How the Nemesis System Creates Stories

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The Nemesis System in Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor is a unique villain generator. But in the sequel, Shadow of War, it’s a full on story generator. Here’s how it makes narratives that are interesting, meaningful, and memorable.

Before you watch

Content warning: Blood, Gore, Violence

Sources

[1] 2015 D.I.C.E. Summit – Middle-Earth Shadow of Mordor’s Michael de Plater YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?vy2S0EbUrCy4

[2] Helping Players Hate (or Love) Their Nemesis YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?vp3ShGfJkLcU

[3] Upgrading the Nemesis system for Middle-earth: Shadow of War Gamasutra
https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/305601/Upgrading_the_Nemesis_system_for_Middleearth_Shadow_of_War.php

[4] Nemesis Characters, Nemesis Forts, Social Vendettas And Followers In Computer Games Justia Patents
https://patents.justia.com/patent/20160279522

[5] SEGA Sues Fox, EA over Simpsons Road Rage IGN
https://www.ign.com/articles/2003/12/05/sega-sues-fox-ea-over-simpsons-road-rage

[6] New Batman Game From WB Montreal To Feature Nemesis System With Multiple Factions – Rumor WCCF Tech
https://wccftech.com/new-batman-game-nemesis-system/

[7] Rumor: Harry Potter RPG Gets ‘Dark,’ Uses a ‘Nemesis’ Rival System The Escapist
https://www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/rumor-harry-potter-rpg-gets-dark-uses-a-nemesis-rival-system/

Chapters

00:00 – Intro
01:40 – Orcs Build on Player Actions
03:29 – Going Beyond Death
07:19 – Hierarchies and Relationships
11:15 – Narrative Brickwork
12:13 – Iconic Enemies
14:09 – Strong Emotional Connections
16:30 – More Storytelling Secrets
18:32 – Creating a Story
19:24 – Why isn’t the Nemesis System Used More?
20:59 – Conclusion
21:59 – Patreon Credits

Games Shown

Middle-earth: Shadow of War (2017)
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014)
RimWorld (2013)
Crusader Kings III (2020)
Spec Ops: The Line (2012)
Hades (2020)
Burnout Revenge (2005)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
The Walking Dead: Season One (2012)
Mass Effect 3 (2012)
The Simpsons: Road Rage (2001)
Crazy Taxi (1999)
Batman: Arkham Knight (2015)
Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey (2018)
Watch Dogs: Legion (2020)

Credits

Music from Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War OSTs, property of Warner Bros.

The Simpsons: Road Rage footage from https://www.youtube.com/watch?vD2fBlqGc8aY

Some images from https://thenounproject.com

Subtitles

Contribute translated subtitles – https://amara.org/en-gb/videos/Q5XZRdGV29zy/