When comparing Devil May Cry HD Collection vs Middle-earth: Shadow of War, the Slant community recommends Middle-earth: Shadow of War for most people. In the question“What are the best hack and slash PC games?” Middle-earth: Shadow of War is ranked 16th while Devil May Cry HD Collection is ranked 27th. The most important reason people chose Middle-earth: Shadow of War is:
Shadow of War uses the Nemesis system to create a more immersive and alive-feeling world. Thanks to it, orc leaders have names, ranks, titles, tribes they belong to, and most importantly, connections to other orc leaders. For example, an orc leader might be at war with another orc leader. This conflict won't end until one of them dies. There are also orcs that are considered blood brothers, having unwavering loyalty to each other. Because of this, don't be too surprised if you ever get betrayed by one of your followers that's trying to do right by his blood brother. Additionally, the leaders you fight will also develop connections with you. Orcs that you've killed or spared, may come back with scars, recalling your previous encounter and vowing to exact vengeance. Orcs that you've escaped from will mock you for being a chicken, and so forth. The gradual creation of this web of connections is very enjoyable and sometimes even more compelling than the game's main story.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Flashy and satisfying hack-and-slash combat
The combat in the Devil May Cry games has awesome animations, plenty of combos to master, and a helpful rating system that displays after each battle to let you know how well you did. Armed with swords and dual guns, you'll hack enemies into the air, and slash or shoot at them with cool-looking animations as blood gushes out from their bodies. Pulling off a chain of combos against an enemy not only looks great, but it feels satisfying to lock them in place while you slice away at them and maintain the upper-hand.
The ratings you get after each fight will give you a grade based on your speed and finesse for pure validation. New players can get away with button-mashing on the easier difficulties without caring about the rating, but more hardcore action game veterans could use the ratings to see where they can improve their play. The battle system as a whole is incredible for anyone looking for action-packed fights with either button-mashing or smart combos.
Pro Challenging boss fights
Bosses can be pretty tough, not only in how much damage they'll deal to you, but also the obstacles they throw at you to keep you on your toes. Their combat style is smartly matched with their design, including the ways they use their limbs or the environment to catch you off guard. One boss fight is against a lava-filled tarantula that swipes at you with its giant legs and makes spurts of lava shoot up from the ground underneath you. Another one is a giant bird that flaps its huge wings to blow you back, jumps up to the sky out of your view, and then swoops down to crush you beneath its feet. You'll have to react quickly to avoid taking too much damage, all the while finding windows to attack and bring the bosses down.
Pro The iconic protagonist Dante is witty and entertaining
Dante is an iconic character because of how clever and stylish he is, both in cutscenes and in combat. He's laid-back and has an air of confidence as he quips with witty one-liners during story moments. His combat style is slick and cool, with flashy animations with his swords and dual guns, and he loves showing off his moves during cutscenes. The opening scene of Devil May Cry 3 shows Dante slinging his dual guns at a group of monsters while he keeps a slice of pizza in his mouth, pulling off over-the-top kicks and acrobatics while he jams to a rock song on a nearby jukebox. He's such a cool guy that it's easy to like him and get invested in his story.
Pro Dark and tense atmosphere
The haunted locations in the games are dark and moody, giving you a tense feeling as you explore the levels. Shadows and unlit areas are stark in how dark they are, with the interiors of old style stone buildings lit only by torches or moonlight. Satanic-looking statues and archaic architecture are everywhere in the old, haunted mansions you'll explore. Demonic enemies and bosses will jump out at you from nowhere for sudden battles, forcing you to quickly react and strike back. The atmosphere can be downright creepy, but the dark mood and tense settings are really well-done, fitting perfectly with the devil-hunting themes of the games.
Pro Great bargain for its price with three games in one
For three games in a single collection, $29.99 USD at launch is a steal. Completing all of the games will take you about 30 hours, plus more time if you search around for all of the hidden secrets. If you don't want to pay the usual full retail price for a new game, there's a lot of value here for your money.
Pro Character connections make for a compelling experience
Shadow of War uses the Nemesis system to create a more immersive and alive-feeling world. Thanks to it, orc leaders have names, ranks, titles, tribes they belong to, and most importantly, connections to other orc leaders.
For example, an orc leader might be at war with another orc leader. This conflict won't end until one of them dies. There are also orcs that are considered blood brothers, having unwavering loyalty to each other. Because of this, don't be too surprised if you ever get betrayed by one of your followers that's trying to do right by his blood brother.
Additionally, the leaders you fight will also develop connections with you. Orcs that you've killed or spared, may come back with scars, recalling your previous encounter and vowing to exact vengeance. Orcs that you've escaped from will mock you for being a chicken, and so forth. The gradual creation of this web of connections is very enjoyable and sometimes even more compelling than the game's main story.
Pro Addictive gear collection fuels your thirst for orc blood
As you kill orc leaders, they'll drop random quality gear items, ranging from common rarity every-orc weapons/armor to legendary rarity artifacts with unique names. Each item serves to improve your character, providing various stat increases and damage bonuses. You can also upgrade gear with gems or via challenges that usually involve killing orcs, bolstering your strength even further. On top of that, there are set bonuses for legendary items, giving you special abilities such as your hits applying explosive poison on regular enemies. It's very exciting seeing what gear piece an orc leader will drop once you lob his head off, causing you to constantly seek out new victims.
Pro Satisfying combat
Shadow of War gives one of the better feeling combat systems in recent times, allowing you to be either stealthy or go for direct confrontations.
If you choose to be stealthy, you can skewer unsuspecting orcs from behind with your dagger, drop onto them from a building while impaling them with your sword, or just pierce them from afar with your bow.
If you choose a direct confrontation, it's a really quick-paced and brutal showdown against your enemies with your chosen melee weapon. You weave combos against enemies, dodging, parrying, and countering enemy attacks, which ends in a devastating finishing move, resulting in a mutilated or decapitated orc.
Whichever method you choose, the combat flows really well and you always feel like a force to be reckoned with.
Pro You can lead an orc army and expand your own dominion
As part of the Nemesis system, you can recruit orc leaders after you've bested them in combat. Each one has his own unique strengths and weaknesses, so making the best possible army for conquering enemy territories might take a while.
For example, an orc leader can be completely immune to ranged attacks, but can take increased damage from explosions. You should take such an orc leader on assaults against fortresses filled with archers but be wary of the slightest hints of any bombs.
Once you've finished building a sizeable force, you can assault a fortresses. If you succeed in the assault, you'll take over a territory, allowing you to install your own orc leader as the ruler. With enough effort you'll gradually take over Mordor and its surrounding lands.
Shadow of War makes you feel like a recruiter, general, and a ruler, which is very empowering and a lot of fun.
Cons
Con Devil May Cry 2 isn't as strong as the other games
Devil May Cry 2 is the weakest game in the trilogy, with combat, exploration, and a story that doesn't have the same quality as the other two games. Fighting against enemies and bosses feels bland and generic with almost no skill required to beat them. Running around the open city is also boring since it's way too linear and doesn't have the same tense atmosphere as the haunted locations from Devil May Cry 1 and 3. The story is pretty horrible as well, mainly because of the bad characters and terrible writing.
It's so awful that Devil May Cry 3 basically carries on with its story and characters as if the second game never existed. There's always a chance that you'll enjoy Devil May Cry 2, but it has so many problems going for it that it's hard to praise or recommend.
Con Annoying camera issues
The fixed camera angles shift in strange, frustrating ways as they try to keep up with your perspective. As you walk through a level, the camera will suddenly change from one point, for example, to somewhere right behind you. You're presumably still making Dante go in one direction, but the camera won't give you a few seconds to adjust your controls, forcing you to go in some other direction while the camera shifts wildly around to follow you. It's an antiquated design decision that showed up a lot during the PlayStation 2 era, making the games feel dated in this day and age.
Con Latest HD release adds nothing new over the previous one
This is the exact same version of the HD collection released for the previous generation, offering nothing new. If you already played the collection on the PS3 or Xbox 360, then the most you'll have to look forward to is earning trophies and achievements again. If you wanted something extra with this latest re-release, you'll sadly be disappointed.
Con Can get repetitive
The overall gameplay formula doesn't change much over the course of the game. You fight orcs, take over strongholds, upgrade your character, and collect blips on the world map. After a while it can start feeling like a grind, especially during long play sessions. This is made worse in the final stretch of the game where you have to fight through 20 consecutive stronghold battles without any story segments or exposition.
Con Unskippable cutscenes disrupt the flow of the gameplay
Every time an orc leader enters the screen, there is an unskippable cutscene where he rambles a bit, focusing the camera on him and halting combat until the cutscene ends. This usually happens as you're fighting another enemy, potentially disrupting your rhythm, which can be really frustrating, especially if mess up your combo or take an unnecessary hit after the cutscene.