Summer game tip: Shadow of Mordor
Shadow of Mordor is a game I always wanted to play but somehow I never did, usually because I wasn't certain about the game or to buy the game at the price it was at. Not that there is anything wrong with the game, Shadow of Mordor actually got a lot of good reviews and I've heard a lot of good things from people that have played the game. So I must admit that I always wanted to buy the game but somehow I never did, until yesterday when I noticed that Shadow of War is for sale on Xboxlive! So if you're an Xbox One player with a gold membership then you can get the game for six Euros! Yes I'm not kidding, a fun and interesting game for only six Euros!
You're not really dead in this game?
The start of the game is pretty grim, you play as Talion and your wife and son are murdered in front of you and you're also murdered by the same person, the Black Hand of Sauron, and you would think that this was the end of that story. But Talion meets a wraith, a spirit with unfinished business, in the shadow world, I call it that because it's dark and creepy, that brings him back to the living world and now they are both there and looking for revenge. I won't spoil anything about who the wraith is, you can find that out yourself if you play the game, but I really like the story in this game and a quest for revenge is usually a fun experience and also very satisfying. Your powers are now also increased and you gain new abilities that can definitely help you kill your enemies.
Super ranger?
Talion has now some wraith powers, for example he can track enemy footsteps in wraith mode and also pick up certain collectibles for extra experience. One of his cooler moves is shooting special arrows and time slows down when you aim with your bow so it should be easy to land some headshots. You also have the ability to terrify or dominate an enemy when you grab him and mark him with your hand. This means enemies will fight for you or run away terrified of you, which is actually quite hilarious. I have to admit that I'm not a big fan to walk around in wraith mode, because certain things are so bright, like in a mission when I was tracking a creature the footsteps where so bright that I could see enemies that would be standing right next to him. So it might be smart not to fight in wraith mode, at least not when you're near things that light up like a Christmas tree! But you don't need wraith abilities to kill, Talion is actually a pretty good fighter himself. He can land some good blows on enemies and also has some sneak kills, this means you move around in stealth mode and strike an enemy without anyone spotting you. This gives you an easy and quick kill. My issue with the fighting in this game is that when you try to finish an enemy that's on the ground another enemy can easily disrupt the killing animation which lets the enemy that was on the ground get up again and attack you. It's really frustrating when you face multiple enemies at once. But you do learn new abilities that make fights easier, for example getting eight hits on an enemy without getting hit yourself allows you to execute an enemy with one hit, these brutal animations aren't just very cool but also very effective when you face a lot of enemies at once! If you do go down you resurrect at one of the towers, these towers help you reveal all the collectibles and other points of interest on the map. So even when you go down you're never truly dead.
You have a nemesis?
What's interesting about Shadow of Mordor is the nemesis system which makes fighting enemies more memorable. For example I was sneaking around in a camp when I bumped into an enemy captain, he fought me but when he was almost dead he was trying to get away. Unfortunately I couldn't get to him in time because a lot of other enemies where blocking my path. He survived and remembered you, which means he's going to try and kill me another time and possibly try to do that when I'm busy fighting others or not paying attention. Enemies will learn from their mistakes and if you fail to kill an enemy he will be tougher the next time you face him. It's important to learn the weaknesses of your enemies for easier kills and also to give you an advantage in the fight. If an enemy is too tough you can always run away and try again later. If he does manage to kill you he will rise in fame and might even get a promotion, this makes him stronger and more dangerous but perhaps that could work out for you in the future. If you do manage to kill some of the captains or war chiefs then you have to keep in mind that these people will eventually be replaced, so don't worry about not finding enemies to kill because there's a lot of them! Something that did bother me a bit with this game is how ridiculous certain situations are. For example when I'm walking under a building an archer on top can hear me, but when I'm sneaking in the line of sight of an enemy, of course you're not that close, then he doesn't spot you. It's kind of silly but in the end it does make the stealth approach very valuable.
Why is this game worth checking out?
Because it offers you a lot of fun, not just a fun gameplay experience but also an open world where you decide where you go next. So if you want to hunt down another enemy you can do that, infiltrate a camp and liberate some slaves if you feel like being a good guy, but you can also go on a collectible hunt or complete some survival and training missions to improve your weapons. The map in the game isn't huge, I mean it's not like Skyrim or something like that, but the options you have to pick your own mission and do your own thing does give you a lot of freedom and makes the game experience a lot of fun. The gameplay is pretty good and it's always fun to kill some orcs, especially the loud and annoying type of orcs! You can play in stealth or just go in loud and kill everything in sight. The Xboxlive deal for gold members is also the game of the year edition, so you get all the dlc for the game with it as well. I'd say that's a pretty good deal for six Euros and should help you get through another week in Summer. So far I haven't had one boring moment in the game, which is definitely a good thing in my opinion!
You're not really dead in this game?
The start of the game is pretty grim, you play as Talion and your wife and son are murdered in front of you and you're also murdered by the same person, the Black Hand of Sauron, and you would think that this was the end of that story. But Talion meets a wraith, a spirit with unfinished business, in the shadow world, I call it that because it's dark and creepy, that brings him back to the living world and now they are both there and looking for revenge. I won't spoil anything about who the wraith is, you can find that out yourself if you play the game, but I really like the story in this game and a quest for revenge is usually a fun experience and also very satisfying. Your powers are now also increased and you gain new abilities that can definitely help you kill your enemies.
Super ranger?
Talion has now some wraith powers, for example he can track enemy footsteps in wraith mode and also pick up certain collectibles for extra experience. One of his cooler moves is shooting special arrows and time slows down when you aim with your bow so it should be easy to land some headshots. You also have the ability to terrify or dominate an enemy when you grab him and mark him with your hand. This means enemies will fight for you or run away terrified of you, which is actually quite hilarious. I have to admit that I'm not a big fan to walk around in wraith mode, because certain things are so bright, like in a mission when I was tracking a creature the footsteps where so bright that I could see enemies that would be standing right next to him. So it might be smart not to fight in wraith mode, at least not when you're near things that light up like a Christmas tree! But you don't need wraith abilities to kill, Talion is actually a pretty good fighter himself. He can land some good blows on enemies and also has some sneak kills, this means you move around in stealth mode and strike an enemy without anyone spotting you. This gives you an easy and quick kill. My issue with the fighting in this game is that when you try to finish an enemy that's on the ground another enemy can easily disrupt the killing animation which lets the enemy that was on the ground get up again and attack you. It's really frustrating when you face multiple enemies at once. But you do learn new abilities that make fights easier, for example getting eight hits on an enemy without getting hit yourself allows you to execute an enemy with one hit, these brutal animations aren't just very cool but also very effective when you face a lot of enemies at once! If you do go down you resurrect at one of the towers, these towers help you reveal all the collectibles and other points of interest on the map. So even when you go down you're never truly dead.
You have a nemesis?
What's interesting about Shadow of Mordor is the nemesis system which makes fighting enemies more memorable. For example I was sneaking around in a camp when I bumped into an enemy captain, he fought me but when he was almost dead he was trying to get away. Unfortunately I couldn't get to him in time because a lot of other enemies where blocking my path. He survived and remembered you, which means he's going to try and kill me another time and possibly try to do that when I'm busy fighting others or not paying attention. Enemies will learn from their mistakes and if you fail to kill an enemy he will be tougher the next time you face him. It's important to learn the weaknesses of your enemies for easier kills and also to give you an advantage in the fight. If an enemy is too tough you can always run away and try again later. If he does manage to kill you he will rise in fame and might even get a promotion, this makes him stronger and more dangerous but perhaps that could work out for you in the future. If you do manage to kill some of the captains or war chiefs then you have to keep in mind that these people will eventually be replaced, so don't worry about not finding enemies to kill because there's a lot of them! Something that did bother me a bit with this game is how ridiculous certain situations are. For example when I'm walking under a building an archer on top can hear me, but when I'm sneaking in the line of sight of an enemy, of course you're not that close, then he doesn't spot you. It's kind of silly but in the end it does make the stealth approach very valuable.
Why is this game worth checking out?
Because it offers you a lot of fun, not just a fun gameplay experience but also an open world where you decide where you go next. So if you want to hunt down another enemy you can do that, infiltrate a camp and liberate some slaves if you feel like being a good guy, but you can also go on a collectible hunt or complete some survival and training missions to improve your weapons. The map in the game isn't huge, I mean it's not like Skyrim or something like that, but the options you have to pick your own mission and do your own thing does give you a lot of freedom and makes the game experience a lot of fun. The gameplay is pretty good and it's always fun to kill some orcs, especially the loud and annoying type of orcs! You can play in stealth or just go in loud and kill everything in sight. The Xboxlive deal for gold members is also the game of the year edition, so you get all the dlc for the game with it as well. I'd say that's a pretty good deal for six Euros and should help you get through another week in Summer. So far I haven't had one boring moment in the game, which is definitely a good thing in my opinion!
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