"Middle-Earth: Shadow of War" My Patience is Running Thin

     I want to love this game, I really do, but by god is it so repetitive. And for what? So that you can go capture another fort, for some more online features that have deteriorated so rapidly seven years later? Look, I understand why people think the nemesis system is cool, but it really isn't that good, and when it's the only thing carrying your game, a game that mind you, is painfully repetitive, you start to ask yourself, am I actually enjoying this? Or am I just telling myself that I'm enjoying this game. That's how I feel about Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, because while I tell myself that it's good, by that same token it's pretty much the last game but way longer, which makes the issues I had much, much worse.

    How do I put it? There's pretty much little to no story, and you don't really spend much of the time on the story. While normally, this means that the game is doing a good job of encouraging players to just explore the world an it's landscapes, in this game it mostly just means collecting meaningless charms and trinkets, and doing the exact same thing, attacking more of the same generic captains each and every time. At the very least in the first game it was two relatively large maps, this time around you get like 5 or 6 of them, and they are all as painfully dull as the next one. There aren't even any cool region-specific differences, it's like if you applying different texture packs in Minecraft.

    Like, take a look at the whole endgame/final act, I didn't even bother playing it, because by the time  I actually went through most of the story, I searched it up, and it was some shitty payoff for way too many raids where they try and shove this story into the natural Lord of the Rings timeline that the games are based off of. Look, the gameplay that's there is good, but the issue is that there is no other way to play the game, the stealth is just about the same, there are a lot of cool powerups, but you rarely get to use them, and pretty much it's all about conquering. 

    Maybe you enjoy capturing enemy forts, I mean I certainly did at first, but when you have to capture and kill so many captains, they all begin to blur, and the joy that comes from encountering a captain you previously killed quickly goes from cool phenomenon to just general nuisance. You ever see that twitter clip of people talking about how beautiful God of War Ragnarok's fighting is? And then did you ever see that clip of people making fun of them for pretty much just pressing one button? That's exactly how I feel about Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, the fighting does indeed feel quite fluid, but you pretty much press like 2 buttons and spam them at all times, and it usually works.

    I actually enjoyed some of the story, specifically working with the nature spirit to kill the balrog, but this time around the plot was so paper thin it was hard to be invested in it. Like Shelob is there, that's cool, but turns out she's actually dead, was also Sauron's lover, and like you go collect her memories for no good reason. Also Talion is starting to become depressed but by that same token you can still go capture like a billion captains/forts and he just kind of stays that way. While I understand trying to add that foreshadowing, pretty much other than right after he dies, Talion's demeanor does not match the tired energy the writers were going for. I mean I liked the twist at the very end of the game, but then the execution when Talion puts on a new ring, and Celebrimbror goes to fight Sauron is just so, so rushed and awkward.

    I mean it became so bad that even after 50 hours of playing the game I didn't even want to try and play the DLC. Well, actually I did, but for some reason they made it so that one of the DLC's is like Minecraft hardcore mode, but only in the sense that you lose your stuff you actually keep all your story progress it just tries and makes you work towards a meaningless high score? I don't know I couldn't even be bothered to finish it because the dude you play literally shows up like twice in the main story and I felt as if he was pretty one-dimensional.

Final Score: 60/100

    It's not mediocre, it's just that it outstays its welcome pretty quickly, and without the variety needed to sustain interest, you start to look at other games at your steam library with envy, as you wonder whether or not it's actually worth it being a completionist for this game. I'll tell you this much, I gave up on it, I pretty much completed the game, and frankly I'm afraid to touch the DLC, because after Sleeping Dogs, I'm afraid the DLC is going to give leave an even more sour taste in my mouth.