11 Ways Monolith Should Have Made Shadow Of War
9. Combat Needs To Be More Fluid
Despite the crunchy finishing moves and stylish decapitations taking centre focus, the actual minute-to-minute combat in Shadow of War isn't as weighty or as visceral as it should be. Swipes of a sword often glide through enemies with little impact, while you can rarely tell how much damage you're doing to an orc even during consecutive strikes.
More than just feeling a little unsatisfying though, the actual brawling's hit detection also needs work. The distance required to strike someone seems to change on a whim, with combos being broken when an attack that should be in range doesn't land or Talion misses wildly despite being inches away from an orc's face.
The combat is still enjoyable when it works, but with very few improvements being made in regards to the feel between the first and second games. Being we're spending so much time pulling off the same animations and combos, nailing the ferocity of sword fights needed to be of the utmost priority.