14 DAY TRIAL // Next up in our Softpedia Game of the Year 2014 awards is the best action adventure game – Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor – made by Monolith Entertainment and Warner Bros. for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One platforms.
The action adventure genre is usually a crowded one as quite a lot of different titles can enter the category with more or less ease. However, while in most years this area is a highly contested one, this year Ubisoft has made it much easier by sabotaging its two major installments, Assassin's Creed Unity and Rogue, with a huge amount of glitches when it comes to Unity, and last-gen visuals when it comes to Rogue.
As such, after nominating Infamous: Second Son as the runner-up in the best action adventure category, it's time to crown Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor as the best title in the genre for 2014.
Before the game's debut, the odds were stacked against the title, as it was based on the Lord of the Rings universe, which didn't exactly receive the best games ever, and it came from developer Monolith, which impressed just with a few older titles over the years. Add to that the accusations of theft from the Assassin's Creed or Batman Arkham franchises, and there wasn't a lot of excitement about it.
Shadow of Mordor proved everyone wrong
Fortunately, Monolith and Warner Bros. proved everyone wrong and delivered a stellar action adventure experience that, while borrowing heavily from the two aforementioned titles, made the whole package work thanks to the stellar Nemesis system.
Sure, you roamed Mordor just like an assassin would and you fought Uruks just like Batman would. However, the complex system that governed the hierarchy of the Uruks, ranging from captains to war chiefs and more made the foes you encountered in the game's open world come to life.
Getting killed by a no-name Uruk and then seeing him climb the ranks while getting more and more powerful made you feel proud as well as resentful. Taking him down using his fears or weaknesses felt all the more satisfying.
Sure, the story didn't satisfy hardcore Lord of the Rings fans, but it still delivered a fun time and knew when to let off Steam so that it didn't take itself too seriously. Throw in the pretty great voice acting, not to mention some highlight characters like Ratbag, and you certainly had a blast exploring Mordor.
Thanks to all these elements, Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor is the best action adventure game of 2014. Check out our review right here.
