Mordor is a forsaken wasteland. Rust brown fields of mud spread out beneath a sky of roiling, murky clouds. The only creatures that willingly inhabit this land are the Uruk, Caragor, Ghuls, and other nasty beings that thrive on death and despair.
Set in the greater world of Middle Earth, Monolith Productions’ Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor doesn’t stray from Sauron’s turf. There is no respite to be found in a side trip to Gondor or any of the more picturesque and peaceful spots in Middle Earth. Despite its bleak setting, Shadow of Mordor paints a highly explorable world with a cast and story which are, if not terribly interesting, at least a whole lot of fun.
Shadows of Mordor tells the story of Talion, one of the famed Rangers of Gondor. Talion is charged with guarding the Black Gate, the boundary between Mordor and Gondor. In the first scenes of the game, the Black Gate is attacked by Sauron’s armies. Failing to stave off the legions of Uruk, Talion and his family are slain by the Black Hand of Sauron.
Strangely Talion wakes up to find he has been possessed by an Elven Wraith who has no recollection of his past life. Talion takes advantage of the new powers the Wraith grants him and seeks revenge for the death of his loved ones. At the same time, he helps the wraith uncover his past, reluctantly led by the curiously pathetic, suspiciously sinister Gollum.
Yes, this is another revenge tale. Video games just can’t seem to get enough of them. However, Shadow of Mordor succeeds in spite of this. The story plays out probably how you would imagine it would, but the exceptional voice acting and snarky quips from Talion and the Uruk keep things entertaining.
Shadow of Mordor is also light on Tolkien lore, so people who aren’t Lord of the Rings fans can still enjoy the experience. For those who lean towards the Sindarin speaking side of the scale, there’s something there for you as well.
The artifact system is the first time I’ve actually cared about collectibles. The maps in Shadows of Mordor are full of little artifacts for you to uncover with your wraith vision. Each object you find comes with a memory of the past. Finding the memory treats you to a brief audio clip of events surrounding the object. They often tie into other events in Tolkien’s work. These little tidbits really help to open up Mordor and show how this wasted land fits into the fabric of Middle Earth.While the main storyline is nothing special, the game truly shines in its potential for emergent storytelling. Shadows of Mordor achieves this through its innovative nemesis system. The Uruk armies follow a loose, continuously shifting hierarchy. Warchiefs stand at the top, served by their elite captains, captains and regular old grunts at the bottom.  Eventually you gain the ability to “brand” the Uruk, allowing Talion to control individual Orcs and swing the politics of Orc “society” in your favor. Each of these Orcs are procedurally generated – assigned a random set of strengths and weaknesses, as well as personality traits (mean, meaner or meanest) and physical attributes.
As you fight your way around Mordor, you’ll start to see the same faces popping up time and again. The neat part is they’ll remember you, too. Intimidate a captain in battle and they’ll flee, promising they’ll have your head next time. Indeed, the same Orc might appear days later, ready to try again.
A particularly stubborn Uruk captain kept following me around – he seemingly couldn’t get enough of me stabbing him to death. Appearing at the worst moments, usually when there were at least two other elite Uruk in the vicinity, he would taunt me, bearing battle scars of every increasing severity. He now walks around with a spiked metal plate covering one side of his head because I hacked it with my sword one too many times.
Of course, Talion also faces his fair share of defeats, and the orcs will remember that too. Past opponents will mock you with a “Hey, didn’t I already kill you?” before engaging in a duel. Your pride won’t be the only thing taking a beating, however. Death can come with hefty consequences, even if you are essentially undead. Dying allows your killer to move up in rank, and also causes a shift in the positions of any other Orcs on your radar. Duels and executions all happen in the time it takes for Talion to resurrect. As a result, every time you die, your opponents become stronger while new, unfamiliar orcs also enter the playing field.
Giving the Orcs names, memories and personalities really makes Mordor feel like a real, breathing place. You’re not simply fighting the nameless masses this time. Struggling to beat a particularly slippery enemy time and again, you’ll feel as though you’re on your very own revenge quest separate from the main plot. The nemesis comes as an exciting new surprise, changing the way we view enemies in games.
When Shadow of Mordor isn’t breaking new ground, it’s improving on systems we’re already familiar with.  While the game never strays from the borders of Mordor, it’s still a fairly expansive sandbox. Players are free to travel from point to point at their own leisure, pursuing a plethora of side quests and collectibles in between the main story missions.
Side quests can range from weapon specific challenges, to tasks that influence the Orcish power struggle. Players can interrupt feasts (Orcs like to party) by poisoning grog barrels, or crash recruitment sessions. If two captains are butting heads, you can drop by and ensure that one of them triumphs over the other. Alternatively, take out both of them if you’re feeling brave. Upon completing a quest, new ones will fill its place, meaning there is always something for you to do.
Shadows of Mordor also borrows familiar gameplay elements from other popular open world games. Rather than feeling like a cheap knock-off, though, Shadows mixes these mechanics to create a product that’s even more fun than the originals. Talion possesses the free running and stealth capabilities of the Assassin’s Creed series. Free running is fluid and easy, making quick escapes from orc strongholds a piece of cake.  Further ability upgrades offer a speed boost after mounting obstacles with a well-timed button press. The stealth too, is also incredibly intuitive. As someone who hates stealth, sneaking around was a lot easier and less stressful than in other games. Orcs aren’t very smart, which gives a lot of leeway. The game also encourages players to make the most out of their environment. Shoot a Morgai Fly nest down to send a group of Uruk scrambling, or free an angry Caragor from its cage and let it do the work for you while you hide in the shadows.
Shadows of Mordor takes its combat system from the Arkham games, also published by Warner Bros. It’s a sleek system, where just two buttons will have you moving from Orc to Orc in a blaze of intricate swordsmanship. Adding on the new combos you’ll learn as the game progresses – execution moves, stuns, and wraith abilities, gives you a huge amount of flexibility in how you approach battles.
That battle system is influenced by the game’s “rune” system. In lieu of an inventory system and acquiring new weapons, Shadows of Mordor keeps things simple without sacrificing fun. Defeating orc captains, you’ll be rewarded with a “rune”. Warchiefs will drop epic runes which have even more powerful attributes. You can etch these runes onto one of your three weapons – sword, bow, or dagger. Runes will improve health regeneration, skill recharge times, and the power of certain abilities. If a rune has outlived its usefulness, players can break down the rune into Mirian, a sort of currency that allows you to unlock new attributes.
Attributes affect how many runes you can assign to a weapon, and also unlock ultimate weapon abilities. They’re vital to building an extremely powerful Ranger. On top of runes and attributes, Talion can learn even more abilities simply from defeating captains and warchiefs, or by completing story missions. All of these customizable elements build on each other to create truly satisfying character customization.
Shadow of Mordor has gone from an afterthought to one of the most lovingly discussed games in the new console cycle. Playing it, it’s easy to see why. Given the source material, it’s a little disappointing that story wasn’t stronger. However, the nemesis system, helped by solid navigation and combat systems, is a true innovation in an industry struggling to move forward. Shadow of Mordor is a surprising breath of fresh air.
Published: Oct 2, 2014 08:36 pm