Middle-Earth: Shadow Of War Endgame Missions Put Players On The Defensive

Middle-earth: Shadow of War doesn't come out on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One until October, but we're getting a sneak peak at a special endgame mission type, courtesy of Eurogamer.

Shadow Wars is a series of missions available after the game's main story ends (when you've conquered all of Mordor). Sauron's army launches a counter assault against Talion--attacking different regions to re-conquer the fortresses you've won. Eurogamer says the assaults are split into stages and the assaults will get progressively tougher to beat.

Unlike the main campaign in the video above, where players must assault and conquer fortresses, Shadow Wars tasks you with holding capture points until all the attacking warchiefs have been conquered or killed. If you succeed, you get to hold onto your fortress, but if you fail, Sauron gains control and you'll have to retake it. You also may need to embark on a rescue mission to save the orc follower who was acting as Overlord. When players beat all of the stages of Shadow Wars, the game's final ending will play.

Eurogamer also reports this ending will tie Shadow of War's plot directly into Lord of the Rings. It didn't share any details beyond this, so players may have to wait until the game launches on October 10 to see how the stories intertwine. You can read Eurogamer's full article here.

Last week, Warner Bros. and developer Monolith revealed new details about Shadow of War's microtransaction store called the Market, where players can purchase things like loot chests, war chests, XP boosts, and bundles. Monolith has also shared more details about the game's multiplayer, where players can invade each other's captured fortresses and defend their own from similar assaults.