VIDEO Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014)

So because one game was disappointing you're going to not look forward to any other future releases?

 

It's called "being wary" or "being a smart consumer".

Anything with a license is something that's more likely to be utter crap than anything else. Not every dev can be Rocksteady or Telltale Games, it seems.

 

The Tolkien license is notorious for producing weak games. I mean seriously, when EA got to use Tolkien's books in addition to Jackson's films for BFME2, but somehow manage to give Glorfindel white hair, when his name literally means "blond, golden-haired", I generally lost faith in games using the license, especially when Pandemic Studios somehow managed to create such an apparently lackluster game in The Lord of the Rings: Conquest despite the fact it used the mechanics from the Star Wars: Battlefront series.

 

This one looks interesting, but I'm wary of judging the game on footage that's literally watermarked as "pre-alpha."

I don't know why they even bothered with the Tolkien license. The relation to the actual mythos seems pretty superficial.

 

Indeed, about as superficial as the story of The Rise of the Witch-king expansion was to the known events of the Fall of Arnor.

 

I'm pretty sure if the engine supports the same code type then code can be copied over with very minimal tweaking. There's only a handful of reliable coding systems out there after all, so multiple engines are going to be built off of the same systems. However I say that as a neophyte coder with no experience in games programming, so I could be wrong as far as compatibility between engines.

That said, let's not forget that Assassin's Creed also has the aforementioned combat system. This is where, for me, the idea of code being stolen becomes very feasible. These games don't just have similar core mechanics. They look practically the same, with the only difference seen so far being that you can pull off special powers in what passes for this game's version of eagle vision. You could reskin the gameplay that we've been given so it takes part in a historical setting and you would be forgiven for thinking that this was just an incremental improvement for Assassin's Creed 5. They do say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but there's limits to what you can pull before imitation starts to smell of plagiarism.

Even if Shadows of Mordor isn't built off of plagiarised code, it still is a game that looks distinctly "Been here, done that" in execution, as it's arriving at a time when Assassin's Creed fatigue has settled in for a lot of people.

The thing is, this isn't taking part in any of what I consider to be the parts of Middle Earth that make it such a desirable place to visit in a game. Tolkein had a great passion for nature and culture, and it's very apparent in his writing. It's part of what makes his writings so vivid and poetic. Personally I think that's one of the main strengths of Peter Jackson's movies too, even The Hobbit. They capture the wonderful landscapes and jaw dropping monuments perfectly.

This game doesn't give us Middle Earth in all of it's broad and beautiful nature though. It takes place entirely within the confines of Mordor. So I'm expecting a vast, desolate landscape that consists of nothing but the same variations on the colour brown that have been in vogue since Gears of War. That's like giving us an Elder Scrolls game where instead of exploring the beauty of Tamriel we're forced to play within a tiny section of Oblivion.

This is partly why, to me, this game feels barely connected to the Middle Earth license at all and could have been branded it's own IP.

 

Totally, and I guess I'm just more frustrated with the articles and comments I've read on various sites that don't know the difference between imitation and genuine plagiarism. I mean, if there's a lawsuit coming, then a lawsuit's coming, but all we can do is sit and wait. This is also alpha footage, so a lot can change - perhaps they did use AC code as a placeholder. I dunno. Frustration on my part.

 

It looks like it's pretty cool. I'll probably get it. I have Two Towers game, The Third Age and Lego Lord of the Rings and apart from the Third Age which was ok but frustrating they where all really good so I have high hopes for this being good.

 

You can't really judge a game by someone else's reviews though.

I'm starting that Lego LOTR game tonight. Only tried LOTRO so far..

Sent from my GT-S5660 using Tapatalk 2

 

I disagree. A good review will not only give you the author's opinion of the game, but will lay out the facts for you as well. It will let you know what game mechanics it has going for it and the issues it faces.

Sure, plot is subjective. But a lot of game mechanics can be described to you, and you'll know whether you like that or not. A review isn't a substitute for actually playing the game, but they exist for a reason. They help consumers decide whether a purchase is worth their time and money.

 

You could lower you're expectations so when you play it, you won't be that disappointed

Cause I know I am keeping it low.

 

So the recent games haven't been very good then? I've only recently got into Lord of the Rings so I haven't played much of the games. I was thinking about getting the Conquest one because Pandemic made it I think.

 

Conquest is pretty pathetic from what I've heard, despite the fact it uses many of the same mechanics as the Battlefront series.

 

Conquest is fun for a bit but it gets boring after awhile.

Story mode is only worth playing.

 

Why should you lower your expectations? You should be demanding better video games instead. This industry only improves if nobody buys the shovelware.

 

I don't want to go around expecting things to let me down, I'd rather expect them to be amazing and excellent.

 

I'm going to get a lot of hate for this, but... I enjoyed War in the North.

*runs and hides*

 

It had it's moments.

 

I'm pretty excited about this game, and am willing to give it some leeway with its adherence to canon. That said, if Gollum shows up I'll throw my controller at the screen.

 

And why would you do that to your poor TV?

 

I expect thematic dissonance from the books, but Gollum showing up 500 years before he's born is too much.

 

Yeah when is Assassin's Creed: Mordor released?

 

This year

 

Um this game will be taking place between The Hobbit and LOTR

 

Then Game Informer is lying to me when they said it was around 2000 Third Age? Somehow they seem more reliable than internet hearsay.