BATCH 4 COMPLETED!

MIDDLE EARTH: SHADOW OF MORDOR: I’ve had this game sitting in my library for a while now (a gift from the Great Llama :P) and I only just got around to playing it. I have to say I had a lot of fun playing. The game’s combat system is influenced heavily from the Batman Arkham series but Mordor manages to add bits of originality into it and make it seem different. I loved the idea that I could build and control my own Orc army to rival Sauron and the Nemesis system makes for some interesting interactions. Visually, the game is beautiful as can be expected. My only criticism is with the mediocre story and lackluster boss fights. I expected to see more LotR lore feature in the game and Celebrimbor’s story was a great step in that direction but it wasn’t enough. The story is by no means bad, but it could definitely have been better. I still enjoyed it nonetheless and it has hyped me up for Shadow of War. The boss fights, however, detract from the experience. The first boss battle is the only one that feels like a battle while the other two feel like cop-outs. Overall, I’d recommend the game especially if you’re a fan of the Batman Arkham play style.

SOMA: I haven’t played a lot of horror games (in fact I haven’t played any horror games), not because I’m not a fan or anything, but because horror games give me a sort of anxiety that cause me to put off starting the game. I finally decided that I would play a horror game and chose SOMA since I picked it up in the Monthly and it seemed like a good horror for a beginner. I have to say this game has easily made it into my list of favorite games. I won’t say anything about the story because that is what SOMA does so well and what makes it worth playing. The gameplay is much like many horror games where you can’t fight and have to avoid or evade monsters. Most of the time, getting caught by the monster doesn’t kill you but it damages you making you slower and blurring your vision. At most, you can survive may be one more hit. I went into the game expecting you die a lot due to my inexperience with the genre but ironically enough, I only died once and that was because I fell off of a ledge into the Abyss. The monsters are varied and have different strategies to deal with them but most of them are easy and though many people might not like that, I didn’t mind since it let me explore more and find more bits and pieces of the story. SOMA does an incredible job at immersion and the visuals are again stunning. The game’s ending is one of those that will be unforgettable. It’s devastating but also hopeful at the same time and really does a great job at making you wondering at what being human actually means. I’d recommend this game strongly for anyone that loves horror games with an excellent, thought-provoking and unforgettable story. I’ll probably be playing this again in a couple of months.

Most of the screenshots that I have from SOMA would spoil the game, so I’ll just put up this one.

NEXT UP: Before I start up Batch 5 with INSIDE, I’ll play and 100% the Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel since I got the Season Pass. Then I might also play campaign for Battlefield 1. So, I’ll be juggling my playing time between several games including Overwatch.