Middle-earth: Shadow of War Reviews
So, I’m not giving this the recommended sticker. It’s too inconsistent for that. But I will say by ignoring the microtransctions and accepting the story for what it was I did have a blast playing Shadow of War, and found myself constantly going back to track down a few more Captains or to just play around with Nemesis system.
Middle-Earth: Shadow of War is a large game, it provides countless hours of gameplay and consistently brings new twists along the way.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War expands on the unique ideas of its predecessor to varying degrees of success. There are deeper mechanics, the Nemesis system is buffed up and much more prevalent and there are interesting characters that you meet on your adventure. However, it adheres too much on the previous game's mechanics and often feels like a retread. There is a mountain of content to play through and even though much of it can feel the same after a while, the momentum it sustains can keep you engaged. A very solid open-world experience awaits you if you choose to jump in and if you enjoyed the previous game, you will have a lot more of it to play in this iteration.
We can definitely say that game ticks every box which makes it a very exciting and enjoyable game. It is definitely a trendsetter and will be an inspiration for many games like these in the future.
The new nemesis system guarantees great challenges against ferocious orcs. A great game that will take us in the depths of Mordor.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is an amazing game. The unique Nemesis system gives us better world design and Orc encounters leading to a truly enjoyable experience.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is great sequel even if it still carries the fault the original game. At least, the Nemesis system now truly feels alive and makes it one of the greatest game mechanics applied in a game. All the strengths of the previous game are reinforced, unfortunately some problems persist and I regret mostly the rough technical side of a game that could look much better for a 2017 release.
Shadow of War is like someone telling you a really exciting story, but they're so indulged in it that they trip over their words and you end up confused and you can't grasp the great magnitude of the adventure in their brain. Muddled but ultimately satisfying and fun, this is a gorgeous Orc pancake with a little too much sickly syrup.
Shadow of War has got off to a rocky start, with potential PR issues with the likes of charitable DLCs, and loot boxes making their way into single player games; I could have ended up being a disaster. However Warner Brothers and Monolith Productions have pulled off a spectacular single player game that does the original justice. If you ignore the bandwagoning hate on loot packages, because really, you don’t need them at all, then Shadow of War should really be a contender for game of the year. You could easily rack up a hundred hours worth of content from finding all the collectables and messing around in the nemesis system.
Ultimately, Shadow of War is a good game that isn’t as endearing as its predecessor or as revolutionary in its ideas. While it adds layers of new mechanics on top of the emergent gameplay found in the first, its creaky fundamentals, questionable endgame, and lackluster story hold it back from being quite as essential as what came before it.
Shadow of War is much bigger than its predecessor, offering more orcs, more gear, more to conquer, and your very own orc army. It's a massive game with so much to do that it can feel like a bit of a grind later in the game. Likewise, the loot box mechanic interfaces with army upkeep in a way that feels less than satisfying. Shadow of War is still a great game, but there's a linger corruption that keeps it from perfection.
Shadow of War is a nice sequel to Shadow of Mordor. But, as with Mordor, some of the plot holes and annoyances are here and it stops this from becoming a great game. For me Monolith have gone out to improve the Nemesis system, which they have done very well with. But, in doing so forgot the most important part of any game. Tell a good story! If you’re a Tolkien fan and have issues with the lore being played around with, you will find yourself as rage filled as some of the orcs you’re going to be fighting. But, if you’re a casual LOTR / fantasy fan, then the story is there for you to enjoy and make the most of.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War wants to be too much at the same time and ends up (besides a greatly improved Nemesis System) in a repetitive mess that doesn't shine in terms of story and graphics. The integration of the Lootboxes doesn't effect the game as much as we expected but it still shouldn't be in a Singleplayer title to begin with. Fans of Lord of the Rings still get to see some of their fan favourites and the gameplay this time is really solid.
Review in German | Read full review