Shadows of Mordor (video game)

[Rieno]

I don't hold a lot of hope for "The Shadow of Mordor" because it looks to have no light or goodness or humor in it, something that seems present in most of Tolkien's works, but in their defense:

In the interviews with the company designing it, they said they are reading lots of World War I history to understand the dynamics of Mordor and quote Tolkien saying, "We were all orcs in the war". In this sense, perhaps the game will have some literary value in the story delving into the habits of orcs, who all hate Sauron in their heart. In these respects I'm a little interested in the story.

[Bomilkar]

In the interviews with the company designing it, they said they are reading lots of World War I history to understand the dynamics of Mordor and quote Tolkien saying, "We were all orcs in the war". In this sense, perhaps the game will have some literary value in the story delving into the habits of orcs, who all hate Sauron in their heart. In these respects I'm a little interested in the story.

I absolutely agree with this. Apart from the fact that the gameplay seems rather nifty, I love the idea of having a deeper insight into the inner workings of Mordor and orc society. In Tolkien's works there are not many moments when we get such insights, but when they occur they are rather intriguing as they give 'the enemy' more character. When orcs talk with each other they do indeed seemed like a mix between Victorian street thugs and First World War trenchers - especially when they bring up references to those higher in the hierarchy (e. g. 'Lugburz').

I am quite happy to play an a-thematic anti-hero, if he is used as a vehicle give me a glimpse into Morder and 'the orcs' society, an aspect that is not heavily developed in other media.

[Elmoth]

Ok, after SirKickley's post I can only say:

[SirKicley]

@ ElmothFor the record, that write-up was for Lord of the Rings Online. Not for Shadows of Mordor.

And you can do alot of gaming for free on LOTRO as alot of features are FTP (free to play). Having a VIP (monthly subscription) of course provides ALOT of perks and makes the game all the more awesome, but you could play until 30th level without ever spending a dime. You earn credits too while playing that you can spend on their LOTRO store to upgrade your characters or account.

I buy annual passes for $99. That like 8 bucks a month to enjoy it to my hearts content. I can't even to a movie theater for 8 bucks; so it's a no-brainer for me and get a whole lot more time of entertainment for my dollars. Otherwise it's $15.00 / month or three months at a time for $39.

But you can play till 20th level easily and determine if you want to shell out the money for a VIP or whatever since you can download it for free.

If you do go on - once you hit 50th level and you unlock Moria and Legendary Weapons/Items, that is one super awesome feature. The acquisition, management, and upgrading of legendary weapons are something that is very rewarding, and intricate. They really allow for some great customization. Like I said, there's never a time when I just don't have something I can work on and enjoy.

Again I'm on the CRICKHOLLOW server and my (main) character is Shandralyn. Look me up if you hop on there.

Robert

Robert

[Rich H]

... Damn, all this talk of LOTR online has me thinking about reinstalling it, seeing if my characters are still there, and having a blast on it. Would also be interesting to see how it runs on my laptop as last time I played was when I used a desktop PC.

[Yusei]

Is the Shire really better that the rest of the game? I started playing as a human a while ago, and got bored very quickly, but now I am tempted to try again as a hobbit.

[Elmoth]

@ ElmothFor the record, that write-up was for Lord of the Rings Online. Not for Shadows of Mordor.

I know. I downloaded LOTR online yesterday. I plan on checking it this afternoon.

[SirKicley]

Is the Shire really better that the rest of the game? I started playing as a human a while ago, and got bored very quickly, but now I am tempted to try again as a hobbit.

"Better" is subjective.

What I believe however is that The Shire area captures what most of us love about The Hobbit and LOTR better than the Archet/Combe/Staddle into Bree line of quests do.

The Shire quests are more.......well.......hobbit-ish! The quaint (read: cute) and often silly (read: hilariously corny) quests that the hobbits need from you, are downright entertaining (read: adorable). It feels more homely, and satisfies my love of all things Hobbit far more - their simple-minded easy-living temperaments are comforting.

When you break it down - yeah - they're same quests - "go here and fetch flowers, go there and kill 20 boars, go here and investigate footprints - yes I know you're a 30th level hero and literally just saved Bree from an orc invasion, but we really need you to go milk this cow, and bring back a bunch of deer penises."

But that being said, the flowery interaction and wordings are the quests in the shire are far more entertaining. The topography is very rich, and how can you beat getting a chance to interact with the pesky Sackville-Baggins, going to the Green Dragon for ale, visiting the Party Tree spot of Bilbo's party, and seeing Bag-end under the hill.


It is interesting in Bree quests for Men however to learn that you're on a line of quests to oppose Sharkey's bandits - and some may or may not know that Sharkey is Saruman after his fall from grace and stripped of his "white wizard" status. So that's kinda cool.


The elf quests starting in Ered Luin are my least favorite for starting quests. Their melancholic and depressing demeanor is sometimes too thick. The Dwarves of Thorin's Hall are rather amusing just because of the gruff manner in which all the dwarves respond to you and how direct and single-focused they tend to be.


Ultimately - I don't begrudge anyone from "getting bored too quickly". It's not a fast game at all. It's not a action packed game at all until you get post 20th level and can start doing skirmishes. The higher level you are, the more skirmishes you have access to, and the more robust they become. But yeah, it's a slow going game; but that is okay with me - I work in a very stressful environment (I work in grievances and appeals - conflict resolution), and so coming home to play LOTRO is cathartic for me. It relaxes my mind. I don't want anything too fast, complicated, or difficult. I like the meager lackadaisical approach that I can just meander about. If you're into that - want to slow down and smell the roses, take in the landscapes, explore, and read all the quests and lore in the game, then I think it's best game out there for that. The other cool thing is there's always more at any given level than you are able to do. Even a starting character can start in either Shire, Archet (bree area), Thorin's Hall, or Celondim (Ered Luin), and never even have to venture into one of the other areas till you're 15th level. Once you hit 20th, you have the Barrow Downs, NorthDowns, or LoneLands that you can go to. Once you hit 30th, you can go to Oatbaron inot Evendim, or Trollshaws into Rivendell. At 40th you can go to Forochel or Misty Mountains or Angmar. At 50 you have Eregion or Moria. At 60 you have Lothlorien/Golden Woods, or Enedwaith, and Mirkwood. At 70 you have Dunland or The Great River, The Gap of Rohan, and Isengard. and that goes into Wold, West Mark, East Mark of Rohan and take you all the way to capstone 95th level (for the moment).

LOTRO (Turbine/Blizzard) just extended their agreement with MEE, and will have license until at least 2017 now. So no doubt there will be two more major expansions. Most likely Gondor next, and Mordor to follow.

[Elmoth]

Well, it seems my poor computer is not up to the task, and lags so much when trying to run LOTRO that I cannot play properly. Pity. Thanks for the heads up and the tips

[Glorelendil]

I love the idea of having a deeper insight into the inner workings of Mordor and orc society. In Tolkien's works there are not many moments when we get such insights, but when they occur they are rather intriguing as they give 'the enemy' more character. When orcs talk with each other they do indeed seemed like a mix between Victorian street thugs and First World War trenchers - especially when they bring up references to those higher in the hierarchy (e. g. 'Lugburz').

In another thread there's been a discussion of what TOR's Moria could be like. The problem, of course, is that Moria is really too dangerous for normal adventurers.

I was re-reading MERP's Moria, and one thing I liked was their description of three different factions of Orcs, and the rivalries/wars between them. Maybe one way adventurers could survive in Moria is by exploiting factional divisions. I'm working on some ideas around this; perhaps I'll try to write it up and post it.