Shadow of Mordor and a Rambling Lemming

(From Monolith Productions, Behaviour Interactive, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment; via Steam; used w/o permission.)
Middle-earth™: Shadow of Mordor™
Steam (steampowered.com)

"Fight through Mordor and uncover the truth of the spirit that compels you, discover the origins of the Rings of Power, build your legend and ultimately confront the evil of Sauron in this new chronicle of Middle-earth."
User reviews: Very Positive (6,301 reviews)
Release Date: Sep 30, 2014

Apparently Shadow of Mordor was released on September 30 of this year, except for folks in Australia, where they had to wait until Wednesday this week.

Actually, it's the game Shadow of Mordor that was released. As far as the Lemming knows, not shadows from Mordor have actually been released: nor are likely to be, since Mordor doesn't exist outside J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle Earth. At least, that's what the Lemming's read.

Shadow of Mordor: Premium and Otherwise

Folks can probably buy Shadow of Mordor elsewhere, but the Lemming only checked prices at Steam. There, it's $49.99 for the game. Spend $74.99 for the "Premium Edition" and you'll get items: Middle-earth™: Shadow of Mordor™, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor - Season Pass.

Here's why Steam says you should get the "Premium Edition:"

"Upgrade to the Premium Edition to receive a digital download copy of Shadow of Mordor and Season Pass. The Season Pass gives you access to future content including campaign missions, additional challenge modes, quests, skins, and runes."

The Season Pass by itself goes for $24.99 — which is $24.99 more than the Lemming has to spend on entertainment just now. Travel — being a flannel-wearing lemmings has its advantages, and that's another topic.

Acclaimed by (some) Critics

Apparently Shadow of Mordor is a AAA game: big studio; big budget; big expectations. Wikipedia has a pretty good page about the game, including this excerpt:

"...The story involves the Rings of Power, but the story is separate from The Lord of the Rings canon. The Monolith team is working with Middle-earth Enterprises, Peter Jackson, and the artists at the Weta Workshop to make sure that the settings, characters, and story align within canon. Tolkien stated that, aside from Beren, dead men did not return to life in Middle-earth. The beginning of the game is set during abandonment of the watch on the Black Gate, despite that watch ending some 1,300 years prior to the game's start date.

"Plot

"Talion, a ranger captain, is part of a Gondor garrison stationed at the Black Gate. The garrison is attacked by Sauron's Uruk forces led by 3 Black Númenórean captains; the Hammer of Sauron, the Tower of Sauron, and their leader the Black Hand of Sauron (Nolan North). Talion, his wife Ioreth, and his son Dirhael are captured and ritually sacrificed by the Black Hand in an attempt to summon the wraith of the Elf Lord Celebrimbor. However, Celebrimbor (who suffers from amnesia due to his status as a wraith) instead ends up merging with Talion, saving him from death. The two of them set out to uncover Celebrimbor's identity as well as to avenge the death of Talion's family...."

Not surprisingly, Shadow of Mordor has been "acclaimed by critics," and other critics haven't been quite so enthusiastic. If the Lemming looked around, there's probably someone who utterly despises the game because it doesn't mention Space Pirate Captain Harlock. Not once.

Speaking of Space Pirate Captain Harlock, apathy is still rampant: but nobody cares.

That was a great deal funnier a few decades back. It wasn't particularly funny then, but moreso than it is now. Probably. Your experience may vary. For external use only. Not approved for off-road travel. Caution: may contain peanuts. Seriously, does anyone really think daft warning labels are a good idea? And that's yet another topic.

More than you may want to know about this game:

• Shadow of Mordor
  official site
• Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
  Wikipedia

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