The release of Lord of the Rings game Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor is now less than a week away. With the game’s review embargo now up, critics have weighed in on Monolith Productions’ third-person action game.

Below is a roundup of scores and editor reflections you can look over ahead of the game’s release on September 30. Check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic for more on the game’s critical reception.

• Game: Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
• Developer: Monolith Productions
• Platforms: Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PC
• Release date: September 30
• Price: $60

GameSpot — 8/10

“[T]his is a great game in its own right, narratively disjointed but mechanically sound, made up of excellent parts pieced together in excellent ways. I already knew what future lay in store for Middle-earth as I played Shadow of Mordor; I’m hoping that my own future might one day bring another Lord of the Rings adventure as stirring as this one.” – Kevin VanOrd [Full review]

Destructoid — 6/10

“Ultimately, like many ambitious projects, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor doesn’t deliver on everything it sets out to do. Although Monolith’s heart is in the right place and the studio honors the lore, it doesn’t really add anything that’s worth seeing outside of some solid open-world gameplay. It isn’t a bad game, it just feels far too repetitive for its own good.” – Chris Carter [Full review]

Joystiq — 5/5

“What would have otherwise been a competent sandbox game with solid combat mechanics and an interesting twist on a known fantasy world is elevated by the Nemesis System. Shadow of Mordor is the strategic person’s action game.” – Alexander Sliwinski [Full review]

Polygon — 9.5/10

“Shadow of Mordor is that ultimate rarity. It tells a fun little story that would be enough to hold up most games on its own. But it also provides all of the tools to ensure that the most interesting tales to come out of the game will be the ones that were not scripted.” – Philip Kollar [Full review]

IGN — 9.3/10

“Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor stands out from other open-world action games by putting a great new layer on top of the trail that Batman blazed. I was surprised at how well it integrates its excellent combat with rewarding feedback and progression not just for me, but also for my enemies. I’ve had many more memorable and unpredictable battles with its randomized Warchiefs and captains than I did in the scripted campaign missions, and I expect those to keep on coming.” – Dan Stapleton [Full review]

The Escapist — 4.5/5

“As an open-world game set in Middle-earth, Shadow of Mordor delivers unique emergent gameplay, finely-tuned combat mechanics, and a story which avoids typical fantasy fare. While the main storyline can be finished relatively quickly, there is a lot of content in Mordor for you to pursue however you like.” – Greg Tito [Full review]

A list of additional scores from other publications can be found below:

• GamesRadar – 9/10
• Game Informer – 8.25/10
• GamesBeat – 80/100
• Eurogamer – 8/10
• MMORPG.com – 8.2/10
• Shacknews – 9/10

Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on Twitter @EddieMakuch

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