Shadow of Mordor: Like Hatoful Boyfriend, but with Orcs. Bright Lord DLC out now!

BrocksMullet

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

the problem being that someone being half wraith half ranger is just so far from anything even moderately close to something even maybe mentioned off hand once in a hidden secret letter written by tolkien

if the game had just been it's own franchise i would be so excited and then they could do whatever they wanted.

Doesn't a god literally come out of the forest, say hello, and leave

It's not likely that he covered everything weird that could ever happen in the little world he created

I was under the impression that he did, which is part of what makes adapting LotR so hard. Could be wrong, but that's my understanding.

sarukun

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

the problem being that someone being half wraith half ranger is just so far from anything even moderately close to something even maybe mentioned off hand once in a hidden secret letter written by tolkien

if the game had just been it's own franchise i would be so excited and then they could do whatever they wanted.

Doesn't a god literally come out of the forest, say hello, and leave

It's not likely that he covered everything weird that could ever happen in the little world he created

Look, there are some shared universes that are fun and awesome, and there are some that I think should be left alone to be their own thing.

RubberAC

i think my main issue is just that... the LOTR mythos adds nothing to this except a name that will grab more money
and i don't like having the lotr series be used as just a brandname moneygrab
if this was a brand new franchise with an original world and characters killin' orcs and stuff i'd be so on board 100% because that sounds AWESOME.

Chincymcchilla

sarukun wrote: »

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

the problem being that someone being half wraith half ranger is just so far from anything even moderately close to something even maybe mentioned off hand once in a hidden secret letter written by tolkien

if the game had just been it's own franchise i would be so excited and then they could do whatever they wanted.

Doesn't a god literally come out of the forest, say hello, and leave

It's not likely that he covered everything weird that could ever happen in the little world he created

Look, there are some shared universes that are fun and awesome, and there are some that I think should be left alone to be their own thing.

lotr and fun = mutually exclusive

Got it

(<3)

sarukun

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

sarukun wrote: »

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

the problem being that someone being half wraith half ranger is just so far from anything even moderately close to something even maybe mentioned off hand once in a hidden secret letter written by tolkien

if the game had just been it's own franchise i would be so excited and then they could do whatever they wanted.

Doesn't a god literally come out of the forest, say hello, and leave

It's not likely that he covered everything weird that could ever happen in the little world he created

Look, there are some shared universes that are fun and awesome, and there are some that I think should be left alone to be their own thing.

lotr and fun = mutually exclusive

Got it

(<3)

My fun looks different than your fun is what I'm saying.


My fun looks a lot like an old man yelling at a cloud.

BrocksMullet

RubberAC wrote: »

i think my main issue is just that... the LOTR mythos adds nothing to this except a name that will grab more money
and i don't like having the lotr series be used as just a brandname moneygrab
if this was a brand new franchise with an original world and characters killin' orcs and stuff i'd be so on board 100% because that sounds AWESOME.

There is absolutely some grey, tweedy swag that LotR has that you just can't get anywhere else, outside of just the obvious name recognition.

RubberAC

BrocksMullet wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

i think my main issue is just that... the LOTR mythos adds nothing to this except a name that will grab more money
and i don't like having the lotr series be used as just a brandname moneygrab
if this was a brand new franchise with an original world and characters killin' orcs and stuff i'd be so on board 100% because that sounds AWESOME.

There is absolutely some grey, tweedy swag that LotR has that you just can't get anywhere else, outside of just the obvious name recognition.

i dunno, this game is pretty much goin' all DARK N GRITTY and that would be accomplished a lot better without being tied to the original High Fantasy universe

Peccavi

Let's look at what Tolkien would say

I would draw some of the great tales in fullness, and leave many only placed in the scheme, and sketched. The cycles should be linked to a majestic whole, and yet leave scope for other minds and hands wielding paint and music and drama.

I think Tolkien was okay with the idea of people adding to his universe.

MegaMan001

Peccavi wrote: »

Honestly

MegaMan001 wrote: »

Great OP, I saw an ad for this and immediately brushed it off as yet another Tolkien based action game. The nemesis system sounds great, do you know if your nemesis becomes stronger over time? Like, can you fail to dominate one and he betrays you and you run into him later?

Also, they should really change the 'Dominate' term.

I don't think you can fail to dominate anyone (well, yes, you can be interrupted and fail, but you know that right away). The orcs may be willing to betray each other, but Talion's followers are all bound to him through Wraith magic so they don't really have enough free-will for that. Orcs will become much more powerful if they kill you, and also will grow in power whenever time passes. Really the death system seems ridiculously cool, as it changes the landscape of the game and beefs everyone up. I realize its kinda weird that the game becomes more difficult the worse you're doing, but one of the devs talked about this in one of those videos and it seemed like even as your enemies beef up, you can also continue to grow in power to match them, not to mention the weapon upgrade system which you can use to keep up with the enemies (oh jeez I forgot to talk about the weapon upgrade system in the OP).

Oh huh, I thought it'd be cool if you could develop a history with a particular Orc. You fail to turn him to your side, he ends up a Warchief later.

sarukun

Peccavi wrote: »

Let's look at what Tolkien would say

I would draw some of the great tales in fullness, and leave many only placed in the scheme, and sketched. The cycles should be linked to a majestic whole, and yet leave scope for other minds and hands wielding paint and music and drama.

I think Tolkien was okay with the idea of people adding to his universe.

That's a bit of a leap, and it really makes no difference because we are talking about what I like, not what he liked.

RubberAC

i'm sure he'd be okay with real interesting stories being placed in the universe
but the dude was from a very different era, violent videogames alone probably would have perturbed him

BrocksMullet

@JRT420 would be all about those chain kills, brah. #Wraithlyfe

Chincymcchilla

Honestly I think he'd be way more upset by the fact that its a revenge story

I doubt he'd give a shit that there was a magic thing he didn't explicitly outline

Chincymcchilla

That said, troy bakers voice for this sounds amazing and I'm really excited to see what he does with the material

BrocksMullet

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

That said, troy bakers voice for this sounds amazing and I'm really excited to see what he does with the material

Yeah, his voice acting in the first trailer was one of the first things to sell me on this game, though I didn't recognize him at first.

Munkus Beaver

RubberAC wrote: »

i think my main issue is just that... the LOTR mythos adds nothing to this except a name that will grab more money
and i don't like having the lotr series be used as just a brandname moneygrab
if this was a brand new franchise with an original world and characters killin' orcs and stuff i'd be so on board 100% because that sounds AWESOME.

I guess being a Star Wars fan has prepared me for entire product lines with unique stories that have no basis in actual canon and can even be directly contradicted by future canon.

BrocksMullet

Badablack wrote: »

I like the idea of playing as Celebrimbor's ringwraith. It would be cool if over the course of the game you get more wraith-ish until you're eventually just some glowing eyes and a floating crown.

Bonus points if you get your own prophecy that no orc can slay you, and then Gollum stabs you in the sinews at the end.

This game is absolutely going to end in shenanigans, we all know that, right? I rarely speculate on endings, but... it's right there. Shenanigans as far as the eye can see.

BrocksMullet

RubberAC wrote: »

I can basically just compartmentalize books-movies-games because they all do a lot of things drastically different

i loved the gba games despite gandalf and saruman never having an intense duel in the canon
or the GC return of the king despite all the intense combat the hobbits face

i'll likely get this and play it i'll just have to fight the 2nd grader inside me

Hey, I still feel a little weird about the movies, and part of me wishes it was still just me reading the book (I had the big all in one version) as a teenager in the autumn sunlight, so I suppose that's part of why I'm quick to say, "Why not this?".

Chincymcchilla

BrocksMullet wrote: »

Badablack wrote: »

I like the idea of playing as Celebrimbor's ringwraith. It would be cool if over the course of the game you get more wraith-ish until you're eventually just some glowing eyes and a floating crown.

Bonus points if you get your own prophecy that no orc can slay you, and then Gollum stabs you in the sinews at the end.

This game is absolutely going to end in shenanigans, we all know that, right? I rarely speculate on endings, but... it's right there. Shenanigans as far as the eye can see.

The game ends with shooting hitler in his mech suit right

UnbreakableVow

sarukun wrote: »

This game seems really neat and I kind of just wish they had made up their own IP for it.

Me too!

But probably not for the same reason

Munkus Beaver

Chincymcchilla wrote: »

BrocksMullet wrote: »

Badablack wrote: »

I like the idea of playing as Celebrimbor's ringwraith. It would be cool if over the course of the game you get more wraith-ish until you're eventually just some glowing eyes and a floating crown.

Bonus points if you get your own prophecy that no orc can slay you, and then Gollum stabs you in the sinews at the end.

This game is absolutely going to end in shenanigans, we all know that, right? I rarely speculate on endings, but... it's right there. Shenanigans as far as the eye can see.

The game ends with shooting hitler in his mech suit right

You end up on a spaceship built by Sauron to go to mars, where you accidentally open the gate to hell.

RubberAC

BrocksMullet wrote: »

RubberAC wrote: »

I can basically just compartmentalize books-movies-games because they all do a lot of things drastically different

i loved the gba games despite gandalf and saruman never having an intense duel in the canon
or the GC return of the king despite all the intense combat the hobbits face

i'll likely get this and play it i'll just have to fight the 2nd grader inside me

Hey, I still feel a little weird about the movies, and part of me wishes it was still just me reading the book (I had the big all in one version) as a teenager in the autumn sunlight, so I suppose that's part of why I'm quick to say, "Why not this?".

yeah you're right
the books are always big in my memory because i was always pretty much developmentally disabled, except for my ability to read. I finished the hobbit when i was 5 and the lotr series after that by the time i was 6 and a bit. They're the books that raised me, so the same voice in my head that i hear saying "when i can grow a beard I'LL NEVER SHAVE" that makes me end up looking homeless is saying "but but but that didnt happen that cant happen!" and i just need to tell it to shut up

Munkus Beaver

I just remember the hobbit being a great read as a kid, while I trudged through Fellowship because it was worth a an entire year's worth of points in Accelerated Reader.

Chincymcchilla

Munkus Beaver wrote: »

I just remember the hobbit being a great read as a kid, while I trudged through Fellowship because it was worth a an entire year's worth of points in Accelerated Reader.

dude

AR

high five

I read sooo many readwall books for points even after I realized they were the same book over and over

BrocksMullet

I am way more OK with this game than with whatever is going on with the Hobbit movies, plural.

Mr. G

Oh man finally an official place to talk about the most important aspect of the game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sM0vajtG4c

This trailer with Troy Baker and Nolan North ribbing each other

RubberAC

BrocksMullet wrote: »

I am way more OK with this game than with whatever is going on with the Hobbit movies, plural.

ok big agree there.

i loved the lotr movies differences and all but the hobbit movies just hurt my heart

Mr. G

I still cannot get over that Nolan North just straight-up IS Nathan Drake

It's his face, his voice, his attitude, he even wears the same goddamned shirt

Same thing with Troy Baker and Delsin Rowe, though to a lesser extent

Munkus Beaver

Yeah, the Hobbit movies are a bigger affront to Tolkien than this game could ever hope to be.

UnbreakableVow

Doesn't all the extra stuff in those films just draw from his other work, though?

Brolo

They could have made a pretty good game about Elendil.

He's around for a bunch of events in different environments:

The capture of Sauron in middle-earth.
Sauron's corruption of Ar-Pharazon, last King of Numenor.
Ar-Pharazon's great war against the Valar, and escaping the destruction of Numenor.
The journey across the sea to middle-earth in the Nine Ships.
The founding of Arnor and Gondor.
The fall of Minas Ithil to a returned Sauron.
Finding the Elven High King Gil-Galad, and forging the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.
The final battle against Sauron himself in one-on-one combat.

He even comes with a bunch of magic relics:
Palantir, seeing stone
Narsil, legendary sword
Ring of Barahir
Sceptre of Annúminas

Prohass

The amount of silly nonsense within LOTR and the Hobbit books means I'm pretty ok with the Hobbit films and this. SOM seems to draw more from Jacksons stuff than Tolkien itself, but eh.

Its all a kind of silly line of thought, this game looks great and is trying a bunch of different stuff so yay

Abracadaniel

Brolo of the nerd-kin

Abracadaniel

I'm reminded of that Colbert clip

Brolo

don't even try and challenge me to a throwdown on the valar

Munkus Beaver

UnbreakableVow wrote: »

Doesn't all the extra stuff in those films just draw from his other work, though?

Legolas, the council meeting, the lady elf, the love story between lady elf and handsome dwarf, rastabelt rabbits and the mushroom eating radagast, the named orcs and their hate-on for oaken shield, the entire lonely mountain action sequence with the dwarves and Smaug.

That's just off the top of my head.

Gvzbgul

Well, the named orcs and their hate on was a thing Tolkein wrote, it's just that Azog died at the Battle of Dimrill Dale outside Moria instead of being carried back in wounded by his troops. And he wasn't killed by Thorin, he was killed by Dain Ironfoot.

Munkus Beaver

Like I said, it was off the top of my head. I knew they were wrong, not the specifics. Not saying I hated the movies or that those things truly bothered me, just that the movies have a lot more that should rub a diehard fan the wrong way if they are upset about the content of the game.

The main thing that bothers me is that it takes less time to read the book than watch the movies. It's worse than if his original trilogy was thirty hours long.

Gvzbgul

No problem, Azog being the big bad of the films and not the Goblin King is probably the thing I dislike most about the films. I don't have a problem with deviations or additions to the origonal, but they essentially replace a giant fat goblin king with a generic bad guy orc. It's just stupid. It doesn't even seem like something Peter Jackson would have done, he loves big grotesque monsters.

edit-Haha, now it's my turn to be wrong off the top of my head. It's not the goblin king at the battle of five armies, it's Bolg the son of Azog.

Prohass

I like Azog but kind of wish

spoilers for the Hobbit films I guess

he'd died in the second film. Hell his god damn second in command dude didnt even die, which I found so weird and anti-climactic (and I was a big fan of the Hobbit films)