Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Announced

Monolith Productions are working on Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor for current and next-generation consoles with the exclusion of the Wii U.

Today Warner Bros. announced Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, an all-new third-person Lord of the Rings prequel, set between events of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

Unlike the previous Lord of the Rings games, which were based on major events and characters from the fiction, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor will tell an original story and it will be set between the events of J.R.R. Tolkien's acclaimed fantasy novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

Talion, a new ranger described by developers as conflicted in a similar to the way Boromir, Galadriel, and Saruman were. Players will be offered to journey deep into Mordor before it became a wasteland.

"In Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, gamers take on the role of Talion, a valiant ranger whose family is slain in front of him the night Sauron and his army return to Mordor, moments before his own life is taken. Resurrected by a Spirit of vengeance and empowered with Wraith abilities, Talion ventures into Mordor and vows to destroy those who have wronged him. Through the course of his personal vendetta, Talion uncovers the truth of the Spirit that compels him, learns the origins of the Rings of Power and ultimately confronts his true nemesis."

A new Nemesis System will be put in place to ensure that every enemy player encounter is "unique individual" whose personality, strengths, and weaknesses differ. If such player falls at the hand of one of these enemies, the enemy will survive and become stronger. Also Warner Bros. said that players will be able to craft their own battles, enemies, and rewards within a "dynamic world" that remembers and adapts to player choices.