Despite its initial detractors, J. R. R. Tolkien's novel, The Lord of the Rings, is revered by many fans and is one of the best-selling novels of all time. It's an extraordinary story that has spawned three extraordinary movies, but managed only a few ordinary videogames. Until now.

On the surface, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor owes a lot of its gameplay to the inspiration derived from the successful Batman: Arkham and Assassin's Creed series of games. Players are given an open world setting within Mordor to explore, and innumerable Orcs and Uruk-hai to battle, and it’s these battles that set Shadow of Mordor apart from its influences.

The combat mechanism is a familiar combination of hit and counter, but with an added “last stand” mini-game that allows the character to parry a deathblow to remain in the fight. Winning the mini-game and surviving feels truly epic.

What’s more, Mordor introduces a fascinating "Nemesis" system for players to contend with. Enemy combatants stand to gain promotion (and effectively level up) from defeating you, or from the death of one of their rivals. If you flee from combat, which is a perfectly valid option when faced against a dozen enemies, you will also be taunted should you face the same foes again.

While not perfect--dead Orcs should remain dead--it can be enthralling, especially as more abilities become available.

Outside of the gameplay, there’s also something for the screenshot enthusiasts out there. The most recent update has added a Photo Mode, which is quite fun in and of itself with the options available to tweak shots. Check out the Community Hub for some great examples of the shots being produced from within the game.

It seems like the gaming industry has turned a corner with respect to licensed products. The Batman series is exceptional, and from what I understand, there’s even an Alien game that’s actually very good.

And now, at long last, we’ve got the one Lord of the RIngs game to rule them all.

Despite its initial detractors, J. R. R. Tolkien's novel, [i]The Lord of the Rings[/i], is revered by many fans and is one of the best-selling novels of all time. It's an extraordinary story that has spawned three extraordinary movies, but managed only a few ordinary videogames. Until now. On the surface, [i]Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor[/i] owes a lot of its gameplay to the inspiration derived from the successful [i]Batman: Arkham[/i] and [i]Assassin's Creed[/i] series of games. Players are given an open world setting within Mordor to explore, and innumerable Orcs and Uruk-hai to battle, and it’s these battles that set Shadow of Mordor apart from its influences. The combat mechanism is a familiar combination of hit and counter, but with an added “last stand” mini-game that allows the character to parry a deathblow to remain in the fight. Winning the mini-game and surviving feels truly epic. What’s more, Mordor introduces a fascinating "Nemesis" system for players to contend with. Enemy combatants stand to gain promotion (and effectively level up) from defeating you, or from the death of one of their rivals. If you flee from combat, which is a perfectly valid option when faced against a dozen enemies, you will also be taunted should you face the same foes again. While not perfect--dead Orcs should remain dead--it can be enthralling, especially as more abilities become available. Outside of the gameplay, there’s also something for the screenshot enthusiasts out there. The most recent update has added a Photo Mode, which is quite fun in and of itself with the options available to tweak shots. Check out the [url=http://steamcommunity.com/app/241930/screenshots/]Community Hub[/url] for some great examples of the shots being produced from within the game. It seems like the gaming industry has turned a corner with respect to licensed products. The Batman series is exceptional, and from what I understand, there’s even an [i]Alien[/i] game that’s actually very good. And now, at long last, we’ve got the one Lord of the RIngs game to rule them all.