Players Mourn Shadow of Mordor Nemesis System as Monolith Closes

Players are mourning the loss of the Nemesis system introduced by Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor following new of Monolith Productions’ closure. Back in 2021, parent company Warner Bros. came under fire for patenting the unique mechanic, which utilizes AI for NPCs to behave according to their prior interactions with the player.

Shadow of Mordor’s Nemesis system remains WB’s property

Although Monolith isn’t the only casualty of WB Games’ latest restructuring, it sticks out the most because of the studio’s 30-year history during which it created franchises like F.E.A.R., Condemned, and Middle-earth games, with Shadow of Mordor being its biggest hit.

Nemesis system was unanimously praised, and following yesterday’s news, every mention of Monolith’s closure comes with the mention of WB’s patent. Unfortunately, the patent was granted, which means that no one can use an iteration of the mechanic in video games until at least 2036, when the patent expires. If WB chooses to renew it, that’s that for the Nemesis system.

The last game to use the mechanic was 2017’s Middle-earth: Shadow of War, which unfortunately did not garner the same reception that its predecessor did. Monolith hadn’t released a game since, but had been working on Wonder Woman, which has been canceled.

The post Players Mourn Shadow of Mordor Nemesis System as Monolith Closes appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.