Hey guise! Its time for another spoiler-free game review! Though, this will just be an initial impression of sorts as I havent finished the game yet, but have pretty much experienced the meat of the game after playing for almost 6 hours straight last night. If youre too lazy to read, Ill summarize it in one sentence for you: SLEEPER HIT OF THE YEAR (SO FAR.) Story: 9/10 Shadow of Mordor takes place between the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. You get to play as Talion; a ranger of Gondor that was tasked to guard the Black Gate of Mordor that has been given Wraith-like abilities. For now, the story seems like a straight-up tale of revenge, but who knows if it contains some twists near the end? While the lead writer (Christian Cantamessa, who also penned Red Dead Redemption) and Monolith Studios worked with Peter Jackson, and Middle-Earth Enterprises on this game to try and remain faithful to the canon, this story is to be taken separately. Fans of all things LOTR will be in for quite a few surprises though, as familiar faces will make some appearances. Graphics: 9/10 Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor is a gorgeous game. While it may not have the same graphical prowess of KZ:Shadowfall, and the silky smooth framerate of TLOU Remastered, the animations are so well executed, and the resolution so sharp that it doesnt matter if the framerate is just unlocked 40-60fps. Middle-Earth here is what youd expect, but it is only when you stop and look around that youll start to admire the attention to detail in making this game world feel alive. Familiar vistas will also be present here, and it will give us a different perspective from what weve seen in the movies. If anything should stand-out though, it is the character models. The level of detail in each of the characters, especially in the Uruks/Orcs is truly astounding and is a definite feast for the eyes. I, in particular, find the way you view your nemeses in Saurons Army highly amusing as it looks like youre this Uruk general, asking all those Uruks to spin for me. Its also funny that they look disgruntled and harassed when they do this. Music/Sound: 10/10 First few minutes into the game and I am already covered in goosebumps from the rich orchestraic score that has become synonymous with Tolkiens world. The music here is simply mind-blowing, and the timing is very well executed. See an Uruk Captain in the distance, and that all too familiar bass drum plays to get you psyched up for the battle. It also helps to set the mood in whatever the game wants you to feel at any specific part in the game. As for the sound, that sweet sound of metal clanging, crossbow arrows zooming past you, random uruk/orc grunts, and familiar sounds from Tolkiens world makes the game world feel truly alive, and it does a terrific job of making you feel that this is you in Middle-Earth right now. The voice acting is also excellent, as veteran voice actor Troy Baker (Ocelot, Delsin Rowe, Booker DeWitt) voices the main protagonist. It is in the Uruks/Orcs, and the narrator though, that the voice acting truly stands out. The way the Uruks/Orcs taunt you will either hype you for the battle, or will make you feel a bit hesitant, and it adds another layer of depth in this game absent from other action games. Gameplay: 11/10 Yes, you read right. I give this game an 11. At first I got a bit bored playing the game because as excellent as the Arkham series freeflow system of fighting is; it didnt offer anything new. Even the levelling up system is quite similar to the Arkham games. Here you have your standard attack button, counter button, stun button, dodge button; basically an Arkham City skinned as LOTR as far as gameplay is concerned, and it felt all too familiar - Until I died. I died from a high-level captains grunt. You can only counter so many times before your inevitable death, and this lucky grunt, took the final blow. After you die, you see this familiar animation/cutscene present in the Arkham games everytime you die, but this was different. The grunt that killed me, taunted me; thanked me for my death as it will ensure his promotion to captain, and sure enough it did. The grunt was a captain now. After I got revived I hunted this grunt down, marked him on my map, and looked for worms; uruk-hai who, when interrogated, give off captain locations or weaknesses. Now I had his location, AND his weaknesses. It felt good. So I went for him, dashed past any uruks/orcs, slaying those that got in my way. When I finally saw the grunt, he taunted me again. Back for more, eh? Turns out this grunt is mortified of Caragors. So I find one in a cage and set it free. The grunt immediately becomes a bumbling coward, begging for his life. So I dashed towards him and tried attacking him, but the guy got stronger. Counters dont work on him anymore, and only finishers can hurt him. After a furious battle, after Ive whittled his health down to a measly amount, he decides hes had enough. I am not sticking around for this. I shall live to fight another day, ranger! and starts running away. I wait for him to get to a certain distance, I ready my bow, and put a well placed arrow through his head. Gorluk the Black is dead. It was so satisfying. Fun Factor: 10/10 Shadow of Mordor is definitely a fun game! With a plethora of things to do, sidequests to fulfil, and beasts to hunt; not to mention the nemesis system; it will certainly keep you busy for hours on end. Though as with any other open-world games, it might start to feel repetitive, but SoM does a good job of masking repetitiveness. I feel that the target demographic for this game is so wide, that it will surely find something to please everyone. Fans of the LOTR will appreciate all the lore and mythos present in this game. Fans of Assassins Creed will find the platforming and climbing sections highly familiar. Arkham games fans will definitely welcome the freeflow combat. Though nothing is more fun than taking on a horde of uruks, and taking them down, one by one. Heads will fly, and uruk blood will be spilled; and that in itself is tons of fun. Replayability: -/10 As far as replayability is concerned, I was uncertain on how to rate this. The amount of stuff you can do is vast. Though I am unsure of what else to replay once youve completed the game 100%; just like any other open-world game. There is no online multiplayer here. For now, this is a true single player experience, and Im not complaining. As with Wolfenstein, the single player experience is so good, I didnt mind that there isnt a multiplayer game. This will also come as a sort of good news for those that sell their games in the 2nd-hand market. This is one for the bros who just want to play offline once in a while and have friends watch while the narrative and atmosphere whisk them away to Middle-Earth. Summary: 9.5/10 What else can I say but SLEEPER HIT OF THE YEAR. Shadow of Mordor, flew under the radar and took me by surprise. This is one of the games you just have to experience for yourself. All I know is, this is the greatest Lord of the Rings game so far, and definitely one of the most refreshing open-world action games out there. If those two statements didnt hype you up, I dont know what will - unless you hate both open-world games AND LOTR. Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor; the one game to rule them all. Myyyyyyy preciooussssssssssssssss.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 03:08:22 +0000
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