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Monolith: Shadow Of Mordor Started Out “Over-Ambitious”

John-Shepard 6 Comments

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor turned out to be a great game.

But it went through quite the metamorphosis during the lengthy and difficulty development process.

This according to what Monolith Productions boss Michael de Plater told Gamasutra in a recent interview. The bottom line is the team's original vision was actually much more ambitious than the final product. Said de Plater:

"During pre-production, we didn't have good metrics on our production capacity. This led to the specification of the game being over-ambitious, which, as we started to get a clearer picture of reality, required us to make some pretty big and painful cuts."

He added that this generated a "double dip of pain," as they lost work on the features they cut, and they also needed more work to replace the cut content. Of course, fans are wondering if the eliminated content might find its way into a Shadow of Mordor sequel, but Monolith doesn't have a definitive answer just yet. de Plater does say they've "just scratched the surface," though, so…

What would you like to see in a sequel?

Related Game(s): Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

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Middle Earth: Shadow Of Mordor Could Be Amazingly Dynamic

Ben-Dutka 3 Comments

Whatever you do, don't mistake Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor for another mediocre game based on a movie.

In the first place, that's not really accurate, and in the second, developer Monolith is being all sorts of ambitious. Design Director Michael DePlater has dished on some impressive gameplay details , which make the production sound dynamic and even innovative.

Players will increase the power of their forces as they play, and the increased power will allow them to adopt more aggressive tactics. At first, though, you have to be creative. Said DePlater:

"We have multiple regions within the game. Within each region, there is a contingent of Sauron's army, and that's divided into ranks, you have captains and war chiefs. Early game, you're going behind enemy lines and disrupting Sauron's forces by hunting and taking these guys down.

Later as your power grows, you can do more than that, you can actually use your powers to break their minds, bend them to your will and actually create your own army behind enemy lines. The way that you can manipulate the nemesis system, the way you can either hunt, kill or control your enemies really continues to grow as you move through the story."

Monolith maintains that even if you played the game a hundred times, each experience would still be different. As for the information acquired here, it seems that only those with the appropriate tactical mind will succeed; patience and diligence are necessary. For more on this very promising title, check out our recent preview .

Related Game(s): Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor

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Shadow Of Mordor Pre-Order Incentives, Gameplay Trailer

Ben-Dutka 6 Comments

If you've got high hopes for Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor , you might want to pre-order it.

And if you do, you'll be in line for a variety of bonuses, depending on your chosen retailer. Monolith has revealed the pre-order incentives today, and they've also produced a new gameplay trailer (check it out below).

Pre-ordering at Amazon will get you the Deadly Archer rune, which lets Talion – the protagonist – deal extra damage when firing ranged headshots at Sauron's Captains. If you'd rather put your deposit down at Best Buy, you'll nab the Flame of Arnor rune, which gives Talion the ability to ignite his blade by earning a high combo count, which will then incinerate his foes.

GameStop shoppers will net the Captain of the Watch/Hidden Blade rune, which lets you deal extra damage when performing stealth attacks against Sauron's Captains. Lastly, if you pre-order on Steam, you'll receive the Orc Slayer rune, which means Talion will dole out more damage when executing special attacks against his enemies.

Don't forget that the game is coming to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC on October 7. For more, check out our review preview .

Related Game(s): Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor

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