
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, which launches September 30th on PS4, wastes no time in revealing the blood-curdling tragedy that befalls Talion, a Ranger of the Black Gate. Having witnessed the death of his wife and son, his own life is ended by a cloaked agent of Sauron, who whispers dark words beneath a lashing of rain and then cuts his throat.
But Talion is not afforded the luxury of death. A wraith from the world of shadow returns him from the dead to seek vengeance on Sauron’s forces. And just minutes after Talion’s first troubled steps back onto Middle-earth, the land of Mordor opens up into a breath-taking gallery of missions, power struggles, and awe-inspiring magic.
With just days to go before Shadow of Mordor launches, let’s take a look at some things you might not know about this open-world action RPG set in one of the most iconic fantasy worlds in history.

1.) Explore an Open-world at Your Leisure
After the introduction of Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Talion and the wraith are set loose to rain death and destruction down upon Sauron’s forces. Story missions are highlighted in gold on the map, and you can undertake those challenges at your leisure. But Shadow of Mordor invites you to explore, take your time, and select the activities that you feel most drawn to.
2.) Varied Combat, Not for the Faint of Heart
The combat system in Shadow of Mordor empowers you with choice. Talion has a number of different attacks, born from both his skills as a Ranger and also his connection to the wraith. He can counter incoming strikes, roll over the backs of his opponents, and stun them with a burst of ghostly magic. But even with all this power, Talion is just one man, and he can be overwhelmed by larger groups. Exercise caution, act quickly, and Talion can dispatch mighty foes.
3.) Employ Stealth and Magic
Although the combat system in Shadow of Mordor has plenty to offer, you can leverage Talion’s stealthy abilities to eliminate watchful archers, straggling sentries, or unguarded captains. Talion can vault up walls and along tall ledges to reach advantageous positions behind enemy lines, and leap down upon unsuspecting targets with a deadly flourish. Spotted? Use elf-like speed to escape in a blur of shadows.
4.) A Unique Army Stands Against You
The captains of Sauron’s army will differ from player to player, their strengths and weaknesses evolving dynamically as the enemy ranks shift. Gather intel by probing the minds of Sauron’s forces and then target captains with secret knowledge. Or brand influential soldiers with the wraith’s mark, corrupting the dark legions from within.
5.) Gather Runes to Build a Legend
Powerful enemies, including Sauron’s captains, may drop runes that can be etched into Talion’s sword, dagger, and bow. These runes act as loot in Shadow of Mordor, producing many beneficial effects that can be collected and tweaked to suit your favorite style of play. The more powerful the opponent, the more devastating the rune. Build an arsenal of these ethereal marks and build Talion’s legend.
6.) Defy Death, Wield Great Power
The developers at Monolith have gone to great lengths to make you feel powerful through Talion’s Ranger abilities and the wraith’s influence. Fire shadowy arrows across long distances or unleash combos impossible for mortal men. Even when Talion is “defeated” by an enemy, he is simply resurrected at the nearest tower of the wraith, even stronger than before.
7.) Entertaining Diversions Await
Though Talion is focused on his goal of vengeance, side missions fill the map and provide Talion with another method to build experience. Free slaves, clear guards from fortified positions, hunt local beasts for sport, or collect medicinal herbs to ensure his survival.
8.) Uncover Hidden Relics
The crumbling ruins and jagged peaks of Mordor house a trove of ancient relics, hidden to mortal eyes. Use the wraith’s power to enter the world of shadow and track these forgotten treasures. Study them to reveal memories imprinted upon the items — conversations long past that provide insight into Middle-earth’s history.
9.) Learn the Lore of Mordor
Meeting a new hero, exploring a new location, and even collecting a wild herb open detailed entries in Shadow of Mordor’s appendix. These images and text give remarkable insight into the larger world of Lord of the Rings and provide a palpable sense of realness to even the most minute detail.
10.) Challenge the Blood Hunters and Flesh Burners
Skilled in bow and blade? Face the master assassins known as the Blood Hunters, or do battle with the elite archers of the Flesh Burners. These challenges award Talion with powerful runes for his weaponry, and both missions are exclusive to PS4.
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor launches on September 30th for PS4, and hits PS3 on November 18th.
Why The Wraith decides to return Talion to life? Why him,and not anybody else?
You’ll have to play to find out! ( ̄ー ̄)
Looking forward to giving this a spin next week. Nice little diversion from Destiny.
Yes, I want to keep playing but it’s hard to put Destiny down…
hey Ryan, why this game will be unlock to play at 3am EST/2am CST instead 11pm/12am EST ?. i hate to stay up until 2am CST is my time. i know this game don’t have MP
Hi! Sorry, I’m not sure about the exact time Shadow of Mordor is available! I’ll investigate.
had no idea it was open-world! i just preordered #DriveClub last night…i’ll be picking this up as well!
Nice! Hope you enjoy both.
I used to play LOTR games on PS2, but kind of lost interest playing LOTR on PS3. This game looks amazing. It looks like I will be coming back to play LOTR on my new PS4.
Enjoy!
The only thing I needed to know about Middle-earth Shadow of Mordor was the release date!!! :) I cannot wait! Already have the Legion Edition preordered on PSN. I am watching the The Hobbit and LoTR movies and I am so ready! This game really looks special. Thanks for the new information as well.
You’re very welcome, thanks for reading!
@3 I have it preordered and it shows it will unlock at 3am Est
Only thing I need to know is what illness I should claim to have when I call in sick to work on Tuesday, so I can spend the whole day playing it. My most anticipated game of the year!
Don’t get in too much trouble! :3
Pretty sweet, but happy with my sales and mobility on old school stuff.
Enjoy, all you new recruits.
Question (for everyone): When will this game be available for pre-download?
I wonder how different the PS3 version is, besides the graphics. I look forward to this game.
@10
It will start preloading on 9/28/2014! :)
CAn not wait for this game and Ive never even seen any of the lord of the rings movies, but this game just looks so awesome
I already have my copy pre-ordered. Really looking forward to it.
God I really wish this game were using a unique and independent story… because I think this game looks amazing as far as gameplay, visuals, and combat go………. but man is it doing a number on me as a Tolkien fan…
The more I see of this, the better it looks. After that War In The North game, we deserve a good Middle Earth title.
Well since Destiny’s “treasure cave” is sealed up, we may have a fresh influx of Mordor-ers.
Not multiplayer? Not buying. Sorry
Really hope this is as good as it looks.
We wants it, we needs it. Must have the precious. It’s open world for us.
Played this a PAX Prime and it was fantastic. I can’t wait for Tuesday’s release.
I have this pre ordered on my PS4. ( very excited to play ). It comes up in my library but doesn’t give me a count down and still has a price tag attached to it. Does anyone have any ideas?
@18
WHY IN THE NAME OF SAURON WOULD YOU WANT MULTIPLAYER!?
Is the game 60fps, if not I’ll get it on PC
Wow. 9.3 from IGN, 9.5 from Polygon and 10 from Joystiq? Guess I know what game I’m getting, that’s for sure.
Po-ta-toes!
Beyond Ryan!
Why Serkis didn’t worked on Gollum?
How big is the open world? Is it all of middle earth or just mordor or some other particular area?
It would be cool to see a PS Vita spin-off!
This game looks amazing I cant wait to mess with the nemesis system. :D Looks like for me it might be the game ive been waiting for all year.
Now I know that Shadow of Mordor Legion Edition is available on the PSN store, so are the retail store versions have the Legion Edition PS4 exclusive missions to.
I agree with everyone above about ET (Eastern Time). Times should be based on ET, because otherwise you will be making a huge segment of your audience wait until 3am. That is just ridiculous.
Why would you set the servers to PT? That’s just ridiculous. If you set to ET, everyone is happy. Set to PT, a segment become less happy. Seems like an obvious choice.
ET!
@32 – Because Midnight pacific means nobody gets the game BEFORE it’s release date
When is this supposed to take place? Obviously it’s before/during LOTR, but I’m not too sure about the time period of the game.
Never mind my last post. I did some poking around and found out it’s in-between The Hobbit and LOTR.
It’s pacific time because SONY of America is located in California. Also the clock is set for the preload not for the release on the 30th.
I have a question (Idk if this sounds stupid) but do I need to know Lord Of The Rings to play this game?
So it is the 28th, and I’ve preordered on PS3. However, in my Downloads, it says this game is downloadable on November 16th and playable on November 18th. What gives?
Who has experience with pre-load? It’s the 28th and I have my PS4 in standby with auto download on and nothing is happening. When I check the shadow of mordor tab on either the PS store or my library, there’s just a timer counting down until the full game unlocks. There is no download option to manually select. Anyone else get this to start pre-loading yet?
I have the same problem, i pre order the game whith my second account psnUS and its ready to play. I use my account PSN PT ( European ) share with my 2st account and show me the countdown 2 days left…The problem is in the PSN US show me the exactly 2 days countdown..
Yay for a good LotR game since the PS2…can’t wait to try out Shadow of Mordor….game will be great no doubt about.Nice post very informative.