Middle-earth seen from the inside, where every orc you cross remembers you.

On gut feeling, with no thinking involved, Shadow of War gets ahead of a little over half the games, ahead of 56%. Fine, no spark. But the detail tells a wholly different story. Connection climbs to the very top, ahead of 99% of titles on the largest pile of votes here, and it holds. Fun and rediscovery follow just behind, ahead of 97%. The soundtrack isn't far, ahead of 87%, to be confirmed on few votes. Here's what lands: a game adored deeply criterion by criterion, above all on that bond you forge with it, while the gut choice stays cooler. The one snag, the art style, just below the middle, ahead of 44%.

In action open worlds, that system of enemies who recognize you builds an attachment few games in the genre reach. That's where this title fully earns its place.

So, who's it for? You, if you like a world that remembers you, growing attached to the faces you meet, the pleasure you relaunch again and again. Much less so if you're chasing a visual knockout above all.