When you see Shadow of War cover art, it looks cool, and for a moment, it seems like it could be fun. But then you consider its price, and you start asking yourself questions about whether or not you want to deal with it. After finishing my platinum of the game, I can answer that question for you. I would not play this again if I were given then chance. Warner Bros. has taken the game too far in its progression of giving in to fans. This is by far one of the most in-depth and challenging games I have ever played. However, it's not just the story and the difficulty that get me. The game gets very frustrating when it comes to movement and movement speeds. The only way you will be able to really move around the world is by going on an indoor level or climbing on the side of a cliff… at least until you get the ability to summon a dragon.
The Pros
The story in Shadow of War is deep and engaging. The combat system in Shadow of War is robust and just a step above what you get from the Assassins Creed games. The player has more freedom in how they want to play the game—the variety of powers. The Nemesis system lets you play pokemon with orcs. All these combine to make the game, for the most part, enjoyable. The Cons The Story is predictable. I found the game to be somewhat challenging at times. Shadow of War launches on October 10th for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Graphics
Middle-earth: Shadow of War looks stunning, far more so than its predecessor. It's almost unreal, even with all the destruction. Graphics were of a higher quality for 2017. While the cut-scenes aren't anything extraordinary, their environments and the character design are stunning.
Gameplay
The gameplay is similar to Shadow of Mordor, with multiple methods to bring on opponents. You have your ability to control Orc followers or orcs you don't control. You can also use those followers to find, bring on, or attack enemies. If you choose to control the followers, they obey your command and remain in a circle around your desired target.
Combat System
After years of complaining about the combination of stuns and silenced weapons, Warner Bros. finally did the right thing and gave us a "good old-fashioned" hit on stuns. The new Power Surge abilities feel more like a hybrid between perks and a punch-first special. When you want to stun someone, you need to time your Power Surge ability with the very last hit of the combo (be it a charge, overhead attack, etc.), but you can't stun without killing the enemy. Since the stuns hit silently, you must listen for the enemy going down before you stun them. Although they do no damage to the enemy, they can damage your gear and put you in a vulnerable state. It's similar to the perks you would see in Modern Warfare or Rainbow Six, but it seems much better.
Character Development
Let's start with character development. In Shadow of War, you have a choice to make early on. Early on, Talion/ Celebrimbor has to decide whether he wants to return to Middle Earth or not. It's a little bit late in the game to become a hero to his people. It will be interesting to see the impact that this choice has. The morality system is strong in Shadow of War. Not every choice will be clear-cut. Depending on the person, their actions could affect Talion or Celebrimbor in different ways. There is a big decision to be made in a lot of ways, but the interesting part is the conversations. Every conversation I had on my mission usually ended up in a big fight, but it was always for a good reason. You'll find yourself talking to a lot of different orcs on your journey.
The Cons
Gameplay - I think many players agree that Shadow of War plays great and is a compelling story experience. For others, it seems as though they went in with very high hopes and maybe a bit of arrogance and walked out of the theatre frustrated with a number of issues they had with the game, even though it's undoubtedly an improvement over the original. At the end of the day, it's fun, but it has its issues. Ranking - 7 There are a few reasons I think Shadow of War will get the 'Fail' rating. For one, while I love it, I can't see myself being able to play it for much more than a few hours. The mechanics are not intuitive, especially at the higher difficulties, and the leveling isn't anywhere near as satisfying as it was in the original game.
Story
Guerrilla Games has designed a good enough story for this game. You will experience a lot of the story in many different ways. You may listen to Talion, something the majority of your time will be spent doing, or you may encounter Mordor directly. The story takes the usual fantasy tale and tweaks it to fit their sensibilities. Graphics and gameplay If the story does not interest you, the graphics and gameplay will. The graphics are crisp, and the character models look great. I remembered a few years ago, a lot of people would avoid playing games like this because of the graphics, but it seems like people have grown to accept the bigger is a better approach.
Repetitive
Not only was the gameplay repetitive, but the story was also repetitive. I can't remember what happened in what order in the story because I did it all so many times. If you're looking for a new Elder Scrolls game, then look elsewhere. Shadow of War is like watching the Paul vs. Mayweather match. If you watch it, you can see why with the messiness, it could be fun, but you get bored quickly. Video Games, Lord of the Rings, and Lego belong in separate universes. Is it a surprise? But is it still worth playing?
Conclusion
A major addition to the Shadow of War franchise is the Nemesis System that makes the game more exciting and rewarding as you explore the massive land of Mordor. It is the heart of the game's real depth. While the Nemesis System can feel overwhelming, it adds a layer of strategy to the gameplay and gives the player an alternative approach to completing the missions. Despite this element, the overall game is best enjoyed in a quick session as it can get dull due to its repetitive nature. The gameplay is linear, and while it may not be for everyone, I would recommend you play this game if you picked it up with you Playstation Plus subscribtion, especially if you are looking for a Shadow of Mordor-esque game and do not mind some repetitive tasks and a lot of collectible findings if you want that platinum.
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