We have a new update on The Future of the Penny Arcade Forums.

Middle Earth: [Shadow of War] Micro-Transactions to be tossed into Mount Doom!

Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba!Registered User regular
edited April 2018 in Games and Technology
https://youtu.be/-_UgfB95Wu0

Shadow of Mordor was a bit of a surprise hit, due largely to it's Nemesis System giving the feeling of a living breathing battle field. And we're finally getting a sequel that is set to expand on everything that made the first game great. Story wise, it looks like we'll be picking up where the last game left off, Talion and Celebrimbor have forged a new Ring of Power as they set to up their fight against Sauron. Seems that things don't go so smoothly though as the two are immediately split from each other upon completion of the Ring. But don't fear, as today's game play reveal shows that wacky pair will be reunited. I'm guessing it'll happen early on and will allow the game explain the Dark Curse that you'll be fighting against.

https://youtu.be/xl4bkIGgiyc

It's great to see that the ability to build an army will mean something here. Dominating Orcs in Shadow of Mordor was a bit underwhelming, so seeing that your more loyal troops will act as a mirror to your fiercest enemies seems like a great addition. And the idea that fallen troops can turn against you could lead some epic moments. Though I kinda wish they hadn't revealed that possibility so soon. Would have been nice to just have that happen to players once the game is released.

Something else that's getting a bit of an overhaul is the environments. Expect a more variety and a focus on verticality.
According to Peter Straub, director of art at Monolith Productions, the increased number of regions in the game has led to greater visual variety.

“We’re really getting a broad range of geography, and a broad range of different biomes,” Straub told Polygon last week during the Game Developers Conference. “Another thing we’ve pushed with Shadow of War compared to Shadow of Mordor is an increase in verticality of those environments.”

That improvement in variety of looks to the game (as well as the focus on verticality) is immediately apparent in Shadow of War’s fortresses. The bad guys in control of each fortress will be procedurally generated, creating unique opponents for each player to face off against, and each of those overlords will shape both their fortress and the territory surrounding it based on their own personalities.

http://www.polygon.com/features/2017/3/8/14851144/middle-earth-shadow-of-war-nemesis-system-lord-the-rings-gameplay-reveal-preview-video

So I'm kinda rushing this, so sorry if the OP seems a little lacking. But it feels like with the trailer and the early game play stuff it was time for a new thread. Shadow of War is currently set for an August 22nd 2017 release on PS4, Xbox One and PC.

EDIT: shamelessly stealing the DLC schedule for the OP! thanks @Crippl3!
Crippl3 wrote: »
New content schedule, including free stuff:
DOt9HusUQAAi5Fo.jpg:large

November 21st is Slaughter Tribe DLC, plus for free there's Endless Seiege (which sounds like endless Shadow Wars), Rebellion (unsure), and enhancements for Photo Mode.
December 5th is the Online Fight Pits, a free mode where you can fight your Overlords vs. other players' Overlords for rewards.
December 12th is the Outlaw Tribe DLC, plus the free Brutal difficulty, which is harder than Nemesis and has no Last Chances.
Blade of Gladriel coming in February, Desolation of Mordor coming in May along with a new survival mode.

EDIT 2: looks like WB finally got the message RE microtransactions, and having already made the bulk of their money off the game, will be removing those elements. thanks to UndeadScottsman for catching the news.
They're removing some of the lootboxes, gold and the market

https://community.wbgames.com/t5/Official-Announcements/Important-Free-Updates-Coming-to-Shadow-of-War/m-p/1831034

TL;DR

-Warchests make the Nemesis system moot and break immersion so they, gold and the market are being removed from the game. Other loot box types (Gear, Training orders, etc.) will still be obtainable, but not purchasable via money or in-game currency.
-The Shadow War endgame is being reworked to be streamlined and include additional story elements. If you already beat it, it won't be reset though. So wah wah.
-Upcoming updates will include Nemesis System updates, new player skins, skill tree additions, gear system upgrades and progression updates

Wraith260 on
«13456741

Posts

  • Skull2185Skull2185 Registered User regular
    Day one!

    This looks like a major improvement over the first one in every way!

    Everyone has a price. Throw enough gold around and someone will risk disintegration.
  • GoodKingJayIIIGoodKingJayIII They wanna get my gold on the ceilingRegistered User regular
    I love Shadow of Mordor. It's a fantastic game, in large part because of Nemesis. I'm shocked we haven't seen something like it in other open world games. It makes NPC interaction so dynamic and interesting.

    Shadow of War looks good. I'll pick it up at some point, no doubt about that.

    I used to be a big Tolkien lore nerd. Like, read the Silmarillion multiple times. At one point tried staying current with the more recent publications but stopped for a lot of reasons. I'm not such a stickler that I can't enjoy a good game, but Mordor made my eye twitch sometimes. A new Ring of Power is like... that's a Thing. The whole world would come crashing down on Talion. Every major ME entity would know, and there would be an absolutely bonkers jockey for power.

    Ok, I'll stop.

    But anyway, I appreciate the boldness of just going "fuck yeah there's a new Ring of Power." If you're gonna do a power fantasy game, go whole hog. I don't expect it to be handled very well, but eh.

    It's not going to stop me from leading an army of orcs.

    Battletag: Threeve#1501; PSN: Threeve703; Steam: 3eeve
  • NogginNoggin Registered User regular
    Putting much more focus on dominating your own orc army looks to be a great move for the nemesis system.

    I'm guessing fortresses will be a way to really push that, while other missions and tasks will probably remain solo/stealthy.

    Battletag: Noggin#1936
  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    Everything I saw in that gameplay trailer made me so happy, I have the dumbest grin on my face.

    I saw the first gameplay of Shadow of Mordor and had the usual "assassin's creed in Mordor and wraiths do not work that way *adjusts glasses*" reaction as many others but man it was such a blast to play and pretty much delivered on most of what they showed.

    If this gameplay trailer lives up to the promises of the first then it will be well worth purchasing.

    Although I'm trying not to preorder any more games but man it is just hitting all the right buttons.

  • DeadfallDeadfall I don't think you realize just how rich he is. In fact, I should put on a monocle.Registered User regular
    Yeah the whole conquering fortresses and using them to conquer territories and promote new overlords are really hitting my right buttons.

    7ivi73p71dgy.png
    xbl - HowYouGetAnts
    steam - WeAreAllGeth
  • BloodycowBloodycow Registered User regular
    August is too damn far away... gonna have to give shadows of mordor another run through. That damn gameplay trailer gave me a funny feeling in my corduroys!

    " I am a warrior, so that my son may be a merchant, so that his son may be a poet.”
    ― John Quincy Adams
  • Genji-GlovesGenji-Gloves Registered User regular
    The original game was nothing short of fantastic. If they pull off all the stuff they are promising it will be a masterpiece.

    Nemesis campaign on a war scale? People going to be chatting a long time sharing war stories.

  • ProhassProhass Registered User regular
    It's like customised cutscenes. Like all the fun of other games where you're wearing different outfits on your player character, but this time, characters, situations and enemies are all custom. God damn. The fighting looks as fun as ever

    I hope there's more humans and other races this time. But even if it seems all orcs and monsters they look spectacular. This just looks so fucking fun

    Also Orc bromances! I honestly wouldn't believe half the promises of that gameplay trailer if the first game hadn't completely blown me away with its system. They've essentially doubled down on the intros and death scenarios which is exactly what they should be doing, because creating your own stories is what made the first one so great

    That and the fact that you could sneak sprint and everything controlled beautifully

  • Big ClassyBig Classy Registered User regular
    I don't think I can handle the wait for this. I'm ordering the goddamn super deluxe version of this.

  • ProhassProhass Registered User regular
    edited March 2017
    Big Classy wrote: »
    I don't think I can handle the wait for this. I'm ordering the goddamn super deluxe version of this.

    The only reason I stopped playing shadow of mordor was because I ran out of content, I did everything including all the dlc. Sometimes I buy season passes rather than wait for the dlc just because if I could buy a game like this twice I would.

    Prohass on
  • Big ClassyBig Classy Registered User regular
    I technically did buy Shadow of Mordor twice; first Steam and then PS4.... Okay, technically way more than twice on Steam alone but that's a different story :P

    But yeah I'm almost done with the entire game. I don't really care much for achievements so I won't do stuff like getting a level 25 rune, there's simply too many other games played and I've already played through this one twice (steam first and then PS4). Will definitely do the doc though, forgot all about it as it's accessed through the main menu and I never saw that since I was only ever putting the PS4 into rest mode.

  • StupidStupid Newcastle, NSWRegistered User regular
    I guess I should start looking for a used copy of shadow of Mordor for the PS4.

    One of my local friends bought it digitally and because it's digital she couldn't loan it to me. I was only lukewarm on the game when it came out. It's not like they lost a sale; I was never going to buy it anyway. But this looks _good_


    26904.png
  • Lord_AsmodeusLord_Asmodeus goeticSobriquet: Here is your magical cryptic riddle-tumour: I AM A TIME MACHINERegistered User regular
    I loved Shadow of Mordor but I never owned it (since at the time I didn't have a computer that could play it) so I played a bit on my brother's computer but didn't get too far. So hyped for this, I picked up Shadow of Mordor for 20$ on Steam. I'll play through it so I know what's going on because I want to play the hell out of Shadow of War.

    Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if Labor had not first existed. Labor is superior to capital, and deserves much the higher consideration. - Lincoln
  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    edited March 2017
    Man I've watched the gameplay trailer about three or four times and I just keep hoping all the upgrades to the Nemesis system are true.

    Really the Nemesis system (coupled with the very fun gameplay) is what really made SoM such an enjoyable experience. While I wasn't good enough to never die in SoM, the few captains that either caught me off guard, truly overpowered me or was just a lucky orc that got in the last hit made for really meaningful experience the next time around. Their taunts and jeers at the start of our next encounter from having killed me already made it a more meaningful encounter than killing orc captain #17. Seeing the Cheat Death mechanic come back and even within the same encounter is absolutely terrific. One of my favorite SoM captains wasn't ever really a threat but just would not die. I forgot if he finally died when when he had a plate on his head or it was more of a bloody bag keeping in the remains of said head but each encounter was a delight as he tried to ambush me again and again.

    Also coupled with the social Revenge missions where you could avenge people on your friends list was a nice touch and provided some comradery without forcing in a multiplayer experience.

    Now looking at the upgrades I can't help but be excited: loyalty, betrayal, rivalries, and friendships. Orcs in general and the power between the two rings of power would naturally see the power struggle and subsequent loyalty and betrayal mount as we try to turn each faction towards our own--or really, we've previously been the one making orcs betray Sauron but now we'll be on the receiving end. Rivalries could see internal fighting in enemy or friendly forces or perhaps buffs as they try to outdo one another. Finally, friendships I just can think of sort of battle brothers slaughtering their foes with glee.

    Lot of speculation on my part, but I look forward to playing My Pet Orc Army 2.0 that I've reinstalled SoM to get my fix in the meantime.

    Edit: Bit longer post than I meant to make. Basically, why haven't more games started using a Nemesis System for more open world games? Could have space dogfighters, super heroes, anything where death is preventable or respawning is justified are all you need to put this system in.

    Karoz on
  • BloodycowBloodycow Registered User regular
    I just replayed SoM on PS4... just as great as I remember it.

    The ending, I really did forget that at the end he says 'Time for a new ring.'

    " I am a warrior, so that my son may be a merchant, so that his son may be a poet.”
    ― John Quincy Adams
  • Spicy_RevSpicy_Rev Registered User regular
    The hype for me on this is HIGH.

    I watched the Giantbomb Unfinished for this, and I am stoked. I do wonder what parts of the demos so far is scripted and what is organic game play.

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    consider the nature of the gameplay reveal i'd guess that it was entirely scripted. not that those thing can't or wont happen during a real play through, but they had things that they wanted to highlight and built the demo to do just that. that's not to say that it was completely micro-managed, the finishers where probably random, but they were included to show that they are back and just as brutal as in the first game.

  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    edited March 2017
    Time will tell, there are certainly features from the original Shadow of Mordor announcement and gameplay trailers that didn't make the cut but still did a good job on delivering on most of them.

    Always take these videos with a grain of salt but with how good a job they did with SoM I do have high hopes for SoW.

    Karoz on
  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    the fact that it's been so long since SoM released gives me hope. they could have easily rushed out a sequel to capitalize on the positive reaction but it seems that WBs has actually given them the time needed to craft a worthy sequel.

  • StupidStupid Newcastle, NSWRegistered User regular
    I'm likely going to borrow a copy of Shadows of Mordor from a local friend this weekend and play through it over the next two weeks. I guess I'm "done" with Let It Die....


    26904.png
  • The Big LevinskyThe Big Levinsky Registered User regular
    Karoz wrote: »
    Edit: Bit longer post than I meant to make. Basically, why haven't more games started using a Nemesis System for more open world games? Could have space dogfighters, super heroes, anything where death is preventable or respawning is justified are all you need to put this system in.

    Most games don't work player death into the narrative. In all other open world games you restart from your last save and pretend your death never happened.

    I gotta say I am really looking forward to this. Everything about the game play and presentation of this game was a triumph. Everyone raves about the nemesis system - and rightfully so - but I also really liked how well the loot system worked. They didn't fall into the trap of making runes just boring, passive stat buffs (I'm looking at you Horizon Zero Dawn!) but instead had many runes that altered how your abilities worked. I remember I had a lot of fun experimenting with different rune combinations so I could find ways to super boost whatever play style I was interested in at the time.

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    a brief look at look at Minas Ithil.

    https://youtu.be/BQRiVwYQvEk

  • ProhassProhass Registered User regular
    edited April 2017
    nothing much shown there, other than we'll have allied NPCs and the cities look pretty big, but doesnt look like we'll have any control over them, just fight alongside them.

    Also bizarrely this is the first time I realised that its Celebrimbor's voice saying orc names.

    Prohass on
  • TOGSolidTOGSolid Drunk sailor Seattle, WashingtonRegistered User regular
    Prohass wrote: »
    nothing much shown there
    That moonwalk at 2:41 is worth the price of admission.

    wWuzwvJ.png
  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    Prohass wrote: »
    nothing much shown there, other than we'll have allied NPCs and the cities look pretty big, but doesnt look like we'll have any control over them, just fight alongside them.

    Also bizarrely this is the first time I realised that its Celebrimbor's voice saying orc names.

    i did say it was brief. however, it being part of this months IGN First feature means we should get some more over the next couple of weeks.

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    another look at Minas Ithil, this time going behind the scenes and seeing how Monolith built it and talking about how it might change over the course of the game. also some hints at other activities outside the story and will be available.

    https://youtu.be/qSJi8a69-zs

  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    Welp, fool that I am I have preordered the gold edition.

    Bundle Stars sent me a "VIP code" for 30% off any of the editions so I decided to go big with the gold since that includes the story expansions.

    I know they are gimmicks but I am so weak.

    It reminded me when I first started up Shadow of Mordor, played for 10 minutes, then went to the steam store to buy the season pass while it still had the preorder discount (the game was released early).

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    IGN takes a quick look at the Predator skill tree and some of the skill upgrade.

    https://youtu.be/JT9vj_9qcXU

  • TychoCelchuuuTychoCelchuuu PIGEON Registered User regular
    Prohass wrote: »
    Also bizarrely this is the first time I realised that its Celebrimbor's voice saying orc names.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSt5zJRVNIg

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    How to train your Drake in Shadow of War. also some other beasts that don't fly and breath fire if you want to be boring.

    https://youtu.be/r1nJJfWXmkY

  • RandomHajileRandomHajile Not actually a Snatcher The New KremlinRegistered User regular
    Wraith260 wrote: »
    How to train your Drake in Shadow of War. also some other beasts that don't fly and breath fire if you want to be boring.

    https://youtu.be/r1nJJfWXmkY
    Lair (2007, Sony Computer Entertainment)

    No, but seriously, this game looks great.

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    as long as no one mentions motion controls i think we'll be fine.

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    a look at armour, weapons and how they can augment Talion's fighting abilities. looks like its got some depth there without being overwhelming or clunky.

    https://youtu.be/YhpFWYHGnV8

  • Wraith260Wraith260 Happiest Goomba! Registered User regular
    and now a look at the expanded Nemesis System, here focusing on how Warlords and tribes will affect the game world.

    https://youtu.be/uk197PKSQu4

    we're getting to the end of the month so can't expect much more from IGN on this, but hopefully they still have something nice to cap off their First coverage.

  • StupidStupid Newcastle, NSWRegistered User regular
    So, I started Shadow of Mordor this weekend. The starting-out difficulty was off the charts. One does not simply fight their way through this game. Once I started treating it like an action/stealth game it got a lot easier to deal with and even combat started become easier to deal with. The map feels really tiny though! Problem is, now that I've opened up pretty much all of the areas (at least the ones available at the start of the game - there might be other areas I haven't found yet) I'm finding the game to be a bit rudderless... I mean, sure I can just go around killing Captains and Warchiefs, but I'm kinda not seeing an overarcing goal for the game.... Maybe I missed an important plot point along the way?


    26904.png
  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    There are designated missions to progress the story further and should be available on your map.

    Being able to brand orcs doesn't happen until the second area and then you start raising My Pet Orc Army.

  • StupidStupid Newcastle, NSWRegistered User regular
    It's not that I don't have quests and stuff to do... my current "main story" quest is to kill four (4) warchiefs. But I feel like I'm picking weeds out of a huge field. I can go through and kill a bunch of orcs/captains/warchiefs and then the next time I start up the game, there are new ones that have grown back! I feel like i'm just treading water... the best I can hope for is to not drown - there's no winning. And being on a never ending combat treadmill that never moves forward makes the entire thing feel kind of pointless.


    26904.png
  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    Once a warchief is dead they'll stay dead for that mission. Just go ahead and kill them. If they have any captain bodyguards you may want to kill them first to make it easier but once you down the four you're practically done with that area.

  • texasheattexasheat Registered User regular
    It's difficult to hear someone complain about a rudderless game when you won't do the story mission. Maybe it's just me...but go do the story mission???

  • StupidStupid Newcastle, NSWRegistered User regular
    edited May 2017
    texasheat wrote: »
    It's difficult to hear someone complain about a rudderless game when you won't do the story mission. Maybe it's just me...but go do the story mission???
    Uh, when did I say I wasn't doing the main story missions? I _am_ doing the main story missions. But they're spread out all over the map, and each one takes about seventeen hours significant time to get to without attracting every orc on the whole map. And then when I do finally manage to sneak in there, if I die in the ensuing fight (which seems to happen about 40% of the time), that triggers four or five orcs getting promoted or stronger, making the next story mission that much harder! It feels rudderless because it seems like I'm not making any tangible progress - I kill a few orcs and then when I die in the next fight, new ones take their places and others get stronger. It's like swimming upstream. I work and work and work and when I stop to take a breath for a second, the river pushes me back to where I was before. For example, my current "main story" says 2/4 warchiefs killed, but out of the five possible warchiefs, all five slots are filled! Sure the kill count has advanced - I have killed two of those guys - but they've just been replaced with new warchiefs that are actually stronger than the ones I killed. Am I progressing? It sure doesn't feel like it!!

    Stupid on

    26904.png
Sign In or Register to comment.