Middle-Earth: Shadow Of Mordor trailer details rune-based upgrade system; US pre-order bonuses confirmed

Monolith Productions’ third-person action RPG set in Middle-earth finally gets a new trailer, with the studio choosing to show off the game’s features, such as weapons and the rune-based upgrade system. The video shows off bits of gameplay including some bloody executions while expanding on the above; the runes – which are dropped by vanquished enemies – provide powerful buffs to Talion’s weapons, which can vary from making opponents vulnerable to stealth takedowns, combat finishers or mounter monsters.

Best of all, one can combine different runes (including rare epic ones) further empowering the ranger’s sword Urfael, his bow Azkar and his dagger Acharn. The clip shows the player dominating an enemy and deliver a death threat to his warchief, prompting the latter to surround himself with numerous guards. Defeating the warchief gets the main character an epic rune allowing him to use fire arrows.

Warner Bros has also announced the US pre-order bonuses for Shadow Of Mordor, which releases on 7 October on the PC, Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One and PS4:

Amazon – Deadly Archer Rune (Talion will deal extra damage when executing ranged headshots against Sauron’s Captains)

Best Buy – Flame of Arnor Rune (Talion can ignite his blade by achieving a high combo count and incinerate his enemies)

GameStop – Captain of the Watch / Hidden Blade Rune (Talion can deal extra damage when executing stealth attacks against Sauron’s Captains)

Steam – Orc Slayer Rune (Talion will decimate Sauron’s Captains with increased damage from special attacks)

Tags: Action, gameplay, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Monolith Productions, PS3, PS4, RPG, third-person, trailer, Warner Bros, XBOX 360, Xbox One