When I was a kid I played the first levels of Pyro Studios Commandos and of course Spellbounds Desperados up and down. I don't know if I only had demos or was just a stupid kid, but I had time and it was exciting. I never finished them, but I was always fascinated. Then came Shadow Tactics in 2016 and my mind was blown. I love it when forgotten genres reappear out of nowhere. So I played the demo here too and... didn't find it that great. It seemed like the old games only prettier. So I put it aside and played the terrific Desperados 3 in 2020. "That's how it is down!", I thought. Lots of cool ideas that bring the genre forward. A pausable tactics mode, cool characters and a really great idea with the summary at the end. Yes, Mimimi Games have really perfected this. So why not try Shadow Tactics again? I did and this time it clicked. Although I initially missed the pause in tactics mode, I somehow found it to be an additional challenge to time the execution perfectly. With this mode, you can give all the characters - and there are five of them - orders that they hold back until I give them the go. For example, Aiko can throw her powder so that an enemy sees less for a moment, only to have Hayato and Yuki dash through the now unobserved area and stab an enemy and take out an elevated enemy with a blow dart. Each of these moments made me feel insanely cool and crafty. And if it doesn't work, you are wonderfully prepared with the two buttons for quick save and quick load. And most of us will probably use these frequently. The locations for our missions are wonderfully detailed and range from markets at night to fortresses and temples, hidden in the forest. Together with the really likeable and nice characters and their very different abilities, the game exudes this wonderful Japan and ninja flair. Something that Mimimi managed to bring to our screens just 4 years later in the form of the Wild West. The only drawback, in my opinion, is the very sparse and really predictable story. It really only serves to shoo us from one map to the next. Don't expect great writing here and at one of the big "twists", I was like: "Oh no, really? How unexpected... 🙄" Instead, it is the interactions between our characters that exude a very special charm. Be it the general togetherness or even during the mission when you send several to the same area and they have a short chat. Really everyone has grown on me. So I unjustly put the game aside in 2016. Shadow Tactics is a wonderful kickstart back into the long-forgotten days of stealth real-time tactics games which Mimimi continues with Desperados 3 and the upcoming Shadow Gambit (this time with pirates!!!).