Gaming

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor is a third-person action game developed by Monolith Productions, a studio owned by Warner Brothers Interactive publisher. In it, you play a ranger named Talion who dies alongside his family at the hands of the orcs and who, in a dark ritual, seemingly comes back to life tied to a shadow. The shadow imbues Talion with a wide range of ghostly powers that he uses to exact revenge on Sauron’s growing Uruk army. However, even with the strength of the shadow, Talion is still only a human, and one man against an entire orc army is a complicated matter. Rather than attempting to fight his way through his superior numbers on his own, Talion wisely focuses on eliminating higher-ranking Captains and Warchiefs in hopes of luring his general, the Black Hand of Sauron, and destroying the army. cutting off his head. .

For fans of the Lord of the Rings, Shadow of ModorThe story could be considered a pseudocanon. Obviously, JRR Tolkien did not write these things himself, but the Monolith Productions team made the effort to collaborate with Middle-earth Productions, as well as the director of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films, Peter Jackson, to make Make sure the events of the game align with the existing timelines and lore of Middle-earth. This should ensure that there is nothing in the story or its developments that infuriates purist fanboys, and since its plot is secondary to the events of the books and movies, the game is accessible to everyone, even if you don’t know what a game is. Frodo. . When it comes to the quality of the story, the script has its moments, but in my opinion, ultimately, it’s pretty normal. It’s a shame, as lead writer Christian Cantamessa is also responsible for one of my all-time favorite video game tales in Red Dead Redemption. With overused tropes like vengeance and amnesia, and a somewhat confusing introduction and walkthrough, sadly it wasn’t Shadow of MordorIt’s the story that got me hooked. Instead, it was the game.

It is very clear from the beginning that Shadow of Mordor takes inspiration from other popular third-person action-adventure games, especially the Assassin’s creed Batman series and games that have come out of Rocksteady Studios in recent years. Talion climbs the watchtowers and stalks his orc prey with the stealthy security of any white-hooded initiate and with equal ease. The combat is a bit more challenging. If they want to survive, players will have to make use of their combo gauges and finishing skills in a similar way to the takedown system of the Arkham games. Fortunately, the combat is just as fluid, and in a couple of short play sessions, you’ll have Talion leaping over enemy shields, dodging arrows and spears, performing stealth finishes, and counterattacking flawlessly. However, even with all these skills at your disposal, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by a crowd. Stealth is sometimes the smartest option. Engaging a single orc in open combat can quickly spiral out of control if a nearby Captain comes to your aid or if a passing patrol sees you and sounds the alarm.

While Talion’s fighting style may resemble that of the Dark Knight, his spirit about the sanctity of life does not. In fact, Shadow of Mordor it is arguably more violent than The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movies. Some of Talion’s executions are especially bloody, and beheadings are a common sight. Depending on your abilities, a stealth execution skill allows you to kill an orc so thoroughly that it causes other orcs to flee the area. To put that in perspective, Orcs eat people! Considering that it is brutal enough to make monsters that eat people flee screaming, it should come as no surprise that Shadow of Mordor is intended for mature audiences and undoubtedly earns its M rating.

While a Arkham / Creed Mordor-set mash-up may seem derivative on its surface, Monolith studios manage to transcend ‘copycat’ status by adding some cool mechanics of their own. One is the ability to obtain information on Talion’s targets before engaging them in battle. Shaking off a lower-level orc to learn their Captain’s strengths and weaknesses is not only fun, it’s integral to the player’s survival. Knowing in advance that your target is invulnerable to stealth attacks, but susceptible to a single headshot from a bow, will save you from a lot of trial and error in the long run.

Also don’t think that you are the only one hunting on this side of the Black Gate. Some captains and their bodyguards will stalk Talion as he makes his way through Mordor, and Uruk’s captains will even fight each other over internal power struggles. When a Captain falls, his position is not vacant for long, as many others are eager to take his place. Orcs who win duels against each other, or who manage to kill Talion or survive an encounter with him, will increase their power and will probably be promoted to Captain. It’s these kinds of dynamics, along with tight and fluid combat and movement mechanics (if borrowed), that make Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor a standout in his own right. Add in your usual open-world meta goals like hunting creatures and collecting artifacts, and there’s plenty of content to keep you busy in addition to the main quest.

Recommended for fans of third person shooter games, the Assassin’s creed series and New Zealand. Look for Shadow of Mordor on PS4 or XB1 at your local Slackers today, or come and pre-order the PS3 or Xbox 360 version, currently releasing on November 18, 2014.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *