as his father is to be publicly executed by the winner of the next gladiatorial event. Together with the help of his best friend, Octavius, and a freed female gladiator named Claudia, Agrippa embarks on a mission to restore his family?s honor and uncover the truth concerning Caesar?s assassination. Shadow of Rome has been designed to allow players the opportunity to venture throughout the world of ancient Rome by flawlessly switching between Agrippa and Octavius, each of whom have their own area of expertise. Playing Agrippa lends itself more to action while Octavius is towards the more stealth and adventure elements of the game. To remain true to the Roman era, players will have to use objects in the environment and weapons of the day such as stones, slingshots, spears and swords in order to progress through the game. Also, situations will arise when Agrippa or Octavius will rely on nothing but their hands in order to combat those impeding his quest to absolve Uesnius. [Capcom]… Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 52
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 52
  3. Negative: 2 out of 52
  1. Worth Playing
    89
    I figure in about five years, Shadow of Rome will start showing up in magazine articles about “cult” games, or the best-kept secrets on the PS2.
  2. Weekly Famitsu
    83
    8 / 8 / 9 / 8 - gold [Vol 848]
    All this publication's reviews
  3. Stuff
    80
    The stealth levels are the only other chink in the game's chain mail. Just when you finish turning arenas into butcher shops, who's in the mood for a little Metal Gear-style stealth? Answer: not us.
  4. IGN
    76
    The equivalent of a summer action flick with a decent plot. It won't make you think too hard and the slow parts can get a little boring and clumsy, but the action is fun enough to redeem it.
  5. RealGamer
    74
    Shadow of Rome unfortunately doesn’t quite manage to pull it off with an excellent fighting engine for Agrippa but poorly designed stealth missions for Octavianus which you cant help but wonder why they tried to implement it in the first place.
  6. The Sydney Morning Herald
    70
    There are a large range of weapons and opponents are smart. Unfortunately, the lengthy espionage sorties are often not as gripping and the change of pace is jarring.
  7. AltGaming
    40
    The banality of the stealth sections and the laboured story telling are not worth the fun of the combat. The idea to blend together the two distinct, yet very successful in their own right, styles was interesting - but here the sum of the parts is much less than the total, and that’s your irony.

See all 52 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 40
  3. Negative: 4 out of 40
  1. BobbyR.
    Feb 22, 2005
    10
    This is a great game. I would give it game of the year.
  2. FranciscoP.
    Nov 21, 2005
    10
    The game is just excellent, the story everything I liked it a lot
  4. ETXGonzo
    Oct 14, 2020
    10
    They don't make games like this anymore.

    Loved that game, which actually consists of two games. In one part you play Octavianus who looks    They don't make games like this anymore.

    Loved that game, which actually consists of two games. In one part you play Octavianus who looks like Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and use all the stealth techniques. In the second part you play as Agrippa a former soldier now fighting its way through the arenas as a Gladiator. That last last one is bloody as it gets. You dismantle your opponents and hit them with their own arm while they are peeing their self and the crowd will give you an extra applause. I haven't seen this kind of game anywhere else. But it's not just a stupid fighting game. It has good mechanics, nice looks and with the two parts it's well balanced so it will not bore you and its all packed in a good interesting story (which reminds me to Ridley Scoots "Gladiator) in a not worn out scenario. For myself it's an insider's tip and I never understood why it's so underrated and no one talked about it.    … Expand
  5. JimmyD.
    Feb 1, 2005
    9
    Excellent graphics, music, voice-overs... camera is only slightly annoying (nothing we havent gotten used to before)..and the story is veryExcellent graphics, music, voice-overs... camera is only slightly annoying (nothing we havent gotten used to before)..and the story is very solid..combining stealth, swordplay, beat-em-ups and some problem solving...this is a very solid title that keeps you wanting to play on...… Expand
  6. MartR.
    Feb 25, 2005
    8
    Along with PS2's agonizing last years come a few really good games. Shadow of Rome is definitely a good game, but there really are two Along with PS2's agonizing last years come a few really good games. Shadow of Rome is definitely a good game, but there really are two games embedded into one fusion here: the gory kill or be killed setting of Agrippa's gladiator fights is a definite win-win situation, but it is dreadfully interrupted by the snotty sidekick's "sneaking" missions. The latter kill most of the joy since this sneaking is a hit or miss trial, bordering on insance difficulty and boring crouching. But the story keeps dragging one along and eventually playing the sneaky parts becomes just a way to get to the next violent encounter in the arena. The pace does fall to pieces in the bitter end, but until then, the game is pretty much flawless.… Expand
  7. MarcD.
    Mar 26, 2005
    7
    Gladiator/Troy/Ben Hur fans rejoice. You can now play out your own swords and sandals epic. The visuals were a bit bland and the story took a Gladiator/Troy/Ben Hur fans rejoice. You can now play out your own swords and sandals epic. The visuals were a bit bland and the story took a little too long to build up. The 2 characters simply did not feel...cohesive. Overall, the experience was good, not great.… Expand
  8. JohnT.
    Feb 10, 2005
    3
    This game is not worth the money. The violence is way over the top and the stealth action is done by folks in Kindergarten of game making!

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Awards & Rankings

74
#74 Best PS2 Game of 2005
21
#21 Most Discussed PS2 Game of 2005
38
#38 Most Shared PS2 Game of 2005