Is Shadow of War Worth Buying in 2022? A LOTR Fan‘s In-Depth Review
As a huge Lord of the Rings fan, I‘ve always wanted to step into Tolkien‘s Middle-earth and forge my own epic adventure. Shadow of War allows me to do just that, letting me recruit orc followers, conquer enemy fortresses, and uncover artifacts of power. But with the game being a few years old now, is it still worth buying? After revisiting Shadow of War in 2022, I can confidently say yes – it remains one of the best LOTR games out there and an incredible open world power fantasy.
Reliving Middle-earth through Emergent Narratives
At its core, Shadow of War is a massive sandbox that promotes experimentation and naturally produces memorable player-driven narratives through its Nemesis system. Few games allow us to form such personal vendettas and bonds with procedurally generated NPCs.
I still reminisce about Ratbag, the constantly unlucky orc who I shamed into becoming deranged but ended up ironically becoming a powerful ally. Or Baz the Banshee, who ambushed me once too often and forced me into a raging blood feud across the lands of Nurnen. The Nemesis system makes normally bland open world busywork feel connected and full of purpose.
Gearing up and upgrading your skills to take down a particularly bothersome nemesis provides satisfying progression. The various RPG systems allow you to build Talion to match your preferred playstyle. I personally enjoy stealth builds that let me dominate enemies to sow chaos before assassinating overlords. There‘s also tons of legendary gear to discover that change up gameplay. The new Mask of the Undying I found makes me unstoppable, letting me return from death with full health!
Massive Sieges Against Overlords Are Thrilling
The large-scale castle siege battles pitting your army against fortified overlords are a highlight. Weaving through the chaos and fighting alongside your loyal orc followers to take control of the fortress is intensely cinematic.
The preparation phase allows you to strategize too. I always make sure to select followers with bonuses that counter the overlord‘s strengths. Dominating key bodyguards also weakens them ahead of the fight. Ultimately, every fortress has its own unique rhythm, keeping sieges exciting even after dozens of hours.
Vast World Brimming with Deranged Personality
While the gameplay is entertaining on its own, Shadow of War‘s setting and production values really bring the experience together. Monolith nailed the atmosphere of a gritty, lived-in Mordor teeming with Tolkien‘s foul creatures. The contrasting biomes like the verdant jungles of the Nurnen region add plenty of visual variety.
Brian Cox‘s gravelly narration as the wraith Celebrimbor also lends a lot of gravitas. And the orcs themselves are highlights, from their Cockney accents to their slapstick animations during intros. Their randomly generated appearances and barked dialogue give so much character to what would‘ve been generic enemies.
I‘ll never forget Baz the Cruel, my nemesis whose deranged screams of "gravewalker!" sent chills down my spine before our final showdown. It‘s these little details that really make you feel immersed in a living, breathing world.
Staying True to Middle-earth Lore
As a Tolkien purist, I‘m quite impressed by how Monolith expertly melded their original story with existing LOTR lore. They clearly did their research and took care to ensure continuity with the books. While Shadow of War isn‘t considered strictly canon, neither does it feel like a disrespectful spin-off thanks to staying faithful to the spirit of the lore.
Playing as Talion and Celibrimbor exploring Mordor provides a cool new perspective, almost like side stories that could complement the main events in LOTR. The artifacts you collect such as the palantiri seeing stones were neat references as a lore buff. And while some of the new characters and regions invented by Monolith didn‘t originally exist, they blend into the world seamlessly.
Shadow of War By the Numbers
- 91 – Metacritic score for PC version
- Over 1.5 million – Copies sold in first week of release
- 55 hours – Time to 100% complete all content
- 10+ – Amount of legendary armor sets to collect
- 5 – Number of zones making up the diverse open world
Why It‘s Still Worth Playing in 2022
Now at the tail end of 2022, Shadow of War holds up incredibly well 5 years from its initial launch. Unlike many AAA open world games, the minute-to-minute gameplay remains highly satisfying thanks to the combat and Nemesis system. Exploring Mordor and recruiting orc followers is simply great mindless fun.
The graphical presentation and performance also shine, especially on PC where mods can further enhance fidelity and remove pesky limitations. The removal of the infamous Shadow Wars endgame grind means the story can be completed smoothly without friction. Quality of life upgrades introduced post-launch improved overall pacing as well.
Considering the wealth of content available, Shadow of War Ultimate Edition delivers tremendous value at around $20 currently. With potentially over 50 hours of gameplay, that comes out to less than $0.50 per hour – an absolute steal!
If you‘re a Tolkien fanatic like myself, exploring Middle-earth to forge new legends never gets old. I wholeheartedly recommend picking up Shadow of War to live out your power fantasies in Mordor and create unique personal stories through its emergent Nemesis system. It remains one of the most underrated open world action RPGs out there.