Well… where to begin. I can’t explain to you how fresh of a game this is, with its dynamic gameplay/ storyline, combat in the style of Batman: Arkham City and Assassin’s Creed style stealth system, I can easily say that Shadow Of Mordor, for me at least, is easily the icing on top of the gaming cake that is 2014.
I would just like to make a quick note and say that to fully explore and explain the complexity and aspects of this game, it is unavoidable that I will go into some detail about the storyline, but i will try and keep that to a minimal and if I do i will be as brief and with as little detail as possible for those who would like to follow this on their own. But once you have had a taste of the mishaps and antics, you will want to play and experience this for yourself, even if it isn’t your sort of game.
Before I played it myself, I watched a playthrough on YouTube up to about the 35% story line mark and boy am i glad i stopped watching it. I was and still am fully submerged in the storyline, following Talion around Mordor searching for the lost memories of the Wraith like creature that he has been fused with. I shan’t ruin the storyline for you but if you have played it then i am sure you can understand my anticipation to complete it.
Upon starting the game, you are immediately thrown into a combat training scenario with your son (Student has become the master anyone…) which teaches you the basics. Now for any gamer, this is of course an imperative part of the game, getting to know the ins and outs of combat and getting to know those “Sweet Spots”. Shortly after you have mowed down some Uruks with a hint of hack and slash, you are then shown how to use your stealth abilities which are very similar to that of Assassin’s Creed, whether it be sneaking up behind them and dealing a brutal and quite literal cut throat move or swan diving from above and pretty much flattening the poor buggers.
Now that you have that down you can begin the gameplay… and oh my is it one hell of a game. You are instantly thrown into the chaotic and ruined world that is Mordor and gradually gain abilities and powers as you unlock the secrets of the Wraith who you have been merged with through a… I’m going to say near death experience to eliminate/ assassinate/ murder the hierarchy of the Black Hands militant Captains and Warchiefs. All whilst helping an Orc known as Ratbag The Coward progress through the ranks to eventually become a Warchief, which i have to admit is fairly short lived (no pun intended).
Once you have made some progress through the campaign, or even before if that’s how you play, there is a plethora of side quests/ memorial artifacts (helping you discover the backstory of the Wraith) and even some Elven Runes to find and gain experience points to further your abilities and progress through the campaign. You may be thinking that there can’t be many given that there are so many different groups of side quests for such a game, but there 200+ objectives that are not part of the main questline which gives it such a dynamic and independent style of gameplay that keeps you wanting to go back for more.
At current, I have clocked a total of 16 hours of playtime and have only completed 54% of the game, with no complaints or faults that i can find so far and i am pretty sure that given the way i play games that it is mostly the main story line that i have left, but by no means have i come close to getting any of the side quests done yet! Having played that much of a game and not coming close to 100% I can honestly say that i believe this to be a next generation game taking into account everything that has been said about it.
So in conclusion, if you haven’t bought this game, didn’t like the look of it or simply haven’t even taken the time to look at it, then you are seriously missing out on what has to be my favorite game of 2014 and given the releases this year could well be my favorite of 2015 as well. So get buying and playing, let me know what you think, if i have missed anything out or if you disagree with anything i have said!
Let’s Get Gaming!
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Although I really did enjoy the several hours I sunk into Mordor last year, I just couldn’t stick with it. After dying over and over again to some of the same enemies, I just got frustrated and stopped playing. I get that you’re supposed to die in Mordor and that’s part of what makes the Nemesis system great, but I’m not very good when it comes to games that require precise button presses (counters / dodges etc.) and I’m also not very patient. I would constantly get overrun and die because I couldn’t counter and dodge fast enough and eventually I stopped having fun.
I’ll still admit it’s a great game for anyone who doesn’t get frustrated by dying..haha..
-avideogamelife.com