Middle Earth: Shadow of War Review
“The Hobbits The Hobbits The Hobbits The Hobbits to Isengard to Isengard”
If you haven’t heard of The Lord of the Rings by now, you’ve probably lived under a rock. The brilliantly-written book series by J. R. R. Tolkien (with whom I happen to share a birthday) was translated into film by Peter Jackson in the early 2000s and grossed nearly $3 billion, not counting for the subsequent Hobbit series, DVD releases, and merchandise.
Middle Earth: Shadow of War is the sequel to the wildly successful Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, following the tale of the ranger Talion in his quest to avenge his family’s death and kill Sauron. Shadow of Mordor’s gameplay involved you seeking out Uruk (elite orc warrior) captains, interrogating “Worms” to learn their weaknesses, fighting them, and then “dominating” them to add to your growing possessed orc army.
The ability to dominate Uruks is granted by the wraith Celebrimbor, the elven craftsman who forged the Rings of Power and was deceived by Sauron to create the infamous “One Ring to Rule Them All.” Banished from death, like Talion, Celebrimbor’s fate is tied to the rings he created; the only way for him to die is to destroy the One Ring.
At the end of the first game, Talion and Celebrimbor end up crafting a new Ring of Power, one that is “pure,” and grants the user significantly more control over the minds of Uruks and beasts. Shadow of War seeks to expand upon the gameplay of the original and strikes a balance between making the player feel more powerful and vulnerable at the same time.
The Nemesis System
Shadow of Mordor introduced a novel concept for its orc enemies — the “Nemesis System.” Uruks will remember what you did to them in combat, will sometimes cheat death and ambush you, or adapt based on your past interactions with them.
Shadow of War expands on the Nemesis System by crafting unique surnames and dialogue options for orcs depending on what they do in the game. For instance, an orc with the title “the Assassin” might change the title based on their prowess in the fight pits to “Brawl-Master.”
Some Uruks are absolutely insane — an Uruk with the title “Giggles” laughs as their only dialogue towards the player. Some have been taken over by an insect parasite eating into their brains, earning the title “the Infested.”
There is no shortage of randomly-generated Uruks to fight across Middle Earth, and, according to the Wiki, there are 565 Uruk titles in the game, mixed and matched across Uruks with randomized combat abilities, weaknesses, shapes, sizes, and voices.
Conquering Middle Earth
Shadow of War has you taking over regions with your army of loyal Uruks via infiltrating an Overlord’s Warchief bodyguards, either through killing or adding them to your ranks, to lower the defenses of an Overlord’s fortress. You can send your Uruk captains to the fight pits to prove their combat prowess and become a Warchief’s own bodyguard, and once that Warchief has two of your captains, they can lead the Warchief into a betrayal mission.
In these missions, the Warchief confronts Talion in an isolated location and both the bodyguards attack him, stabbing him in the back figuratively and literally, taking a chunk out of his health and leaving an opening for the player to finish him off or add him to the ranks.
Once all the Warchiefs in a region are either dead or assimilated, you lead an assault onto the fortress. You kill waves of enemies, capture objective points, and once the main area of the fortress is secure, it leads to a final confrontation with the Overlord.
After you deal with the Overlord, you formally take the fortress as your own and assign one of your Uruk captains to become the new Overlord. As each Uruk comes from a different tribe, the fortress’s appearance will change based on whatever that Uruk’s tribe values. For example, a Warmonger’s fortress will be covered in bladed walls and practical defenses, while a Mystic’s fortress will be covered in bones and ritualistic designs.
Talion’s abilities have increased with the new Ring of Power. Your traditional fighting abilities with a sword, knife, and bow are enhanced as you kill enemies and slot runes into your gear. Red runes grant increased damage, green grants increased health/healing, and white grants increased experience gain or the number of levels Uruks gain upon recruitment.
Over time, you can unlock the ability to assign your own Uruk bodyguard to summon as an ally in battle and even a Caragor (large dog-like beasts) or a Graug (think larger versions of Rancors from Star Wars) can come to your aid. Talion can now double jump to travel further across large areas and slow time in mid-air when drawing his bow.
Final Thoughts
Middle Earth: Shadow of War improves on the Nemesis System in ways the first couldn’t have foreseen. In my 20 hour playthrough, I’ve loved playing this game again, struggling against Uruk captains, getting saved by allies, taking down fortresses, and training my captains to be the best they can be.
My favorite memory in the playthrough was during a siege of a fortress. I had conquered everything but was struggling against the boss who was at least 4 or 5 levels above me. I had used both my “Last Chance” survival skills and when the Overlord was about to strike the killing blow, Pâsh the Drunk, a captain 9 levels beneath the Overlord, comes in out of nowhere and finishes him off. Needless to say, I promoted him to Overlord.
If you have a PlayStation Plus membership, the game is free up until Monday, November 30th.
