‘Middle-Earth: Shadow of War’ E3 Impressions: Orc-Slaying Sequel Looks Like a Contender for Game of the Year

Middle-earth: Shadow of War, the sequel to developer Monolith’s 2014 innovative open-world trip through Mordor, is stepping up its game in preparation for all-out war.

2014’s Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor was easily one of the best games released that year. It was a visceral revenge fantasy, chronicling redemption of an ancient ghost alongside the fury of a man from whom everything was taken away.

Shadow of War continues the story of once-ranger Talion, now preparing for open war against Sauron and his minions. Along the way, every aspect of the original game has been cranked to 11. The unique Nemesis System that allowed you to play a variety of procedurally-generated orc war chiefs against one another returns, doubling down on the variety of options, behaviors, and even species to manipulate with your otherworldly power.

At a closed demo, we watched Talion and his ghostly companion take over a massive orcish stronghold. After assembling an army from their recruited forces, the ranger’s own orc captains stepped to the forefront. There were epic speeches from both the commander on the battlements and our forces below.

Once the assault began, there were a shifting series of objectives for victory. The massive clash of orcs and monsters was in and of itself a sight to behold, and the living siege engines only added to the insanity. Talion took control of one such boulder-lobbing monstrosity and used it to rain hell down inside the walls of the keep. Later, he did the same with a dragon.

During the course of the battle, keeping your allies alive is nearly as important as killing your foes. If you allow your chosen captains to fall without aid, they will come to resent you. This could very well lead to outright betrayal at a crucial moment, turning a challenging battle into a veritable avalanche of green-skinned foes.

Loot dropped aplenty during the gameplay, enhanced by another layer of progression. Some weapons have a series of conditional sigils, activated by accomplishing certain feats. These amplified weapons are substantially more powerful, and developing their power looks like a fun way to get players to pursue new strategies.

The demo ended with a climactic boss fight to decide the ruler of the newly taken stronghold. Once defeated, the slain orc warlord was replaced by one of our own. The captain’s nature has a distinct influence on how he will run the fort and its surrounding territory.

Every enemy, whether a captain or common soldier, was procedurally generated, just like in Shadow of Mordor. But the amount of variables present has been exponentially increased. Shadow of War presented combinations that the host of the demo — someone playing the same scenario over and over all day for three days straight — had never seen, and resulted in more than one death.

The additional complexity was handled with seamless elegance. Put simply, Shadow of War is doing precisely what it needs to. It improves on Shadow of Mordor in every conceivable manner. I will be genuinely shocked if it doesn’t immediately become one of the year’s highlights when it releases on October 10.