Zero Punctuation Season 8 Episode 41 Shadow of Mordor

Zero Punctuation is a weekly series that offers scathing, hilarious critiques of the latest video games. In season 8, episode 41, our host Yahtzee takes on Shadow of Mordor, a 2014 release set in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth universe.

Yahtzee wastes no time in delivering his thoughts, starting with a swift takedown of the game's overly long tutorial section. He goes on to describe the game's basic premise: you play as Talion, a ranger who is killed along with his family by the armies of Sauron. However, he is resurrected with the help of a wraith named Celebrimbor, who imbues him with special powers and motivates him to seek revenge against his enemies.

Yahtzee notes that the game's plot is thin and unoriginal, but serviceable enough to provide a reason for players to go on killing sprees. Speaking of killing, Shadow of Mordor's main gameplay mechanic is the Nemesis System, which Yahtzee calls "one of the most hyped things about the game." This system creates randomly generated enemy captains and assigns them unique traits and personalities. If they kill Talion, they rise in rank and become even tougher to defeat. If Talion manages to take them down, he gains experience and can unlock new abilities.

While Yahtzee acknowledges that the Nemesis System is an intriguing concept, he ultimately finds it frustrating in execution. He notes that the game's combat is simplistic and repetitive, which means that fighting these captains over and over again can get tiresome. He also points out that the game can be too forgiving at times, allowing players to easily run away from battles and come back later when they're stronger.

Another aspect of the game that Yahtzee takes issue with is the open-world structure. He notes that the game's world is huge and detailed, but lacks interesting things to do. Most of the game's side activities involve collecting trinkets or killing more enemies, which can quickly feel like busywork. Yahtzee also criticizes the game's lack of fast travel options, which necessitates a lot of walking or riding on horseback between missions.

Despite his criticisms, Yahtzee ultimately seems to enjoy Shadow of Mordor overall. He praises the game's graphics and sound design, and notes that the ability to climb up towers and scout out the world is a welcome addition. He also finds the character of Celebrimbor to be an interesting addition to the Lord of the Rings mythos. Overall, Shadow of Mordor gets a lukewarm recommendation from Yahtzee: it's not a perfect game, but it's fun enough to keep players entertained for a while.