I recommend it.

My feelings on Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor are complicated. On one hand, it feels like an incredibly shallow proof of concept with shoddy writing and all the hallmarks of mid-2010s open-world drivel. On the other, its shallowness is wrapped up in a pretty fun gameplay loop bolstered by the game's 'Nemesis' system, which is by no means perfect but by all means addictive.

If you're coming to this game like I was, looking for a satisfying tale set within Tolkien's Middle-earth, you will be massively disappointed. If you're coming into this for an open-world experience that's immersive and full of life, you will be massively disappointed. This game does one thing well and one thing only, and that's combat. It's a blend of Arkham's free-flow stylings and Assassin's Creed stealth that lacks the depth of both of those games but ratchets up the sense of power fulfillment with an excessive amount of upgrades and abilities that don't ever highlight strategy but instead highlight pure brutality. It's effortlessly mindless but always fun.

It helps that the 'Nemesis' system gives combat and the open world some sense of story because outside of that ingenious implementation of AI programming, Shadow of Mordor lacks personality otherwise. Its open world is well-crafted and intensely atmospheric, but they do nothing with it which sucks. It's an empty playground of potential where endless tutorials for mind-numbingly simple combat are left to rot.

While I had my fun, it was fun wrapped up in disappointment of what felt like an unfinished passion project that slaps trends together with IP to create something vapid with just enough passion for the source material to keep the game from being forgotten.

Gameplay can get a bit repetitive, but overall a nice game with a good story