Middle-earth: Shadow of War - Catch All

It's a really fun game to just hop in and slaughter some orcs in whatever style you prefer. Against all odds, I now like flying through the air in slow motion and popping heads, (the bow was never my favorite part), but really, all the best parts of this game were in the first game. They improved upon the emergent stuff happening by making it happen more often. Strangely, for me, this just makes it less special because it happens for everybody and seems so planned out.

Still, the first time I got a bard returning repeatedly, I was thrilled.

This game makes no %#*(#$ sense. I've spent 2 hours fighting orcs in the first section of the first basecamp and have died 8 times, elevating 8 orcs to captainhood. I've killed 6 captains but given 8 orcs their own titles. What the hell is going on? Am I stuck in purgatory? Is the whole game set in this first 50x50ft area? edit: I'm a little frustrated.

Something I wish people would have told me right away, simply run to the Gondor and Shelob quests for the first 6-10 hours of the game. It'll give you more abilities, tips, and give you a better idea of what you should be doing, other than grinding out orc murder.

I mean, you're still grinding out orc murder, but at least you're doing it for a cause..

Like Johnvanjim says, I suggest doing all the big story quests until the only ones you have left are the stronghold and sidestory ones.

Ok, so I have moved on to the next "area" and am slowly killing realizing that the game wants me to climb up buildings, and run around meeting objectives.

Don't just go around killing orcs. That will make you crazy. Go toward objective markers and kill those.

I find I like this game more the less I play it. Logging in to occasionally slaughter some orcs is fantastic fun. Caring too much about anything else is a doorway to madness.

Spoiler for existential crisis:

Spoiler:

So in Act 4 I still have the elf spirit with me to explain things, even though he kicked me to the curb and took over control of the elf lady? (example: I complete a quest with Carnan and the Lord of Light is there to explain the ramifications, even though he should "hate" me at this point. I mean, he left me to die and inhabited his elf lady friend instead. This doesn't make any sense. How do I still have "elven rage" if I don't have any elf spirits in me? I have spider spirits now. I'm undead. A vampire. And I put on Isildur's ring? So I should be a slave of Sauron. But somehow I'm "stronger" so I'm not? I "believe in myself" enough to resist? That's bullsh*t. Any ring of power is going to corrupt me. Full stop.

Is anyone playing the expansion? Any thoughts?

Didn’t even know there were expansions.

Eh?

Don’t feel any need. The game was kind of forgettable popcorn for me.

Sounds like they are going to patch out the microtransactions as it negatively effected the nemesis system.

I'm guessing the fact that sales have dried up probably has something to do with this decision.

They are saying it interferes with their vision of what the Nemesis system was supposed to offer, in that your connection to the captured orcs is stronger if you have to work for it. Being able to buy them thinned out the experience. I agree and look forward to seeing how they make the changes they are saying are coming as a result of this.

After Battlefront, now this, I wonder if any lessons are actually being learned. Or maybe they already got enough of an early cash boost to make it worth including loot boxes, then take them out later once that cow is milked to give the appearance of 'listening to the fans'. Let's face it, there are enough whales out there that loot boxes are probably going to make financial sense for the majority of publishers, gameplay be damned.

maybe they already got enough of an early cash boost to make it worth including loot boxes

I'm guessing this.

Now that the microtransactions are gone, worth it for $20 with the expansion pass? Not sure if it's the story expansions or regular expansion pass, but Gamestop's offering the PS4 version with one of those for $20, and I'm tempted.

I bought it for full price and never used micro-transaction once ( and might not of known they even existed if not for a big Internet brew-ha). I found it to be a very enjoyable “popcorn” game.

That is to say, I don’t really have any memories that last from the last time I bought ate some popcorn, but I enjoy it while I’m eating it nonetheless.

I definitely think it’s worth 20 bucks

I do love me some popcorn gaming. As my 100 hours in AC: Origins will attest to.

Well worth twenty bucks. The microtransactions are an overblown non-issue.

That said, I wouldn't worry too much about the expansions for the same reason the microtransactions don't matter: the base game is quite long and you're likely to be done with it before you reach the end, never mind additional content. No reason not to get them if they come with the package, but don't pay extra for them.

It's super fun, though. If you want more medieval Batman, then yo, it's more medieval Batman. I wouldn't say that running around and murdering / mind-controlling orcs NEVER gets old, but there's a LOT of fun to be found there before it does.

I mostly loved climbing up things and jumping down on top of orcs. In my run of the original, there was some orc leader who was vulnerable to that, and that poor bastard just kept coming back, looking worse and worse, but dude was always hanging out under tall things. I felt bad for him the sixth or seventh time I jumped down and killed him, but whaddya gonna do?

If I get this on PS4, I will miss having mouse aim for the bow. Having that was the only way I was able to make use of it in the original.

I got the expansions and the only one I liked was the addition of the new "tribes." The new elf assassin gameplay was not as fleshed out as the first time through so felt like not enough of a carrot to get me to play through the game again. At that point I had put so many hours into the awesome main game that I was burnt out anyway.

Totally worth playing the base game, though. The story also has significant ramifications for what you imagine is going on in Mordor history-wise before Frodo gets there. But only the picture in your mind, not any real "this changes everything" events. Similar to the first game, in that sense. Only they try to up the ante a bit, which any sequel feels obliged to do to keep your attention.

Chaz wrote:

Now that the microtransactions are gone, worth it for $20 with the expansion pass? Not sure if it's the story expansions or regular expansion pass, but Gamestop's offering the PS4 version with one of those for $20, and I'm tempted.

Got a link on that? I can only find the base edition for $20.

I think it might be in store only. It's listed on page 3 of the weekly flyer.

I’m about 15 hours in after sampling this on Gamepass. Very good. Anyone revisit after the major update that removed micro transactions and revamped the ill spoken of act iv? If so, any comments? From what I’m reading on the AC Valhalla threats, War seems like more fun.

Chad

I cannot tell whether War runs any better on Series X. Loading times are better.

chooka1 wrote:

I’m about 15 hours in after sampling this on Gamepass. Very good. Anyone revisit after the major update that removed micro transactions and revamped the ill spoken of act iv? If so, any comments?

I bounced off the game about halfway through back when it was brand new, not through any real fault with it, but just because there were a million other things to play. Never engaged with the microtransaction stuff; never felt the need. IIRC it was mostly "hey have some powerful orcs in your army," and since half the fun is fighting and recruiting powerful orcs for your army, I didn't see the point in paying real money to play less game.

I went back to it recently and wound up rolling credits at like 85% or so completion (didn't bother to get all the collectibles or do all the Celebrimbor flashback missions). Never noticed the difference with the microtransactions being removed.

Act IV definitely still feels more like "post-game content" than anything else, but it's GOOD post-game content, because the core gameplay loop of the game is so frigging satisfying that it holds up even when largely divorced from the story progression and after there are no more significant new skills to unlock.

I played this time on Nemesis difficulty, which might have made a difference; last time I played on the default difficulty, which felt a little easy for someone who's played the crap out of all the Arkham games and Shadow of Mordor. On Nemesis it definitely felt like I had to be strategic, play against captain's weak points, and prepare for tough battles.

I'm half-considering another playthrough where I rush through the main quest line so that I can experience the side quests

Spoiler:

as Dark Talion. I hear things play out a little differently once Celebrimbor's no longer in the picture.

Thank you for the comments. It’s nice to sharewith others the fun experience I’m having.

I’ve taken over three fortresses and I’m about 17 hours in. My favorite bodyguard, something the Moaner, regrettably died during a mission. Living up to his namesake, he made the most ridiculous sounds when fighting. He made the entire family laugh. I’m on the lookout for a new orc with the moaner designation.

The gameplay loop is satisfying. Combat feels visceral and terrific sound design.

The nemesis system is terrific but a bit dense this time around. I haven not yet felt the need to issue any orders nor have any orca shown up in the garrison. Perhaps the garrison is a remnant of the micro transaction era? I also haven’t done much with the fighting pits yet beyond a few matches.

Overall, I’m really enjoying the game after some distance from a shadow of Mordor.

Yeah, at this point if the garrison serves any purpose other than as a holding area to facilitate transferring orcs between regions, I haven't found it.

chooka1 wrote:

I’ve taken over three fortresses and I’m about 17 hours in. My favorite bodyguard, something the Moaner, regrettably died during a mission. Living up to his namesake, he made the most ridiculous sounds when fighting. He made the entire family laugh. I’m on the lookout for a new orc with the moaner designation.

The gameplay loop is satisfying. Combat feels visceral and terrific sound design.

The nemesis system is terrific but a bit dense this time around. I haven not yet felt the need to issue any orders nor have any orca shown up in the garrison. Perhaps the garrison is a remnant of the micro transaction era? I also haven’t done much with the fighting pits yet beyond a few matches.

Overall, I’m really enjoying the game after some distance from a shadow of Mordor.

It really is a fun game that I put tons of hours into without even touching the DLC yet. The nemesis system is a lot of fun. Some of those buggers come back over and over again!

As far as issuing orders to my captains, I found myself doing more of that as time went on. It's useful to send a captain capable of exploiting a warchief's weakness to infiltrate their bodyguard.

I found myself enjoying the fight pits more when I realized that it's not a tactical game of carefully choosing which orc to send in, it's a meat grinder for upgrading your army. Send your weakest orc in, and maybe 80% of the time he dies-- in which case you leap in and dominate the orc that just killed him, who's probably weakened from the fight-- or else he gets up upset victory and gains a dozen levels and now he's not your weakest orc any more.