10 Brilliant Video Games That Surprised Everyone

Since Melbourne House's early Lord Of The Rings text adventures released in the 1980s, the Lord Of The Rings franchise has had a bumpy ride in gaming. The film trilogy's video game adaptations were fun enough, but were short, linear and carried the odour of hacked-out licensed games. A slew of dry real-time-strategy games followed, and aside from successful MMORPG Lord Of The Rings online, nothing lived up to the legendary franchise.

That is until Middle Earth: Shadow Of War. An original story bridging the gap between The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings, the game focused more on uruks and their role in Mordor than the stories of elves, dwarves and wizards. Quite the risk, considering the lack of depth uruks have been afforded previously.

This risk paid off very well indeed, as the game's much-touted Nemesis System presented a nuanced hierarchy full of power struggles, lively characters and that one uruk who would hound you right up until your final confrontation at The Black Gate. It helped that the combat was both visceral and challenging, and made every battle with this endless army of evil goons feel intense and rewarding. Solid proof that an unusual focus and some narrative risks are worth taking in the world of AAA gaming.