Customer Ratings & Reviews

Open world with strong story lines. Adventure through Mordor at your own pace talking all the time you need to explore every inch of a very detailed world. Responsive controls, beautiful visuals and a faithful soundtrack will make you want more.

Shadows of War is the excellent sequel to Shadows of Mordor. This is a game that combines stealth, combat, and strategy in the Lord of the Rings universe. The visuals are excellent, and the Nemesis System (where the foes who defeat you become stronger and gain powers) does NOT disappoint. There are a lot of new features and fun characters as well. I call this game an "Orc stabbing simulator." There will be lots of stabbing. Lots...and lots of stabbing. Heh. The Gold edition gets you a lot of cool in-game perks as well. It's a great help if you plan to play for the long haul.

Shadows of War expands on everything that made Sadows if Mirror so much fun. The main story is fun, but the big open world is great to explore. Making followers and having them do missions is great. Building my own army and undermining Sauron makes my slotted playing time go quickly. I can't wait to get finished with my adult responsibilities and explore the world of Middle earth.

I have now about 10 hours of gameplay and i am still enjoying the game. If you enjoyed the first one you will enjoy this new one. My only complaint is i preordered the gold edition and now wish i would have ordered the normal version. For the extra money doesn't fell like your getting much more game.

From the start of the game, you are introduced to the same type of play that was seen in "Shadow of Mordor." With a fresh new look and cutscenes that look like they belong in a LOTR movie, I was impressed from the get-go. The game includes customization and skills that build on those of the previous game, and introduce completely new unlocks that are fun and exciting to watch. Riding drakes (dragons) has to be one of my new favorite features of the game, and the drakes themselves also have skills to be unlocked and played with. Besides the main story, there are a variety of different quests that have multiple missions/objectives within them. So you are not bound to play the story mission and some same-old side missions. In fact, each quest has its own purpose in addition to, or completely separate from the main story. These side-quests, in my opinion, could stand alone in the game and I would be pleased with them then. Lastly, building an army of orcs is what the game is known for, and there are new missions including captains, war chiefs, and overlords that vary from orc to orc and keep you guessing about how the game may play out. Capturing and defending fortresses is something that feels like it could be done endlessly without getting boring. Luckily, online conquests (capturing and defending forts of random players) provides us with this. All of which seamlessly fit into the game, no need for wait times or separate menus. If I could hand my Game of the Year vote to Shadow of War a million times over, I would. The game looks beautiful as is, so I am excited to see the advancements on the Xbox One X. (Also the steelbook is a sweet addition that I can proudly display on my TV stand.) I am interested to see the add-ons given by the season pass and I can only hope that they are as great as the base game is. If you are thinking about buying, I highly advise you to do so.

Shadow of War ups the ante from its predecessor in every way. Better graphics, better environments, more powerful enemies, more creatures, and more powers and abilities as well as a new inventory system and skill tree, a more complex orc hierarchy, and a much bigger story. If you liked the first one, you will love this one. A must have!

I loved Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor and this game is shaping up to be a fantastic expansion. From the get-go, you already have some of the unlockable powers from the first game like Last Chance (a fantastic way for new players to save themselves from death--most of the time). Yeah, if you're a hard-on Tolkien fan, you'll probably take issue with the creative liberties for the lore. But if you like the movies and you're hungry for more LotR action, this is one of the best Tolkien video games you can invest in. If you're also a fan of the Batman: Arkham and Assassin's Creed games, you'll feel right at home with the combat mechanics. I preordered the Gold Edition. I received the in-package Gold War Chest and story expansions bonuses and my Mithril Ring replica is still en route due to shipment rerouting. However, I've yet to receive my preorder-exclusive Orc Tribes or my Sword of the Undying. My printout receipt that I received with the game in shipping doesn't have any redemption codes that I can discern, so I hope the codes are with the Mithril Ring. (I'm not sure how these exclusives work exactly.)

What most of us liked in the 1st makes a return with improvements,gear is now in the line of RPG's(weapons & armor), a bigger playground, beefed up more diverse nemesis system & the polished visuals make it even more appealing to look at. Looking forward to see the enhancement the X brings on Nov 7.

So far, really enjoying the game. The Gold Edition has provided some helpful tools off the bat to give a slight advantage to start the game. The gameplay is smooth, story line decent, and all in all, I find myself having a hard time quitting the game and going to bed when I should.

This game is great. It builds on everything that the original had. People are picking on the graphics, but I think it looks fantastic. Is it Horizon level? No. But it still has great detail. The nemesis system is what makes this game special, making every moment memorable.

I really enjoyed the first game and this one expands on everything from the first. The nemesis system is really fun and more detailed in this game and the combat is fluid as to be expected. Even if you're not a big fan of the Tolkien world the game is still great and fun.

Gameplay is great... story is interesting, and it uses the same classic controls as SOM.

ima big fan of adventure story games and this doesnt disappoint great story and controls and can play through how you want and easily get lost and doing side quest or dominating a region defintely gane if year candidate

This game constantly improves upon itself. Graphics, voice acting, story line, all top notch! And the original was fantastic, so that’s saying a lot. Must have game even if you’re not a huge LOTR fan!

If you loved the first game then I definitely recommend that you pick this one up. It improves so much on the mechanics of the first game and features a much bigger map and longer story. The Nemesis system is such a unique feature that guarantees everyone's playthrough will be different than everyone else's.

THE GRAPHICS ARENT CRAZY AMAZING, BUT I NEVER CARED ABOUT ALL OF THAT. WHAT I CARE ABOUT IS THAT THE GAME HAS PLENTY TO DO AND IF ITS A SEQUEL IT BETTER BE BIGGER AND MORE IN DEPTH THAN THE LAST. IVE PLAYED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND I FEEL AS IF I BARELY SCRATCHED THE SURFACE. IT IS ALOT OF GRINDING AND TRIAL AND ERROR AND RUNNING AWAY, BECAUSE THE GAME ISNT INSANELY EASY, BUT WITH SKILL AND TECHNIQUE YOU CAN GET THROUGH A LARGE HORDE OF ORCS. THERE ARE CHESTS WHICH MEANS THERE ARE MICRO TRANSACTIONS WITHIN THE GAME, I'M NOT INTO THOSE, BUT I DON'T MIND WORKING HARD TO GET ENOUGH COINS WITHIN THE GAME TO GET THE CHESTS YOU CAN BUY.

After playing Shadow of Mordor, I knew I had to buy this game. An updated nemesis system and better combat. This game exceeds my expectations. I highly recommend this game.

The Nemesis system is entirely updated from the first game. Your experience will feel unique from other players and after a week of play I show no signs of getting bored.

The first game was great, but the improved graphics, controls, storyline, and overall stunning visuals of this sequel makes it a must-have for any gamer.

Nemesis system enhanced, graphics enhanced, attention to detail enhanced; I just want my 25 points from Best Buy reviewing enhanced ;)