Some would say that J. R. R. Tolkien is one of the best high fantasy authors of the last century, which definitely seems to be the case, considering how many times The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings have been reprinted and recreated in other media. He created a complete mythology for the world that has inspired many. This review is going to look at one example of this inspiration; Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.

The story of the game follows Talion, a ranger of Gondor who was murdered with his family, but "banished from death" by a curse that has bound him to a wraith. While the game does keep to the canon of the mythology of Middle-earth, this is an original story set between the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

The game itself is an open-world, action-adventure RPG with an emphasis on stealth, flowing combat, and a third-person camera. (Try saying all of that three times fast.) It also features what the developers have named the Nemesis system, which allows enemies to remember past encounters with you (assuming they survived), become stronger, and adapt their behavior in response to threats. The ESRB gave it a Mature rating for intense violence, blood, and gore, which makes a lot of sense since you eventually gain the ability to make your enemies' heads explode, depending on how you kill them. If such content would be inappropriate for you, then this review may be as well, as none of the media it contains has been censored.